Rosen's Bagel Co. is an Austin-based bagel shop specializing in traditional bagels, artisanal schmears, and all other bagel-related needs.
Rosen's Bagel Co. was born from a collision of memory, craftsmanship, and cultural longing. Founder Tom Rosen grew up Jewish, where bagels weren't just breakfast—they were a treat, a tradition, and a quiet ritual. His grandfather, in particular, treated himself to bagels and lox as a small luxury. Then, in 2006-07, Tom had his first true New York bagel. The experience was transcendent, reaffirming bagels as more than food—they were carriers of emotion, culture, and quality.
Years later, Tom found himself in Austin, a vibrant food city with a noticeable, and bagel sized, hole: no quality New York style bagels. Inspired by both tradition and opportunity, Tom launched Rosen's as a weekend pop-up in 2017, eventually expanding into daily wholesale, and now multiple brick-and-mortar locations. The goal was never just to sell bagels, but to create something that inspired nostalgia, joy, and comfort.
Rosen's follows an exhaustively researched recipe to execute a traditional, boil-and-baked bagel.
Each bagel begins with the creation of a "sponge." Similar to a sourdough starter, we make our mix of flour, water, and yeast 48 hours before the bagels are baked.
24 hours before the bagels are baked, the sponge and the simple ingredients of flour, water, salt, malt powder, and yeast are mixed together and shaped into bagels.
After the bagels are formed, they spend 24 hours in a cool, temperature-controlled environment. This causes the yeast development to "retard," or slow down, but still allows the bagels to proof and develop more flavor.
We alter our boiling water to make it more basic (like pH basic, not pumpkin spiced latte basic). This helps our Austin water approximate New York water and leads to our bagels developing their distinct crust and chew.
Each bagel is then double side seeded. To Tom and the Rosen's team, nothing is more aggravating than ordering a seeded bagel with just the top seeded! It's half a plain bagel, half the seeded flavor!
We then bake each bagel to golden-brown deliciousness.
Lastly, the bagels are schmeared with house-made cream cheese and lox.
"Austin isn't really known for bagels, but Rosen's Bagel Co. wants to do something about that. Owner Tom Rosen launched his bagel-focused pop-up and catering company recently, which will eventually lead to a brick and mortar cafe."
"Real New York-style bagels are hard to come by in Austin, but the east side is getting a taste of the Big Apple this Wednesday when Rosen's Bagel Co. permanently opens at Wright Bros. Brew & Brew."
We are growing the dream team and are looking for our next superstar. If you've got what it takes, let us know.
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