Trend Spotting: Everything Bagel Seasoning

It’s easy enough to follow the trajectory of certain food trends, like rabbit, Korean cuisine and kale.  But “everything seasoning” is a funny one (you know, that dehydrated onion, garlic, sesame and poppy seed blend they sprinkle on top of bagels), which actually became a “thing” long before bagels underwent a culinary revival themselves.

Originally invented by a young, Long Island-based bagel shop worker in the 1980’s, charged with sweeping out the crusted up remnants in the ovens at the end of day, “everything seasoning,” well, has everything — sesame seeds for nuttiness, onions and garlic for savoriness, salt for depth of flavor, and poppy seeds for a smidge of nuttiness and crunch.  And while it took a few more decades for chefs to think up alternative uses for the consummately New York spice mix, “everything seasoning” has caught on in a major way, and can currently be found everywhere — from the lines at the most celebrated, high-end Manhattan restaurants to the condiment bars at the diviest Brooklyn hot dog shacks.

Take the three Michelin-starred Eleven Madison Park, where Daniel Humm incorporates “Everything Crumble” onto his lauded tasting menu, featured in a bagel-inspired assemblage of Smoked Sturgeon, Pickles and Caviar, as well as a dish of Slow-cooked Char, Smoked Crème Fraiche and Cucumbers.  Andrew Carmellini also forgoes using actual bagels in his Cured Salmon Crostini at Locanda Verde, swapping in a housemade “Everything Bread,” smeared with Horseradish Crema and Dill, and Amanda Freitag adds the seminal seasoning to a plate of thinly sliced Lox and quivering, creamy Burrata at her reboot of the Art Deco Empire Diner in Chelsea.  But when it comes to Harold Dieterle’s cozy West Village spot, The Marrow, Trout is the smoked fish of choice, served during brunch (à la Humm) with an awesome and zesty Everything Crumble.

Not that you need to go under-the-sea to enjoy “everything seasoning.”  In fact, it’s equally delicious sprinkled atop humble frankfurters at East Village and Williamsburg favorite, Crif Dogs, which also anoints their deep-fried “Jon-Jon Deragon” with chopped scallions and a cream cheese schmear.  And vegetarians will go crazy for the Everything Roti at Talde in Brooklyn; a tasty take on the essential West Indian flatbread, liberally sprinkled with assorted flakes and seeds.  Or if you’d like full creative control over what to use “everything seasoning” on, from omelets to noodles (it’s awesome on ramen!) to pork or beef barbecue, you can always pick up your very own jar of the stuff at the Fish’s Eddy in Flatiron, allowing you to keep current with the burgeoning trend at home!

Eleven Madison Park
11 Madison Ave., at 24th St.
(212) 889-0905
elevenmadisonpark.com

Locanda Verde
377 Greenwich St., btwn. Moore and Franklin Sts.
(212) 925-3797
locandaverdenyc.com

Empire Diner
210 10th Ave., btwn. 22nd and 23rd Sts.
(212) 596-7523
empire-diner.com

The Marrow
99 Bank St., btwn. Hudson and Greenwich Sts.
(212) 428-6000
themarrownyc.com

Crif Dogs
113 Saint Marks Pl., at Avenue A
(212) 614-2728
crifdogs.com

Talde
369 7th Ave., btwn. 5th and 6th Aves.
(347) 916-0031
taldebrooklyn.com