Bagel Boy, St Nicholas Street: Review

It’s clear that Bagel Boy has become a true Bristol success story. From their beginnings as a pop-up within The Elbow Room on Park Street to their move to Shambarber on Stokes Croft, they subsequently opened a permanent premises on St Nicholas Street in the city centre – and have now opened yet another venue on Gloucester Road. And their popularity is justified.

They make their own bagels, they use locally sourced ingredients where possible…and the fact that you can get a filling meal – including a beer – for just a tenner, even on a Friday night, is always going to be a winner.

That’s exactly what we did last week, when a group of four of us chose Bagel Boy as the venue for a long overdue catch up, and with budgets already stretched halfway through the month (oops…), we were on the hunt for a great meal at a bargain price.

Previously the Tantric Jazz Cafe, the Bagel Boy premises has a seriously chilled vibe: it’s all leather sofas, reclaimed wooden seating and a small but perfectly stocked bar, accompanied by the soothing sounds of remixed 80s classics on the night of our visit.

Blackboard menus to the side of the bar highlight Bagel Boy’s menu offerings, split into the Classics, Patties (essentially burgers in bagels), Supremes (more of your “gourmet” bagel offerings) and Salads (we skipped over this section…). In total, you’ve got 26 different bagel options to choose from – plus any specials that are chalked up on the board – there really is something for everyone…

There’s also plenty of choice at the bar, with most of the focus on the beers. On draught, when we visited, were options such as Arbor’s Half-Day IPA, Harbour Brewing Co’s Amber Ale, Freedom Four lager and Beerd’s Sunspot Black IPA, while the bottles included Samuel Adams Boston Lager and Beerd’s Silvertip, among others. If you’re not a beer fan, though, there’s still plenty of choice – the cider and wine drinkers amongst our group still found themselves well-catered for. At £9.50 for a bottle of cider and a pint of the Sunspot, though, it’s not the place to be if you’re after a cheap drinking spot.

Bagels range from £3.80 to £6, but there are deals to be had. At lunchtimes, you’re able to choose any bagel from the Classics menu, along with a soft or hot drink and a snack, for just £5 – while from 11am to 11pm daily, the Whole Kaboodle Deal serves up any bagel from the menu with fries, a choice of BBQ beans, slaw or onion rings and a beer for just £10. Bargain.

After some negotiation on the drinks front (cheeky cans of cider and halves of lager replacing the ale option, for some) and an obscene amount of time spent salivating over the menu, I finally decided on the Verde Boy (lamb patty, halloumi, salsa verde, tomato and leaves), and BBQ beans as my choice of side.

The beans were a little disappointing flavour-wise: there was plenty of flavour there, but they just didn’t taste quite right. The fries were crispy and plentiful, and the bagel…oh, the bagel was epic.

A HUGE, juicy lamb patty was well-flavoured with plenty of chilli for a bit of a kick, the halloumi grilled to the perfect consistency, the salsa verde fresh and zingy. The bagel itself was dense and chewy and full of flavour…it’s amazing to think that we paid just £10 each.

For an affordable and relaxed meal out with plenty of choice on the menu, Bagel Boy was a definite hit in our books. The drinks may have been a little pricey and the BBQ beans not completely to our taste, but there’s no doubt that we’ll be heading back.