Bialy Wars North vs. South

I have a gripe. I know what you're thinking...perhaps not my first, right? Well, it's not earth-shattering, and it's not as important as say, the debt ceiling, but still. And it's not just me; I have neighbors who say the same thing.

So, what's so important that I've taken it to print? Listen, I've been writing about one of our neighborhood's institutions for at least a couple of years. I first blogged about bialys 2 years ago in this post. But just in case you missed it, we live right around the corner from Kossar's, a rather well-known bialy bakery that has been in existence for over half a century...

Now, don't get me wrong; I like Kossar's. I buy stuff there a lot. It's just that, well, it has changed. In the "old days," the center of the bialy was full of caramelized onions. But just take a look at a bialy I bought there last week...

Onions? You can practically count the "onions" on one hand. Or maybe it's just onion juice. According to the web site, it's onion paste. So what happened? Is there too much automation in the bialy making process? Are they making so many bialys now such that the care isn't taken like it used to be? Beats me.

But a few weeks ago, Significant Eater and I were in Florida. And I stopped by one of their "world-famous" delis to pick up some eats. And one of the eats I happened to buy was a few bialys. Now, take a gander at this...

In my book, that's a bialy. Loaded with onions. Beautifully browned. Practically not even in need of a toaster. Just like the "old days." Or at least as I remember them.

So, will I still buy my bulkas and pletzels and bialys at Kossar's? You bet I will. But I'll be thinking of Flakowitz's with every bite I take.