Bob R.

Being dairy-free and gluten-free has its disadvantages when considering you love New York Bagels. In the days before gluten became a problem, I loved going to the bagel bakeries in New York. When we lived there, we had them all of the time. Now, we live in Chicago. While the bagels are very good, there is something about a New York Water Bagel. After searching, we found a few places that offered gluten-free bagels and dairy-free cream cheese (made from Tofu). We all ordered our bagels, and I ordered a plain gluten-free one. (They also had everything gluten-free bagels.) It was not quite the same as a real bagel made with flour. But, it tasted good and had the right consistency. I've tried a number of packaged bagels and they aren't very good. I was unsure if there were options for me any longer. I did learn recently that there are places in Chicago where you can get the same. I'll definitly try. I hope they will be as good. Frankly, if they are better than the packaged ones, I'll be happy. But, I may just mail-order some every once is a while.

Madison G.

This place was great! They don't do bagels open faced, which I don't like, and pretty much the reason I gave four stars instead of five. Yes I know I can just take the sandwich apart, but it's messy and the lox/nova ratio is always off. However, I got the package of lox instead and ordered a bagel with cream cheese and side of tomatoes, and it was amazing. Perfect amount of lox, with a little bit left over. The tomatoes were SO cold and fresh. I would definitely come back here!

Faith A.

Fatiha, Cairo and Tito were great! I have allergies and they were very patient and accommodating. Highly recommend

Mike M.

Just a solid "ok". The staff here are truly wonderful and engaging which is nice but when it comes to the bagel? Not so much. The bagels here don't have that classic NY chew. They were soft though. Maybe they skip one of the important steps when it comes to baking a true NY bagel. Kettle? Wood boards? I know black seed has some sort of cult following city wide but for me the bagels here don't even make it in my top 5 bagel spots. Give them a try maybe.

Chika D.

I was in the area and decided to stop in here on Saturday (07/22) afternoon after securing a surprise bag on the Too Good to Go app. (According to Wikipedia, the Too Good to Go app "connects customers to restaurants and stores that have surplus unsold food.") My bag consisted of six fresh bagels -- sesame seed, everything seasoning, and raisin -- and two 2 oz portion cups of plain cream cheese and scallion cream cheese. The latter cream cheese had nice chunks of scallion. I should note that I don't eat bagels enough to know if this is a typical NYC bagel. Anyway, I opted to smear each cream cheese on a (toasted) everything seasoning bagel once I returned home. The cream cheeses were beautifully whipped and creamy, with the plain being my favorite of the two. The scallion one was a bit too onion forward for my taste. There is seating outside for whoever wants to catch some sun rays and a few tables inside for those who want to bask in the cool. After viewing the menu, I can say I definitely got a great deal with the app. The bagels are a bit pricey (I haven't had a store bought bagel in forever but do y'all remember when a toasted bagel w/ plain cream cheese used to go for no more than $1.25?!) No complaints about the customer service but I doubt I'd return without the app nor if I'm not in the vicinity.

Zoe B.

Toasted perfectly, great taste. I always get the everything bagel and switch up toppings, today was the scallion tofu cream cheese with bacon

Kate N.

After walking past this location multiple times, my roommate and I finally decided to take the plunge and try Black Seed Bagels. I came this afternoon to pick up our lunch to bring back home. You go up to a counter outside to place your order. The staff was wearing masks the entire time, however I wish they had enforced customers that were coming up to the counter to wear a mask. There was a sign near by that said, you must wear a mask except when eating, but it clearly wasn't being followed or enforced by the employees. There are a couple of tables with chairs and two benches underneath one big umbrella. For the summer they have a special menu that you can only order from. I had the pastrami salmon and grabbed a BLT for my roomie, both made on plain bagels. We would have preferred everything bagels, however they unfortunately were out of them by the time I arrived a little after 12pm. The service was fairly quick and the woman who took my order was very polite and knowledgeable about the menu. The pastrami salmon was very delicious, lots of flavor, cut thin, and clearly very fresh. The scallion cream cheese was very creamy and had a nice ratio of scallions to cream cheese. Unfortunately the bagel was a bit of a let down. The plain bagel tasted grocery store bought and not worth the price of the sandwich. This place is a little pricier, so I was expecting a better, fluffier bagel. Maybe the other bagel flavors are better. My roomie enjoyed the BLT, she said the bacon was very crispy, and the spicy mayo a nice touch. She agreed with me on the bagel, however. I would return to Black Seed Bagels, hopefully to try one of their everything bagels. It would be very disappointing for a place with "bagels" in its name to not have any good bagels. The smoked salmon and cream cheese is absolutely worth it though. It doesn't skimp on flavor and the amount put on the bagel is decent.

THIS IS A ZERO STAR EXPERIENCE. I am DISGUSTED. This is the most abhorrent unsanitary disgusting and unsafe experience I've ever had with a restaurant. There was a f**** EARRING in my bagel. I am nauseous. I could've choked to death for one.... But God knows what germs are on that. DISGUSTING. I am SO SICK to my stomach. What must be going on in that kitchen for a whole earring to fall out of someone's ear and they did not notice??? SO NEGLIGENT. THEY DONT GIVE A F*** about the quality or sanitary conditions of the food they are serving. Horrible. Disgusting. Neglectful.

Marina S.

Holy moly, this was an expensive bagel. Black Seed Bagels specializes in Montreal style bagels, which are smaller and less fluffy than a traditional New York Bagel. I got an everything bagel with lox, cream cheese, and avocado and it ended up being like ~$17. The bagel was dense and chewy. They weren't exactly liberal with the other ingredients for what I paid, but c'est la vie. Overall, it was a very good bagel using high quality ingredients, but it unfortunately won't be in my regular rotation. There's a nice outdoor seating area and plenty of coffee options as well.

Andrew K.

I'm always on the hunt for new breakfast spots because lets be honest, no two places make breakfast sandwiches alike. I often order a BEC wherever I go just to compare things on an even playing field. Black Seed Bagel definitely hits their BEC out of the park. Quality portion size and deliciously flavored food. Definitely would recommend going to one of their locations as I'll certainly be back to sample the rest of their menu. Pro Tip: Order in advance for pickup, the line can get pretty long.

C D.

Decent but pricey bagel shop. My friend and I walked there so we could try their summertime-only chocolate babka ice cream sandwich. My friend loved it and was quite impressed. I got an everything bagel (there weren't onion bagels) with lox and cream cheese. It was good but nothing out of this world. A little pricey. Felt very safe and extremely clean. Outdoor seating.