Bagel News
Houston bakery begins shipping bagels to Dallas for first time in 45 years
A bakery that's a staple of Houston's Jewish community is now shipping its bagels across the country. New York Deli and Coffee Shop and its companion Bagel Shop Bakery have been in business for 45 years, and are now shipping their products for the first time.
Owner Michael Saghian says that customers had inquired about shipping for years, but the bakery never made it a priority — until the coronavirus came along and caused declines in their dine-in and catering business.
"Just as so many other businesses, we have been terribly impacted by the pandemic," Saghian says. "Our catering business, Houston Catering Concepts, came to a screeching halt in March and foot traffic to both the Deli and Bakery have been slower than normal to keep up business as usual."
"We're at 34 percent of our revenue from last year," he says. "We have to come up with new ways that work."
Their bagel selection includes 16 savory options in flavors such as poppy seed, pretzel, rye, challah, pumpernickel, and salt. They also have seven sweet flavors including cinnamon raisin, blueberry, and cranberry nut.
Available through the bakery's website, fresh bagels are shipped overnight for $18 per dozen (usually $12.50) plus the cost of shipping. The minimum order is one dozen.
Overnight shipping isn't cheap; a quick check of addresses shows about $50 to Austin, $70 to Dallas, and almost $100 to destinations on the East or West Coast. But how can anyone put a price on giving former Houstonians an essential taste of home?
"There are tons of people who grew up in this place," Saghian says. "Some people consider this their home. People that love our bagels that don't live here anymore — they're getting the option to get our bagels."
Saghian also plans to offer frozen bagels that could be shipped via ground for a lower cost, in addition to other deli signatures such as cryovac'd bags of matzo ball soup or refrigerated containers with smoked salmon and cream cheese.
