The Bagel King
By: Larry Gordon
The fact of the matter is that from the start, I thought it was a great name for a weekly column.
It started back in the late ‘90s when I used to sit around a bagel store on Central Avenue in Lawrence run by my good friend, Joel Baruch, and his dad. I would be communing with a few friends, a cup of coffee, and once in a while, a bagel to munch on.
Over the last two decades, that bagel store on Central Avenue moved to larger quarters in Woodmere which is a little off the beaten path. Still, the food is such a fantastic draw, that its location becomes less important.
That store, as you probably guessed, is the one and only Gotta Getta Bagel. And they have so many great dishes to try in what I simply call “Gotta” that leave a great lingering taste, which I can usually anticipate even before they are served.
There’s a great deal to write about when you discuss Joel, his wife Cheryl, and the team at “Gotta.” So, let me start by saying two specific ideas that I’ve been marveling about for as long as I’ve known Joel and Cheryl.
The first is that Joel and his team at “Gotta” are what I consider the kings when it comes to making a brisin New York and in particular the Five Towns. And this is the way it works almost reflexively. If you have a baby boy, or one of your kids has a baby boy, you automatically do three things right off the bat. The first is to book a location for the bris. The second is to call a mohel and make sure he’s available, and the third is to call Joel at Gotta Getta Bagel.
About two weeks ago, I ran into Joel in Cedarhurst and he proudly shared with me that earlier in the day, he had catered six brisim. I don’t know how he does it, but when I think about every bris I’ve attended over these many years, I always saw it as a sign that I was in the right place if I saw the Gotta Getta Bagel truck parked outside.
So, as you can see, I’ve known Joel and Cheryl for many years. One aspect of what they do is difficult to fathom. And that is the time of day they get up each morning so your catered breakfast or simcha is delivered on time. I think Joel once told me that he wakes up each morning at about 2 a.m. and opens the store with his staff about an hour later.
Are those crazy hours or what?
A few years ago, shortly after they opened their stylish new location in Woodmere on Broadway, I asked Joel if I could meet him at the store before he opened it so I could observe how the entire process works and how all those delectable dishes are prepared six days a week (thank goodness for Shabbos!).
Joel and his team at Gotta Getta Bagel know how to make great food. And if you were wondering—yes, it was in his store where I sat sipping a cup of coffee that the idea first popped into my mind to call this column “Heard in the Bagel Store.” So, thank you, Joel. First of all, for providing the delicious, fresh-brewed coffee, and second, for providing the inspiration for what has been many years of columns devoted to some of the best bagels anywhere.
As you’re probably aware, I know a great number of people. I don’t know all of them very well, but I know them on some level and I can say this for sure: I don’t know anyone who works as hard or with as much intensity and drive as Joel Baruch. I mean, have you ever met a person who gets up before the roosters?
That particular morning, when I was there in the kitchen with Joel and his crew, I observed the process of getting those bagels going in addition to such specialties as pumpernickel bagels and those famous mixed black and white bagels.
I cannot give you the precise ingredients of the “Gotta” bagels for two important reasons. The first is that they are top secret. And the second reason is that even if I knew them, I couldn’t tell you. Which brings me to another great menu item Gotta Getta Bagel is famous for: their muffins, which are not only on display in the store, they are also on display in many other stores around town, mostly in places where the owners do not want to get out of bed at 2 a.m., and prefer arriving at their stores around 5 or 6 a.m. with the bagels piping hot and fresh and neatly tucked into boxes carefully arranged in front of their shops.
So, why bagels? Why call a popular column “Heard in the Bagel Store,” and how did I know it was going to be popular in the first place? The truth is I had no idea except that from many years of observation, I understand how central bagels are to so much of Jewish life.
Whether it’s a bris, a shivah house, a Kiddush, or anything in between, while planning one of these events, someone will invariably say, “I’ll get the bagels.” That’s why those bagel ovens that turn in circles are running around the clock. And if you speak to Joel about baking bagels, it’s not just a matter of popping the circle-shaped dough into an oven; baking the perfect bagel is an art form and Joel Baruch is a consummate artist.
A delicious, expertly-made bagel has to have that perfectly crisp crust, slightly dense interior, and a soft, savory inside with a distinct, pleasant flavor. Then, if you toast the bagel, you add an even greater taste and flavor whether you are having the bagel with the traditional shmear of cream cheese or with something more mundane, like tuna or scrambled eggs.
As Joel will tell you, it’s not important to know anything about Jewish life so long as you can walk into one of these food emporiums and in a slightly louder voice, order a “bagel with a shmear.” And in this case, the shmear usually refers to cream cheese, but today, you have many options, such as flavored cream cheeses.
So, if you really want the best bagel with anything or an “everything bagel” with something, Gotta Getta Bagel in Woodmere is the premier place to get it.
Joel and Cheryl, as I mentioned previously, are hard-working people with lots of orders to fill this year, and they make sure each order is filled perfectly. And that takes diligence, talent, and close attention to detail. Whether it’s a poppy seed bagel or a garlic bagel or a bagel with cream cheese and lox, Joel has a knack for perfection and, most importantly, timely delivery. It’s one thing if the mohel arrives a little late because he had an earlier bris, but a simcha needs a good dose of bagels, salad, and some steaming hot coffee freshly brewed. And if you need another reason to go, Gotta Getta Bagels is the go-to bagel spot in the Five Towns and the best way to break a fast. Enjoy!
Read more of Larry Gordon’s articles at 5TJT.com. Follow 5 Towns Jewish Times on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for updates and live videos. Comments, questions, and suggestions are welcome at 5TJT.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
