#flagel

Dear Hubby was a devotee of the NYC bagel institution H&H  on the Upper West Side ("UWS H&H").  I was not a great fan, finding UWS H&H bagels too sweet for my taste.  But tiring of Dear Hubby's wailing remorse about the loss of UWS H&H - which was years ago mind you - I visited H&H Bagels East (H&H East) on 2nd Ave. between 80 & 81 streets.  (Ironically, UWS H&H and H&H East were in no way connected; in fact the two independent operations carried on a name/brand dispute for several years before UWS H&H closed.)

In search of a bagel that would fill the void left by H&H UWS, I hoofed it 4 avenues and 10 streets outta my way - hoping that sweet bagel lightning might, please, strike twice.  

  The smell of fresh bagels hit me at the door;  I salivated shamelessly like one of Pavlov's conditioned dogs.  Like most current bagel shops, they offered deli, non-bagel baked goods like danish and muffins, and seating: but such is the standard for modern bagel retailing.

To my relief, the bagels weren't nearly as sweet as UWS H&H - but were sweeter than those of many I've encountered on my bagel quest.  H&H East's bagels were also softer than bagels used to be - but so be it, since this is 2014, not 1964.  

Hoping to duplicate the crustier, chewier product of my aging memories, I tried a flat bagel (also known as a "flagel"): a flattened bagel that has less interior but more surface area, which allows more browning, and (to my preference) a more satisfying chew.    

Over a dinner of bagels & lox, the entire family was satisfied.  Dear Hubby got a sweeter bagel than he's had recently.  From my Everything flat bagel, I got more jaw-pleasing chewiness than puffy bagels offer.  And Dear Teen, wolfed it down too fast to taste.  They were good untoasted: the trademark of a good, fresh bagel.

Would I schlep from the outer boroughs to the Upper East Side for H&H East again?  Not likely.  But the neighborhood is quite fortunate to have its own fresh & reliable bagel shop (which my own neighborhood doesn't).