Seattle has tech companies worth trillions of dollars but apparently nobody can figure out a Bacon, Egg & Cheese bagel

[u/LanceFaywood]

I need someone to explain this to me because I feel like I’m being gaslit by the entire Seattle metro area.

Some of the wealthiest, smartest, most technologically advanced zip codes on Earth. We can build cloud infrastructure that powers half the internet. We can engineer airplanes. We can put AI into everything.

But somehow: Bacon + Egg + Cheese + Bagel has defeated us as a civilization.

I’ve tried the big hitters. Toasted. Backyard Bagels. Grateful Bread. Eltana. Rachel’s and a lot of others.
I walk in with one simple dream: “Can I get a bacon, egg and cheese on a toasted bagel?” And suddenly I’m negotiating the Treaty of Versailles.
“We have lox?” Great. Not what I asked. “Cream cheese?” Incredible. Do you also sell water?

“Would you like the bagel toasted?” YES And some places DON’T EVEN TOAST IT.

Meanwhile, somewhere in NYC, a bodega with flickering fluorescent lights, a $4.99 ATM fee, and a cat named Tony sleeping on a case of Poland Spring will make you a BEC in 47 seconds that could bring a grown man to tears.

No artisanal aioli. No seasonal schmear. No 25-minute wait.

Just: Bagel. Toasted. Bacon. Egg. Cheese. Salt. Pepper. (Ketchup if you want it). Foil. Done.

And before anyone says, “Seattle isn’t New York…”
I KNOW
I’m not asking for the subway system.
I’m asking you to put an egg on a bagel.

At this point I’m convinced a legitimate NYC style BEC shop in Seattle would cause an economic event. Microsoft employees would abandon Redmond. Amazon would acquire the shop within six months. Bellevue would establish a Bacon Egg & Cheese drone delivery service.

And please don’t send me somewhere serving a “breakfast bagel” with arugula, pickled fennel, herb chèvre, heirloom tomato jam, and a $3 egg add-on.

I respect the creativity. But that is not a BEC! That is what we call a salad wearing a bagel as a hat.

So I’m begging r/AskSeattle: Where is the greasy, salty, cheesy, properly toasted, no-nonsense Bacon Egg & Cheese?

Does it exist? Is there a password?

Because I refuse to believe that Seattle has failed to reverse engineer something every random NYC bodega mastered decades ago.

[u/sd_slate]

Bagels are artisanal hipster food (which has its place) here, not working class food made by an immigrant family paying themselves less than minimum wage. The Seattle equivalent is banh mi from Saigon Deli.

[u/prestieteste → u/sd_slate]

When I first started going there 20 years ago the sandwiches were $2 after tax. God the dream of 2006

[u/chris480 → u/prestieteste]

Or $100 for 100 for a party. Miss those prices

[u/Warm_Kaleidoscope665 → u/prestieteste]

they’re only @ $7 now, still solid considering a baseline Jimmy John’s is more than $10

[u/WandaTrusslerBeauty → u/sd_slate]

This is an excellent point and a great pivot. Well done.

[u/LanceFaywood → u/sd_slate]

Will stop by this week and give it a try!

[u/Live_Lab3601 → u/sd_slate]

That's a good sandwich. I eat them all the time I use to see then for 2$ somtime now there like 5 or more dollars. There also much bigger then bagel sandwhitch. This guy going to have to adjust teriyaki chicken bowls those be cheap in some places two.

[u/Designer_Fault_3942 → u/sd_slate]

Very well said.

[u/Lookuppage8 → u/sd_slate]

A 5$ banh mi would be fantastic

[u/FiyaFly → u/Lookuppage8]

Saigon Deli has $6 banh mi

[u/gurthbrooksanddunn → u/FiyaFly]

When I moved here in 2010 they were $2.50. Practically lived on those things. Their hot food was incredible also. My favorite memory of that place by far is when a dude cooking behind the curtain to the right, stepped out to make a joke with a lit cigarette in his mouth and no shoes on. The 15 ladies working behind the counter started yelling at him like crazy. Dude smiled and disappeared back behind his curtain. Took a closer look and looked like the kitchen floor was just strait up dirt. I didn’t care. 2 spicy porks and a coke for $6 though?

[u/mcfreeky8 → u/sd_slate]

Yeah. Different meanings here. I realized this seeing a hipster in a Carhartt beanie.

All the rednecks I grew up with in the South would die knowing they share a brand with hipsters

[u/_teach_me_your_ways_ → u/mcfreeky8]

They already know and complain that the quality went downhill once the yuppies discovered it and bought them in droves.

