Wholy Bagel

Best bagels in Austin. As a transplant from New York I can vouch for the authenticity of the flavor (definitely more NJ style than NY, but it’s close enough!). Occasionally they even have other NYC gems like Whitefish spread and Black & White cookies! Only downside in my opinion is the service is also NY style. They’re not very friendly and when I’ve had my order messed up on a few occasions I had to ask the girl behind the counter to do something to make it right (and she actually had an attitude with me). But for me, at the end of the day I’m not coming here for the service… I’m coming for the bagels so, fuggetaboutit!

Went to pick bagels recently and they were half the size they used to be. Server blamed it on humidity. While this maybe true, a definite drop off in quality recently. Also, why are bagels mostly gone 11am on weekdays. I’ve given up on going there for lunch.

Wow. Best bagel in the city and as close to NYC bagels as you can get. The everything BEC is my jam.

The best place to get a breakfast sandwich or just a bagel and cream cheese. I try to come every weekend for a turkey and bacon on a sesame toasted bagel. You can taste the passion for bagels. There’s always a small line if that just lets you know.

We just moved to here in Austin last weekend. We were shopping around at Sunset Valley. We checked with Unilocal and gave a try. It was successes! Workers are very friendly! We are satisfied with our breakfast!

Wholy Moly! LOVE the lox sandwich… on an everything bagel, be sure to get it toasted. So delicious! Have my friends hooked on them now too!

Best lox I’ve had in a long time!
I love this solid traditional bagel shop — and we all know how hard it is to find a decent bagel in Texas. Quality ingredients, family owned, friendly (but not saccharin) service, and an all-​around homemade feel. The handwritten signage displaying various Northeast baked goods and their variety of schmear flavors reflects the personality of the place. I’ve frequented Wholy Bagel sporadically for a handful of years, but recently moved south, making this my go-​to bagel stop.
What prompted me to finally write a review are the lox. The lox! I went in on NYE to order a pound (yes, a full pound… don’t worry, I shared) of lox, a Texas dozen bagels and a large tub of cream cheese. Everything was delicious, but we were particularly impressed with the tenderness of the lox. One thing I loathe is biting into a perfectly assembled open-​face lox bagel sammie, only to accidentally pull out an entire slice of stringy, tough smoked fish. Not with these lox! Melt in your mouth tender, heaven to bite into, and a perfect salty/​briney flavor. Like I said above, quality ingredients: check.
On a normal visit, I usually stick to an everything bagel and regular cream cheese, but my S.O. loves the breakfast sammies, too. I hear their pastrami is on point, though I haven’t sampled that yet. All in all, highly recommend! A South Austin gem.

This is the place for authentic New York style bagels. My mothers side of the family are all NYC transplants and when they gather– these are bagels of choice.
If you are feeling daring, talk trash about the Yankees when the owner is manning the counter. Honestly it’s the only risky thing you can order, everything else is absolutely delish.
Ok, now talk amongst yourselves

Awesome bagels. Consistently good! Love the everything bagel with egg and scallion cream cheese.

Best bagels in Austin. You can tell they are boiled instead of steamed. Their Lox bagel is super good too! Come early, they sell out of most bagels during the morning/​afternoon rush.
My favorite sandwich here so far is the Reuben on an everything bagel. So good! You won’t be disappointed here.

Addicted? Yes.
My husband and I came here for the first time a little over a week ago. It’s not super close to us, but it’s not far either, and we have been here 3 times already.
I’m from the Northeast where it’s bagel heaven. And get this, Wholy Bagel’s bagels are the BEST I’ve had. The slightly toasted everything bagel with all the goodness of spices and garlic and onion topped with the homemade jalapeño cream cheese is just to die for. Best part, you can take tubs of that delicious cream cheese home if you want.
You can sit at a New Yorkish bar inside or sit outside at the café table. Or just take it to go and try out your NYer «on-​the-​go» attitude.
Whatever you do, just please go check them out!

Really good bagels! We picked up half dozen sesame, plain and poppy and were really impressed. This is only days after eating Bagel Boss that a relative sent us, so it’s definitely a ringing endorsement.
My husband loved his black & white as well!

