On a hallowed day sometime in 1974, brothers Asher and Amnon Cohen opened the door to their brand new bakery, Beigel Bake – and since then, that door has pretty much never closed.
The place has been open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, pumping out 7k bagels from midnight to midnight, feeding hordes of ravenous punters thorough all the hours that the good lord gives us. Parked on Brick Lane, just down the road from the yellow-fronted competitor (Beigel Shop), it’s seen its fair share of drama throughout the years. There have been family feuds. There’s been gentrification. There have been hipsters, celebrities, royalty, Instagrammers, and other pandemics to deal with, and somehow they’ve weathered all those the storms and more.
And nor only that, throughout it all, they’ve consistently delivered one of the best value, best sandwiches the city has to offer: their famed, classic, gold-standard salt beef bagel. £7 right now. It’s packed with thick wedges of hot, juicy salt beef cut through with sharp (occasionally eye-watering) mustard, and an assertively sour pickle. That’s their mainstay, and that’s the dish that’s responsible for the perpetual queues that snake out the door, and never seem to dwindle come rain or shine.
There’s other stuff on offer too, of course. You can get yourself all the keepings of a classic kosher deli, with the likes of lox, cream cheese, hummus, tuna, chopped herring, and more to stuff into those bagels. And to finish it all off, there are shelves of afters ranging from apple strudel to Eccles cakes.
Seriously, there’s always a queue
When you finally make it to the front of the front, just make sure you know what you want. You’ll probably be greeted by a formidable lady who both looks and acts like she’s on a divine mission to conquer the never-ending, Sisyphean line behind you – so don’t umm, don’t ahh, and don’t whisper.
You’re getting the sale beef, with mustard and pickle. Thank you.
NOTE: The Beigel Bake is open right now (whatever time it happens to be) on Brick Lane. You can find out more at their website here, but it’s best just to head down there and start queueing.
Beigel Bake | 159 Brick Lane, London E1 6SB
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