Black Seed Bagels

History | Restaurants

Tasty Hand-Rolled Bagels in a Building with Storied Mafia History

Black Seed Bagels East Village exterior

Cuisine:

Price:

$

Features:

About Black Seed Bagels

 & why it made the Carpe City list

  • When the service is on point, these honey-tinged bagels are fab, but the “wiseguy” history is what we like best
  • Black Seed’s bagels are hand-rolled, boiled in honey water and wood-oven baked, resulting in a deliciously unique flavor.
  • The classic Smoked Salmon and the Larry David sandwich get high marks from our team.
  • They have proper seating so stay and enjoy.

 

Now on to the history!

  • Before it was a hipster bagel shop it was De Robertis Italian Pasticceria.
  • Open for over 110 years at this location, De Robertis was famous for its cannolis, pignoli cookies, lemon ice and mob connections.
Original Floor Tiles
  • Take a look at the hand-cut mosaic tiles on the walls, the pressed-tin ceiling and the patterned tile floors. They are all original, and were there prior to 1904 when De Robertis moved in.
  • You can still see the De Robertis sign outside on the second floor.
De Robertis Pastry Shoppe Sign
  • In true “Leave the gun,take the cannoli” fashion, De Robertis has had its share of mob connections.
    • In the 1920’s it was a regular meeting place for Meyer Lansky and Lucky Luciano, who grew up just around the corner.
    • In 1935 Mike “The Boss” Sabbitini was arrested here for running numbers, or what was called an “Italian Lottery.
    • In the 70’s Bonanno crime family boss Carmine “Lilo” Galante was a regular. He reputedly murdered Carlo Tresca around the corner at John’s of 12th St.
Doors to the backroom where the crime families took care of “business”
  • In the 80’s the Gambino crime family ran a bookmaking business from the shop as well as a variety of other “businesses” such as extortion, drug dealing, weapons dealing and forged credit cards. In the early 90’s eight members of the Gambino team were indicted based on evidence from wire taps, informants and undercover cops working in De Robertis.
  • And to round it all out, in 2003, gunman Red Hot Gentile mysteriously died of a heart attack just moments after leaving De Robertis.
  • Besides the mob ties, De Robertis also had some proper movie and TV cred. Spike Lee’s Malcolm X was shot here as were Woody Allen’s Manhattan Murder Mystery, Addicted to Lovewith Meg Ryan and Matthew Broderick, and a scene from the very first episode of Sex in the City.

By: Christi Scofield

Cuisine:

Price:

$

Features:

New York City Tours

Great Places Near Black Seed Bagels

Street Art Michael Jackson Mural East Village
Art & Culture

Michael Jackson Mural

The King of Pop Featured Young and Old by Eduardo Kobra

180 1st Avenue, New York, NY 10009
joe and pats pizza exterior east village
Restaurants

Joe & Pats

A Popular Staten Island Import, It's Become One of our Favorite Pizza Joints in the City

168 1st Avenue, New York, NY 10009
Momofuku-Noodle-Pork-Buns-east-village
Restaurants

Momofuku Noodle Bar

The First in David Chang's Momofuku Empire - Serves Up Great Noodles, Buns and Fried Chicken

171 1st Ave, New York, NY 10003
Russos Mozzarella and Pasta Exterior East Village
Art & Culture

Russo's Mozzarella and Pasta

Classic East Village Location for Mozzarella Made Fresh Daily

344 E 11th St, New York, NY 10003
Street art kevin durant charity foundation mural east village
Art & Culture

Kevin Durant Build It And They Will Ball Mural

Kevin Durant Build It and They Will Ball Mural

415 E 11th St, New York, NY 10009
Venieros NYC exterior east village
Art & Culture

Veniero's Pasticceria & Caffé

Open Since 1894 Serving Up Italian Pastries & Coffee

342 E 11th St, New York, NY 10003
Lucky Luciano Home East Village
History

Lucky Luciano's Boyhoood Home

The History of one of the World's most Influential Mobsters

265 E 10th St, New York, NY 10009
Russian and Turkish Baths East Village
Art & Culture

Russian & Turkish Baths

At Over 125 Years Old this Bathhouse has a Storied History and a Unique Business Model

268 E 10th St, New York, NY 10009
Caseys Rubber Stamps store EV
Art & Culture

Casey Rubber Stamps

Charming Stamp and Ink Shop with Thousands of Designs and Custom Services

322 E 11th St, New York, NY 10003

More Great Walking Tours

Subscribe

Sign up to our monthly e-mail about the latest and greatest places for food, wine art and history

Skip to content