Not the best bagels. The first time I came, I blamed myself (maybe I arrived early, I thought, and that would be the reason why the bagels didn’t taste fresh, because they haven’t made a fresh batch yet). The second time, the bagels still didn’t taste fresh and I paid $ 5 and some change for one bagel with cream cheese and a milk. To add insult to not-​fresh-​bagel injury, the cream cheese was unevenly spread and one whole half of the bagel had zero cream cheese. Definitely not worth the money.

If you’re someone who loves a good Panera bagel to get your morning started, you might as well stop reading right here. If you’re a Northeast transplant who’s searched across Austin with fading hopes to get your REAL bagel fix, then you’ve reached your destination at last.
To be honest, the first time I tried this place I didn’t see what the hype was about. The bagel was average, a little dry even. But it was either an off day or I got the wrong thing, because the second time was definitely the charm. Showed up on a Sunday morning, and the place was packed. I’d been craving the delectable bagel breakfast sandwiches that used to be so easy to find back home — they’re like the breakfast taco of the tri-​state area. So I ordered a Taylor ham, egg, and cheese on a plain bagel. Boy, it took me right back to good old times. I’m not a big Taylor ham fan, but all the flavors came together real well, and the egg was cooked perfectly. Oh yeah, the bagel? Chewy, had the right taste, it sealed the deal. That’s the bagel I want… Panera, get outta here.
Also grabbed an everything bagel with sun dried tomato cream cheese, because those are two things I love, and every serious bagel shop should know how to do them right. Anyway, these guys delivered. Bagel had the right consistency again; the cream cheese was rich and delicious — best I’ve had in Texas, none of that impostor «shmear» that Einstein’s serves up.
To top it off, this place offers black & white cookies that are actually good. Soft, chewy, sweet, just the right amount of black and white. I’d had my hopes dashed by the stale crap at other places that claim to sell this NY-​style treat, but finally someone got it right.
The short version: Not quite on par with my favorite bagel shops back home, but it’s the best you’ll find down here. And that’s more than good enough for me.

P-​p-​p-​pork roll?! In Austin? MOTHER OF PUFFALUMPS. YES.
It’s on the menu under its other common name — Taylor Ham — but it’s like salami made for breakfast: a thicker cut of tangy, salty, porky deliciousness. I think they’ll even sell you a giant chunk of pork roll if you want, just because it’s a weirdo item that nowhere really has here. I can’t believe I’ve found pork roll in Austin. I made the mistake of racing in Jersey this year and having the local breakfast meats. Someone whipped out this delicious sliced unobtanium called «pork roll» and fortunately, it didn’t take long for me to find it down here. Needed more. Do try it. It’s delicious.
These bagels are perfection. There’s a ton of cream cheese flavors to choose from, plus lox (YESSSSS), but it’d all be for naught if the bagels weren’t perfect. These are beyond perfect, though. There’s no tough, hard sadness here like you’d expect from a chain shop. It’s fresh-​baked bagel gloriousness: soft and chewy. There’s such a wonderful variety of delicious baked goods here that I don’t think I’ll ever try it all, but every single thing I’ve had has kicked my expectations square in the nuts by being that much better than I could ever expect.
They don’t skimp on cream cheese or sandwich fillings here. I always forget to ask for my bagels toasted, so it’s a good thing they have a sign by the register reminding you to do that. Get them sliced and toasted. Toasted bagel is best bagel.
I can’t say enough good things about zomgggggggggg porrrrk rollll this place.

After many more visits time for another review. These are the very best bagels in the city, period! Boiled of course and made from scratch! I like them even more than the ones I would get while working in NY and NJ. One of the big reasons is not only the styles they make (The Jalapeño Cheese is to die for), but the loyal following. I go in armed with insults, as you should be ready to do in any true bagel joint, but tempered a mite as this is laid back South Austin. Today I had a breakfast bagel, with a jalapeño cheese bagel, sausage, egg and pepper-​jack cheese (and a healthy dose of some Tabasco to kill any heart worms I may have). As there were a lot of people I did not add crème cheese due to my big beard as I can be a bit of a slob around these. Absolutely delicious! Bagels with an attitude!

