Although I've lived in Western Washington for 43 years, and in Renton for the last 22 years, I was raised in the Garden State, New Jersey, a place where people take bagels very seriously.
And as much as I love living in Renton, it's not a place famous for it's bagels. In fact, Renton does not have a single place that calls itself a bagel bakery. Safeway bakes their ghastly version, and Fred Meyer's aren't much better. Uwajimaya and Top of the Hill market carry the products of Seattle Bagel Bakery, baked in nearby Tukwila. They're a little better than Safeway and Freddy's, but they're underwhelming.
A few years ago, the late, great Flour, Sugar, and More bakery in the Renton Highlands made bagels, and they were surprisingly good. But now, alas, gone.
Now there's a new bagel player in town. The Red Tea Room is offering hand made, boiled, authentic 'New York' style bagels once a week, available for pickup. I bought a dozen last weekend, and I like them. That's a huge compliment, coming from a New Jersey native.
The Red Tea Room is a catering outfit. They don't have a dining room, and they don't even have an unlocked door. You knock on the door and give your name, and they bring you your bagels, as if it's a secret speakeasy, or as if you're making a drug deal.
Anyway, the bagels are good, and I will order more. Are they authentic New York bagels? Well, they're hand made and boiled, which are two big pluses. They're not quite as crunchy/crispy on the outside as most New York bagels. I'm guessing they're not baked in a brick or stone lined oven, so they're a little softer on the outside than a typical NY bagel. Bagels are labor-intensive, and I appreciate these bagels.
Still, there's one thing worth noting: The pricing is weird. There are nine different prices for bagels, ranging from 1.75 for a plain bagel, to 3.50 for an everything bagel. Most places charge one price for bagels, no matter what's on top. Some, like Blazing Bagels, have three different price points for bagels.
But nine different prices? And the everything bagel, at 3.50, is, to my knowledge, the most expensive everything bagel in the United States. I got a free one last weekend with my dozen order, and it was great, with toppings on both sides. But unless the everything bagel's toppings include gold dust or cocaine, 3.50 is way too much. Top only one side, or use less toppings. Don't charge 3.50. Even Rubenstein's Bagels in downtown Seattle, one of the new breed of fancy-schmancy bagel shops, only charges 2.50 for their everything bagels, and they're more expensive than anyone else locally.
Anyway, the Red Tea Room's bagels are quite good, and worth getting and picking up. I'm going to do it again, but I won't be ordering any everything bagels on general principle. You can't just start selling bagels and decide it's okay if you have the most expensive everything bagel in the United States.
To order, go to theredtearoom.com/bakery .
This weekend, they're doing blue and green bagels to honor the Seattle Seahawks, who train in Renton. And you thought green bagels were only for St. Patrick's Day!
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