Next to rice, Filipinos consider bread as their staple food for breakfast and snacks. While pan de sal and ensaymada will always have a special place in our hearts and tummies, it is also fun to explore something new to our taste buds like bagels. With the emergence of IG shops that offer this baked treat, bagels are slowly becoming a trend in the Philippines.
Bagels, sometimes spelled as beigel, are ring-shaped bread rolls that resemble doughnuts. Over the years, bakeries and delicatessens have created new flavors to suit different preferences. In this article, we will help you choose the best bagels here in the Philippines through our buying guide fact-checked and reviewed by professional baker Alexa Versoza.
Alexa Versoza is a graduate of De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde with a major in the Culinary Arts. She has trained in the US for 2 years as a Pastry Cook at The Four Seasons Vail and The Sonnenalp Vail. She got back from her training in 2017. Since then, she has been practicing her craft in the Pastry Arts. After training under Chef Richard Manapat, she has been more inclined in baking bread. Alexa now co-owns an Artisanal Bakery in QC, Apo Baking Society, where they specialize in making artisanal bread and pastries.
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Here are some key points to consider:
For more detailed information, read through our buying guide below.
Bagels are available in both commercial stores and home-based businesses. However, they may differ in texture and taste, depending on the production process, so deciding where to purchase bagels is necessary.
Store-bought bagels can come from cafés, restaurants, and brick-and-mortar bakeries. Since these bagels are mass-produced, they are more affordable, readily available, and have a longer shelf life. However, many of them contain salt and additives.
Homemade bagels are usually from small-scale enterprises like Instagram shops. Since they only produce a limited number of bagels, expect that the price is higher. Nevertheless, they offer a variety of flavors with zero preservatives, keeping the bagels fresh and nutritious.
Bagels can be savory, sweet, or a combination of both, depending on the ingredients used. Classic bagels are on the savory side with a subtle hint of sweetness. Some bakeries add cream cheese, deli-style meats, and smoked salmon as fillings.
Others incorporate sesame or flaxseed to add crunch and nuttiness, as well as garlic, onion, and Italian cheese to come up with "everything" bagels. The sweeter variants may include chocolate chips, butter with honey or caramelized syrup, nut butter and banana, mixed berries, and cinnamon sugar.
Flour is the main ingredient of bagels, and the type of flour used may affect the overall texture and flavor of the bread. Classic bagels use wheat flour, offering a softer and chewier texture inside while having a crispy surface. But if you want to try a more earthy flavor, you can always look for pumpernickel or marble bagels that use rye flour.
For those who are health-conscious, whole wheat bagels are also available. They are as soft and chewy as regular wheat flour, but whole wheat flour has a crusty surface and is rich in fiber. It promotes better digestion and will make you feel fuller for longer. You may also opt to have gluten-free bagels if your diet requires it.
It would help if you also look into how these bakeries accept orders and check their delivery options. Most shops can receive orders via phone, their official website, e-commerce sites like Lazada and Shopee, or through a private message via Facebook chat or Instagram.
Some shops have third-party delivery partners like GrabFood, Foodpanda, Lalamove, and Mr. Speedy, but others have in-house riders and allow store pickups.
Lead time is very critical too when ordering freshly produced goods like bread. Most stores are likely to have available products on hand, so you can get the bagels immediately. But if you really want them fresh, try pre-ordering from home-based shops and patiently wait for your bagels.
These bagels from Wildflour are made from scratch inside the cafe's bakery. They've come up with an interesting combination of chewy and crunchy textures by using all-natural ingredients. The softness is from well-proportioned wheat flour and milk, while the crunch and nuttiness come from the oats and various seeds, including black and white sesame seeds.
These oats and seeds are rich in fiber to promote good digestion. When it comes to taste, these bagels have an earthy flavor with buttery sweetness. You can also put deli-style ham and cream cheese for a fuller meal. Wildflour makes a fresh batch every day, so rest assured that you will receive newly baked bagels.
The French Baker is a well-established brand in the country, known for producing quality bread, including bagels. Their bagels are made from whole wheat flour, which is packed with more fiber and carbohydrates than a regular one. These bagels are 100% made with natural ingredients and baked in batches.
Whole wheat gives the bagel a nuttier and more earthy flavor. They are not seasoned or topped with anything, so they are versatile and can be paired with sweet jams or savory fillings. You'll get fresh, soft, and pillowy sandwiches every time.
If you want to try several kinds of bagels, order this 9-piece pack of bagels from True Bakery. The bundle includes plain bagels and those with flaxseeds and white sesame seeds as toppings. These bagels are soft and homebaked daily. All ingredients are plant-based, perfect for a vegan diet.
But for those who do not follow a strict diet, you can slice them up and add smoked salmon and cream cheese as fillings to make a scrumptious sandwich. You may also spread fruit jams, ideal for those with a sweet tooth!
These bagels from The Bake Project PH are one of the most pillowy soft bagels you can get. They are made-to-order; hence, you will receive them freshly baked. Each bagel is hand-rolled, following the traditional way of creating New York bagels. Plus, the brand is very generous in providing premium quality ingredients.
