New York Dearest
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The Best of New York · Eat · Bagels

Every bagel I’ve tried, ranked.

In my order, from my own visits, updated September 2026. 12 places.

As a local New Yorker, bagels might as well be my middle name. I’ve been eating them almost every morning since I moved to this city and I have opinions. Strong ones. The kind that start arguments at brunch. Because New Yorkers treat bagels like religion and I am fully devout.

I’ve tried dozens and dozens of bagel shops across all five boroughs. Some were transcendent. Some were crimes against bread. And some were fine, which in a city with this much competition is basically the same as bad. So here it is. Every NYC bagel spot I’ve tried, ranked from best to “please don’t waste your time.” Let’s jump in!

Antonina PattizI went to every one · how I decide

Every bagel I’ve tried, ranked, 2026

  1. Russ and DaughtersRestaurant · Lower East SideThey've been open since 1914 and they're still the best, and that's not nostalgia talking.
  2. Absolute BagelsRestaurant · Upper West SideAbsolute Bagels makes what I think is the best actual bagel (just the bread, no toppings) in New York City.
  3. Ess-a-BagelRestaurant · Midtown EastThe cream cheese to bagel ratio here is aggressive in the best possible way.
  4. Murray's BagelsRestaurant · West VillageThese are classically New York bagels.
  5. Tompkins Square BagelsRestaurant · East VillageTompkins Square Bagels is the East Village's answer to the bagel question, and the answer is 'we do things a little differently here.
  6. Kossar's BialysRestaurant · Lower East SideBut their bagels are also excellent.
  7. Frankel's DelicatessenRestaurant · Greenpoint, BrooklynFrankel's is a modern Jewish deli that does everything well, and their bagels are no exception.
  8. Zucker's BagelsRestaurant · TriBeCaZucker's flies under the radar compared to some of the bigger names on this list, and I think that's unfair.
  9. Pop Up BagelsRestaurant · VariousThe everything bagel with scallion cream cheese is objectively excellent.
  10. H&H BagelsRestaurant · Upper West SideI like them but I don't go out of my way for them anymore.
  11. Tal BagelsRestaurant · Upper East SideTal is what I'd call a reliable neighborhood bagel shop.
  12. Bagel PubRestaurant · Park Slope, BrooklynBagel Pub is Park Slope's neighborhood champion and it does everything right without doing anything spectacular.

On the map

Where they are.

10 neighborhoods, Lower East Side and Upper West Side most of all.

Lower East Side

Upper West Side

East Village

Greenpoint, Brooklyn

Midtown East

Park Slope, Brooklyn

TriBeCa

Upper East Side

Various

West Village

Every bagel I’ve tried, ranked, 2026

The seal

If you're on this list, this is yours.

I went, and I said in my own words that it's worth your time. Nobody paid for that and nobody can. The seal says so, and it links back here, so anyone who sees it reads the whole list and how I decide.

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Every bagel I’ve tried, ranked, New York Dearest, 2026

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The full guide, with the ones that didn't make it and why: Every NYC Bagel I’ve Tried, Ranked.