Updating my review to reflect the takeover of Bruegger's Bagels from Bagel Jay's:
Whenever a local chain that is owned and operated by local people is sold off to a national chain, it's never a good sign. I very much appreciated all of the years that Bagel Jay's was open, as they seemed like a pillar of the community, and seemed to really care about its customers and its food quality. Not so anymore, it would seem.
What's lost in having a national chain buy out a local one is food quality (gotta pinch those pennies to make a buck for those investors), community (do you think Bruegger's really cares about Buffalo or its people?), and craftsmanship, which is usually derived from the company caring about its employees or customers. I was glad to see many of the workers from Jay's retain their jobs at Bruegger's, but the quality has certainly dipped.
I usually order just a ham/egg/cheese on an everything bagel with a coffee. The order comes to about $10, which is rather absurd for a basic bagel sandwich and a medium coffee, but here we are. The sandwich is usually fine, with some exceptions: the bagels themselves are fine, but a bit on the small side, but they are rarely toasted, even after I request the sandwich be toasted. If there is a toasting process that they're going through, it's insufficient; I want to have a bit of a brown crunch on my bagel, but these remain chewy. I'm noticing the dip in ingredients quality mostly in the ham and the cheese they use. The ham seems to be typical sliced Boar's Head ham, nothing special here, whereas Jay's used to have big chunks of ham. The cheese doesn't really taste like anything, and I specifically remember the cheddar standing out at the previous restaurant. I once ordered the Vermont sandwich, which was sort of a complete mess: way too many ingredients, slapdashed together to a falling-apart bagel. I would recommend getting the simpler orders here instead of their more complex sandwiches.
I see a lot of other reviews complaining about the service here, I don't really see what they're talking about. You go in, order a bagel, wait a bit, and collect your order. No staff is rude to me or creating a problem.
It's not necessarily the staff's fault that a hometown favorite restaurant chain was bought out from under them, they are still doing a good job of preparing breakfast and lunch orders for their customers on a daily basis. But the quality of the food is certainly less than before, which speaks to more of the corporate side.
I mainly come here when I get tired of Tim Horton's, but then I check the cost of the meal to the quality ratio, and I usually end back up at Timmy's because at least with the lower food quality there, you're getting what you pay for. The food here's fine, but much better when it was Jay's.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 3
Kelly M
This is by far the best bagels I have had in Buffalo ever. I have had it three days in a row! The bagels are soft, the food is seasoned. And the coldbrew is amazing no coffee taste at all. New favorite place
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
John Kostakos
Food was awsome however the person who brought out the cream for the coffee was the rudest person. Didn't acknowledge my hello just dropped the cream and left. Anyways we love the bagels and will keep coming back thanks
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1
Matthew Burke
It's amazing I wrote three reviews all that one star but I really gave them - 10. All my reviews mysteriously disappeared Siri it's amazing how that happened. The service absolutely sucks, and the staff has no personality they're like robots. The bagels are way overpriced, and then not the bagels. The water they're using is not good if you want a good bagel go to New York or New jersey. Bruegger's bagels are poor at best, and I include the staff in the rating
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 3
Service: 1
Bobbie G
Great food, great staff! This place is awesome
Jessica Jones
A peaceful place to eat and relax
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Michael Hicks
What a sad experience. We live in a state known for bagels and this is the only option we have in Buffalo. Stopped in this morning before work and spent $26 for our order to not even be right. I ordered a sausage, egg and cheese yet the never put any sausage on it. Never going to Bruegger’s again. Just another chain. Was already running behind and didn’t have time to wait in line to get my order fixed.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Aileen McCluskey
Manager went out of his way to brew fresh coffee for me when what they had prepared wasn’t what I was hoping for. Clean and calm dining area. Good for meeting friends or getting some work done. Clean bathrooms.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
nina Zesky
It’s just disappointing when we’re used to the service and quality of Bagel Jays. I live close to this location so I’ve given it a few tries. Every time I go in there my sandwich takes forever to come out, and it’s always a mess. Barely toasted, sliced poorly, and falling all apart. Sometimes with the right ingredients sometimes not. And it’s definitely pricier than bagel jays, so I wish the quality matched.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 2
Joshua
It was good when it was Bagel Jay's. Not so much anymore. Also, significantly over priced.
We bought a bakers dozen and wanted to have a couple toasted so we could eat here. Manager refused to toast food we bought at the store. Seems like they should have toasted the food we bought
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 2
Teontay Holmes
First time coming here the vernmont sandwich was very delicious and the hash browns are very good the team are great fast and professional the energy is great I love it !
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Erin Barr
You never know if your bagel will be perfectly toasted or if it will be ice cold and barely passed through the toaster. One day your order will be perfect and the next day the opposite.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 4
Raine James
I went here today for the 1st time. I had to come check the reviews, and sure enough LOL. The staff was INCREDIBLY unfriendly and rude. Order was wrong. Over priced. Very mid. The 2 friends that were with me also remarked how rude everyone was, for no reason.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 1
Beth Kappan
I have no issues with the food - we love these bagels! However, the service my husband received today was appalling. We placed an order on the app - paid for and ready to go when he arrived. When he entered the store and went to pick up the paid-for bag on the shelf, he was first berated by an employee who YELLED, "hey, hey, hey STOP!!!" He stood there dumbfounded. If that wasn't enough of an embarrassment, a manager then came out and continued yelling at him. "What do you think the boxes are there for? You don't just reach over a box and take a bag!" Now, hear me out. Fine, if that wasn't the procedure - just tell me like a normal human being - not like some tyrant who feels the need to scold and embarrass a good, paying customer, who didn't know. That attitude was completely uncalled for and the pure definition of horrible customer service. So next time, instead of visiting Delaware Ave., we'll go to Snyder, where the customer service is always excellent.
