The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. (Delray Beach)
***** The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co., 14451 South Military Trail, Delray Beach, Florida 33484 (561) 455-7491.
Yesterday morning a new “fast-food” bagel joint opened in Delray Beach…its name, The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. If you check its website www.brooklynwaterbagels.com you will find menu/prices. The “opening” garnered quite a bit of local interest, with both the Sun Sentinel and Palm Beach Post doing “cover stories” on the opening. Just so you know, the Delray Beach location is a “prototype” store for a planned franchise-chain, which is owned/operated by Steven Fassberg and Larry Feldman. You guys should also know, that I personally know both Feldman and Fassberg…Fassberg is an extremely knowledgeable restaurant man having owned a number of delis in New York and South Florida…Feldman is a “major player” in the enormously successful Subway chain. I’ll leave you guys to “Google” both Fassberg and Feldman if you want more info on them.
The Original’s “hook” is that it claims to have a patented technology that can convert “local water” into the same consistency as that of Brooklyn’s public water supply. I really don’t have the time or inclination to get into it, but many believe that “it’s the water” that makes New York City’s bagels so great. Over the years, I’ve heard more “Brooklyn water” stories than their are stories in the Haftorah (for the non Jews out there, ask your Jewish friends for a translation). Anyway, your guess is as good as mine, as to The Original Brooklyn Water Co.’s water claims.
Now…let’s talk about the important stuff, decor-service-food.
Like I said before, this is basically a “fast food” operation…order at the counter and your food is delivered to the table. The decor, is Wendy’s-Burger King-McDonald…one whole side of the 3,000 sq.ft space has a see-through window, where you can watch the “water-treatment” plant and bagel baking operation. To be personally honest with you, I found the watching-through-glass “deal” to be on the gimmicky side.
Now let’s talk food….the menu is jammed with all kinds of bagels, bialys, soups, salads, sandwiches, cream cheeses, butters, smoked fish…trust me on this, the selection is outrageous, you absolutely-positively will not be disappointed. After 4pm the joint also offers $9.95 “dinner specials” which include- entree, potato, vegetable, beverage and dessert…the entrees are–fresh turkey, roast beef, roast chicken, chicken cordon bleu, chicken francese, corned beef with cabbage.
Yesterday…I “taste tested”…everything bagel, sesame bagel, pumpernickel bagel—scallion cream cheese, tuna salad, chicken salad, ham & cheese omelet, . Now for the results…the bagels were very good–were they the best that I have had down here in South Florida? No!..but they were very good. The tuna salad and chicken salad were delicious…the chicken salad was exceptionally good with big chunks of chicken–the omelet which came with a bagel and french fries was done just right.
As for prices and service… let me ballpark this for you, omelets run $5.45-$6.45, bagels with cream cheese or butter go for $1.69-$2.99, sandwiches $4.95-$6.95…the most expensive item on the menu is a nova-whitefish-baked salmon salad at $10.95. As for service, keep in mind that you order at the counter and food is delivered to your table…so there is “no tipping”…for a brand new joint, everything ran smoothly when I was there.
I really liked The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co…it has a great menu, reasonable prices, very good food. Like I said before, the “water treatment” angle seems a bit hokey to me. I will also tell you, that Fassberg-Feldman couldn’t have picked a worse location for the first store. It is located in a miniscule-non-descript shopping center on Military Trail…if you weren’t looking for the joint, you probably wouldn’t even notice it.
Based on Day-One,The Original Brooklyn Water Bagel Co. has a shot to run circles around other “self-service counter” bagel joints like Einstein Bros. and Offerdahls Cafe. The joint is open 7-days a week for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
H&H BAGEL IN N.YC. WHO ARE NOW OUT OF BUSINESS WAS MY CUSTOMER IN N.Y. THEY WOULD SEND US BAGELS THEY WERE GOOD, BUT NOT AS GOOD AS THE ORIGINAL BROOKLYN WATER BAGEL.
I LOVE BAGELS & BEFORE BWB I WAS BRINGING MY BAGLES FROM THE NORTH.
I HAVE TRIED MOST PLACES DOWN HERE NEVER TRIED OR HEARD OF WAY BEYOND BAGELS. NOW I WILL TRY THEM. I DO NOT SEE HOW THEY CAN BE BETTER THAN BWB. FOR MY MONEY BWB IS THE VERY BEST DOWN HERE. THEY ARE ALSO JUST AS GOOD AS THE PLACES UP NORTH.