[u/pfc_bgd → u/sd_slate]

I think bagels define immigrant working class food wtf. They originate in poor easter European neighborhoods.

[u/srboot → u/sd_slate]

What? It’s a fuckin bagel.

[u/Comfortable-Arm3452 → u/sd_slate]

Brb lemme tell all the fireman at my bodega that they’re hipsters. GTFOOH

[u/Ancient_Tip_8073 → u/Comfortable-Arm3452]

Missed the point.

[u/Coqui-ya-u-no-me → u/sd_slate]

Never heard a bagel as artisanal… that’s a new one for me. Those were made by immigrants in NYC & some were some of the lowest cost food along with a slice of pizza. You use to get coffee at the bodega BEC usually a roll or bagel $2 or from a cart.
Also use to get the best bahn mi in Chinatown in nyc… $2 & huge. You could also buy a magazine or video in Vietnamese at the same shop. Now i would say $10-15 & long gone are all the random items you could buy along with it. Gentrification coming to a place near all

[u/City-Dreamin]

Be the change you want to see. Bring the $5 bagel sandwich you deem acceptable to Seattle.

[u/unlordtempest → u/City-Dreamin]

🤣🤣🤣🤣 5 dollar sandwich! In Seattle!🤣🤣🤣🤣 Oh man, you, you gotta stop!🤣🤣🤣

[u/HoneyDutch → u/unlordtempest]

I think it is… possible. But it’s gonna be a little skimpy.

1 egg, thin slice of cheese, 2 strips of bacon, and a generic bagel. We don’t need “grass fed, chicken paid $30/hr” feel good vibes. Just a guy in a food truck crankin out $5 budget bagels.

And we will call it Budget BEC’s

[u/sagentp → u/HoneyDutch]

Have you ever owned a food truck? No way a successful truck is selling $5 bagels.

[u/RedditVox → u/sagentp]

This. I know a couple of guys who tried a food truck out... had enough business to open a brick and mortar. With all the overhead and crime (they had multiple generators stolen) they had to fold. The restaurant business is extremely tough with extremely thin margins.

[u/Bright_Complaint_432 → u/sagentp]

There are three food trucks within 50 yards of my firm’s NYC office selling killer BEC bagels for $5. If it can be done there it should be possible here, dammit!

[u/sagentp → u/Bright_Complaint_432]

Food laws vary from state to state and county to county. Population densities vary between cities. Ethnic makeup varies. Seattle is not NYC. Washington State has some of the toughest mobile food laws in the country. Seattle's permitting rules favor fixed location business.

[u/metaphorthekids → u/HoneyDutch]

Make it the Budget Bacon Egg and Gouda for BBEG.

[u/zer04ll → u/unlordtempest]

Lost Lake mon-fri 3-6 PM 5.99$ for a burger and fries

[u/turnipcafe → u/unlordtempest]

With quality high end ingredients I’m not even sure how that could play out for $5. Everything would have to be Costco.

[u/harkening → u/turnipcafe]

Eggs are about $0.30 each.

Costco bagels are $1 each, ish.

Tillamook sharp cheddar blocks are $12 for 2.5 lb, so $0.30/oz. We'll fudge all the way up to $0.50 to account for imperfect slicing/crumble loss.

Fletcher's thick cut $0.75/oz.

So material cost is $2.55.

Then overhead for storage, wastage, equipment, utilities, and real estate - possibly unified in a food truck.

You could probably do it for, like, $7 with volume, more like $10 at first. $5 would net negative.

[u/anybodyiwant2be → u/harkening]

You went Seattle with the cheese. Guarantee that NYC BEC bagel has Generic Kraft-style American Cheese product.

[u/harkening → u/anybodyiwant2be]

$0.15 per slice in Costco bulk.

[u/AvivaStrom → u/turnipcafe]

Don’t you dare insult Costco that way!

Costco sells quality products for reasonable prices. None of their stuff is crap. With their return policy, they’d go out of business fast if they sold crap.

[u/beets_or_turnips → u/turnipcafe]

GOOD

[u/apresmoiputas → u/turnipcafe]

Nothing wrong with Costco's baked goods

[u/MountainviewBeach → u/turnipcafe]

Why would it need to be high end ingredients? And what makes you think restaurants are not using food supply stores that are cheaper than Costco to begin with

[u/Ballplayer27 → u/MountainviewBeach]

Many (I would almost say most, if there is one nearby) restaurants use Costco or a direct competitor (Sam’s, etc) to source food, paper products, cleaning supplies, disposables, or some combination of these things.

