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Bernstein's Bagels

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Coordinates: 45°32′27″N 122°40′30″W / 45.5409°N 122.6750°W / 45.5409; -122.6750
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Bernstein's Bagels
Graphic logo with the text 'Bernstein's Bagels'
Photograph of the exterior of a building
2008 photograph of the exterior of the Frederick Torgler Building, which housed Bernstein's Bagels starting in 2018
Map
Restaurant information
Established2016 (2016)
Owner(s)
  • Noah Bernstein
  • Peter Hurteau
Street address816 North Russell Street[1]
CityPortland
CountyMultnomah
StateOregon
Postal/ZIP Code97227
CountryUnited States
Coordinates45°32′27″N 122°40′30″W / 45.5409°N 122.6750°W / 45.5409; -122.6750
Seating capacity25–30
Websitebernsteinsbagels.com

Bernstein's Bagels is a bagel shop in Portland, Oregon, United States. Noah Bernstein and Peter Hurteau started the business in 2016, and opened a brick and mortar shop in North Portland's St. Johns neighborhood in 2017. Bernstein and Hurteau opened an outpost in the Eliot neighborhood's Frederick Torgler Building in 2018, briefly operating two shops before the building that housed the original shop was sold.

Bernstein's serves bagels with schmears and sides like eggs, lox, and prosciutto, as well as bagel sandwiches, coffee, and tea. The business has garnered a positive reception. Bon Appétit and Food & Wine have included Bernstein's in overviews of the nation's best bagels.

Description

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Bernstein's Bagels has a shop in the North Portland part of the Eliot neighborhood, and previously operated in the St. Johns neighborhood. The shop has a seating capacity of approximately 25 to 30 people, a counter with white tile, and Art Nouveau wallpaper with paintings.[1][2]

The menu includes eight regular bagel varieties, plus pumpernickel on weekends.[1] Sides for bagels include eggs, lox, and prosciutto.[3] Among schmears are two called 'I Shallotted the Dijons' and 'Twin Leeks and Honey'.[4] The 'Mama Lil's' schmear is cream cheese with pickled goat peppers and the 'Raisin Schmearizona' has cream cheese with brown sugar and honey-macerated raisins.[5] The Popper is a bagel sandwich with avocado, egg, sweet onion, and pickled pepper schmear. The Oregon trout salad sandwich has caramelized fennel and Old Bay Seasoning.[6]

Bernstein's serves coffee by Nossa Familia and tea by Steven Smith.[3]

History

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Business partners Noah Bernstein and Peter Hurteau started Bernstein's Bagels in 2016. Bernstein had been making bagels at his house for approximately two years.[7] The company's bagels were available at farmers' markets,[3] Townshend's Teahouses, and Museum Grounds, the coffee shop at the Portland Art Museum.[7][8]

In February 2017, Willamette Week reported that Bernstein and Hurteau were planning to open a brick and mortar shop in St. Johns by early April.[7] The shop opened in on May 19, operating Tuesdays through Sundays.[3]

Bernstein's sold approximately 300–500 bagels a day, as of 2018. In November, Bernstein and Hurteau announced plans to open a second location in the Frederick Torgler Building, which previously housed the craft cocktail bar Mint, in Eliot in December. The duo wanted an outpost since the building in St. Johns was put up for sale.[1][2] The second location opened on December 22, 2018.[9] The St. Johns location closed.[10]

Bernstein's offered delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic.[11] In 2022, the shop hosted Bialy Bird, a pop-up restaurant specializing in bialys.[12] Bernstein's got rid of tipping and implemented a service charge in 2024, in order to make wages more consistet and fund employee benefits.[10][13][14]

Reception

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In 2017, Sophia June of Willamette Week said Bernstein's "is making some of the best bagels in the city".[7] The business was a runner-up in the Best Bagel category of the newspaper's annual readers' roll in 2022.[15] Michael Russell included the shop in The Oregonian's 2019 overview of the forty best inexpensive eateries in the Portland metropolitan area.[16] Sunset magazine included the Super-Seedy Poppy-Seed Bagel in a 2019 overview of West Coast bagels that "deserve a nosh".[17] During the pandemic, Alex Frane included the business in Thrillist's 2020 list of Portland's best sandwiches for "perfect picnic food".[18] David Landsel included Bernstein's in Food & Wine's 2021 list of the best bagels in the U.S.,[19] and Bon Appétit included the business in a 2023 overview of the nation's best bagels outside New York.[6]

