Proper bagels like the ones you get in New York and Montreal, here in Edinburgh.

I wondered after hearing the rumour if it could be true… I had never made the trip to Portobello to find out. Perhaps the fear of disappointment was just too much.

My first experience of Bross was when I spotted a little stall at the Gin Lounge festival. I was starting to feel quite inebriated and the need for bread was real, and not just for hunger purposes. My friend and I shared our first ever Bross Bagel and it’s a moment I’ll never forget. We looked at each and silently nodded our heads (me wondering why I’d proposed to share one!), but both in silent agreement at how GOOD it was. It was everything I’d hoped for and more.

A couple of weeks later I received an invitation to visit their Leith shop to try one of their Christmas bagels – thin layers of turkey were stacked up with crispy bacon, stuffing and a cranberry sauce. It was easily as good as my first drunken experience at the gin festival.

The menu has a good mix of hot and cold options and I saw plenty I wanted to try. I’ve since discovered that Down The Hatch, a favourite of mine also does an ‘Upper East Side’ made with Bross Bagels and I’ve already had that twice.

Bross made it to No.4 on my best food experiences of 2018. Find out more here…