Brooklyn Boy Bagels Has Opened a NYC-Style Bagelry and Deli in Circular Quay

It's serving up pastrami on rye, Mecca coffee and bagels with plenty of schmear inside Gateway Sydney.
Cordelia Williamson
Published on April 11, 2019

After years of farmers markets and hopping around — from a six-seater café in Matraville to a kitchen in Marrickville to a Darlinghurst pop-up store — Sydney bagel slinger Brooklyn Boy Bagels has finally laid down some roots. It's just opened a permanent cafe in Circular Quay's huge Gateway Sydney dining precinct.

With the self-proclaimed (and widely agreed upon) title as Sydney's "real-deal NYC bagels", the new outpost obviously focuses on the bakers' signature round pieces of dough. But — with the extra space — Brooklyn Boys has expanded its menu to include pastries and other snacks you'd typically find in a New York deli.

Think pastrami on rye, Frankie's Fine Brine pickles, and turkey sandwiches with streaky bacon on house-made soft and crusty pain de mie. A selection of pastries are also available each morning — you might be lucky enough to score a whoopie pie or a chewy burnt butter and hazelnut cookie.

Just after a bagel? The shop will sell all of Brooklyn Boys' varieties, from plain to onion to blueberry to pumpkin. Try the whiskey-cured trout pumpernickel bagel with dill and capers, labneh and pickled onions. Or go for the ricotta, poached pear, cinnamon honey if you're after something sweet.

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Typical American drinks, from peach Snapple and Minute Maid pink lemonade to New York deli soda classic Dr Brown's Celery Soda are also on offer, with Mecca coffee for something a little stronger.

The interior is sleek, with polished concrete floors, dark timber furnishings and steel structural beams and a smattering of hanging plants, an impressive wall of baked goods and copies of the New Yorker add a certain geniality.

The 68-seater space is open Monday to Friday, catering to a weekday business crowd. With large windows overlooking Reiby Place, the view is a flurry of suits and the comings and goings of the city. "You can see the Mary's boys wandering past as they get ready to take over The Basement," adds Shafran.

Find Brooklyn Boy Bagels on level one of Gateway Sydney, 1 Macquarie Street, Circular Quay. It's open Monday to Friday from 7.30am—4pm. 

Published on April 11, 2019 by Cordelia Williamson
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