Since I am currently living just a stone’s throw away from Brick Lane in East London, I thought that it s very important that I explore all the food hot-spots along it before I am cast out into the suburbs and begin living in a culturally desolate wasteland. Whilst Brick Lane is probably most famous for its curry shops, this 24 hour Jewish bagel shop comes a close second.
This place is a real staple of the Eastend, back when I lived in this area around 16 years ago we would often grab a bagel on the way home back to Stepney Green after partying in the bars of Shoreditch. I was pleased to see that the shop has hardly changed at all, although I was seeing it for the first time in day light. We arrived to find it reasonably empty. The counters are filled with cakes and breads, whilst the board on the wall gives you a rundown of all the bagel fillings. I was thrilled find that all the prices remained low, a rarity in what is now one of the most expensive streets in the area.
The most famous bagel to get is the Salt Beef Beigel (£4.50). Order at the counter where they slice up the beef to order, shove it in a beigel and then ask if you want mustard and pickle, trust me you want both. It is then tossed it in a brown paper bag and you’re good to go. There is no seating inside, though there is a counter to lean against and get a few snaps of your bagel. On the first bite you get an overwhelming flavour of salt, however once you get a bit of the fiery mustard and sour pickle it is soon balanced out. The beef itself is very tender, and the bagel is it is housed in so fresh and chewy. It is a great combination.
Not content with one beigel I also decided to try the muster of the New York staple, the Cream Cheese Beigel (£1.40). Damn was this good, although nowhere near as fancy as the New York counterpart. There were no bells and whistles on this baby. There’s only plain cream cheese, not the flavours that you can get in New York, but it was absolutely divine none the less. The bagel spoke for itself, and whist the cream cheese wasn’t super thick, it was more than enough. For the bargain price of £1.40 it was unbeatable, and it is only an extra 80p if you want to make it fancy by adding smoked salmon.
Overall I loved returning to Beigel Bake, the bagels were just as good as I remembered if not better. I’ll be hitting it up on a regular basis whilst we are still living in the area. The bagels are only 30p each, so you can always get some to go and add your own toppings at home. If you come over to this side of town it is not to be missed.
Beigel Bake is located at 159 Brick Ln, Shoreditch, London E1 6SB. The nearest train station is Shoreditch High street. For more information you can call them on 071-729-0616. They are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.