Spread Bagelry

This place has great house made bagels but just because they may be awesome bagels doesn’t give the staff the right to have serious attitude problems. It never fails EVERY TIME I go in this place !! Spread bagels are way to expensive for your staff to treat people this way. To top it off maybe they should learn how to take phone orders as well, people are on the go, nobody has time for screw– ups!

These bagels are not good at all! They were undercooked on the inside even though the outside was a golden brown, and had no flavor. Also, the eggs on my bagel sandwhich were overcooked with a golden brown film on them. The staff that runs the place is snooty and also refused to close the front door in the middle of January. When we asked if the door could be closed due to the low 30 degree temps rolling in and our feet freezing, we were told they needed to leave it open for the line — there was no line. When I commented on that fact, they said that they needed to leave the door open for ventilation. Sounds like a license and Inspection issue if the establishment with INDOOR seating cannot operate in the winter with the door closed…

I found bagel heaven. bagels are crunchy outside soft and chewy inside & very hearty and just the right amount of sweetness .
Great selection and staff was very friendly and very reasonable prices .
Manager was especially kind and helpful, I would totally recommend for any breakfast, lunch & brunch

Well, well, well! Sitting pretty on the outskirts of rittenhouse square Park is this absolute gem. They use a method of wood baking which allows the bagels to be very soft. Nice variety for all your taste buddlings lol. Just know if you want a BETTER bagel go. CAUTION: not for slim pockets

Whenever I make a trip to the city this is my go-​to breakfast place. I absolutely love the Nova Scramble! The cream cheese is loaded with salmon and the eggs are made fresh to order. I absolutely love their sesame bagels and are phenomenal in general. The amount you receive for the price is definitely worth it. Beware, Saturday and Sunday the lines can go out the door and down the street, but it’s most definitely worth the wait!

OMG these are some sexy ass bagels!!! they look so bougie i love it. 2 dollars for a bagel is fucking expensive though… the line is DEFINITELY long but only pussies can’t wait in lines

2.5 starts rounded to three
Best Philly bagels in my opinion. Funny, the sign in the window says Montréal style bagels (if that were true, this would be an easy 5 start rating). I am born and raised in Montréal and I can confirm that Spread Bagels DO NOT taste anything like Montréal bagels. Sure they are cooked in a similar fashion, but they are far to dense and not nearly sweet enough to be called a true Montréal bagel. Not even close. That said, still a good bagel outside of Montréal.
Sunday mornings tend to have a line into the store but it moves quickly. Get your bagel with home made spreads, bacon, egg and /​or cheese. Makes for a solid meal (as mentioned, bagels are very dense). I usually get a few to go as well. I’m a purist so I stick with the Sesame option but they have a number of different flavors.
Great in the nice weather, enjoy your breakfast using the outdoor seating.
PS — try a «real» Montréal bagel when your actually in Montréal.
BK.

I actually enjoyed the bagel (a nice touch of sweetness, chewy), and the spread. And we need a good bagel place in Philly!
BUT, $ 5 FOR A BAGEL WITH SCHMEAR IS A CRIME. For that much money, they didn’t even put enough cream cheese on – just a light dab – and I had to ask for some more. When I did, the cook behind the counter gave me major attitude.
No thanks.

There seems to be little point in adding a long review to the mountain of others given here except to say that these are really good Montréal-​style bagels. The place is very crowded and chances of getting seating or parking are slim but the wait is worth it for the meal.

If you have never had a NY bagel these bagels might have been ok. But after living in NY for a year and eating phenomenal bagels I was really dissapointed. One, the bagels are really doughy, dry, and tasteless. Two, the sandwiches were dry and flavorless. Three, the eggs, oh the eggs, were absolutely tasteless!!! I don’t think any salt was added. And these bagels where more expensive than the ones I got in NYC! How can anything be more expensive than NYC prices?!
The back area is also not very clean and there was a long line. The only redeeming quality was that there was bottomless La Colombe coffee.
I will not be visiting again. If you like NY bagels which are much more flavorfull, check out knead bagels. They are the closest to NY bagels. It’s just a much further walk from my neighborhood.

First experience with a Montréal style bagel but wasn’t a fan. Being from New York I like my bagels soft and chewy. These bagels had a less dense, bread like texture and were very dry. A bit sweeter than your normal bagel and the wood fire caused them to be a bit darkened and crisp on the outside, not bad but not great. Two bacon and egg sandwiches with coffee ran a bit over $ 20 which for bagels is pricey.
Also ate in the restaurant back area. Air vent looked like it hadn’t been cleaned in years. Maybe the smoke from the wood grill made it looked more dirty than it was but through the sunlight you could see large chunks of dust being blown into the air. They also have these decorative metal watering cans in the back area which are caked in dust. If they leave it that dirty where the customers can see makes me wonder how dirty the kitchen might be.

