In a time when new semiartificial products are proliferating in the marketplace, like microwaveable dinners that are stored in the cupboard (perhaps indefinitely), it is reassuring that certain items that are fresh and simple can still attract a following. At least that's how I felt upon entering Brackman Brothers' Bagel Bakery and taking my place in the not-too-long lunchtime line at the counter.
Open just about a month, with little fanfare or advertising, Brackman Brothers has taken its time perfecting one of history's most popular bread specialties ever to test a tooth. The shiny, chewy bagel, a round circle of high-gluten flour that is boiled and baked, has intrigued food lovers since it was originated in Vienna in the late 1600s.The word "bagel" is derived from the German "beugel," which means stirrup - in this case king of Poland Jan Sobieski's stirrup. The king drove off a horde of Turkish invaders. The inventive Austrians' tribute to the king and his deeds is now familiar to most Americans, although it wasn't brought to this country by Jewish immigrants until the turn of the century.
While frozen bagels and ersatz bagels (baked but not boiled to give it that sheen and tough texture) can be bought just about anywhere, there is an allure about freshly baked bagels. The gift my Jewish grandfather brought when he visited were bags of dozens of warm bagels. When my parents bring my son a new "Hot Wheel," I smile inwardly and remember the warm wheels of dough my grandfather lovingly shared, hot wheels from the heart.
When I return from a trip to New York or Detroit, or our family visits us from either coast, bagels are always a part of the treat of unpacking.
I suspect that some of that same kind of emotional attachment was crossing the bagel baker's mind when I entered just prior to the opening in mid-July. Another anxious customer and I were innocently (and I might add anonymously) standing in the unfinished interior asking when we could expect a freshly baked bagel. The baker, brought in from Brooklyn, pacing around and peering nervously into the cauldron of boiling water, stopped by and muttered, "When I get it right." After all, bagel baking in high altitude and dry climates is tricky business.
I have been back several times, and I am happy to report that Brackman Brothers' Bagel Bakery has its act together. The bagels are very good, rivaling bagelries such as New York's H and H. I can now also report to my family back East and tell them that space once reserved in their luggage for bagels can now be devoted to other scarce items, like my Uncle Art's kielbasa.
The interior is a clean uncluttered white with black and white photographs of the New York cityscape. Besides a daily New York Times, these are the only references of the bagel's point of origins on this continent.
The menu revolves around the bagel, offering different kinds of bagels - plain (or water, though they are all boiled), poppy seed, sesame seed, salt, garlic, onion, cinnamon raisin, whole wheat and pumpernickle. These can be eaten either plain or sliced and spread with butter (51 cents) or a wide variety of spreads or sandwich makings, such as Muenster cheese, imported ham, corned beef, roast beef, tuna or chicken salad. Prices range from $1.89 to $3.99 for the cream cheese and fresh nova lox.
During my several visits I have sampled the lox spread, Stuie's Salt Lake special (cream cheese with honey and walnuts), whitefish salad and the fresh nova lox. They are all delicious and I always leave with a baker's dozen ($3.60) for breakfast the next day. I might caution potential customers that our dry climate demands either special care, like freezing the uneaten bagels after a day or so or, as I often do, finding a use for the versatile bagel at each meal.
We have also enjoyed the seafood salad served from the deli counter as well as two of the soups ($1.19 or $1.59), the gazpacho and Hungarian mushroom. The latter is a buttery blend of mushrooms in a creamy soup accented with paprika and dill.
I read recently that the yearly per capita consumption of cream cheese in New York City is 34 pounds, no doubt attributable to the hefty "smear" of cream cheese spread across the millions of bagels consumed in New York. Brackman Brothers' Bagel Bakery probably won't have the same effect on Salt Lakers and their consumption of cream cheese, but it should help.
Rating: ****
Brackman Brothers' Bagel Bakery, 859 East 900 South (formerly the site of Pasta Mulino), 322-4350. Open Monday through Saturday, 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. Checks with guarantee cards accepted; no credit cards.