KEEP ‘EM BAGELS ROLLIN’ (Rolen Bagels)

My search for the best bagels in New York continues….

Now that the weather is nice, I thought it might be fun to take a trip to the New York Botanical Gardens in the Bronx. Believe it or not, I like nature too from time to time. But it has to be bookended with food, of course.

So since we were headed to the northernmost borough, I thought I’d do some research to see if there were any must-see bagel spots to check out. Only two really kept popping up in my search and both are in the residential neighborhood of Riverdale. This wasn’t too surprising since there is a big Jewish population here and it’s also where I discovered some great corned beef and pastrami from Liebman’s.

Rolen Bagels sounded less generic than Bagel Corner, although the more research I did, it turns out these two spots may be owned by the same people. Rolen is also the kosher option of the two. So we rolled up to Rolen.

We got a late start (what else is new?) so by the time we arrived to Rolen, they were getting ready to close in about an hour. I saw an empty shelf with names of bagel options. Could we have missed the bagels? The guy behind the counter told us they still had bagels. But they must not have been displayed. The shelf I was noticing also didn’t seem to have any place for the bagels to lay. Not sure if they dismantle it every night or if it’s an old unit.

Regardless, we ordered a plain bagel and an everything. Since it was Sunday afternoon, I decided to order lox cream cheese instead of my usual plain. It just felt like the right thing to do.

Of course, neither bagel was hot any longer. This is what happens when you come an hour before closing. I found the plain bagel still a bit soft, but the inside was cakey and airy rather than dense and chewy. It also had a very subtle chlorine flavor on the finish. Could the water be much different up here in the Bronx? It wasn’t completely off-putting, but since I close my eyes and let the flavors linger in my mouth (sounds so lame, I know), I noticed something just a bit off.

The everything bagel was light on the toppings, but the texture was a little better. The lox cream cheese also helped cover up any aftertaste. The cream cheese was much lighter than usual – it felt more like the whipped variety rather than the regular dense plain stuff. The lox were fine – it added a bit of saltiness and made me feel like it was Sunday morning.

I can see why Rolen Bagels is a neighborhood favorite. It’s definitely classier than most corner bodegas with cute sitting areas, a warm ambiance, and a convenient suburban location. Convenient if you live in the Bronx. If I lived here, I’m sure I’d make it well before closing. Although knowing me, I might just sleep through it.

Does Rolen Bagel’s have the best bagels in NY? It was a little unfair of me to come so late, but the two that I tried were nothing terribly special. The Everything could have used a better placement of toppings and the plain needed some cream cheese to cover up the sourness. Still, they get a 6 out of 10.