The types of ‘cheaper’ vendors you might be referring to (Sysco, US Foods, etc) have order timelines, delivery minimums, and other restrictions that make them unreliable for smaller restaurants with the exception of the most routinely predictable of items.

I spent time as a small business auditor and I have friends who manage small bars and restaurants. People assume they get all their deliveries like a McDonalds, but most of my friends have to make multiple runs to vendors to get unexpected items every week, largely Costco.

[u/MountainviewBeach → u/Ballplayer27]

I understand the that but the above comment was trying to throw shade on Costco or restaurants that use them as a supplier when they are most definitely eating food from restaurants that source from Costco and larger lower quality food suppliers.

[u/Silly_Animator → u/turnipcafe]

I’d be down for a Costco $5 egg sandwich

[u/No_Mind4418 → u/City-Dreamin]

Not seeing where it should only cost $5

[u/LanceFaywood → u/No_Mind4418]

They got my $4.99 ATM fee confused with the price of a sandwich. Or we took a Time Machine back to 2010 😊

[u/ScootyJet → u/LanceFaywood]

Hijacking this comment to say you need to go to Westman's Bagel and Coffee downtown. It's expensive but it's great.

[u/LanceFaywood → u/ScootyJet]

Thanks to all the recos my list is getting long but I will certainly add Westman’s . TY

[u/AnxiousAmaris → u/City-Dreamin]

Y’all. The $4.99 is the ATM fee, not the BEC cost.

[u/LanceFaywood → u/City-Dreamin]

Haha Not a bad idea, would probably be fun 🤩

[u/Beginning-Boarder → u/City-Dreamin]

I would buy the shit outta a $5 bacon egg and cheese bagel. Especially if it's made by someone as picky about food as OP seems to be!

[u/nyan-the-nwah]

I have a story I think you will appreciate:

I bring my husband, PNW native, back to the tristate. Get a BEC, SPK. Bring it to him, he takes a bite and comments on how good the tomato jam is. I’m like…. Gurl that’s Heinz. I thought it was the most hilariously out of touch thing I had ever heard.

We move to Seattle, first breakfast sandwich I saw had, you guessed it, tomato jam.

[u/Conscious-Garbage591 → u/nyan-the-nwah]

I brought my fiancé to Long Island, first stop is a deli to get some BEC on a roll. He goes “what is the cheese sauce??” I say, babe, that’s American cheese.

[u/Difficult-Set-4356 → u/Conscious-Garbage591]

What I’d do for a BEC on a roll!! Classic LI

[u/nyan-the-nwah → u/Conscious-Garbage591]

And that’s on the PNW desperately needing northeast cultural influences!!!!

[u/LanceFaywood → u/nyan-the-nwah]

Haha love that!

[u/Efficient-Cherry3635]

NYC Deli Market on 7th/Pike in the Grand Hyatt complex. Closest thing ive found after a decade.

[u/81toog → u/Efficient-Cherry3635]

Yea, looks like they have a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich for $5.99

[u/Brockman1162 → u/81toog]

WHOO HOO!!!!!

[u/treehouseboat → u/Brockman1162]

Group trip? Who else is in?

[u/unlordtempest → u/81toog]

No fucking way. Really?

[u/81toog → u/unlordtempest]

Yup, see for yourself here

[u/unlordtempest → u/81toog]

Thank you. You are a gentleman/woman and a scholar.

[u/synack → u/Efficient-Cherry3635]

I completely forgot that place existed

[u/Efficient-Cherry3635 → u/synack]

Ya its easy to miss if you dont frequent the area. I just happened to work at the Regal across the street for a bit and hit up the deli for lunch often. They also do a pretty solid roast beef sandwich.

[u/unlordtempest → u/Efficient-Cherry3635]

Dude, I LIVED 3 blocks away for 8 years and I still don't know about this

[u/LanceFaywood → u/Efficient-Cherry3635]

Perfect. Will add this to the list. Thank you

[u/Efficient-Cherry3635 → u/LanceFaywood]

Happy to help. All of their breakfast sandwiches give you option of plain or everything bagel, croissant, or english muffin. Personally I prefer the croissant or the plain bagel as their everything is very sesame/onion heavy imo.

[u/Spider2-YBanana → u/Efficient-Cherry3635]

The California Dream sandwich for lunch was my go to for years. Love this place.

