Rubinstein Bagels — Restaurant in Redmond

Updated Review. 5~ months later. Was there today 2/6/2024

Erin a nice young lady working as the leader there today, has exceptional customer service, really cared about our previous experience, and even comped us our food and drinks since last time (old review below).

Give Erin a raise and bonus, and more power/control/input she is saving your company one customer at a time.

The recipe for their bagels has changed, they listened to their customers, and the bagels have greatly improved. They are a bit larger, not as 'tight', and the right consistency when you bite, pull, and chew.

For your additional staff, empower them. Give them additional / more frequent trainings (not just once a year / upon hire) to ensure high standards of quality at every sale. Instill the love of good food and good coffee. Happy Chef, Happy Food. Lift them up and show them its not just a job.

Edit/Update your website, remove the Duck Fat Matzo Ball Soup if you aren't going to sell it (although we did want it)

Additional Ideas: Highly recommend carrying hot broths as another option for people to sip if you are scratching the duck matzo. Carrying organic bone broths would be a killer option as well if you want to go a bit off menu. It has been making a big splash lately, lots of health benefits.

Additional Feedback: Stabilize the window counter seating structurally. The entire long table/counter top vibrates/shakes/moves too easily for just two people sitting at it. Place cups of coffee across the table, attempt to cut a bagel with a fork and knife and you will see what I mean.

Old review. Been here twice, first time, no bagels, no customer service follow up in person, "please come back tomorrow", "were sorry heres a free drip coffee" nothing.

Second time, a few weeks ago, two lox double downs. Bagel selection very limited in the afternoon (130pm). Spent over 33 dollars. Not worth it. Old/wet tomato slices. Not enough accoutrements (capers, red onion, etc). Bagels match what everyone is saying. Super hard and chewy, you may lose a tooth.

We won't be returning. Would either go to Blazin Bagels, or just buy a quality organic grocery brand (like Dave's) and make them...

We decided to give Rubenstein Bagels a try for takeout. My partner asked about the service charge when he went to pay when it prompted for a tip and he was told they removed it, although the online menu still said it exists as of this morning. So hopefully they listened to all the feedback and leave the service charge off. I personally would rather the displayed pricing for items be at a rate required for them to run their business and would rather pay a slightly higher sticker price then be forced to pay a service charge that solely goes to the company. What's the point of that?

I enjoyed my sandwich. I got the egg and avocado and added bacon on a sesame seed bagel. The bagel was big and chewy on the outside but soft in the middle. There was a generous amount of avocado and bacon. It was a smidge greasy but I didn't mind. I really liked the scallions, they added a nice touch.

We also ordered a poppyseed bagel, toasted with butter and that was not as great. It's like the bagel was made completely differently than the sesame seed bagel. It was smaller, extremely dense, and the poppyseeds didn't even stick to the top. It looked like they took a really sad bagel and just sprinkled some seeds on top. I don't know what happened to that bagel but they didn't even add the butter or give us some on the side. So overall, the sandwich was great and I'll get it again assuming the poppyseed bagel issue was a fluke and their usual bagels are like...

Rubinstein bagels in Redmond? Oh, honey, you're walking into a carb-fueled wonderland.

Prepare to be overwhelmed, in the best possible way. I swear, they have more bagel varieties than I have excuses for skipping the gym. Everything from your classic everything to...well, let's just say some combinations that would make a purist clutch their pearls. But hey, variety is the spice of life, or in this case, the sesame seed on your cinnamon raisin.

The vibe? It's like a sunshine-filled hug. Bright, airy, and buzzing with the happy chatter of people about to devour a mountain of dough. It's the kind of place where you can happily judge someone's bagel choice without them noticing, because you're too busy debating between a salt bagel and a poppy seed. A serious life decision, people.

And the bagels themselves? Forget those sad, dense rings you get at the grocery store. These are the real deal. Chewy, fluffy, and so gloriously substantial, you could use one as a small, edible pillow. I'm pretty sure I saw someone trying to hug one. They were that good.

So, if you're looking for a bagel experience that's less "breakfast" and more "religious experience," Rubinstein is your place. Just be prepared to face the existential dread of choosing a single bagel from their magnificent, carb-laden army. And maybe bring a friend, to help you carry all the bagels you'll...