Zabar’s
“I've tried their cafe option and shopped in their grocery store and I legitimately couldn't decide on what I wanted.”
“Well, now that I'm in town, I'm making sure to visit you in your home and bring back some cinnamon babka & rugelach.”
“Every chance I get I stop by get my goodies and sit and people watch in the Upper West Side.”
Zabar’s
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Accepts Apple Pay: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Caters: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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This is a review for the cafe only, and only for the bagel and coffee.
I initially accidentally wandered into the grocery store and found the bakery section, asked for a bagel and cream cheese and was ushered outside to the cafe entrance next door. Once there, I was greeted kindly and after placing my order was informed that they only have scallion or plain cream cheese. Just 2 cream cheese options, no lite/non-fat options of either.
The bagel w/cream cheese was actually pretty cheap compared to most places in the city. And with regards to the bagel, you are getting what you pay for. After opening the bag in my apartment, I was surprised to see a tub of cream cheese next to my bagel that I had to spread myself. Ok, not a big deal. The bagel itself had a visual look of a good bagel, but the taste/texture was not anything special. I was surprised and took each bite with a newly refreshed frame of mind, because for some reason there is a legion of people who rave about Zabar's. But about 1/3 of the way through the bagel my initial reaction was confirmed. This was indeed just a grocery-store bought bagel, I felt like I could have gotten the same dry bagel from any big box grocery store in Mid-America. It wasn't horrible, but didn't have a really fresh taste either. Not sure what the all the hype is about, but there are a good number of other Yelpers who I think had the same Bagel-experience as I did.
BAGEL SCORE: 2/5. Depending on what you are looking for, these bagels could leave a lot to be desired. From the deli part of Zabar's, they only offer plain or scallion cream cheese. it is in a separate tub for you to slather yourself. The bagel itself is really just ok. It is dry and has a texture more breadloaf-like than bagel-like. The dough has an unnaturally sweet taste as well. It is also not that fresh-tasting. The plus is the cheaper cost.
I wanted to see what all the fuss is about so I ventured in here on a Sunday afternoon for lunch. We went to the deli right next door to the grocery store. I had the bagel with cream cheese and lox. It was premade and wrapped up on ice on a counter. They told me that they don't make them fresh and they don't toast the bagels. While I found this extremely weird and was very skeptical, my bagel was delicious. The bagel itself was just a normal NYC bagel but the lox were soft, creamy, and extremely, extremely good. My boyfriend really liked his toasted (yes, they toast bread just not bagels!?) pastrami sandwich. They had a ton of other food too that seemed very good. You really can't go wrong here. There are tables but it's hard to get a seat so I'd recommend planning on take out or standing while eating outside. Worth checking out, it's an UWS staple. The grocery store next door looked amazing as well.
I could start and stop with the Zabar's cheese counter. It has an awesome selection; and there are always good values. My favorite part of Zabar's is the salmon counter. If you love smoked salmon, watching this row of men work will woo you. We often get the Pullman loaves here. The country sour dough comes in at a close second. On the rare occasion, I dream of their marbled rye. Zabar's coffee is rumored to be the best of the neighborhood; whole beans or ground. Every now and then, you might be surprised to see who is packing your rotisserie chicken or meatloaf. Enjoy! If you happened to have forgotten your copper double boiler at the country house, and can't start your famous soufflé with out … don't worry. You'll find everything you need right here.
I love Zabar's, especially because the first thing you see when you walk in is the cheese counter for which overflowing is an understatement. They have gourmet ravioli selections right there and practically every cheese you'd want lying out. However, feel free to ask the people behind the counter for a taste of the even more luxurious cheese and order a half a pound. I love coming here.
It's so dangerous that this place is so good, and it's only a few blocks away from my church. Came in twice around 9am and the line snaked around the restaurant, with the communal tables in the middle packed full with people! They have dairy and refrigerated meals and bagels and sandwiches at the end, and a whole spread of pastries.
I LOVE the toasted onion bagel with cream cheese. It has such a satisfying crunch to it, and it reminds me of Asian shallots! The rugelach is also delicious though I don't pretend to be an expert and to be honest every rugelach I've tasted so far has been great. Last time I came, I ordered a bagel & 2 raspberry rugelach for the bf and it was $5 in total. I usually go to Absolute Bagels since its nearer to campus but I think I actually prefer these toasted onion ones – they feel lighter too, as you slather on your own cream cheese.
Can't wait to try the babka next!!
Yeah, aside from the name, there are many places in and around NYC to find better appetizers, i.e. chopped liver, whitefish salad, herring, lox, etc.
We had them cater our seder this year and the general consensus was that pretty much everything was just "ok." The whitefish salad, while fresh, is made w/ too much mayo, the chopped liver is bland, the herring's not bad and the lox is decent.
So many better delis on lower east side.
Zabar's is not your typical bagel stop. They are a full on grocery store/deli with a great bagel shop inside.
I only came to try their bagels. I ordered and got my bagel within 2 minutes. They have bar seating to eat.
Everything Bagel w/ Cream Cheese – $1.75 – Good everything bagel, toppings on top were a little less then normal. Toasted nice and it was crispy from the toast but still soft and chewy. The cream cheese was creamy.
Zabars is to the Upper West Side of Manhatten and it's residents (and I know for a fact that Upper East siders slip over there as well) as chocolate and vanilla icing is to a Black and White [cookie] as mustard and sauerkraut is to a NY hot dog and as cream and sugar is to a "regular" coffee. It's not just a Landmark, but also an institution that defines and is defined by the community it has proudly served with wonderful NY deli foods for over 80 years.
Are there other places to go these days for good deli, sure. Are they Zabars…NO, and certainly not for a wide variety of smoked hand sliced sliced, salmon, nova, sturgeon, whitefish and a growing variety of fresh fish salads. (Chunky Whitefish salad being my favorite). Their house brand caviar is also legendary.
The people delicately and thinly slicing the $40/50/60 lb. Specialty Fish are true masters as they perform their craft each day under the watchful eye and close scrutiny of their viciously demanding customers, many of whom have been getting their fish sliced the same way for decades if not generations. Lox that is not sliced to a certain thinness standard (god forbid if it's too thick) is sure to be a topic of conversation either at the brunch or around town afterwards!
All the other classic and authentic Jewish deli favorites can be found there along with delicious deli meats (fresh pastrami, corned beef, etc. ).
Whenever you go to someone's house for brunch and you tell them you stopped at Zabars beforehand, their eyes will light up with anxious anticipation as to what delicacy awaits them.
An institution and one of the best delis with the best quality smoked fish, meats and other goodies in the planet.