I was in NYC and wanted to grab a bagel in midtown so I pulled up Yelp and found Liberty Bagels and it had 4.5 review. How could I go wrong with them. New York City and bagels are inseparable where bagels from a food truck can be good!
The Liberty Bagels Experience: A Disappointing Reality
Liberty Bagels claims to hand-roll and kettle-boil their bagels the “old-fashioned way.” While this might sound promising, the execution often falls short of what a genuine New York bagel should be.
The Bagels:
Far from the ideal balance of a crisp exterior and a tender, slightly airy interior, Liberty’s bagels often lean towards being more akin to a roll than a bagel. A really good bagel needs that crisp exterior in order to create the chewy experience that we know and love. Liberty’s bagels missed that day in school. A Lender’s bagel would have been a better option.
They have market their Rainbow Bagel, which may rise to the level of being a viral sensation. This bagel is a prime example of style over substance – a visually striking gimmick that offers nothing more than a plain bagel with artificial coloring. It’s a bagel for Instagram, not for your taste buds.
Beyond the Bagel:
The rest of the menu, from egg sandwiches to deli fare, often mirrors the same mediocrity. It’s standard, uninspired diner food, serving a purpose for hungry tourists but offering nothing that would draw a local away from their tried-and-true neighborhood spots.
The Atmosphere & Crowds:
Liberty Bagels is a clean and pleasant looking shop. It is filled with constant crowds creating a chaotic atmosphere. After taking a few minutes, most of their clientele appear to be out of town visitors. The Order Here, Pay There system, while designed for efficiency, contributes to an impersonal, rushed almost assembly line experience. There’s little charm or genuine New York grit; it feels more like a factory churning out mass-produced bagels for the masses.
The Verdict: Overhyped and Underwhelming
For many who truly appreciate a New York bagel, Liberty Bagels is simply not worth the hype, the wait, or the trip. In fact, even if there was no wait and it was super convenient, it would not be worth the time or effort to eat there. It’s a prime example of a tourist trap that capitalizes on its location and viral trends rather than delivering on genuine quality. If you’re looking for a truly authentic, delicious New York bagel experience – one with the perfect chew, a balanced crust, and expertly crafted schmears – you’d be wise to skip Liberty Bagels and seek out the numerous other, far superior, bagel shops that truly embody the city’s culinary soul.
The real question that I have is why is Liberty Bagels ranked so highly on Yelp? Is it because tourists who have no clue on quality bagels are raving about it? Could it be that Yelp inflates ratings for some reason (like revenue)? Has Yelp jumped the shark?
A 4.5 rating equates to a restaurant or business being really good. If Liberty Bagels could achieve this rating with over 2,000 reviews then something is wrong with the Yelp system. It turns out that according to Yelp, Liberty Bagels (4.5) is higher ranked than Utopia Bagels (4.1), Ess-a-Bagels (4.0) and My Three Sons Bagels (3.8). How in the world is that possible? It is an indictment on the online review sites.