Call Your Mother Deli – Georgetown — Restaurant in Washington

An absolute gem worthy of being known as a Georgetown classic (despite only opening its doors in the iconic pink flower-shop-turned-bakery on 35th and O a few years ago). Call Your Mother has absolutely delicious bagels, with both perfectly executed classic flavors and unique combinations. They certainly don't skimp on the seasoning for any of their bagels -- for spice blends like the everything or za'atar, it's nearly impossible to tell which side of the bagel is the top and which is the bottom because the entire loaf is just completely crusted in deliciousness. This flavor pairs beautifully with their true strength -- their cream cheese and Instagram-worthy sandwiches. Their cream cheese is delightfully flavorful and rich, and they absolutely pile it onto your bagel. They have a wonderful vegan cream cheese as well for my other non-dairy folks...I think that it may be cashew-based (but I'm not entirely sure), which makes it incredibly rich and creamy. Their cream cheeses (plant-based and otherwise) also shine in their bagel sandwiches! I've tried their royal palm (substituting the plain cream cheese for their vegan cream cheese), and it was absolutely delicious. Yes, it was just a classic salmon and lox bagel, but Call Your Mother still knocked it out of the park! I'm also a huge fan of just making my own sandwich with hummus and a variety of veggies (I absolutely loved their rainbow slaw, and even the plain ol' cucumbers and tomatoes are wonderfully fresh and pair so nicely with either hummus or cream cheese) on the za'atar bagel. Their maple salt and pepper is also a phenomenal option for a base if you're looking for something slightly sweet and savory.

I have to admit that Call Your Mother is pretty pricey -- a bagel sandwich will cost you around $9-$15, which is quite steep for a bagel. Even so, their bagels are massive and will usually feed me for at least two meals, and they really don't skimp on either the quality or quantity of their toppings. Call Your Mother's amazing Instagram and picturesque exterior has made them a bit of a tourist attraction, so while I do think that the deli is a little overhyped for its reputation, it is still a really delicious bagel shop and you'll definitely find me there far more often than my wallet (or my doctor)...

Meh. Nothing special, and I'm a New Yorker and worked in a bagel deli long ago. With NYC bagels as my reference, these bagels were too soft and bland. A bagel needs a uniquely hard outside with a soft inside. The humus/avocado-smash item did not seem to have avocado and just lacked flavor. I didn't taste any Tahini.

With this being a destination spot, I have to say the overall experience was unpleasant. Line was out the door and extended past ill-placed trash cans. While the store is 'new', they did not renovate; e.g., there is a window a/c stuck through the top of a wall. Consequently, it's too hot inside and just dilapidated in parts.

People are told/commanded to cram in the corner while queuing. The tall West-Central African yelled out names when orders were ready. They gave away end-of-day unbought sweets in a way that evoked aristocrats tossing crumbs to peasants. The music was inappropriate and unpleasant.

There is no seating nearby. If the weather is good, one can walk to the university campus nearby.

Nothing about the place, aside from the creative name, seems Jew-ish. I would expect to see a barrel of pickles at a Jew-ish deli, for example. I would expect bins of bagels freshly made on site, with a guy in an apron walking out every so often to pour new hot bagels into the bins. Considering the small store footprint, I presume all is made off site.

A Yiddish phrase can sum up my experience: "meh".

If I was visiting Georgetown, I would go to the new chocolate bon-bon shop down the street, or Foxtrot, or Blue Bottle Coffee by the canal. Let the influencers be packed in and intimidated like cattle at Call Your Mother - Georgetown.

Want to see Jewish culture? Though I haven't seen it, I would watch the new Adam Sandler comedy: "You are so not coming to my...

Saw this place on a few lists of what to do in DC so made a point to schedule our day around lunch here. When we ordered the wait was estimated 7-10 minutes. It was lunch time and fairly busy so we weren’t super strict on that wait time. We ordered 2 bagel sandwiches off of the menu and were excited to try them! About 20 minutes past and people that ordered after us started to get their food one of the ladies working the front stated that some sandwiches took longer than others, which totally fine! After 40 minutes I was so confused? The waiting area had started to clear out and we were still hanging around, another lady at the front said “should be right out - I saw your name on the list” We gave it 10 more minutes then asked for a refund. And the cashier was happy to give us one.

The wait/long line totally wasn’t the problem - hey we’ve all had to wait it’s no biggie. What was SO weird is that as it was clear we had been there for 50 minutes not once did they try to make it right, no one approached the cook line to ask or see what the hold up was and nobody offered to make ours really quickly. It was just kind of odd, like yours comes when it comes and if it never comes then oh well.

I was so so bummed because I wanted to try it so badly as it came from...