I'll side with KINKOS. I once ranted about BO on craigslist because of the layout of the place, the apathetic and incompetent staff, and the general disorder of the place. DESPITE all that, they still turn out the best bagels for miles around and i am hooked. you'd think the (guy who i think is the) owner would have a shit-eating grin on his face every day, but instead, he's a goddamn grouch too. i phone in my orders to reduce the amount of time i have to spend inside the place. btw noah's cracked peppercorn bagel is untouchable.

No question - these bagels ROCK the house. Like the best. No question. Noahs are a pale puffy awful shadow. Don't be fooled. The key is to get a bag to go. (the line on the left) that way you bypass the long line for eat-in and you bypass the slooooooow service

i used to go to bagel oasis religiously. my problem is not with the bagels, which are about as average as they come - instead it's with the hillarious incompetence of the place. i swear, every time i'd go to B.O., the people working there (all 36,000 of them behind the counter) would find a new and original way to fuck up my order. how hard is a plain bagel with butter? another insanely annoying thing is the oasis' layout. it's not at all clear whether you order on the left or the right (sign would be helpful - perhaps that's been remedied recently?) so you have one group of people waiting to order, and another group of people waiting to pick up their order, but it's completely unclear which group you're supposed to join upon entrance. this being seattle, naturally it is a major breach of protocol to ask anyone in either line - should you erroneously lose face by asking someone, be prepared for some yogamat toting ravennamom to give you the hairy eyeball for not knowing by divine providence which line's which - it's ugly, and i've watched it happen dozens of times. there are also certain times of day (just before school/camp/whatever starts) when the place is packed to the gills with loud, entitled kids running amok unsupervised by their yuppie parents. if you manage to come at one of these times, avoid it at all costs unless you are deaf or looking for a fight.

been coming here for over a decade, and when i did go to NYC and got the real things, i missed these. but, hey, local bias. these chewy suckers kick noahs rear.

I agree as well. There are better bagels, but they are three thousand miles away. Nothing in Seattle comes close. They're not "good enough, I guess" bagels; they're good bagels. It's not a place I'd like to hang out in all day (free wireless though) but if it's bagels you want, this is where you go. Period.

I agree with Cloppy and Stranger review. The Bagels have just the right amount of chew to 'em. Only negative:s ome of the shmears are a bit too salty (and I dig salt).

I say this with complete confidence and authority. Bagel Oasis makes the best bagels for miles around. It's worth the trip. Because you're NOT gonna go to Noah's right? RIGHT? Bagel Deli is fine in a pinch. But The Oasis is totally where it's at. I wonder how they do it.