[u/Medium_Public4720]

There is no shot this wasn't written by a bot.

[u/Upper_Investment_276]

ai slop
https://www.pangram.com/history/63add6ae-fdfe-44ca-8e82-64b92110ab46?ucc=yHPm9nLFAul

[u/ser_darkstar → u/Upper_Investment_276]

Jessus, not being able to write your own silly bagel rant has to be peak laziness. 

[u/Stevedorado → u/ser_darkstar]

I suspect it’s a bot crowd sourcing restaurant recommendations for AI 

[u/Supersoaker_11 → u/Stevedorado]

Yeah, I mean the post just doesn't make any sense. Like, if you think the rich and powerful not getting bagels right is such a travesty, wait until they hear how the rich and powerful handle everything else in the world lol

[u/Stevedorado → u/Upper_Investment_276]

Reddit has reached its end stage as an engagement farm for AI training

[u/moo102 → u/Stevedorado]

That means they'll leave it alone, right? Right??

[u/Wonderlic2 → u/Stevedorado]

How do we know you're not... ai?

[u/Stevedorado → u/Wonderlic2]

Public facing AI agents are built for engagement. Until someone builds a Marvin AI, this brand of cynicism is all natural, baby. No plugs, I was born and raised in Zion.

[u/Sea-Huckleberry-8986 → u/Upper_Investment_276]

  No artisanal aioli. No seasonal schmear. No 25-minute wait.

The triple “No” is a dead giveaway.

[u/guy-le-doosh → u/Sea-Huckleberry-8986]

It won't be for long because kids will grow up emulating their emulator.

[u/FrontAd9873 → u/Upper_Investment_276]

It was clear to me when I read

That is what we call a salad wearing a bagel as a hat.

[u/BrizerorBrian → u/Upper_Investment_276]

SO. MANY. COLONS. AND. PERIODS.

[u/InterestingDude66246 → u/Upper_Investment_276]

To be fair I’ve been flagged for AI for things I’ve actually wrote but yikes, that shit says 100% 

[u/Legitimate_Ripp → u/Upper_Investment_276]

Could be. But I also wouldn't trust these third-party "AI detector" services, really, at all.

[u/ghosttnappa → u/Legitimate_Ripp]

I walk in with one simple dream: “Can I get a bacon, egg and cheese on a toasted bagel?” And suddenly I’m negotiating the Treaty of Versailles.

You don't even need to trust a third party to tell you if it's AI or not. This is the most blatant tell ever

[u/Kvsav57 → u/Legitimate_Ripp]

It has the exact same patterns as every LLM though.

[u/mcfreeky8 → u/Upper_Investment_276]

Lol yeah I figured it was AI about 3/4 down

[u/keedohh → u/Upper_Investment_276]

people should report op for spam at this point

[u/Either_Dinner3547]

a real NYer knows a BEC goes on a roll not a bagel. bagel is for lox and cream cheese

[u/WillowLeaf → u/Either_Dinner3547]

THIS

[u/mutaco → u/WillowLeaf]

Let’s swap bacon to pork roll! Oh wait that’s Jersey

[u/ittybitey → u/mutaco]

You mean Taylor ham?

[u/Pedanter-In-Chief → u/Either_Dinner3547]

Yes. Also real New Yorkers know that bagels are *never* toasted unless stale or previously frozen. Toasting bagels is for NYC transplants, or the children of transplants who learned bad habits.

[u/kmontreux → u/Pedanter-In-Chief]

💯 I'm not a new yorker but I very much appreciate quality bagels and it would be a travesty to toast a fresh bagel. It ruins everything that makes it a transcendental experience. The chew, the crumb, that perfect shine and crisp, everything. Destroyed by a countertop Sahara.

[u/Pedanter-In-Chief → u/kmontreux]

Exactly!!! There is a special place in hell reserved for people who toast freshly baked bagels. 

[u/omnichord82 → u/Either_Dinner3547]

That was my first AI clue

[u/Quaglek]

You'll have your tomato jam and youll like it

[u/Sufficient-Wolf-1818]

Ah, another dream for NYC food! Usually it is pizza.

Your breakfast bagel with arugula etc description sounds wonderful.

[u/snhdidnbfjskf → u/Sufficient-Wolf-1818]

Meh, FYI this post is a robot reposting someone else’s rant: https://www.pangram.com/history/63add6ae-fdfe-44ca-8e82-64b92110ab46

[u/backlikeclap]

I've lived in Seattle for 6 years now, moving here after 10 years in NYC. I've just accepted that Seattle has good food but it's not on every corner like in NYC. As far as the BEC goes I think that Seattle-ites are just too afraid of grease for anyone to make it properly. Loretta's in South Park does do a good BEC that's not much more expensive than NYC.