I LIKE MANY OTHERS DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE FILTERED WATER STORY. I FELL THAT IT IS JUST A GIMICK. SOMEBODY TOLD ME THAT THEIR FILTRATION SYSTEM WAS DOWN FOR A WHILE & THE BAGELS WERE THE SAME & JUST AS GOOD. I BELIEVE IT.
I TRAVEL A WAY FOR THEIR BAGELS I DO NOT LIVE IN DELRAY I FEEL IT IS WELL WORTH THE RIDE. IN THE BEGINING THEY DID NOT FREEZE TOO WELL. THEY MUST HAVE DONE SOMETHING BECAUSE NOW THEY FREEZE VERY WELL.
I HOPE THEY OPEN IN MY AREA. IF NOT I WILL KEEP TRAVELING TO DELRAY. IT IS WORTH THE TRIP.
just got a baker’s dozen. plain, everything, asiago, pumpernickle, rye, all excellent.
bagels are good.
like the decor.
New store opened in Hollywood at old “Deli Den” site on Sterling. Tried going there for lunch last week…could not get near the place. Good sign, I guess.
Everything is very fresh here. The prices are also good. Today I was there and almost left because the music blasted my ears off. What happened to the Sinatra stuff , etc they used to play. Part of a good meal is a little atmosphere and that loud stuff isn’t going to cut it. Look aroung at the age group. They hear this stuff and do not like it at all. Many said so to each other. Music should be for the patrons not the employees. As good as the food is that loud music is not appropriate to have coffee and a sandwich unless maybe you are 15 years old. Thankyou for printing this.
Thankyou.
Some of the best bagels in the area.
Just read in the NY Post that one of the franchisees sued them claiming that the water thing is a bunch of crap. My bet is that if they compare water from a Brooklyn tap and water from this machine there isn’t a chance in hell that they will be the same. The water system is a selling gimmick to get customers and franchisees into the door. By the way the bagels are decent but nothing close to approaching really good. Betcha the company loses in court on this one or settles with the franchisee to keep everything quiet. One other thing, this guy Fassberg failed with a Wolfie”s in Deerfield and another one in Aventura. He also started to build a Wolfie’s in Pompano and that one never even opened. Not too good of a track recordd. it should be interesting on how this water thing works out.
I got $500 that says that the water filtration system is bogus.
saw story in sun sentinel, i agree the water system claim will prove to be nothing but bs,
if you believe the water system works i got a bridge in brooklyn that i want to sell you
Roflmao
That water filtration system is a joke.
But the bagels are still pretty good.
Food there is always good. They have a hard time keeping help even managers. Waited for a sandwich today for twenty five minutes and then it came with garlic bagel and not onion. The cheese was not melted either. Brought it up and asked for just a onion bagel to switch out the garlic and the (airhead) girl at the counter said ,’why did you eat it then’ ? So, I walked over to my table and brought over the uneaten sandwich..all of it which I took only two bites to show her. One of the ladies who has been there a long time got me another bagel. She was working her tail off and had the courtesy and manners that all are supposed to have. I tried to tell one of the robust looking managers there but they were socializing with friends the whole time. There used to be a great manager there ..wish he would come back. The managers there have let this place go. Hey Larry come on down and straighten this place out. BTW, who cares about he water the ice coffee is great.
LMAO
The water is as phony as can be.
Bagels are good but story is bogus.
Bagels are very good. Water story is questionable.
Bagels are decent enough.
The bagels and nova are great. They have New York style deli sandwiches which are excellent. By Gregg L. Friedman MD, Psychiatrist, Hallandale Beach, FL
my favorite bagels in s fl.
To the owners:
I’ll bet you any amount of money you’d like that your water system is bogus and that you aren’t making Brooklyn water.
You got a good gimmick, but there is no way that your system is doing what you adverise.
By the way. your bagels are decent enough but far from what the real guys in Brooklyn and the other boros turn out.
I love their bagels
Me to.
Their bagels are terrific.
Excellent bagels.
You do know that the Brooklyn water claim is just bs don’t you?
Delicious bagels.