Image by Black Seed

It’s that time of year again — it’s time for the Forward Food Awards, where we celebrate food as an essential part of Jewish life and ask you, our readers, to pick their favorite places to fress.

The nominees were chosen by Forward staff, but the choice of winners is entirely up to our readers.

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Here are the nominees for Best Bagel Shop.

Nate’s Bagels

This bagel shop is so hot that one is never enough. Here customers are limited to purchasing three at a time. Nate’s Bagels’ game changing, simple, fluffy bagel recipe is sure to whip the competition into high gear this year. From its signatures shmears to its expansive vegan menu, Virginia’s Nate’s Bagels is out there making a name for itself.

A post shared by Nate’s Bagels (@natesbagels) on Aug 6, 2018 at 8:39am PDT

Black Seed Bagel

New York or Montreal; whose bagels reign supreme? With the ascendance of the Montreal-styled Black Seed Bagelry into the bagel conversation, we think we may have found an answer. These hand-rolled, wood-fired bagels, created with methods steeped in tradition (one being boiling in honey water) are emblematic of the traditional, adventurous, delicious bagel we all deserve to fress on.

A post shared by Black Seed (@blackseedbagels) on Aug 13, 2018 at 9:09am PDT

Zucker’s

If anyone knows bagels, it’s Zucker’s. Since 1994 owner Matt Pomerantz has been fulfilling his family’s dream of opening up an authentic bagel shop. If you want a kettle-boiled, hand-rolled bagel that comes with a side of New York history, take thee to Zucker’s for a real, authentic New York bagel.

A post shared by Zucker’s Bagels & Smoked Fish (@zuckersbagels) on Aug 9, 2018 at 5:23am PDT

Kossar’s Bagels and Bialys

For over eighty years, Kossar’s has been feeding ravenous New Yorkers jonesing for an onion bagel with a shmear of scallion cream cheese. Since 1936 Kossar’s has taken that responsibility very seriously. It is through them that New York’s bagels remain so iconic, and it is through them that you can eat the same bagel your great-grandparents might have eaten while stopping for a city snack.

A post shared by Kossar’s (@kossars) on Jan 7, 2018 at 7:30am PST

Ess-a-Bagel

An Austrian baking family opened up this enduring New York bagelry. The art of crafting a bagel came naturally to them. They won their first award two years after opening, in 1978, and they’ve been surrounded by loyal fans ever since. What sets these bagels apart is that they are cooked with love. Ess-a-Bagel is a family owned business, and it shows.

A post shared by Mikey Perez (@mpfenderx) on Aug 12, 2018 at 8:03am PDT

Vote here!

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