Updating my review to reflect the takeover of Bruegger's Bagels from Bagel Jay's:
Whenever a local chain that is owned and operated by local people is sold off to a national chain, it's never a good sign. I very much appreciated all of the years that Bagel Jay's was open, as they seemed like a pillar of the community, and seemed to really care about its customers and its food quality. Not so anymore, it would seem.
What's lost in having a national chain buy out a local one is food quality (gotta pinch those pennies to make a buck for those investors), community (do you think Bruegger's really cares about Buffalo or its people?), and craftsmanship, which is usually derived from the company caring about its employees or customers. I was glad to see many of the workers from Jay's retain their jobs at Bruegger's, but the quality has certainly dipped.
I usually order just a ham/egg/cheese on an everything bagel with a coffee. The order comes to about $10, which is rather absurd for a basic bagel sandwich and a medium coffee, but here we are. The sandwich is usually fine, with some exceptions: the bagels themselves are fine, but a bit on the small side, but they are rarely toasted, even after I request the sandwich be toasted. If there is a toasting process that they're going through, it's insufficient; I want to have a bit of a brown crunch on my bagel, but these remain chewy. I'm noticing the dip in ingredients quality mostly in the ham and the cheese they use. The ham seems to be typical sliced Boar's Head ham, nothing special here, whereas Jay's used to have big chunks of ham. The cheese doesn't really taste like anything, and I specifically remember the cheddar standing out at the previous restaurant. I once ordered the Vermont sandwich, which was sort of a complete mess: way too many ingredients, slapdashed together to a falling-apart bagel. I would recommend getting the simpler orders here instead of their more complex sandwiches.
I see a lot of other reviews complaining about the service here, I don't really see what they're talking about. You go in, order a bagel, wait a bit, and collect your order. No staff is rude to me or creating a problem.
It's not necessarily the staff's fault that a hometown favorite restaurant chain was bought out from under them, they are still doing a good job of preparing breakfast and lunch orders for their customers on a daily basis. But the quality of the food is certainly less than before, which speaks to more of the corporate side.
I mainly come here when I get tired of Tim Horton's, but then I check the cost of the meal to the quality ratio, and I usually end back up at Timmy's because at least with the lower food quality there, you're getting what you pay for. The food here's fine, but much better when it was Jay's.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 3
This is by far the best bagels I have had in Buffalo ever. I have had it three days in a row! The bagels are soft, the food is seasoned. And the coldbrew is amazing no coffee taste at all. New favorite place
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Food was awsome however the person who brought out the cream for the coffee was the rudest person. Didn't acknowledge my hello just dropped the cream and left. Anyways we love the bagels and will keep coming back thanks
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1
It's amazing I wrote three reviews all that one star but I really gave them - 10. All my reviews mysteriously disappeared Siri it's amazing how that happened. The service absolutely sucks, and the staff has no personality they're like robots. The bagels are way overpriced, and then not the bagels. The water they're using is not good if you want a good bagel go to New York or New jersey. Bruegger's bagels are poor at best, and I include the staff in the rating
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 3
Service: 1
Great food, great staff! This place is awesome
A peaceful place to eat and relax
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
What a sad experience. We live in a state known for bagels and this is the only option we have in Buffalo. Stopped in this morning before work and spent $26 for our order to not even be right. I ordered a sausage, egg and cheese yet the never put any sausage on it. Never going to Bruegger’s again. Just another chain. Was already running behind and didn’t have time to wait in line to get my order fixed.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Manager went out of his way to brew fresh coffee for me when what they had prepared wasn’t what I was hoping for. Clean and calm dining area. Good for meeting friends or getting some work done. Clean bathrooms.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
It’s just disappointing when we’re used to the service and quality of Bagel Jays. I live close to this location so I’ve given it a few tries. Every time I go in there my sandwich takes forever to come out, and it’s always a mess. Barely toasted, sliced poorly, and falling all apart. Sometimes with the right ingredients sometimes not. And it’s definitely pricier than bagel jays, so I wish the quality matched.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 2
It was good when it was Bagel Jay's. Not so much anymore. Also, significantly over priced.
Restaurantji Recommends
Bagels were really good.
We bought a bakers dozen and wanted to have a couple toasted so we could eat here. Manager refused to toast food we bought at the store. Seems like they should have toasted the food we bought
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 2
First time coming here the vernmont sandwich was very delicious and the hash browns are very good the team are great fast and professional the energy is great I love it !
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
You never know if your bagel will be perfectly toasted or if it will be ice cold and barely passed through the toaster. One day your order will be perfect and the next day the opposite.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 4
I went here today for the 1st time. I had to come check the reviews, and sure enough LOL. The staff was INCREDIBLY unfriendly and rude. Order was wrong. Over priced. Very mid. The 2 friends that were with me also remarked how rude everyone was, for no reason.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 1
I have no issues with the food - we love these bagels! However, the service my husband received today was appalling. We placed an order on the app - paid for and ready to go when he arrived. When he entered the store and went to pick up the paid-for bag on the shelf, he was first berated by an employee who YELLED, "hey, hey, hey STOP!!!" He stood there dumbfounded. If that wasn't enough of an embarrassment, a manager then came out and continued yelling at him. "What do you think the boxes are there for? You don't just reach over a box and take a bag!" Now, hear me out. Fine, if that wasn't the procedure - just tell me like a normal human being - not like some tyrant who feels the need to scold and embarrass a good, paying customer, who didn't know. That attitude was completely uncalled for and the pure definition of horrible customer service. So next time, instead of visiting Delaware Ave., we'll go to Snyder, where the customer service is always excellent.
Service: 1
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