At a time when historic New York sometimes seems to be under siege, perhaps no staple has been as imperiled as the bialy, the powdery, pungent pastry that is cousin to the bagel.
Once the bialy was so popular that its workers had their own union. But in recent decades, far fewer bakeries specialize in the bread that hails from Bialystok, Poland, and in the U.S. primarily is associated with New York City. Bialys have languished in the long shadow of bagels.
“I doubt very much if it can be saved in its original form,” said Mimi Sheraton, a veteran food writer who has written a book on bialys and included them in her latest book, “1,000 Foods To Eat Before You Die.”
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