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My pandemic related activities went as follows: cooked a lot of food, fostered some dogs (and failed with one) and threw dance parties only attended by my roommate and I. However, the big miss I had? Making bread. While there was a yeast shortage during the pandemic because everyone and their grandmother was suddenly in the kitchen, making bread wasn’t high on my list of things to do. Mainly because the idea of tackling bread as a whole seemed like an intimidating feat. But the NYC Bagel Tours changed that for me.
NYC Bagel Tours is part of BagelUp, an organization dedicated to uplifting the culture and history behind New York's iconic bagel. The organization includes the annual festival, New York Bagel Fest, alongside classes ($150/person) and tours ($59/person) throughout the year. With a resolve to finally tackle the almighty bagel, I signed up for a class, just in time for our Back to Class series.
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Last month, I made my way to Bagel Market (264 W 40th St) in midtown. Located on the second floor of the shop, the class started with a little imbibing over soft drinks, bottled beers and glasses of prosecco rimmed with everything bagel seasoning because why not. Most of the people in the class had already come with a plus one, including a couple traveling from Europe and a foursome who signed up to celebrate a birthday. While I was riding solo, I was easily paired with another person who also came alone.
After a few quick introductions from instructor Aidan Everly, we were invited to walk up to the long counter running the length of the space. With mounds of premade bagel dough in front of us, instructor and bagel expert Reva Castillenti began walking us through the mechanics of the bagel. There, she explained the proper technique of rolling and stretching the dough—making a v shape with your hands as opposed to rolling it back and forth—and how to twist it off to make a perfect bagel round. My first creations were ones only a mother could love—some a bit too small, others varying in thickness. But once I got the hang of it, I was able to make a few decent sized rounds. Once each person rolled a dozen’s worth, we were instructed to set aside the six we wanted to keep for ourselves while the rest went into the community pile. After we carried our trays downstairs to the kitchen, the class split up, half of us staying to bake our goods, while the rest of us traveled another level down to the basement.
There (and really, throughout the class) Everly gave us a bit of bagel history. Starting with the arrival of the baked good from Jewish immigrants, he spoke about the back-breaking work of the bagel maker. With working conditions that climbed up to 120 degrees even in the winter, it spawned the phrase, “May you lay in the earth and bake bagels” a.k.a., a creative way to tell someone to go to hell. To protect the workers, Bagel Bakers Local 388 was formed. Not only did the union formalize the profession, but this group of bagel makers were nothing to played with, evident by the fact they successfully fought off the mob who wanted to get in on the profits.
With this history in our back pocket, we climbed back upstairs to finish our creations. With Castillenti’s help, we boiled our bagels in the store’s bagel kettle and seasoned them with a choice of everything or sesame. Finishing them off, Castillenti took to cooking them in the large industrial-sized oven until they reached that tell-tale color and sheen.
Once they cooled, we all broke bread together, gathering over a table of schmears, lox and capers for the snacking. As a parting gift, each of us were welcome to leave with our own bagels and any of the community bagels from the basket. That evening, I left the class with a warm bag full of bagels in my arms, a few tidbits of knowledge and a bit of confidence knowing how this NYC staple gets made.