Patriotic Bagels

The fourth of July is always an exciting holiday for me! There’s just something about the parades, picnics, national colors flying everywhere, and of course the fireworks! A day in the middle of a stretch of no holidays where everyone just let’s go and enjoys the beautiful country in which we live!

 Being the born and bred American that I am I have always wanted to experience this national holiday in our nation’s capital. So, this year we decided it was going to happen! On a spur of the minute decision my hubby and I loaded up the Tacoma and hit the open highway heading North!

We stayed outside of downtown D.C. in Arlington. I MUST recommend doing that! While I really should save this for another post, I can’t help but brag on Arlington a tad. Stay in Arlington! It’s wonderful! Much more peaceful and relaxed than the chaos of being in the heart of all the monuments and landmarks. We stayed at the Hilton right at Courthouse. It was conveniently across the street from a Metro and a block from neat restaurants and shops. Definitely one of many good decisions we made while on our fantastic trip to our Capital. It also didn't help that I was there to see my best friend for the first time in over a year and her family lives in Arlington! Double win for Arlington! 

This blog is not about Arlington though. It is far more important! This blog is about breakfast, the lack of a breakfast place, and the journey in which we found great food! (Please remember the importance of eating a good, nutritious breakfast to start a successful day while reading this review). To be more specific, we found good bagels! This particular bagel place may have a New York name but obviously has the heart of many Washington locals and Washington tourist. 

The first morning we were there we decided that we wanted to save our money and not spend $15 eating at our hotel for breakfast. So, thinking that it would be NO issue, we took off walking towards the little shops and restaurants just one block up from our hotel that we had seen the previous night as we were pulling in. To our surprise breakfast shops were limited. Very limited! In the midst of panic and hunger desperation we chose to follow the crowd on this one. So, that’s what we did! And, the crowd led us to Brooklyn Bagel Bakery right off of Courthouse.

This hole-in-the-wall joint was packed with everyone! Tourist, locals, business folk, and anyone else you could possibly think of! We decided it was an automatic win. So, we stood in line and by observing the demeanor of other customers realized that we better be ready to order once the tall man behind the counter came yelling at us. They are a busy place, with special talents of Bagel making and they do NOT have time to play we quickly learned. This is a concept that as an elementary school teacher, I can appreciate and respect!

Sure enough, in a very timely manner, through the midst of all the chaos and chatter, the man behind the counter yelled “what can I get you?” We yelled back our orders in our most confident tone and followed the crowd through the assembly line. When we reached the end we paid for our bagels (both were extremely reasonably priced), coffee and magically our food appeared ready to eat!

The one down side to this gem of a place, while still not a deal breaker was that seating is limited. Most, from our observations, chose to sit outside on their few provided tables but they were all packed so we just took our bagels and found a seat in a local tiny park located across the street. It turned out to be perfect! 

 Brooklyn’s Bagels are kettle boiled and cooked just to the right amount! Not chewy (I can’t stand chewy bagels) and perfectly topped (I can’t stand when there’s too much butter or cream cheese)! Perfection! All THREE times we ate there. :)  

After eating our bagels that first morning we put on our patriotic attire and rode the metro a couple stops into the heart of D.C.! But, if the truth be told, we couldn't have managed our eventful fourth of July day without the jump starting help of Brooklyn’s Bagels! Truth be told, we visited every single day after that until our trip ended! It was just that delicious! And affordable!   

When you're in Arlington, grab a Bagel from Brooklyn! 

“Nothing says US of A like a good bagel on the fourth of July”  ~ Mo 

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