Brooke Jackson-Glidden included the prosciutto bagel in Eater Portland's 2019 list of the city's "hottest new cheap plates".[20] In 2021, Frane included Bernstein's in Eater Portland's list of seventeen restaurants for "amazing" breakfast sandwiches,[21] and he and Ron Scott recommended the bagels as one of Portland's "most potent" hangover remedies.[22] Jackson-Glidden and others included the business in a 2024 overview of the city's ten best "real-deal" bagel shops.[4] Zuri Anderson included Bernstein's in iHeart's 2021 list of Portland's best breakfast restaurants.[23] In 2024, Sara Klimek selected the shop to represent Oregon in Tasting Table's list of the best bagel shops in each U.S. state, based on online reviews. Kilmek said the business offers "perfectly chewy" bagels in a "comforting" space, and wrote: "The vibe ... is definitely on par with Portland. Visitors ranked this shop a 4.7 on Google Reviews and 4.5 on Yelp."[5]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Bernstein's Bagels Poised to Break Big with Second Location on N Russell". Portland Monthly. ISSN 1546-2765. Archived from the original on 2023-03-26. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  2. ^ a b "At Bernstein's, a Pair of Musical Nerds Make the Best Bagels in Portland". Portland Monthly. Archived from the original on 2023-03-23. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  3. ^ a b c d Bamman, Mattie John (2017-05-31). "Bernstein's Bagels Begins Boiling in St. Johns". Eater Portland. Vox Media. Archived from the original on 2024-03-04. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  4. ^ a b Barnett, Daniel (2016-02-17). "10 Real-Deal Bagel Shops in Portland". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2021-10-29. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  5. ^ a b Klimek, Sara (2024-02-29). "The Best Bagel Shops In Every State, According To Online Reviews". Tasting Table. Static Media. Archived from the original on 2024-06-17. Retrieved 2024-06-22.
  6. ^ a b "The Very Best Bagels in the US (Yes, Outside New York)". Bon Appétit. Condé Nast. 2023-06-27. ISSN 0006-6990. Archived from the original on 2023-11-21. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  7. ^ a b c d "Every Boiled Bagel in Portland, Ranked". Willamette Week. 2017-02-21. Archived from the original on 2021-12-15. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  8. ^ "Bagels rise to greatness in Portland". Oregon Jewish Life. 2015-11-20. Archived from the original on 2022-08-10. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  9. ^ Jackson-Glidden, Brooke (2018-05-02). "This Knockout Bagel Shop Just Opened on N Russell". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2019-12-08. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  10. ^ a b "Portland bagel shop replaces tipping with 20% menu price spike to increase workers' pay". KGW. 2024-02-28. Archived from the original on 2024-06-21. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  11. ^ Jackson-Glidden, Brooke (2020-04-09). "Where to Get Breakfast and Brunch for Delivery or Takeout in Portland". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2021-12-24. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  12. ^ "Bialy Bird Might Make Your Bubbie Balk—But It's Delicious". Portland Monthly. Archived from the original on 2024-06-21. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  13. ^ "Bagel shop in N. Portland gets rid of tipping". KPTV. 2024-02-29. Archived from the original on 2024-06-21. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  14. ^ "Portland bagel shop hikes prices, eliminates tipping to guarantee consistent wages". KOIN. 2024-03-01. Archived from the original on 2024-03-22. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  15. ^ "Food Winners". Willamette Week. Archived from the original on 2022-07-15. Retrieved 2024-06-22.
  16. ^ Russell, Michael (2019-02-28). "These are the 40 best inexpensive restaurants in the Portland metro area". The Oregonian. Advance Publications. ISSN 8750-1317. OCLC 985410693. Archived from the original on 2020-11-07. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  17. ^ Gross, Matt (2019-05-15). "Whoever Said West Coast Bagels Suck Hasn't Tried These". Sunset. ISSN 0039-5404. Archived from the original on 2024-02-26. Retrieved 2024-06-22.
  18. ^ Frane, Alex (2019-11-14). "The Best Sandwiches in Portland to Order Right Now". Thrillist. Archived from the original on 2021-10-11. Retrieved 2024-06-22.
  19. ^ "The Best Bagels in America". Food & Wine. Dotdash Meredith. ISSN 0741-9015. Archived from the original on 2023-06-29. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  20. ^ Jackson-Glidden, Brooke (2015-07-13). "Portland's Hottest New Cheap Plates". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2024-06-21. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  21. ^ Frane, Alex (2019-02-27). "17 Spots to Grab Amazing Breakfast Sandwiches". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2021-10-21. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  22. ^ Scott, Ron (2016-12-30). "Portland's Most Potent Hangover Cures". Eater Portland. Archived from the original on 2021-08-10. Retrieved 2024-06-21.
  23. ^ "This Is The Best Breakfast Restaurant In Portland". iHeart. Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2024-06-22.
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