Sadelle’s – A “Hole” New Kind of Bagel Place?

Get it?

If I wrote this review after my first or second visit to Sadelle’s it would have been a laudatory salute to the best new lunch restaurant in New York City.  Unfortunately, I had a third visit, and the reality of Sadelle’s started to sink in a little.  Saddelle’s in a lot of ways exemplifies what Major Food Group ( Parm, Carbone) does best: elevate familliar and unfussy classics to trendy and dressed up new heights. It also sort of exemplifies the ridiculousness of brunch culture and the insatiable need to evoke the old in order to do anything new, at a very high price.

If you think about any of the other classic bagel and smoked fish joints in the city, they rely on a bit of nostalgia as badge of authenticity, keeping a decidedly no-frills atmosphere even to their detriment.  Although Barney Greengrass, Russ and Daughters are  not cheap, every cent of what you are paying for goes to the high quality ingredients and professional staff, who may not have the smoothest chit chat techniques but are consumate professional waiters.  The deal with Sadelle’s is this: The food is great, some times even outstanding, but it comes with baggage. The portions, beyond the smoked fish platters, and the bagels, are comically large; this could possibly be a ploy to justify the high prices, but it takes away from the fun of a place like this, which is sharing. I think that instead of an enormous $21 salad that comes artfully arranged and tossed table- side, there could be a place for a $13 salad that you can enjoy along with some carby items. Same with the triple decker sandwiches; the plate of 8 mini sandwiches is so large that two people can share them and be stuffed; delicious, but too much to get anything else.

The lunch crowd at Sadelle’s is a manageable mix of tourists and locals ( to New York, if not Soho, since it is now just a shopping mall). Weekend brunch brings the trendy masses with their babies, clad in ripped black jeans, over sized Stella McCartney sweater blankets, motorcycle boots and rolexes.  Saddelle’s is not exactly kid friendly, lacking the turning radius required by McClaren strollers and the presence of some steps, as well as the deafening din, but that doesn’t seem to stop people.  Our littlest bruncher was quite taken with her plain bagel and almost forgot about the spill out of her high chair. There is also no bar at Sadelle’s, but there is booze on offer, including a stomach burning $17 Bloody Mary.

The shtick is that lab coat clad waiters come around with bagels on sticks, fresh from the oven, yelling ” hot bagels,” magically produced from the glass enclosed kitchen in the middle of the restaurant. The bagels are seemingly endless, and when you order fish plates you can choose as many different flavors as you would like, but the servers only bring what is requested (usually NOT hot), so be literal with your requests. The other shtick is that the fish plates are arranged in towers, similar to tea sandwiches at a proper tea; don’t get that confused with THE tower, a grand tasting of every fish and salad for $100. The bagels are not huge, and firmer than other bagels, with less fluff; they are equally flavorful on their own as well as a perfect canvas for all of the toppings.

The Smoked Scottish salmon, from Acme Smoked Fish, is cut thin, delicate of texture but full of pure, smoky, salmon flavor, soft enough to cut with a spoon and eat un-adorned. The tuna fish salad is out of this world (especially on an everything bagel), but the whitefish salad leaves a little to be desired.  All smoked fish comes with choice of cream cheese (plain, chive) and a plate of fresh tomatoes, thin sliced cucumbers, onions and capers. The LEO, ( lox eggs and onions) is a sautéed onion omelette with smoked salmon placed on top and drizzled with creme fraiche; pretty to look at, but I prefer the messier versions at  Barney Greengrass and Eisenberg’s, where the salmon actually comes in contact with the heat. The salads, for all of their visual appeal, are just too large and overwhelming, nothing special. The tuna melt is worth seeking out; served on a panini-pressed bagel and with gooey American cheese, it is nostalgia- inducing and worth the calories.  Other highlights are the cheese blintzes, fluffy and not too sweet, and the best sticky buns ever.

Sadelle’s is like the Las Vegas version of a New York bagel joint; there is no denying the strength of the food, but the bells and whistles are a little bit much.  People who are serious about food and less serious about the scene will appreciate the entertainment value, but eventually go elsewhere for the real deal.