A Bagel that Curled My Toes: Zatz

[425media]

Ok, so I am not a “foodie” so to speak, however I do like good food. But this morning when I was hanging out at the laundry mat with my welfare case friend Eric, I went over to Zatz Bagel right there across from the Admiral Theater. I had a plain toasted bagel with their Toasted Coconut cream cheese. HOLY $%#$*% IT WAS AWESOME.. I thought to myself, this is the best GD bagel I have ever had. The plain bagel was really soft and crispy in the right places. I could taste little pieces of coconut in the cream cheese. SERIOUSLY, this was the best bagel I have had in a long time. I WILL be going back. Their website is here: http://zatzabetterbagel.com/

[cjboffoli]

Sorry. But I can’t roll with any bagel place that has artificial blueberry and chocolate chip bagels on their menu.

[425media]

I have not tried either of those, but the one I had this morning was off the chain.. omg. Awesome.

[datamuse]

In theory I’m with cjboffoli but in this part of the country I’ll take what I can get…the ones at the WS Produce Market are good too.

[Gina]

I doubt those varieties would be available without a demand for them. A lesson in how to stay in business.

Those plain bagels are mighty tasty.

[cjboffoli]

Tabloid newspapers wouldn’t exist without a demand for them. It doesn’t mean that they’re good.

[JanS]

to each his own…don’t like them? don’t buy them…simple…

[cjboffoli]

That’s right Jan. Defend mediocrity. West Seattle doesn’t deserve better, right?

[AlkiKmac]

let me mediate….cbof…the only expert on taste in west seattle. JanS…always right. no one wins this debate, if that’s what this is.

[cjboffoli]

AlkiKmac: Not exactly mediation to take a cheap shot at me, someone you don’t know. Certainly, no one ever went out of business underestimating the taste level of the American public. If there’s a debate put me on the side of advocating for a higher standard. Life is way too short to eat crappy bread.

[JanS]

alkikmac..I am not always right, never professed to be…but, just as post 9 is your opinion, #7 is mine.

Christopher…I feel that way about any business. Mediocrity is in the eye of the beholder? You may think it’s mediocre, others may think it’s the best thing they’ve ever had…it’s totally up to them, not you, I’m thinking…

[AlkiKmac]

1st thought that comes to mind…Ovio. great food. but a business that went out of business overestmating the taste level of ws public. great food….well priced for what it was. so..yes, it happens

[evergreen]

You are all getting so complicated, people.

425, I’m going to try the coconut cream cheese bagel.

[WSB]

Disclosure, Zatz is a WSB sponsor. And a very community-minded business, too, donating bagels to a variety of causes and events.

We are longtime fans otherwise – especially of the Fiesta bagel, a breakfast and snack favorite of one member of the household, and we are glad Zatz is carried at West Seattle Thriftway (another sponsor), which is closer to us for a quick run down the hill.

I did want to ask 425 to please confirm that she/he is not representing Zatz, as there is another local business they have posted about without disclosing (except in their profile, which isn’t enough to qualify as following the rules) their affiliation. We try very hard (with the assistance of eagle-eyed members) to keep this a place where you can trust rants and raves are not coming from people with an undisclosed stake in the matter – and we do our best to set an example by identifying WSB sponsors as such when we mention them, even in as innocuous a context as the events calendar. – TR

[425media]

I am in no way affiliated with Zatz. I just love the toasted coconunt cream cheese on that toasted plain bagel and had no idea that they were a sponsor of WSB. And I will say it again… It was the best bagel I ever had… and yes, I am sure there are better out there, but I haven’t had one.

[425media]

… Thanks Evergreen.

[Jeanine]

AlkiKmac, Ovio went out of business because the chef died, and then later the owners divorced.

[Myr-myr]

If Eltana Bagels (Capitol Hill) opened a satellite bakery here I’d be in deep trouble. Chacun a son gout!

[csw2119]

If something curled someone toes, I have to try that!!!! Sounds delicious!

[johnnyblegs]

I’m with cjboffoli, blueberries and coconut have no place in a bagel IMO, but I do like Zatz bagels. It’s no NY style but it’s still good considering the options we have.

Myr-myr: yes. Eltana is the bomb.

[datamuse]

In my experience, the only way to get NY style is to go to New York.

Hmm.

I haven’t been there in awhile…

[Sue]

WSB, thank you for asking about a 425/Zatz connection – I’ll be honest and admit that I hard time believing this was a legit rave because of the “raves” he/she has given for businesses that they represent in the past.

As for food preferences, a little girl once told me a wise statement: “if everyone liked the same thing, the mall would be very small.” Same thing applies here – we won’t all like the same thing. I’m not all that impressed with Zatz, but that doesn’t mean they suck – it just means I don’t buy them and leave more for everybody else. And Eltana … had the displeasure of trying them last week and though it was the worst bagel I’d ever had. I even tried a second flavor to see if I got a bad one. Nope. But, I acknowledge that many people love them (the office staff went crazy over them when they arrived), and would never presume to say your taste sucks because you do. Yes, I’m a New Yorker, and every bagel I eat goes through the filter of my favorite bagels growing up. But New York bagels aren’t “better” than others – it’s just what I grew up loving and associating with a “good bagel.”

[Cait]

I absolutely adore Zatz and now that I know they have a toasted coconut cream cheese, I need to go back and sample it. Thanks for the recommendation, 425, especially since I was at a loss for what to have for dinner tonight just as I saw this! :)

[csw2119]

I like Einstein Bagels too. Are there any in Seattle?

[cjboffoli]

Sue: It isn’t simply that NY bagels taste better because that is what you knew first. Those bagels taste better because someone cares enough to make them taste that way.

In order to produce those delicious NY bagels, with just the right amount of chewiness, you need to take the time to proof them properly. Usually up to 10-12 hours. And then you need to boil them, which involves a lot more labor because you have to remove them from the proofing trays to boil them and then put them back on the trays to bake them. Bakeries that don’t take those steps, that steam the bagels on the same tray they’re baked on, are making a cheaper, inferior product and passing it off to customers who don’t know any better but who definitely deserve better than they’re getting.

Everyone seems so well-practiced in being politically correct and in pretending like there is no absolute good or bad, only a matter of opinion or perspective. That’s surely a lot more polite and comfortable but it’s total crap. And that point of view certainly doesn’t provide any incentive for making things better. If you want to live in a world of “good enough” then that’s totally up to you. But I happen to believe there is value in celebrating the things that are infused with love and passion and calling out the things that aren’t.

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