Can I find a good Seattle bagel at... Oxbow

One of Seattle's most beloved bakeries throws their hat in the bagel ring

Welcome to It’s A Shanda, one Northeastern Jew’s quest to find a decent bagel in Seattle (and beyond). If you’re interested in taking this journey with me, make sure you subscribe so you never miss a review. If you want to make sure I review any specific bagels (or want to let me know why I’m wrong), you can email me at seanmatthewkeeley@gmail.com.

To say that expectations were high for Oxbow when they opened would be an understatement. The bagel shop is an offshoot of Sea Wolf, a Seattle bakery that was opened by brothers Jesse and Kit Schumann in 2014 and has since become a local mainstay. Along with their Stone Way home base on the edge of Fremont and Wallingford, they’re a bread provider for many of Seattle’s grocers, cafes, and restaurants. If you’re ordering a pastry or croissant at your local Seattle coffee shop, there’s a decent chance that’s a Sea Wolf product.

In 2020, Sea Wolf announced plans to open a new bakery and cafe in Montlake. In late 2021, Jesse Schumann told Capitol Hill Seattle that the new location would be “a bakery that produces bagels.” While they had made bagels as a specialty offering in their main bakery, this would be the first time the company would put the focus on the Jewish culinary staple.

“We couldn’t quite squeeze that into Sea Wolf on the regular,” Jesse told Eater Seattle. “So it’s just been kind of lurking in the back of our minds for a while.”

While Schumann implied in 2021 that the name of the bakery might be “Shoal,” by the time doors opened in June 2022, it was Oxbow. The name refers to a U-shaped bend in a river, which could be a reference to the curved stretch of 24th Avenue that the shop is located on. While the focus here would be on bagels, Oxbow also serves quiche, coffee, and bread, with the potential for pizza in the future.

I was hesitant about heading to Oxbow for this quest because I went there when they first opened and was left disappointed. They automatically toasted my bagel when I ordered it, a red flag, and the bagel itself had an overpowering and off-putting sourdough-y smell.

Since then, I’ve encountered many other bagels around Seattle that smell more like bread than bagels, so I just came to accept that must be part of how things work out here (along with not putting salt on everything bagels). However, now that I’ve finally eaten a great Seattle bagel, I was willing to consider that there are possibilities out there. And one of those possibilities is that a bagel place can course-correct, especially when they’ve had a chance to figure themselves out.

Has Oxbow worked out the kinks and delivered an improved bagel or are we due for another disappointing experience? Let’s find out.

And if you want to know how I define a good bagel, you can find that here.

WHAT I ORDERED

• Untoasted everything bagel with scallion cream cheese.

• Untoasted plain bagel as-is.

THE EXPERIENCE

Sea Wolf has bolstered a reputation for having an austere and open bakery where sustainable practices are front and center and that carries over to Oxbow. Upon entering, the cafe is cavernous thanks to high ceilings and tons of light. To the left, the food counter is backed by the bakery. To the right is the coffee bar. And straight ahead, you’ll find a spartan seating area full of tables. What the place lacks in coziness, it makes up for in brightness and modernity.

This time, when I placed my usual order, I asked if they automatically toast their bagels. I was told no, which was good news.

The bad news? $3 per bagel. That’s the most expensive plain bagel I’ve ordered in the city so far (Loxsmith’s everything bagel was more expensive). I know many people wouldn’t blink at that price but, again, back East, you’d be run out of town for charging that much.

I’ll note that their menu says “Oxbow is a tip-free business. We pay our staff a fair wage, offer health insurance, and provide paid vacation which is reflected in our prices,” so I guess when you put it like that…

UPON FIRST GLANCE

Before eating either of the bagels, I was immediately struck by how much better the bagels looked this time around. The plain, especially, caught my eye, for what looked like a very good cook (we’ll get to the specifics in a second). Both bagels had really good color and the scallion cream cheese appeared to have some very notable chunks of scallion in it. My expectations were suddenly raised.

TOP

The everything bagel had a good overall seasoning, though there appeared to be a strong hand in the poppyseed distribution. Beyond that, the golden crust foreshadowed a crunchy bite. And that part was true.

The good news is that this everything bagel actually included salt. The bad news is that, to me, it was too much. It was essentially a salt bagel that also had everything seasoning on it. I appreciate the inclusion of an essential everything seasoning, unlike so many Seattle bagel spots, but a more gentle hand might bring more balance to the bite.

The plain, however, had the more intriguing top crust, which boasted tons of bubbles and cracks. The golden-brown color, mixed with the crackly-to-touch crust, bode very well. And the bite lived up to the hype. Very crispy, on par with Bagel Oasis, and far better than any of the other places I’ve visited.

INSIDE

One of the other ongoing issues I keep coming across is scallion cream cheese that doesn’t taste like anything. That’s not the case here as the big chunks of scallion ensure you not only get the flavor but you can feel them in the bite.

Speaking of, it’s a tough bite, but in a good way. There’s also a pleasantly strong cream cheese application, just enough to make it feel substantial without becoming a goopy mess.

As for the plain bagel, it offers a very crisp bite with some solid crunch. The interior is soft but not pillowy, which is fine. There’s still a slight sourdough-y aftertaste but nothing quite as strong as the one I ate back in June. It’s not ideal but it was indistinct enough that I didn’t detect it until I focused on it.

BOTTOM

The bottom of both bagels was very firm to the touch. Knocking on them elicited an unyielding surface, which was a good sign. Both offered a slight crunch on the bite, as expected. Good stuff.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The start of this quest dampened my expectations of finding a good Seattle bagel to the point where I started to assume I was destined to eat soft, salt-less bread circles for the next year. However, the last two stops have confirmed for me that decent bagels are possible, so long as you can look past all the disappointing spots on the “best bagels in Seattle” lists.

It’s not as good as Bagel Oasis, but Oxbow stands above the crowd for sure. I’d put them at 2a and Loxsmith at 2b for now. In both cases, the prices are on the higher end, but I’d rather pay a little extra for these bagels than settle for some of those other soft circles around Seattle.

Is It Good Enough For The Goys?

Oxbow is a great bagel spot for the goys. It’s not worried about offering an authentic deli experience. Instead, it offers a modern Pacific Northwest vibe that jibes with the Montlake clientele and pairs its solid bagels with good coffee and pastry offerings. They also seem very committed to taking care of their employees and being a sustainable business, so that’s all bonuses.

Is It Good Enough For Northeastern Jews?

I think the short answer is yes. If my mom comes to town, I’m still taking her to Bagel Oasis first. However, I would definitely see Oxbow as a worthy secondary option, especially because of the elevated design. It looks like what people in the Northeast think Pacific Northwest bagel shops must look like. So the novelty factor, coupled with the fact that the bagels are solid, seals the deal.

Thanks for actually reading this far. If you enjoyed my Seattle bagel review and want to read more of them, make sure you’re subscribed to It’s A Shanda. Know someone in the Greater Seattle Area (or beyond) who would appreciate way-too-detailed reviews of local bagels? Forward the link their way.