Kismet Bagels - Fishtown — Restaurant in Philadelphia

Writing this from the perspective of a professional chef and baker for 10+ years as well as being originally from New York City:

Folks, these are not good bagels. These people must have dirt on the mayor to have this much success this quickly. The 2 stars are only for the wonderful employees and aesthetics/brand marketing. Really terrific from that standpoint. The bagels themselves are another story. I tried the sesame, everything, cinnamon raisin, poppy, and The Spicy sandwich on Salt. They all shared the same issues: dull taste, tough texture, tight crumb (the airy appearance, or lack there of in this case, of the dough when you slice into it), and lack of that traditional “bagel smell”.

Taste- probably lack of both salt and barley malt syrup (a sweetener that helps give bagels their smell and color). They also use a mix of wheat flour in all their bagels, which can add an almost cardboard like taste.

Texture/Crumb- Could be caused by a number of things like over proofing, boiling dough too long before final bake, the wheat flour (which drys doughs out that don’t have enough water), or improper bagel shaping (if you don’t build enough tension in the dough before baking, it will not rise very much). They also lack the crisp outer shell good bagels have which could be baking at too low a temperature; but this may be because baking at a higher temperature with dough this tight would produce a product that’s burnt and even tougher.

Smell- Lack of the barley syrup (maybe they just use white sugar?), and the wheat flour can also overpower familiar bagel smells.

I’d also avoid Spread Bagels, as they’re just as bad but don’t have the great customer service of Kismet.

If you want a great example of exceptional bagel and are near West Philly, please check out “New York Bagel Bakery”. They’re cheaper and their picture is attached.

*Edit- Response to Kismet’s reply below:

I never claimed y’all “duped” anyone.

All I did was give an honest critique of a baked product based on my experience. If a product has problems, people should hear about them. That’s what reviews are for. These bagels are relatively expensive compared to others, and higher priced items attract more in depth criticism.

And like you said, plenty of people love them so good for them. But there are always those on the fence about something or don’t think bagels could ever be better than this. That review was for those people.

You guys even say on your website you got the recipe off the internet, so I don’t know why you’re taking such offense over someone...

Edit 4/11/24 - Jacob from Kismet reached out immediately (as can be seen in the below reply) with some added insight. I visited again and he and his staff went over and beyond to make things right!

I like Kismet and have been frequenting the shop since it opened and have bought their bagels even before the shops.

The bagels are decent - they’re not as good as NJ/NYC bagels (too chewy), but they’re currently the best in the neighborhood (the best was at a different shop that has since closed, unfortunately). But the sandwiches are very good.

Unfortunately, I was a bit disappointed in the sandwich (a “Fish”) I got this morning. In particular, the salmon and cream cheese were both really sparse. I’ve probably ordered this sandwich over a dozen times, and it used to always have a good amount of salmon. It was my go-to, because it was a great, tasty, and high-protein option. This morning, there was a single layer of salmon that blended in with the tomato.

I’m not sure if it was due to inconsistent portioning on the line or if they’re now skimping on ingredients.

—

My other (minor, petty) complaint js related to an awkward encounter from a few weeks ago. I went 15min before closing and ordered four loose bagels (for breakfast the next morning).

Because they were closing, they asked if I just wanted six instead. Shame on me for assuming, but I thought the implication was that they’d throw in an extra two.

Unfortunately, I was charged for six, and walked away feeling like I had been upsold, at a bagel shop of all places. They did throw in a seventh for free, but despite a slight price break for a half dozen, I paid more for six than I would have for four and ended up with more bagels than I needed.

The whole thing could’ve inspired a Curb Your...

I've been on an eternal quest for the best bagel. Kismet is the best thing that's happened to Philly. There's some kind of magic in their bagels.

Bagels: I've tried the everything, the rosemary sea salt, zatar, the cinnamon raisin, jalapeño, and blueberry. Now I've always been an everything girl, but the blueberry and zatar are major standouts! These are flavors that are different than the usual. There's just something about the perfect texture, crunchy outside but chewy center, so good.

Smears: I've tried the golden, zhug, spicy everything and plain. The spicy everything is to die for, literally I put it on all the things. Also, the zhug is something I've never had before but immediately fell in love with.

Sammies: I am biased here because I love the spicy and I keep going back to that because it has all the elements I need: spicy smear, zhug, egg, cheese, bacon. It's a hangover cure, a wake up cure, just want a pick me up cure lol.

Other stuff: the shop is super cute, and you can order online on weekdays. Weekend lines can be long but it's so good and worth the wait. Trust me, it is. Also, it's a small, local business, so you can be proud to support Jake, Alex and Jude. They are incredibly nice people!!! They love their customers, they love each other and they love bagels. If you haven't read their story, you need to. That alone will make you want to buy the bagels. I can't wait for the new shop to open tbd, and Bialy stand in reading terminal. I'll update this review with pics and with new...