Each box contains one dozen of bagels. Six of them are soft and chewy plain bagels, while the other half are seed bagels with black & white sesame seed and chia seed toppings to add a bit of crunch. Enjoy these along with your favorite drink, or be in for a little more treat by ordering the store's black truffle cream cheese spread.
The founders of Bagel Brats started only with a craving for bagels, but after failing to find one that they like, they opted to make their own. Hence, this one dozen of bagels is a masterpiece created to perfection. They may be in bite-size pieces, but they are denser than the typical bagels to fill your stomach.
Aside from the plain and sesame seeds variants, Bagel Brats offer cinnamon raisin bagels. The soft and chewy bread is made sweeter, perfect as an afternoon snack for a quick "pick-me-up." To make them extra special, order the flavored cream cheese spread; you can choose from strawberry, blueberry, and sun-dried tomato.
MadBagels is another well-received bagel shop on Instagram that only started last year during the pandemic. They also follow the New York way of preparing bagels by boiling the dough before baking to achieve a crusty exterior with a soft interior. The shop offers the usual bagel flavors, but one of its unique variants is the cheddar jalapeno.
The cheddar gives the bagels a savory and creamy layer, while the jalapeno peppers give the bread a kick of spiciness to reduce the umay. With this flavorful combination, just add cold cuts or smoked fish for a filling snack. If you prefer something sweet, this IG shop also sells chocolate chip bagels.
For merienda, we all love "Spanish bread" that is filled with butter and sugar and usually served alongside coffee. If you want a different take on it, try these Spanish "bragels" from Nextdoor Neighbor Bakery. This Filipino-inspired bagel is a lovechild of the owner during the ongoing quarantine, who also just craved for some bagels.
The bagel is soft, chewy, and less dense than other types of bread. Since they want the flavor to suit the Filipino palate, the bagels are stuffed with a sweet buttery fillingーno need to add another palaman. Besides the Spanish bragel, the store also has rosemary sea salt bagel, which is its version of focaccia, a savory Italian bread.
From ₱145
If you want to experience a sweeter variant of traditional New York bagels, check out My Sarbon Artisan Bakery's take on bagels. They are Brooklyn-style bagels, which are softer on the inside while having a nutty crunch on the outside. The bakery uses maple as the sweetener instead of the typical sugar.
The maple gives it a flavor profile that is similar to vanilla and caramel. Salt is also added to balance the taste. A pack contains 3 bagels, topped with sesame seeds and flaxseed. If you are using these bagels to make your breakfast sandwich, adding cheese, jam, or butter can give another layer of flavor to the bagels.
Are you craving for a berry sweet bagel? Well, here is an artisan bagel worth checking out! Village Gourmet's blueberry bagels have the right balance of sweetness and tartness. They have a golden brown bread that is marbled with plump blueberries. Besides the unique look, the bagels have a chewy texture that you will enjoy.
Each order consists of four bagels that are high-quality yet maintaining a relatively affordable price. You can enjoy the bagels as is, or you may smear some strawberry jam and if you're in for some more treat, top it with some whipped cream! You can also pair these bagels with black coffee or tea.
Jerusalem-style bagels or simply known as Jewish bagels, are considered the most original form of bagels. They incorporate milk powder and egg wash in the dough to achieve a crispier outer layer, but they are pillowy soft inside. Unlike the American version that is round, they are oblong-shaped bagels.
So, if you want to try something authentic and traditional, these bagels are for you! Pair them with hummus or cheese to make them more flavorful and delicious. With six bagels, it is good for sharing with family and friends during snack time. Keep in mind that they are frozen upon delivery, so you need to reheat them.
Below are some of the most asked questions on the web answered by the mybest team.
There are limitless ways to eat bagels. If you want something classic and simple, you can never go wrong by pairing it with cream cheese. You can also recreate your favorite avocado toast using bagels. Meanwhile, if you want something savory, you can sandwich some deli meat, lettuce, tomatoes, and mayo between your sliced bagels.
While bagels are also made of yeast or wheat dough and baked like other bread, they are boiled first in water until they're golden brown. This process gives bagels a crusty, crunchy exterior and a firmer inside texture.
It depends on the type of bagel and how you store it. Homemade bagels usually last for only two days and up to 5 days when stored in the fridge. Meanwhile, store-bought bagels can last for 3-5 days, and if you keep them in the fridge, you can enjoy them for up to 7 days.
Craving for cakes and other pastries but have no time to bake it yourself? We got you! Check out the links below for product recommendations on the best caramel and chocolate cakes, as well as sourdough bread that you can order online.
Author: Roel Pillas Malubay
Our buying guide was carefully researched and crafted by the mybest team of writers and editors, in collaboration with the expert featured in this article. We used the buying guide as a basis for choosing and ranking the product recommendations, and we looked at reviews and ratings from different E-commerce sites like Lazada, Shopee, and more.
When you purchase products mentioned in the article, part of the sales may be returned to mybest.
The descriptions of each product is referenced from the content available from the manufacturer, e-commerce sites etc.
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