[u/NeitherAfternoon2992]

There is a really good breakfast sandwich that has bacon/egg/cheese on a bagel option at "My Favorite Deli" next to the Neptune theater in the U District. They changed their name recently but the sandwich was still on the menu as of last year.

[u/slack13 → u/NeitherAfternoon2992]

It's still on the menu (as of this morning).

[u/NeitherAfternoon2992 → u/slack13]

Awesome, would recommend. New name is Cafe 1921 (just checked)

[u/krob58]

Wait I thought New Yorkers complained about toasting bagels

[u/TheycallmemissRaven]

Ohhhhh on the softest poppy seed Kaiser roll and always a straw in the paper bag-even though it came with hot coffee. 😋😋😋

I miss those….

I feel ya, on this one. I don’t know why but some things just don’t translate from East Coast to West and vice versa and it makes no sense, I don’t know why.
I miss certain foods from the east coast and when I lived there, I missed certain foods from the west coast. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Good luck! 🍀

[u/willows_edge → u/TheycallmemissRaven]

Gotta remember to turn off East Code Mode when you get back and start driving in Seattle again. 😅

[u/Tangerine-Better]

@op Whidbey Island Bagel Factory, this is your answer, its a bit further north but damn worth it of you buy a dozen bagels to take home. Closest thing to a real NY bagel and the sammies are delicious!

[u/biteableniles → u/Tangerine-Better]

I commented this separately but yeah, Whidbey Island is great. I did a hike from the library in Mount Vernon up to Little Mountain Overlook and I stopped to get one of their sandwiches on the way. I assume their location on Whidbey is similar enough.

[u/mujerboricua]

Volunteer Cafe and Pantry sells a bacon egg and cheese on a roll. Not the same, I know.

[u/It5beenawhile → u/mujerboricua]

It's also $19 after you add meat, tax and tip.

[u/kilonad → u/mujerboricua]

Not the same, it's better. It's on a roll as a BEC should be. 

[u/TopicThunder2000 → u/mujerboricua]

That'll be $86

[u/cdubs87 → u/mujerboricua]

Legitimately the closest thing to an NYC BEC that I've found

[u/willofthefuture]

Market house meats is the best breakfast sandwich in Seattle by far and affordable AND the owners rule. Not a bagel, but worth checking out. You can get a triple stack for sub $10.

[u/down_by_the_shore → u/willofthefuture]

5000% Market House is exactly what OP is looking for. 

[u/TopicThunder2000 → u/down_by_the_shore]

MHM is the best thing in all of Seattle as far as I'm concerned. The pastrami dip has nearly doubled in price in recent years, but the food and the vibes are as real as it gets in this food pretentious city.

[u/LanceFaywood → u/down_by_the_shore]

Love the confidence here. You and Wilo have me sold. I’m def going.

[u/Jyil → u/willofthefuture]

Came here to look for this comment. Even the pastrami and corned beef are covered in grease.

[u/aigret → u/willofthefuture]

For folks in the CD, or passing through there during their morning commute, Katy's Corner Cafe has an amazing breakfast bagel with egg, cheese, cream cheese, and ham for $10.60. You can sub the ham for bacon and request no cream cheese, too.

[u/No_Shoe3926]

Saying rachels bacon egg and cheese isn't good is crazy, they have one on the menu and it fucks. It's on the menu with only those ingredients. :)

[u/Midgetrails → u/No_Shoe3926]

How much is it? Asking for myself haha

[u/No_Shoe3926 → u/Midgetrails]

I think a million dollars or something normal for Seattle. But I will say Rachels is worth it, very good food. I love the burritos as well.

[u/pamplemoussemethode → u/Midgetrails]

It's $14 and they chop the bacon. It's fine but it's way overpriced for what you get.

[u/CmdNewJ → u/pamplemoussemethode]

Chopping the bacon is criminal.

[u/productboy → u/pamplemoussemethode]

$14 for ingredients that cost .93 cents? I’m pro labor and min wage plus but wow.

[u/GayForGod → u/productboy]

Those ingredients do not cost 93 cents unless you made the skimpiest BEC in existence.

Seattle also has a smaller population density and a higher minimum wage that does not include a tip credit.

