Courage Bagels.

Courage Bagels

Courage bakes its Montreal-shaped bagels almost to char, dense enough that biting one cracks. Prepared ones are sold by the half, so order two.

Why go

The bake is the reason. Kat Hong describes bagels that come out almost charred, so dense and crispy that a sharp crack lets out when you bite in, then loaded with a basket's worth of local produce: heirloom tomatoes, sprigs of dill, lemon slices.1

The shape is Montreal rather than New York, which makes it smaller, thinner and sweeter. Hong notes the shop stays out of the argument entirely and builds on the nearby farmers' markets instead.1

The queue is long and the counter is not in a hurry, which is either the charm or the problem depending on your morning. The shop opened on Virgil in 2020.1

Order this / avoid

• Order: the Hand-Sliced Smoked Salmon. Hong calls it cured fish in its ultimate form, shaved almost translucent, then showered in dill, onion slices and heirloom tomatoes.1
• Order: by the half. The shop sells prepared bagels that way, so two builds cost you one bagel.1
• Avoid: the phone. The shop asks you to email instead: difficult to answer our phone - hands full of cream cheese and dough.2

What locals & experts say

• The Infatuation LA, Kat Hong, 6 July 2022: The bagels at Courage come out almost charred; so dense and crispy, a sharp CRACK lets out whenever you bite into one.1 The Infatuation is owned by JPMorgan Chase.
• Same piece, on the argument it refuses: what we love most about Courage is that they're wholly unconcerned with the 'NYC v. The Rest of The World' debate.1

Good to know

• Timing: a morning trip, and bring time. Hong waited 45 minutes.1
• Getting there: 777 North Virgil Avenue, Virgil Village.2

Verdict

should-visit — Kat Hong wrote that these come out almost charred, dense and crispy enough that a sharp crack lets out when you bite one, and that is a description of a specific bake rather than a compliment. The shape is Montreal: smaller, thinner and sweeter than the East Coast bagel, and the shop loads it with whatever the nearby farmers' markets have, heirloom tomatoes and dill and lemon. Prepared bagels are sold by the half, so you can try two. The queue is the cost and it is a long one. The rung would move with a review published since 2022.