A lot of people here compare this place to bagel places in New York. I can understand why. I can come here and literally get all of the experiences that I would get in New York — everything from the great bagels to the awful, awful attitudes.
I had initially tried Wholy Bagel when my company’s culture team brought them in for the company breakfast. They were amazing! HUGE bagels with so many great spreads/​cream cheeses/​schmear. It was very delicious!
I stopped by here during my lunch, only to talk to a woman at the counter who would have loved nothing more than to not be taking my order, or anyone’s order, in fact. She grumpily and rudely asked what I wanted. After saying that I wanted an everything bagel with Texas loaded cream cheese on one half and salmon cream cheese on the other, she contorted her face as if to say, «You idiot, you’re not speaking English,» but instead, «You want that on a sandwich?» came out.
I was confused, because it seemed like a normal request. I ended up saying, «No, just the bagel with one cream cheese on one side and the other cream cheese on the other side.» I felt like I didn’t know how else to explain it. She was so intimidating that I actually questioned my own request and thought that I had accidentally walked into Quizno’s and tried to order a bagel.
«You want it cut in half?» I was puzzled here, too. How else does one put cream cheeses onto a bagel?
She then said, «You want that together?» I said, «I’m so sorry. This is my first time here. I don’t understand what you mean by together.» «Put together,» she repeated, as if she had explained this to me, 10 times in great detail. I smiled a little bit and asked if she could explain. She rudely made a gesture as if to show two parts coming together and said, «We usually do that here.»
I simply said «Yes,» because it was obvious that I was an idiot who was not to contest her supreme knowledge and impeccable communication skills.
15 minutes later, I was able to pay for my bagel and coconut water, for a total of $ 9.
When I got out to the car, I saw that «together» meant squishing the two cream cheeses into one massive cream cheese that all stays on one bagel half when separated.
So much for trying the two flavors. To this day, I still do not know what the actual flavors of Texas Loaded Cream Cheese are.

Delicious and vegetarian friendly. I had a rye bagel with all of their veggies and pepper jack cheese. Took me back to my days of travel to NYC. Awesome place. The owner took our order and it was pretty obvious he was from New Jersey which added to the fun environment. There is limited seating inside and while we waited for our food (9:30 a.m.) line formed out the door but it was definitely worth the wait.
Will definitely go here again.

First time here, and I’m not impressed. The bagels are too airy, and they only put «almost frozen» cream cheese on one side of the bagel. As a lady. I don’t want to have to shove a 6 inch tall bagel in my mouth. Why is the cheese not spread out, or a knife given to spread it out ourselves? For me the bagel should be chewier, fuller, and more bready. The customer service lacks, and for as many people are staffed behind the counter, it takes about 10 mins to get an order with 2 customers in the room who already have their orders. Brueggars is way better in my opinion.

I’m from NJ, worked in NY, and lived by the mighty bagel and its every blissful and horrific calorie. Words cannot express my longing for its starchy perfection. But when a friend said Wholly Bagel had bagels — real for real bagels — I didn’t believe him. «I’ve been burned by too many Einstein bagels» I says. He says «this is the best bagel in Austin.» Alright. So I says «okay Joe, I’ll try it out.»
This is the best bagel I’ve ever eaten (in Texas). You can quote me: hands down and tellin’ the truth. This crust is right. The bread in the crust is right. The cream cheese is slathered on like we’re living on a prayer. I mean it’s like every diet’s total nightmare. And I went right back the next day.
Let me tell you something: there’s a special magic required around making bagels the right way, okay? You gotta like flash boil it and then you gotta use the right oven and you gotta — I mean, extra TLC, okay? I don’t know the whole process but it’s some serious affection and attention needed here. That mess of a doughy catastrophe you get at most places or — Jesus in a manger help you — at Costco? No. I don’t want to hear about it. Wholly Bagel does it right every time. The place is small and when it’s packed I’m like ah Christ.
This place is so good I ran into Tommy Left-​Limp here (he says his ma’s doin’ good). I seen Maria’s sister’s daughter Little Maria over here too, says she’s marrying Paulie next year which is a surprise to everyone because of what happened last year. Just sos you know, outside of this being in a strip mall type setting, and it being a billion degrees out, and people being borderline friendly, this is the place I have felt the most east coast in all of Austin. Alright? Go try it already youse guys, geez.