Bialys at Bagel Bin

I don't appreciate the Bagel Bin enough.  A few times a year, I get hooked up with New York bagels that make me stomp around and ask why we don't have anything that good.

But the truth is that Bagel Bin makes me happy many Sunday mornings when I run to King's Contrivance and come home with breakfast.  Mrs. HowChow loves salt and everything bagels, but I have been enjoying the Bin's bialys topped with cream cheese, smoked salmon or white fish salad.

Bialys are cousins to bagels -- baked, not boiled-and-baked and formed without a hole in the middle.  They're often a little chewier and usually have onion or garlic pressed into the depression in the middle of the roll.  I like the thinner profile.  It's the right ratio when topped with fish, a little less bread than even half of a bagel.  I toast them whole.  My cousin slices them into two parts -- a ring and a thin complete disk.  Either way, they're good bialys and a change if you're bored with your breakfast routine.

The Bagel Bin in Kings Contrivance makes bialys every day, although they tend to run out by late morning.  I'm not sure about the Bins in Wilde Lake or River Hill [or the one in the Enchanted Forest shopping center on Rte 40].  I have never been sure how the three are related.  They seem to have most of the same bagels, but I haven't hunted bialys in the others to know for sure.

The beauty of the King's Contrivance Bagel Bin is that it sits down the row from Harris Teeter.  I grab bagels on a weekend morning and pick up juice from the HT cooler and lox and/or white fish salad from the seafood department.


(Update: See emkenton's comment below.  Does anyone know how the Bagel Bins are related?)

Challah at Bagel Bin in Clarksville

Challah is a light, egg bread often baked for the Jewish Shabbat, which starts on Friday nights.

I stumbled on the distinctive braided loaves at the Bagel Bin in Clarksville.  They bake challah on Fridays, and they would be delicious with any dinner if you can pick them up before Bagel Bin closes at 5 pm.  By Saturday afternoon, the $5 loves were a dollar off as "day old" bread, but they're equally delicious.  The bread stays fresh several days in a plastic bag, and it can be the base for a weekend of projects.

Saturday night -- bread pudding.  I'm still working on a recipe, but you can't go wrong soaking torn up challah in a mix of milk, eggs and sugar.  Scatter dried cherries and some pieces of a broken chocolate bar.  The bakes up soft inside with a browned, crisp exterior.  You can Google a bunch of recipes until I figure out the right way to pull this off..

Sunday morning -- French toast.  Again, soak thick slices in eggs and milk.  Challah ab

sorbs the liquids faster than a baguette from Bonaparte Bread.  With a pat of butter, the French toast comes out crisp on the outside and soft on the inside.

Bagel Bin is a local chain with outlets in Clarksville and Columbia.  They're my favorite local bagels, even though they can be inconsistent.  I'm not sure whether the other locations serve challah.  If you love your baked goods, check out my post about good bakeries in Howard County.

Bagel Bin - River Hill

River Hill Village Center

6030 Daybreak Circle

Clarksville, MD

410-531-0335

NEAR: Just north of Rte 32 on Rte 108. River Hill shopping center is just north and across Rte 108 from the car dealerships.

Bagel Bin and Deli

There is nothing like a New York bagel. I accept this, even though I don't believe the endless theories about why. It's not the NYC water. My sister-in-law lives north of the Hudson, and no bagel outside New York has matched the shopping center bagel place nearest her house. We crowd around them when they arrive for visits, hoping for a paper bag filled with the bagels that they consider routine.

But Bagel Bin works for me. Really works. The authentic skin around a bagel with real flavor and the dense texture that says, "This is not sandwich bread formed into a circle." At times, the bagels are inconsistent, but they're normally quite good and certainly the best that I have found out here in Howard County.  They're served in a variety from the old-line salt and poppy to the sweet newcomers like blueberry.  Plus, you can find little treats like bialy or even challah on Fridays.

I have worked my way through Bagel Bins. I started at the Wilde Lake location. It was one of the first errands that I did when Mrs. Howchow and I started to date. Weekend morning runs for some everythings, maybe a bialy, and if they're hot from the oven, maybe eat one in the car on the way home. Now, I have branched out to the ones in King's Contrivance and River Hill. 

I deduced that this is all part of a small chain, owned by someone crafty enough to build an empire but not interested enough to create a Web site. It's an interesting choice, and one that I actually respect. What do I want in a bagel Web site? They sell bagels, cream cheese, coffee. What would I want to look up? I want to go to a bagel shop, and I like that it feels like a local place. Local people at the tables. Odd photos on the wall. (Advertising a local photographer?) Local high school kids smiling behind the counter and making it impossible to really mind when they slow down the process or screw up an order.

Nothing beats a New York bagel, but I'm glad these places are here for me.

If you are looking for a Bagel Bin, look up the locations on the Web site for the Columbia shopping centers: www.columbiavillagecenters.com.  If you want more breads and cookies, check out my post about bakeries in Howard County.

Bagel Bin - Wilde Lake near downtown Columbia

Wilde Lake Village Greene

410-740-0024

NEAR: Right near the Columbia Mall and the Wilde Lake High School.

Bagel Bin -- King's Contrivance in southern Columbia

410-381-1730

NEAR: South of Rte 32 east of Rte 29. The shopping center is hidden in the King's Contrivance neighborhood, but it's worth the trip there for the bagels and soon for a Harris Teeters.

Bagel Bin - River Hill in Clarkville

410-531-0335

NEAR: Just north of Rte 32 on Rte 108. River Hill shopping center is just north and across Rte 108 from the car dealerships.