Leon’s Bagels — Restaurant in New York

It was one of those days I was craving a simple, no frills bagel. Black Seed is my go-to but wanted to try something different. Googled the neighborhood expecting nothing new as I explore often and to my surprise Leon's Bagels showed up right down the street - first review I read was "people are starting to find out, there's already a line." I knew I had to pop by and I'm glad I did!

It's a walkup spot with no seating, people were waiting for their orders. I actually loved that about it. I'm big into the details and frequent lots of cafes. There was intention about the aesthetic - how simple it was, from ordering to the menu offerings and designs. You know those places that have way too many options that you don't remember what you wanted in the first place? This is not one of those places thank goodness.

The basket on the wall for everything bagels was empty and I wasn't sure if they had sold out, but the gentleman taking my order said he had more in the back. Make sure to ask! I indulged and ordered the lox sandwich on an everything bagel and waited about 10 minutes for my order, was kindly even offered orange juice or boxed water to go. Paid about $15, a lil pricey but was worth.

Okay about the bagel itself - WOW it tasted like home. It had the right amount of toast and chew with the perfect cream cheese ratio. As much as I want this place to pop off, I want to keep it to myself because of the quality experience I had throughout and I also don't want to be waiting in long lines in the future lol. I think they'd benefit from benches along the side to prevent crowding on the sidewalk. I see this being a neighborhood staple in the years to come. Forsure will be back to try the BEC and...

TLDR; I still think about their bagels. Ooey, gooey, huge, and absolutely delicious.

Food: We ordered an egg everything bagel sandwich (with cheddar, eggs, and sausage) and the same thing on the whole wheat everything. Omg talk about humongous portions! I'm not used to un-shrinkflationed food! You could easily split a bagel sandwich if you're not too hungry. The bagel itself was extremely good. It's not the type that is only good if you heat it up. Even when the sandwich cooled off, it was definitely the most moist, yummy whole wheat bagel I've ever had. The sandwich itself was extremely hot, which made the cheddar (that's some high quality cheddar there) super gooey and hot. It was DELICIOUS. You have to try it!

Service: Quick and friendly. We were first timers and I always have to ask a couple of questions to inform my order, yet I never felt rushed to make a decision. They did make an error on our order by accidentally charging for an extra plain everything bagel (only $2 btw), and they profusely apologized and insisted that we have a free OJ or coffee on them. We wouldn't have even caught the error but super appreciate their kindness and generosity! Also, they have Natalie's OJ for anyone's curious. That's the good stuff right there.

Aesthetic: Is super cozy, clean, and minimalist for the shop. It's not a sit-down by the way, it's just a shop with a window, but still absolutely delicious and worth trying.

Overall 10/10, it's a great spot you have to go to if you're spending a morning...

I haven't left a food review in years, but this place was so bad food-wise. 100% absolutely using thawed, leftover bagels that are soggy/wet on the outside, zero crispiness, and no fluffiness on the inside. Service was great, but not enough to make up for the food quality.

Food: Went on a Tuesday morning and ordered an everything bagel with lox spread, scallion cream cheese, and onions. The sandwich comes out and is toasted, despite not asking for it toasted. No respectable bagel place is going to toast your bagel unless you ask for it, and nearly all of them ask if you want it toasted or not these days.

I ask for a not-toasted bagel and they are kind enough to replace it, and the bagel is among the worst I've had in NY, comparable to the bagels a food cart serves in the morning. Soggy, wet on the outside (you can feel the dampness) and no crispiness or fluffiness. If you've ever left bagels in your fridge for a few days and taken them out, it was exactly that.

Northern Williamsburg close to the park is lacking in a great quality bagel spot, but there are much, much better options nearby. They are toasting their bagels by default because they are using leftover and/or thawed bagels, and charging $15 for it anyway. Not worth it.

Service: The lady taking orders was very kind, didn't hesitate to replace my bagel, and my replaced order came out lightning quick....