Andrew Martinez, owner of Bo’s Bagels, in his shop, July 12, 2023 in New York (Yuki IWAMURA / AFP)
The bagel, the food that arguably embodies New York City the most, didn’t really come into Andrew Martinez’s life until quite late, but this little ring of bread that comes out of his oven is now regularly hailed as the one of the best in the megalopolis.
“Sometimes when I come in here I say to myself: ‘I can’t believe this is my life’,” he told AFP. “It’s New York. It’s extremely difficult to succeed here.”
Born in New York’s Queens borough, this catering professional got into the industry by chance after being hospitalized for two months in 2014, fed by a tube.
He had decided that the first thing he would do when his health was restored would be to enjoy a classic New York bagel, the ultimate of which combines a crispy exterior with a spongy heart.
Back home in Harlem, he unfortunately realizes that no shop worthy of the name is located nearby and taking the subway to satisfy this desire strongly displeases him.
Andrew Martinez, boils bagel dough before the opening of his shop in New York, July 12, 2023 (Yuki IWAMURA / AFP)
Neither one nor two, he embarked on in-depth research on the bagel – which arrived in New York via the Jewish neighborhoods of southeast Manhattan. He reads everything that comes to hand, traces the history of the bagel, talks with experts.
After about six months of experimentation, he manages to design a bagel similar to his childhood bagel.
childhood taste
“People eat with their memories,” he says. “I dreamed of the bagels I ate as a kid in Queens and that’s the taste I was looking for.”
What started as a personal quest turned when family members inspired him to think bigger.
With his wife Ashley Dikos, they started with a market stall and then, in 2017, they opened a 110 m2 store in West Harlem: Bo’s Bagels. Immediately, a queue forms.
But the adventure encountered some pitfalls.
Bo’s Bagels boss Andrew Martinez shows off fresh bagels in his shop in New York on July 12, 2023 (Yuki IWAMURA / AFP)
Like the day before the first market. The couple is awakened in the middle of the night by the sudden opening of the refrigerator door – the family kitchen serves as a clothing workshop – where there were hundreds of raw bagels.
“It had become a giant ball of dough” under the effect of the yeast, recalls Ashley Dikos.
False start therefore for this first market and hours of cutting the dough to evacuate it by pieces in the garbage chute without arousing the suspicions of the building staff.
Creating the perfect bagel starts about 48 hours before it’s baked, when flour, yeast and water are mixed together and then left to sit for a few hours. To slow down fermentation, the dough is refrigerated overnight and then boiled for about ten minutes.
Behind the stoves of BO’s Bagel, the baker is busy with all these tasks, sprinkling the various seeds and other assortments, monitoring the rotation of the four ovens, turning the bagels and finally removing them when they are ready.
hour of glory
But some manufacturers don’t take the time to go through this laborious process, often resulting in mushy, stuffy, and/or flavorless bagels.
“There are a lot of mediocre bagels out there,” agrees Sam Silverman, executive director of BagelUp, noting that despite everything, the bagel is having its heyday with historic players like Ess-a and Utopia Bagels.
BO’s, a newcomer to the arena that has garnered accolades from Food & Wine and Eater magazines, credits its success to its manufacturing process, quality ingredients and choice to make a crispier, smaller bagel.
It produces around 3,000 bagels daily but is expected to double its production after opening a second store this fall in Washington Heights, in the far north of Manhattan Island. The couple’s ambition is to open some outside of New York.
Once the basic bagel had been worked out, it was time to design a menu that satisfied both purists and adventurers who preferred to experiment with blueberry or three-cheese options.
“Nowadays you have to provide a lot of variety for all kinds of people,” noted Ashley Dikos, in charge of this role. But no question of “gadgets” like green food coloring for Saint Patrick’s Day.
According to her, the recipe for the gluten-free bagel has not yet been finalized to soundtrack standards.
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2023-08-20 08:37:00
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