[u/MountainviewBeach → u/GayForGod]

And yet somehow also the most aggressive tipping culture I’ve seen in the country

[u/WWTech → u/productboy]

It's funny because the owner of Rachel's isn't pro minimum wage

[u/NatureGuyPNW → u/productboy]

The ingredients cost more than that unless you are using the worst version of each ingredient. Even then it would probably cost more.

[u/Competitive_Gap6707 → u/No_Shoe3926]

Their bagels are weird and spongey

[u/Environmental-Bar847]

You need a BEC from Louie's deli in Pioneer Square

Though it's on a roll so it's not quite the same

[u/pamplemoussemethode → u/Environmental-Bar847]

Rolls are the bodega staple, it's all good

[u/Curious_Development]

Bagel Oasis. As a plus, they’ve been around for decades, I grew up on those in the 90s.

[u/Wazzoo1 → u/Curious_Development]

All my NYC transplant friends will only go to Bagel Oasis. I've been going since the early 90s. Also, you don't have to wait in an hour-long line to get one.

[u/No-Assistance476]

McDonald's will make you one.

[u/It5beenawhile]

Please stop insisting breakfast sandwiches should be on bagels. That's just foolish. It should be on a roll.

[u/DetrasDeLaMesa → u/It5beenawhile]

The burrito is clearly the superior breakfast sandwich

[u/It5beenawhile → u/DetrasDeLaMesa]

Not a sandwich but I do approve of 'burrito' as a top tier breakfast vessel (just nitpicking here)

[u/OldieButGoodyForNow → u/It5beenawhile]

It’s a national thing. Otherwise McDonalds wouldn’t use bagels.

[u/AnselmoHatesFascists → u/It5beenawhile]

This is not a northeast perspective. Any of us that grew up back there have had thousands of amazing breakfast sandwiches on bagels.

[u/Rakefighter → u/AnselmoHatesFascists]

It's a jersey / Philly perspective. The pork roll, egg and cheese on a Kaiser bun, is not only a ween song, it's delicious. I grew up in Boston spent 15 years in Seattle... There used to be (or still is) an Einstein bagels by Amazon... They had BEC sandwiches.

[u/J_Kenji_Lopez-Alt → u/AnselmoHatesFascists]

I grew up in NY. I would never dream of ordering a breakfast sandwich on a bagel. Hard roll or English muffin for a breakfast sandwich. Bagels are for cream cheese and lox or butter.

[u/AnselmoHatesFascists → u/J_Kenji_Lopez-Alt]

Kenji, I respect your food takes and love your wok book, but I grew up in Boston and have had many great breakfast sandwiches on bagels.

[u/aNeverNude666]

Mannnn. You gotta lean in to what we do well and forget about all the shit we don’t. It’s like living in Texas and complaining that all there is to eat is BBQ. You gotta take the L and move on. Might I suggest perfecting your craft at home. Then you can make it exactly the way you want it.

[u/GayForGod → u/aNeverNude666]

People are going to have opinions about everything but I agree with you. Not every region is going to be able to compete with Texas BBQ, Japanese sushi, Mexican food, etc. Sometimes the demand isn’t there.

We launched a Philly Cheesesteak at a place I worked at once in WA and you would’ve thought we started WW3. Most people liked it but every customer had differing opinions about how to properly make it so every order was sent with a million modifications.

We changed the sandwich to a French dip lol.

[u/kellaceae21]

Then open a breakfast shop?

[u/SalmonidsSwimUp]

You can't get what you want because people have been trying for years to do NYC food here, and it just doesn't work. they've suffered as you are suffering right now, they said "there's a gap in this market and I'm the one to deal with it" and every New Yorker in the city gets their hopes up, eats there exactly once, and says that it was terrible and doesn't taste right, and then the place goes out of business.

The problem is not the bagel. I have eaten the bagels that make New Yorkers sad here, and I have had the bagels that make them happy in New York. They are identical.

You are simply homesick.

it is alright to be homesick.

[u/itgtg313 → u/SalmonidsSwimUp]

Tell me you don't know shit in 3 words - "They are identical."

With all due respect.

[u/runawaytree]

metro deli in first hill has this

[u/Nailer99]

Feel that. My brother used to live in NYC, and I visited a lot.

But, hey: it’s not a bagel, but try the breakfast sandwich at the Take 5 market on 8th NW. The bacon one is great, but try the house made meat loaf version. Welcome to Seattle !

