(bright swing music)
- If there's one thing that we New Yorkers hold dear,
it's our bagels.
But I live in LA now and the bagels aren't horrible.
So what is it about a New York bagel?
Are they really that much better than LA bagels?
Is it the recipe?
The water?
Is it just plain nostalgia?
Well I came to the Bagel Broker in LA to find out.
(big band like music)
What specific qualities should someone
look for in a great bagel?
- The first experience should be a nice, good crunch
and it should get softer and softer
as you get to the middle of the bagel.
And the ingredients and the flavor
is a big thing that you gotta work with.
- A lot of people would say that LA bagels,
not as good as New York bagels.
- That would be a statement made by New Yorkers
but I think it's just been ingrained in New Yorkers' heads
from when they were children that bagels are New York
and pizza is New York.
Nothing compares.
- To test this theory
I need to get six bagels
I picked up LA bagels from the Bagel Broker,
Noah's New York Bagels, and Sam's Bagels.
Got the last of the LA Bagels.
Then I had bagels shipped from my childhood bagel place,
Bagel Boss, in New York.
Now, six New Yorkers are going to see
if they can choose the New York Bagel.
- What are we looking at here?
- That, aesthetically, is very pleasing to me
but I realize it's just melted cheese on top.
- Flat. Kind of a weird texture.
- There should be a very tiny hole here,
but the fact that I can see through both of these
like eye goggles, not good.
Not a New York bagel.
- Oh, you can smell the jalapenos in this one.
- Yeah it's pretty
- I like a lot of cream cheese on my bagels.
- Me too. My grandma like,
"That's a nice, healthy schmear of cream cheese."
- This has LA bagel written all over it.
- I mean, I'm eating it, but it's not that great.
- It's edible, but it's not New York.
- Agreed. 100% agreed.
Ok.
What?
So these are shriveled.
- Are these cranberries and rye seeds or something?
- The hole here
is a little bit smaller. - Ah there we go!
- See, I can't really put my finger through it that time.
- It seems like the New York bagel is something that
like, really can't be bleeped with, you know?
I don't know that they're about introducing
new, kooky flavors.
- Oh my God, even trying to rip it apart is awful.
- It feels cold and sad.
- I feel cold in my bleeping soul.
- Do you think it's a New York bagel?
- Oh man, I don't know.
I feel like I have to taste all of them and then decide.
- I know.
- These seem very LA to me.
- You can just look at it and know that it was made in LA.
- I don't think this is a New York bagel.
- Why're you eating more of it?
- I don't, because I'm upset.
- This is an egg bagel and this is definitely
a New York bleeping bagel.
- What?
- What is that?
- See how, see how wide this is?
This is what a New York bagel is.
- These raisins are weird.
- It's got that fluffy feel to it.
You can smell it from afar.
- Different colored raisins? I don't know.
- This reminds me of breaking fast at Yom Kippur.
- It's better. - It's better.
- The flavor of the seeds are definitely
coming through after as an after taste.
- That actually tastes pretty good though.
- There's a density.
- It's alive.
- I'm choking up it's so good.
- I'm gonna wing towards New York.
- I don't know - Weird
- The raisins alone will make me say no, it's from LA.
- I'm not ready to say that this is from New York though.
- That makes me homesick for New York.
I miss New York really badly.
- This one looks promising.
- I'm suddenly doubting everything I said about
the other bagels.
- This is it, I can just feel my tongue tingling.
- Together.
- Look at that.
- Together.
- Those raisins look normal.
- And I like the swirl.
- Size, look at that, squishiness.
- See, small holes.
- There's like no comparison.
- It's got the look, it's got the feel,
there's something just a little bit off
that I can't put my finger on.
- None of these are really, like, jumping out at me
as the bagel of my childhood.
- I really thought that the one before was
the New York bagel.
But this could be a New York bagel as well.
But it might be an impostor.
- What I'm saying is that the last bagel
is a New York bagel.
- This swirl is telling me something.
I'm gonna have to go with the last one too.
- Number three.
- Yeah I go with Zo with three.
Three is a New York bagel.
- I'm going with three. Please tell me I'm right.
- I'm nervous. I'm nervous.
- Bleep.
- Whaaaat?
- Yes!
- Oh my God, I'm so happy!
- Really?
- My grandmother is turning over in her grave.
- What happened to it in travel, man?
- LA bagels just aren't the same.
When you're eating a New York bagel you just know.
- Mhm.
- You just know.
(bright, happy jig music)