behold the power of bagels
NYC is the food capital of the world. tons of amazing and great stuff across all categories and ethnicities. amongst this surplus of wonderful chow there are a few items where New York reigns king - and bagels are one of them!... and so CityRag brings you a:
guide to bagels in new york city...

if you live in New York and are indiscriminately buying bagels at delis - stop that! true bagel nirvana starts in a BAGEL SHOP. the best bagels come from places that are devoted to making bagels - where the turn-over is so fast that every bagel being sold has been made in the last couple hours, and most are still warm. where the shop is all about the quality, and takes pride in their reputation. and every customer in line is there buying bagels. this is where you get the best bagels made in the world. a combination of soft, dense and chewy, with an outer skin that's crusty and brown, an inside that's moist and almost steamy, and a heavenly fresh baked flavor.

Top Tier:
Bagel Nirvana in NY can be found at: H&H Bagel, Murray's Bagels and David and David's Bagels (the bagels shown are from David Bagel) - their bagels and shops are the quintessential version of what we've described above. Ess-a-Bagel is also at the top - but a bit doughier than the rest.

Second Tier:
Places where the bagels might not be right out of the oven, or made on the premises, but are still excellent: Kossar's Bialys, Russ and Daughters, Zabars

more bagel info and shops

on AOL CityGuide you can vote for City's Best Bagel 2005

NYCeats (now AFullBelly.com!) explains David versus David's

Chowhounds don't just debate about bagels, they do it by neighborhood! Search for "bagel" on the Manhattan or Outer Boroughs boards for lots of great info and opinion on NY's best bagel.