peanut butter
chocolate chip chunky (chocolate chip, raisins and nuts)
blueberry/lemon
Ilawthan coconut, pineapple, and nim extract)
namon raisin and banana nut. Quite a far cry
from the days when purists considered the egg
bagel a gross adulteration and the poppy seed a
radical — nay, revolutionary — topping.
Perhaps nothing better illustrated this phe-
nomenon than the comments of a Jewish food
critic a few years ago in the pages of the Wash-
ington Post. Praising the bagels of a local deli-
catessen as "by far the best in town," she cited
the "light, airy texture and the delicate crumb,
reminiscent of French bread."
rolls and French bread. That's why, even though
Jews still eat a lot of bagels, those bagels bear
less and less resemblance to the traditional bread
their grandparents knew on the Lower East Side.
Today, bagels come disguised in the flavors of
Froot Loops and the colors of polyester leisure
suits.
According to USA Today, bagels are now
America's most popular breakfast bread, sur-
passing biscuits, English muffins, and even toast
by a wide margin. Last year, Americans spent
more than $103 million on fresh-baked bagels.
That's a 29 percent increase over 1992, and that
figure doesn't even take into account the frozen
and pre-packaged varieties available in every
supermarket.
After plain, which remains the most popular
variety, today's best-selling bagel flavors are cin-
Mommy, Where Do Bagels
Come From?
Well, kinderleh, once upon a time — in 1683,
to be precise — there lived a humble Jewish bak-
er in Vienna, Austria. That year, the Turks lay
siege to Vienna. Their attack failed, however,
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RUTH LITTMANN STAFF WRITER
Steven Wachsberg entered the bagel biz when he was 16
years old. Now, he and family members own Brothers Bagel
and Deli in Troy. They go through 15,000 pounds of dough
a week.
"And we're just a small-time outfit," Mr.
Wachsberg says.
Howard Goldsmith, an owner of New York
Bagel Baking Company, uses 40,000 pounds
of flour a week to produce up to 5,200 dozen bagels
each day.
Still the question remains: Is there any dough
bagels?
:7 in National
companies like Kraft Foods and
Sara Lee Kitchens have done well in the
/
frozen bagel market. Even Burger King
cashed in on the bagel's far-reaching appeal
with its breakfast bagel sandwiches.
Locally, bagel mavens like Mr. Wachsberg and Mr.
Goldsmith say business is good. New York Bagel Baking
Company operates four stores in metro Detroit. Brothers
Bagel and Deli is opening a new operation on Northwest-
ern Highway this October.
Clientele extends across ethnic lines.
"It's not just a Jewish food," Mr. Wachsberg says. "Na-
tional ad campaigns (for Lenders, etc.) really helped to make
the general consumer more aware of the bagel. Most of my
clients are non-Jews. We're not in a Jewish area, but our
sales took off from day one."
People in various parts of metro Detroit enjoy different
bagel flavors. The most popular types in Mr. Goldsmith's
Ferndale store are raisin and salt. In West Bloomfield, pa-
trons are partial to egg and plain.
Then there's the "everything bagel," a maverick blend of
spices and seeds — poppy, onion, garlic, caraway, sesame
— you name it. It's a specialty among Florida vacationers
and both Mr. Wachsberg and Mr. Goldsmith have added
the flavor to their repertoire of round delectables.
The bagel market is healthy money-wise and fitness-
wise, the owners say. Manyvarieties are no-fat, no-choles-
terol, no-oil and high in carbohydrates.
"They're a health food," Mr. Goldsmith says. 'That's ap-
pealing to people these days."
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