Modern Bread and Bagel

"It can be tough to find gluten-free baked goods that aren't so dry they spin into a pile of dust like Michael Jackson in the Remember the Time video. We can assure you the bagels, breads, and pastries at Modern Bread & Bagel will not do this. This Upper West Side bakery has everything from GF naan and challah to funfetti cupcakes and chocolate babka, and they also serve some good sandwiches. " - neha talreja, bryan kim, hannah albertine

"If you don't eat gluten, it can be hard to find a great BEC. It can also be tough to find a gluten-free bagel that's good enough to remind you why bagels are one of our staple food groups—but you can get both of those things at Modern Bread & Bagel. Stop by for a BEC packed with scrambled eggs and cheddar. The bacon is vegan, and it doesn't taste like much, but the big, chewy bagels make up for this. If you want, you can get your whole sandwich vegan." - team infatuation

"Modern Bread & Bagel is a gluten-free bakery where the bagels deserve all the same compliments we’d give any great bagel: yeasty, chewy, and satisfyingly dense. The first West Coast location of a Manhattan-based mini-chain, Modern is located inside the massive Westfield Topanga shopping center. The subway-tiled space looks like a Panera store that won an HGTV makeover, but overall it’s a great option to slide in for a quick breakfast and coffee while sitting next to groups of moms burping their babies. The gluten-free pastries are good—we like the moist cinnamon bun topped with cream cheese frosting—but you’re really here for the bagels. They get a little too chewy if toasted, so we suggest eating them as is with cream cheese, or better yet as a sandwich filled with pastrami-cured lox, arugula, and sliced tomatoes." - Sylvio Martins

"The Upper West Side’s Modern Bakery & Bagel (there’s also a new branch on Chelsea’s West 14th Street) is a gluten-free bakery with Israeli flourishes, with features that extend to its excellent Tunisian sandwich. It normally contains canned tuna, boiled egg, black olives, and mayonnaise, but in this case, the tuna is ramped up with harissa and pickled lemon, and instead of a boiled egg, there’s an egg salad substitute, the eggs minced with herbs like dill and chives. The sandwich comes on focaccia ($11)." - Robert Sietsema

"It can be tough to find gluten-free baked goods that aren't so dry they spin into a pile of dust like Michael Jackson in the Remember the Time video. We can assure you the bagels, breads, and pastries at Modern Bread & Bagel will not do this. This Upper West Side bakery has everything from GF naan to chocolate babka, and they lend their specialty baking skills to the excellent brunch menu at the full-service gluten-free restaurant next door, Thyme & Tonic. photo credit: Emily Schindler" - Neha Talreja