„If water were the main thing that leads to a bagel that makes it great, there are about five bagel places in my store – they’d make a bagel as well as we do,” says Utopia bagel Shop co-owner Scott Spellman on the myth that New York City water gives his bagels a reputation for being the best in the country.
“You do that with the water. It’s about how much water you put in, how much if you prove [when] You let the air in, ”says Spellman. „These are the things that are not talked about enough … It is these techniques that make our bagels what they are.” The hugely popular Queens, NY store is famous for its fresh, soft, fluffy bagels and a crispy crust. Spellman attributes his store’s notoriety to two things: the fact that trained workers make bagels by hand and keep everything – from the ingredients to the kettle, to the oven to the baking techniques – the same as it was 40 years ago when the store was founded was opened.
Another element that Spellman believes is absolutely essential to making a good bagel is hand-rolling the dough rather than having a machine make the round machine. A machine, he explains, pumps the dough over and over and tightens it. “It’s the rolling that keeps it really soft. And rollers are a dying species … It’s not like there is a school for bagel rollers, ”he says, standing above one of his employees, Henry, who perfected the art of bagel rolling in his 27 years in the bakery .
„[For] every craft of making it by hand is special. It takes an individual to be at the forefront of their game to do well, ”says Spellman. „The only problem you’ll have with my bagel is that once you’ve eaten it, you simply won’t want another bagel.”
Watch the full video to learn more about the Utopia Bagel process.
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