October 6, 2011 - 10:16am
Food Wars: Plain bagel with cream cheese
BY DAILY ARTS STAFF
- Courtesy of Joanna Paterson
Panera Bread, 777 North University Ave.
Plain bagels can be boring, but Panera’s version of this food item is delicious. The bagel is perfectly toasted so that it’s crisp on the outside but chewy on the inside. The cream cheese is mercifully spreadable and tasty. All the awkwardness that’s usually associated with a normal slab of cold cream cheese is nowhere to be found here.
Zingerman's Bakehouse, 3711 Plaza Drive
Zingerman’s doesn’t serve plain bagels. Zingerman’s Bakehouse makes a 1610 traditional bagel which, despite its crisp crust and chewy innards, is bland. What sets this classic apart is the cream cheese. Made by hand at Zingerman’s Creamery, the fluffy spread, with its light milky flavor, adds enough zest to the plainest of plain bagels to make it an ideal part of any Sunday brunch.
Bruegger's, 709 North University Ave.
With a lightly crispy outside to complement the thick and soft interior, Bruegger’s gets it right with its homemade bagels. Throw in some signature cream cheese, with just the right balance of savory and sweet, and this becomes a nicely satisfying breakfast or filling snack. It’s cheap, too, ringing in at only $1.05 including tax.
Amer's, 530 South State St.
From your mouth’s perspective, the bagel is fine. It’s dense and chewy with a nice crust. But our eyes sense something is wrong — there is no hole in the center! Even if we could overlook this amateur mistake, we can’t forgive the smattering of nothing-special cream cheese, which is especially insulting when the pair tallies up to $1.99.
And the winner is: Zingerman's
Each week, one Ann Arbor staple menu item becomes a battlefield as Daily Arts editors butt heads over which restaurant makes it best. Where should you go for your burger, fro-yo or garden omelette? Daily Arts will fight for the truth.
