Monday, December 23, 2024
Cold. High 26 degrees.
Monday will be one of the coldest days of the year. There is a chance of snow again on Tuesday.
Notices
Our calendar has lots of local events. Click on the link or the lady in the upper righthand corner to check.
Tuesday is Christmas Eve. Wednesday is Christmas. Hanukkah starts at sundown on Wednesday. Thursday is the first day of Kwanza.
Happy holidays!
Upper West Side News
By Gus Saltonstall
The Upper West Side has just one representative remaining on Eater New York’s updated list of the best bagels in New York City.
The food news and review website updated its list on Saturday of the 15 best bagel places in the five boroughs, and Bagel Talk, at 368 Amsterdam Avenue, between West 77th and 78th streets, was the lone Upper West Side outpost to earn a place on the ranking.
The Upper West Side bagel spot that was removed? The now permanently shuttered Absolute Bagels.
Here’s what Eater NY said about Bagel Talk.
“Sure, Zabar’s and its stellar smoked fish are just around the corner, but the bagels here have a better chew,” Eater wrote. “The place throngs with customers excited for any of the bagel sandwiches, from the standard bacon, egg, and cheese to those with whitefish or cream cheese and lox.”
Bagel Talk was closed down by the Health Department in October, but has since reopened. Abid Islam, the longtime owner of Bagel Talk, told West Side Rag that he expects the business to close for a week in January for further renovations.
The closure of Absolute Bagels, which was also related to the Health Department, has seemingly put an unfortunate dent in the Upper West Side’s bagel reputation. You can check out the full ranking — HERE.
Earlier this month, and after years of work by an Upper West Side elected official, New York became the first state in the country to require insurance coverage for a therapy that reduces hair loss for chemotherapy patients.
Gov. Kathy Hochul signed new legislation on December 13 that will require private insurance companies in New York to “pay for scalp cooling, which gives patients the opportunity to save their hair,” as reported by ABC7.
Previously, the therapy would cost $1,500 to $3,000 per round of chemotherapy.
Upper West Side Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal first introduced the initial bill, along with State Senator Toby Stavisky, six years ago, to get insurance companies to pay for the scalp therapy.
“Undergoing chemotherapy should not be synonymous with hair loss,” Rosenthal said in a news release. “Women receiving this treatment say that losing their hair adds extra trauma to their cancer diagnosis, altering their identity and self-esteem, serving as a constant reminder of their disease and signaling to others that they are ill.”
You can find out more — HERE.
New York City elected officials who secured seats in the November General Election will begin their new terms in January, including newly elected Upper West Side and Morningside Heights Assemblymember Micah Lasher.
Lasher represents District 69, which stretches from around West 80th through 125th streets. Lasher recently sat down with Ben Max, a veteran New York City political reporter and host of the Max Politics podcast.
The one-hour conversation offers insight into Lasher’s viewpoints on the most significant issues in the neighborhood, his history in the governor’s office, and more.
There is also a West Side Rag shoutout at around the 11-minute mark.
You can check out the conversation — HERE.
Subscribe to West Side Rag’s FREE email newsletter here. And you can Support the Rag here.
What is happening at the Metro Theater? Were they able to raise the seven million to buy it?
Deadline for balance due (around $3M last I read) is January 10, 2025.
So the two best bagel shops were both filthy and now one’s closed. Great.
And with that, Eater cements itself as the worst judge of bagels of the online review sites. Bagel Talk isn’t even as good as Bagels & Co. one block north! Eater, you know who gets it right? The Infatuation! Read and learn: https://www.theinfatuation.com/new-york/guides/best-bagels-nyc
Where’s POP UP on this list? Bogus list.
What about Kosssars? They are new to the UWS, but have some of the best bagels around
I’m exhausted reading so much about UWS bagel spots.
As for hair loss, I lost all my hair during four months of very strong chemotherapy, and guess what? I was bald for a while. And then it all grew back. That’s a lot of money to spend to save a head of hair.
Lasher is an elected public official. He shouldn’t be hiding behind an app that requires a sign -up and requires private information.
Someone please open a nice new clean full service bagel shop on the upper UWS.
No need to: Kossar’s (see comment above) and Zucker’s are nice, clean and full service.
Thanks to Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal for introducing the bill, now signed by the Governor, mandating that health insurers cover a hair-saving therapy for patients receiving chemotherapy.
The city’s social and financial infrastructure is crumbling, and people are more concerned about bagels
Oy Vey.
Thank you, Mayor Adams, and have a blessed day.
No it’s not.
Cooler Heads is an incredible scalp cooling technology. Highly recommended for anyone who unfortunately has a need for something like this. Kudos to Linda Rosenthal for making this a priority.
@Tom the Lasher interview is freely available on your podcast source of choice.
WSR please fix mobile reply!