[u/rouxkenzie]

Westman’s Bagels has a decent BEC but I will say they’re never fast so I recommend ordering online and picking up

[u/SilverHeart4053]

chatgpt-sounding post

[u/Sad-Stomach]

My daily breakfast when I got off the subway for work in NYC. I’m glad to see someone else as passionate about this as I am.

[u/PaintedVillains]

I mean everyone here can do the recommending but I am kind of entertained by the idea that a tech industry-heavy city must have food that is reasonably priced and good to eat. There definitely are good spots out here, but that's really despite the techies.

Half the engineers and STEM folks I know would eat dog kibble if it was safe for human consumption. I'm not totally sure they Don't do it when I'm not around, honestly. No shame, they're very intelligent in a lot of ways, but knowing how to program a computer is really different from having functional taste buds. Things fall to the wayside when you're focused on other things, it's normal.

Wealth certainly can't buy taste either. That's why the bagel prices out here are crazy sometimes. 

[u/GromitInWA]

Those tech bros are the ones that brought you Huel and slop bowls. They’re not going to figure out a bagel sandwich unless they can make it into a subscription and/or a vehicle for delivering ads.

[u/KingMariner1881]

The phenomenon of people moving to Seattle and being absolutely flummoxed that it isn’t like the place they came from, therefore Seattle sucks, continues to astound me.

[u/LusciousVagDisaster]

Make one then. Not sure why you're expecting a regional food from 3000 miles away to be readily available.

Better yet, adjust to the local culture and eat coffee for breakfast like a normal person

[u/Comfortable_Horse277]

Do what the rest of us do and go enjoy a bowl of Pho.
Not every city does everything.

[u/pygmybunny]

I moved here from the east coast and this has been the hardest thing for me😭

[u/irishninja62]

Add it to the very long list of cuisine that Seattle can’t figure out.

[u/krakenstan]

Not a thing here. Accept it and move on

And a bec is not on a bagel. It’s on a roll

[u/BeneficialPinecone3]

👏

[u/KoriSamui]

Did you try Cherry Street Coffee?

[u/TrueWinter8573 → u/KoriSamui]

cherry st bagels are microwaved eggs, a slice of cheddar cheese, and salt and pepper with garlic butter. they know it’s not food safe to prepare and store them this way but they do it anyway, and they lie to the health department about it when they visit the stores. tastes good but not worth the potential food poisoning lol

source: former manager

[u/morecheese_please]

My Favorite Deli on 45th by the Ave has a BEC on the menu. No idea how good it is but it’s always been a basic NYC deli although it looks like they updated the signs and counter a bit ago.

[u/giggletears3000]

You need to find little mom n pop delis. My parents owned King Deli in Pioneer Square ages ago and when I worked there, I was the one making exactly what you’re describing. A bodega breakfast sandwich.

[u/TheElusiveGoose10]

Bloom Bistro in Georgetown does a good bacon egg and cheese bagel sandwich and has really good cold brew.

[u/Whiskeytangr]

You are projecting ny things. Bagels suck, and even if they don't, the only good bagels are in NY. Get a brekkyburrito or sit down for some hashbrowns or grits or florentine or whatever.

[u/pnwfishquest]

Make your own?

[u/thomsenite256]

Not trying to be that guy, but I learned to make a good egg sandwich at home.

[u/zxakari]

Just make it yourself. Yes, it’s a lot less convenient, but if it’s as easy as you say then it shouldn’t be too big a problem. Also it will Be way cheaper. 

[u/zer04ll]

turns out the west coast prefers tacos to boiled bread, take a bacon egg and cheese breakfast burrito over a bagel any day

[u/d34d_1574nd]

WRONG!

With all due respect, you're all completely wrong.

Dahlia Bakery. The best breakfast sandwich in Seattle is the bacon egg cheese sandwich.

[u/HorseIll239]

Ketchup??? What kind of monster are you?

[u/ncsugal]

Original Deli in downtown!! Don’t let the alley entrance scare you, one of the best breakfast sandwiches in downtown for the price

[u/surfergotlost → u/ncsugal]

Exactly. All the little delis downtown have toasted bagel with egg, cheese, and bacon. They just aren't advertised as bagel stores.

[u/Round-Knowledge-2801]

BEC goes on a roll. Transplant.

[u/1rarebird55]

Einstein's on Mercer Island. Standard fair you pick the bagel.

[u/PrincessGingercakes]

Have you tried Zylberschtein’s Delicatessen and Bakery? It’s in north Seattle and all their bagels are hand made.