After visiting this place more frequently over the last year I figured I owed it an updated review. The consistently they struggled with before seems to have dissipated. Everyone once in a while I get a sad skinny bagel but it’s few and far between. People should note this is not your traditional nyc bagel! It doesn’t try or pretend to be, it’s a different kind of flavor (Montréal wood fire baked!) which some people just don’t like. I personally love it– thick, kind of chewy and has a sweetness to it. Their breakfast sandwiches are pretty tasty. Sure it is pricey… but what isn’t anymore?
On a side note… I just noticed they started having pizza from time to time and it’s actually pretty amazing!

This bagel hit the spot, perfect on a Sunday morning. I had never had a Montréal-​style bagel before, but as described in other Unilocal reviews, it is more dense. It also seemed a bit sweeter.
I ordered the bagel with salmon, onion and chive cream cheese. The restaurant gives you a generous portion and you definitely feel full afterward. The sandwich also came with a mini cucumber/​tomato salad — I think it was tossed with dill. It also seemed a bit sweet.
Would definitely recommend coming here’s. There’s usually a line, but it moves fast. There’s outdoor seating as well as tables/​chairs in the back.

Now I know why this place has a line out the door on the weekend. Never had Montréal style bagels — they are wood fired so they have a smokey flavor and are a bit drier than their cousins. I had the Ferrara scrambled with Amish jam. Yumb! lacolumbe coffee too.
Lunch menu looks great too. Very friendly staff and they will make any type of breakfast sandwich to order. The waitress/​cashier was very friendly and helpful. Great attention to detail such as smoked rather than regular cheddar and Amish grape jelly jam which was sweet but had a delicate flavor. The tomato on my sandwich was very flavorful and cut fresh. The décor is fun and relaxed. I loved the sign on the wall that said «Jews kick ass!»
Plenty of indoor and outdoor seating during the weekdays. Clearly not enough for the weekends but this place is worth it whether you are standing up or sitting down. Will definitely return. You get a lot of food, so come hungry. A little expensive, but you are next to Rittenhouse Square.

A delicious bagel-​it lacked the chewiness I usually crave, but it was warm and soft. The everything bagel was well seasoned with seeds on both sides. The garlic veggie cream cheese was under salted and under seasoned. Either way, it’s insane to pay $ 4.50 for a single bagel+spread, unless it’s the best bagel of your life! (And this was not!)

Cannot say enough positive things about this place. The regular lines out the door attest to the food quality. The bagels are Montréal style and superb! I have been multiple times and cannot help but order the classic breakfast sandwich every time– one of the best you will eat. The sandwich has a good portion of eggs and meat of your choice so you are full after it. I do need to force myself to try some of the other menus items as I am sure they are also stellar. They serve delicious coffee.
There is an option for BYOV for blood Mary’s that I need to try in the future. Seating inside is quaint, but a little tight. Really this is a perk– why sit inside when you can enjoy the side walk seating or take a short stroll and enjoy your breakfast in Rittenhouse Square!

My first experience with Montréal style bagels and it was a pretty good one. I loved the wood fired taste of the bagel. While I didn’t think the texture was as good as some of the others I have had, the taste was great. It was a little to hard on its exterior, and that permeated throughout the whole whole bagel, never really getting that chewy texture that you look for in a good bagel. The prices were ok, not great, but not so much that I wouldn’t return.
The sandwich itself was pretty spot on though. The sesame bagel was on point and it had a delicious filling of ham, egg whites, cheese, onions, and spinach that all came together rather nicely.
Overall it was pretty good, not the best, but a really different take on the bagel and bagel sandwich for that matter. I loved the wood fired taste of the bagel though. That was a nice change of pace from the traditional oven baked flavor. Ill definitely go back to check it out a bit more.

I enjoyed Spread Bagelry, but it didn’t wow me.
I had a bagel sandwich with egg and brisket. It didn’t wow me. Also, the brisket was all on one side and not spread evenly throughout.
It was like $ 9 which is a lil on the pricier side so I expected more brisket and more in general.
The bagel alone was very good.

This was exactly what I was in the mood for after a night of celebrating my cousins wedding! I kinda made my own creation, which they were happy to do. Egg whites, turkey bacon, spinach, and cream cheese on a whole wheat everything bagel. I’ve never seen a wholewheat everything bagel but it was good!
I love the open fire where you can see them baking the bagels. The place is small and cute. I would return definitely return. My only complaint is it’s a little pricey ($ 20 after tip for 2 bagel sandwiches and a lemonade) but when you have made to order with fresh ingredients and in a city, you are going to pay a premium.

50 dollar bagel;
I went to Spread at 11am in order to miss the morning rush. I parked up the street from Spread to check it out for the first time and put in money for 45 minutes (thinking this would be plenty of time to get a bagel).
Standing in line took about 15 minutes — fair enough. I ordered a bagel with lox cream cheese and a coffee. There was no where to stand to wait for your order. I had steaming hot coffee spilled down my arm by another guest while waiting because the place is too packed. Fair enough, accidents happen.
It ended up taking exactly 32 minutes for Spread to give me a bagel with cream cheese. I got back to my car to find a 42 dollar ticket. So the 8 dollar bagel+coffee and my 42 dollar ticket…50 dollar bagel.
The experience alone was so horrible I’d give it a 1/​5, but really these bagels and spreads are also overrated (see picture). Get it together.