Second Schmears: Old Salt Ballard
The weather's a little warmer, but are the bagels?
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When I visited Old Salt’s new Ballard outpost, I didn’t do them any favors by visiting in early January. I stopped by during an especially cold week and, thanks to baskets positioned next to the windows, I ended up with some especially chilly, and disappointing, bagels.
I was already thinking I owed them a Second Schmear review sooner rather than later and then I saw the location was included in Eater Seattle’s Hottest New Restaurants in the Seattle Area map for April. I’d also seen plenty of people on social media raving about the place.
Given that the owners behind the business have officially closed Manolin and seem focused on Old Salt’s potential here and in Fremont, let’s head back to Ballard to see how things have settled in now that spring is in the air.
And if you want to know how I define a good bagel, you can find that here.
WHAT I ORDERED
Everything bagel with veggie cream cheese ($6)
Plain bagel as-is ($3)
As with all previous Second Schmear reviews, we keep things relatively simple this time. I’ll compare this visit to the first trip to determine what might have changed.
The plain was a beautiful golden brown full of blisters and bubbles. It’s objectively a damn good-looking bagel. A little bit larger in size, it’s skinnier and has a larger center than the average bagel. The top was very crispy to the touch but also collapsed when pressed, feeling very airy underneath. All of this matches the original visit and is also very much in line with both Old Salt spots.
The bottom of the bagel features a strong Cornmeal Ring of Doom (CRoD). It’s also very firm and knockable. Slightly burned on one side, this thing screamed crispy and crunchy. Again, this was consistent with the previous visit, though the bottom of that bagel was more burnt last time.
The rip was extremely crispy, as expected. The bite was crunchy and textural, offering an explosion of crispiness. The bagel had a medium rebound after the bite. There were wisps of salt that made their way onto the bagel and I’m glad they did as it elevated the experience. The interior was pillowy but not dense. The smell of the bagel was slightly bready, which has been consistent with all visits. I made a note that says “crunch, crunch, crunch,” which I think says it all. There were similarities here from the previous visit except that the coldness of the prior bagel zapped the joy out of the experience. That wasn’t an issue here.
The everything bagel had a color that moved between light golden brown and “regular” golden brown, though it featured many of the same blisters I’d come to expect. There was a very light seed hand at work here. I would describe this less as an everything bagel and more like a “couple of things” bagel. That was a stark difference from the previous version, which had a stronger seed hand but was somewhat underbaked and beige.
The bottom also boasted a strong CRoD and was extremely firm and knockable. In fact, the entire bagel was crinkly and crispy to the touch.
The bite was extremely flavorful thanks to the veggie schmear. In terms of the bagel flavor, I detected a little salt but didn’t get anything else from the scant everything seasoning. Most bites featured some kind of crispiness or crunch, and there was a medium rebound. The cream cheese had good schmear integrity, staying in place after each bite. The little chunks of veggies I’d note every so often offered a nice bit of extra texture. The interior also remained very fluffy despite the cream cheese spread. This everything bagel ate so much better than the cold one from the previous visit, though seasoning remained an issue.
WHAT I SAID LAST TIME
“I know who Old Salt is and I know what kind of bagels they’re capable of. I think that the Ballard location is still working out the kinks and it might just take a while before they get to the same level as the original spot. More than anything, I hope they realize that those bagel baskets need to be far away from the front windows, at least until springtime. That alone could make a big difference as they get their feet under them.”
WHAT I THOUGHT THIS TIME
They didn’t move the bagel baskets but the warm weather seems to have made that issue moot, at least until November. I thought these bagels were a real return to form from what I expected out of Old Salt, and they lived up to how good they looked. I still think they’re a bit too precious with the seasoning, but in terms of eatability, this is one of the better bagels in town. The schmears are also really solid and help elevate the experience.
Going in, I had Old Salt Ballard No. 9 on my rankings due to the temperature issues last time. There were no such issues this time and, having enjoyed their bagels as intended, it’s time to bring them up a bit. The Fremont shop has them beat on ambiance (and seating) but it seems like there isn’t much difference in terms of quality.
MY SEATTLE BAGEL RANKINGS SO FAR (4/14/24)
Old Salt (Fremont]
Loxsmith (West Seattle)
Loxsmith (Beacon Hill)
Westman’s (Capitol Hill)
Westman’s (U District)
OUTSIDE SEATTLE BAGEL RANKINGS (4/14/24)
The Bagelry (Bellingham)
Howdy Bagel (Tacoma)
Coquette Bake Shop (Bainbridge Island)
Rubinstein Bagels (Redmond)
Good Bagels Cafe (Anacortes)
Mustard Seed Baking Co. (Stanwood)
Blazing Bagels (Redmond)
Otherside Bagel Co. (Bellingham)
Whidbey Island Bagel Factory (Mt. Vernon)
Woodinville Bagel Bakery (Woodinville)
Big Apple Bagels (Bellevue)
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Sean...thanks to you, I've become a bageler, that is, researching the history, etc. of bagels. Old time buddy of mine been living in southern France for some years. I asked him, Sid Stein, where is the closest bagel source. He says 30 minutes to Einstein's. I look it up. Seems there almost 800 Einstein bagel outlets in the US, Canada, Europe, and more. Amazing. Also mentioned that Costco bagel source is/was Einstein. What do you think of that! If interested, I have an essay on Americanization of bagels. Just submitted for publication. NedPorges@comcast.net
If they don't move those bagel baskets in another 6 months you're gonna need to start keeping a (Cold weather) and (Warm weather) rating for this location!