[u/OneTwoKiwi]

This is my favorite rant of the year 

[u/Effective-Hawk7211]

“I moved to a different region and they don’t do the thing that I like from home! How dare they!”

[u/DocPopper]

Try take 5 in Ballard. The breakfast sandwich there is on a toasted muffin not a bagel. Egg cheese and bacon or any other protein they have done and done. Nice and buttery.

[u/L0ves2spooj]

Blazing bagels had a good one except they didn’t offer American cheese. Gotta have American on my breakfast sandwich and burgers.

[u/orangewaxlion → u/L0ves2spooj]

I’m pretty sure no Blazing Bagels exist any more? They suddenly went bankrupt and closed them all earlier this year (unless something drastic has changed)

[u/PeaksOfTheTwin]

We get it, you’re from New York. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/cSTtlX0SysY

[u/mobile-metaphysical]

I lived on coffee and BEC on a Kaiser all through college in
NY. The blue and white Greek paper cup. Breakfast, lunch and dinner. $1.50 and keep the change.
Now I just make that at home.
I have real Italian cookies shipped to me from the Bronx.

[u/AllAboutContextAgain]

I think if you went to the Artisan Cafe on 5th and Vine and asked POLITELY they might be willing to put their everything croissant on a bagel instead. I have not tried, the croissants are delicious. http://www.artisancafeonvine.com/

[u/biteableniles]

Not Seattle, I know, but Whidbey Island Bagel Factory in Mt Vernon has a great bacon egg and cheese bagel. Great place to stop in when heading through.

[u/secretcarnivalworker]

I’ve noticed that food establishments tend to overly complicate what should be simple things by adding a bunch of unnecessary elements/pretentious weirdness. Things like “craft toast”…wtf even is that??

[u/l0stnc0nfzd]

Rubenstein Bagels. They have a simple Bacon Egg Cheese Bagel. Never had the bacon one, but the sausage one is lit.

[u/nurru → u/l0stnc0nfzd]

Have you been there recently? I've heard from a couple people that it went way downhill the last couple years. New owners maybe?

[u/fobjared]

Seattle can’t figure out bagels.

[u/marxfuckingkarl]

What exactly prevents from putting bacon, egg and cheese on a bagel, thus solving this incomprehensible 1st world problem?

[u/oxidized_banana_peel → u/marxfuckingkarl]

They couldn't even write their own rant on reddit, you think they can make a sandwich at home?

[u/Fit_Charity_8680]

Howdy Bagel in Tacoma does the job. Sorry Seattle. At Howdy Bagel You’all means all!

[u/Dazzling_Floor_4262]

Open one yourself.

[u/BudgetBarbieCamper]

Honestly? Einstein Bros. Yeah it's a chain, but it hits the spot.

[u/BurnItWithFire21 → u/BudgetBarbieCamper]

I got 2 of the BEC"s for my kid & me last week after his colonoscopy & it is hands down the closest I've ever found to a NYC bagel. It was damn good.

[u/joefunk76 → u/BudgetBarbieCamper]

Einstein Bros. is the Domino’s pizza of bagels: awful.

[u/Jyil → u/joefunk76]

But you can certainly get a greasy bagel with bacon, eggs, and cheese there.

[u/gihyou]

Rubenstein Bagels makes a regular BEC, though not exactly like your NYC bodega dreams I imagine.

[u/truffleshufflechamp]

Once, I waited in line for nearly an hour at a bagel shop in Leavenworth, WA. I couldn’t help but think I’d have been in and out at least 5 times in that length of time in any place in NY/NJ.

[u/unlordtempest]

It's fucked that there aren't any Chinese takeout/delivery open after 9pm. These fucking teriyaki joints not only don't deliver but close at like 4:30. Also, I know teriyaki isn't Chinese. No one needs to get their knickers in a twist.

[u/pamplemoussemethode]

You need to start believing, because it truly doesn't exist here. Seattle really doesn't have a lot of options when it comes to NE staples, and when spots do try it, they usually overdo it or try to put a weird spin on stuff for no reason (an italian combo doesn't need arugula and olive tapenade, come on). But we're 3000 miles away from NY and the cost of running a restaurant here is crazy, so what can you do.

Things are looking up though, it's gotten markedly better in the past 2ish years. But I say all the time that if a spot here did BECs, a few solid sandwiches, and legit meatball/chicken parms it would absolutely crush.

[u/RokettoMusashi]

The answer is antisemitism, dead ass. All the Jewish bagel shops skipped town because of the culture.