I had been looking forward to a nice golden bagel with cream cheese and lox ever since I got off the plane, so yesterday morning, I jumped out of bed and walked around the corner to Ess-a-Bagel. Ess-a-Bagel has some of the best bagels in town, but at 10am that Sunday morning, the line was so long, I realized I would probably starve to death, before it was my turn.
I therefore decided to try my luck at Russ & Daughters on Lower East Side instead. It turned out to be a bad decision, as the line there was even longer than at Ess-a-Bagel, but the enticing smell of smoked salmon left me with no other reason than to stay.
After 40 minutes I could finally place my order. Instead of just a regular cream cheese and lox, I decided to treat myself to The Generational, which had both smoked salmon and smoked sturgeon. There are no seats inside, so I found a bench nearby and sat down with my bagel deluxe. Maybe it was because I was so hungry, but when I took the first bite, I could have sworn this was the best bagel, I’ve ever had. Soft, slightly chewy and perfectly golden with just the right amount of incredibly creamy cream cheese. Together with the salmon and the smoked sturgeon this was the stuff dreams are made off.
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Russ & Daughters, 179E Houston Street, Lower East Side, New York
