By Dathan Kazsuk
One thing I’ve learned recently: The Midtown magazine staff really loves bagels.
So when I got word that Ryan McEvoy, the local franchisee behind three Jeff’s Bagel Run locations in the Triangle, wanted to team up with Midtown magazine and have us create one sweet and one savory bagel for fall, I was immediately game.
What I didn’t know was just how seriously everyone else would take the assignment.
On Thursday, September 3, I was joined by Collin Pruitt, director of sales; Mackenzie Steiner, account executive; Jessica Bratton, staff photographer; and Jordan Daniels, social media manager, around a table at Jeff’s Bagel Run’s GlenLake-Crabtree location.
Then we ate a ridiculous number of bagels.
McEvoy, along with Tabletop Media VP Quinn Bostic, got us started with a few suggestions about what flavors might work together before bringing out what seemed like an endless supply of bagels and cream cheese spreads.
Pruitt was particularly prepared for the challenge, tearing through samples before some of us had finished spreading cream cheese onto our first bite. At one point, he bypassed the wooden knife altogether and started dipping pieces of bagel directly into the cream cheese.
Steiner was having none of that.
A wooden knife was quickly handed his way.
From there, things became a full-blown bagel laboratory.
Rosemary Sea Salt. Asiago. Asiago Everything. Cinnamon Raisin. Blueberry. Sesame. Jalapeño Cheddar.
Then came the spreads.
Lox. Banana Pudding. Buffalo. Brown Sugar Cinnamon. Strawberry. Cake Batter. Cookies & Cream. And my personal favorite, the veggie spread.
We mixed. We matched. We went back for another bite because, you know, research.
Some combinations worked immediately. Others sounded better on paper than they tasted in real life. Some had us going back for another sample just to be sure.
Then came the hard part.
Which two combinations were good enough to put Midtown’s name on?
What would we actually order ourselves—and, more importantly, what might you want to order the next time you stop by one of McEvoy’s three Triangle Jeff’s Bagel Run locations?
After about an hour of sampling, scribbling notes, debating combinations, and occasionally double-spreading our finalists, we narrowed everything down to two.
One brings the heat.
The other is basically breakfast and dessert having a very good morning together.
And because we want you to actually go out and try them instead of simply reading about how many bagels we ate, we’re turning the whole thing into a contest.
One lucky winner will receive a $25 Jeff’s Bagel Run gift card, giving you another excuse to come back and continue your own bagel experimentation.
To enter, stop by Jeff’s Bagel Run and order either of Midtown’s creations—The Heat Check or The Blue Split. Follow both Midtown magazine and Jeff’s Bagel Run Raleigh–Crabtree on social media, then post your Midtown bagel selection on Facebook or Instagram. To qualify, your post must feature one of our two bagels.
And on September 30, we’ll randomly select one winner.
So, without further ado, meet the two bagels that survived the Midtown taste test.
THE HEAT CHECK
We wanted our savory bagel to have some personality, and this one definitely does.
The Heat Check starts with Jeff’s Jalapeño Cheddar bagel, made with chopped jalapeños baked directly into the dough and finished with melted cheddar cheese.
That would already be pretty good on its own.
But then we added Jeff’s Buffalo spread, made with Frank’s Buffalo sauce.
The result is creamy, cheesy, and just spicy enough to let you know it’s there without completely blowing out your taste buds.
There’s heat, but it’s balanced.
And after everything we tried that afternoon, this was the savory combination we kept going back to.
THE BLUE SPLIT
Then there’s our sweet creation.
And this one might be a little dangerous.
The Blue Split starts with Jeff’s blueberry bagel, lightly sweetened with dried blueberries and a touch of vanilla.
Then you split that bad boy open and load it with Jeff’s Banana Pudding spread—a whipped cream cheese spread filled with fresh bananas, Nilla wafers, and vanilla.
Blueberry.
Banana pudding.
Cream cheese.
Nilla wafers.
It sounds like something we probably shouldn’t encourage you to eat for breakfast.
But we absolutely are.
So head over to Jeff’s Bagel Run, try one—or, better yet, try both—and let us know which side you’re on.
Team Heat Check or Team The Blue Split?
We did the difficult work of eating all those bagels.
Now it’s your turn.
