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Address and Contact Information
Address: 3805 Willow Ave, Castle Shannon, PA 15234
Phone: (412) 540-3521
Website: https://balenabagels.com/
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Balena Bagels
We are a small batch bakery, we use a three-day fermentation process to achieve the soft chewy inside of the bagel and the crunchy outside. There are a finite …
BALENA BAGELS (@balenabagels) · Pittsburgh, PA – Instagram
… Followers, 355 Following, 43 Posts – BALENA BAGELS … We could not have imagined a better place than Castle Shannon for our home base and feel so welcome in this …
Get your bagel fix without leaving the South Hills – Mt Lebanon …
Balena Bagels is now open at 3805 Willow Avenue in Castle Shannon, owned by Roselawn Avenue resident Audrey Brown.
Reviews
Dan Bergeron
I am a local and have been to Balena 10+ times. Love the store & the staff is always super friendly. Bagels are great. However a few months ago I realized that the $2.20 for the schmear is an absolute joke. I’m pretty sure it is one person on the staff who is the issue but don’t want to publicly dox. This morning my girlfriend wanted to get a vegan schmear – they need to relabel it as a dusting if this is the serving size they instruct the staff to apply.
A 1st time customer would probably not become a 2nd time customer with this output.
Love Balena but this is a huge detractor.
… moreA 1st time customer would probably not become a 2nd time customer with this output.
Love Balena but this is a huge detractor.
Frank Elavsky
Umm what?? Excuse me?? We have bagels this good in PA? In Pittsburgh?? In the south hills?? How? This would give Montreal a run for their money. Pigeon bagels in the city is vastly overrated (with a line down the block, but no line here!!).
See those bubbles? That’s proper fermentation. This is a real, proper bagel. The texture is immaculate. I am shocked that we are so spoiled to have this place. I see other reviews notice they are good too, but I honestly worry they’ll go unnoticed by the folks in the south hills (no offense to us). Although, I worried about Anthos for the same reason and they are a huge success too, so perhaps not!
But I selfishly hope Balena can open a satellite in the city that can help sell volume for them. They’d make a killing if they could set up shop in that zone between CMU and Pitt…. I would get them every day….
Anyway, I’m raving about these bagels to everyone, especially folks I know who take transit. It’s a teeny stroll from the station!
… moreSee those bubbles? That’s proper fermentation. This is a real, proper bagel. The texture is immaculate. I am shocked that we are so spoiled to have this place. I see other reviews notice they are good too, but I honestly worry they’ll go unnoticed by the folks in the south hills (no offense to us). Although, I worried about Anthos for the same reason and they are a huge success too, so perhaps not!
But I selfishly hope Balena can open a satellite in the city that can help sell volume for them. They’d make a killing if they could set up shop in that zone between CMU and Pitt…. I would get them every day….
Anyway, I’m raving about these bagels to everyone, especially folks I know who take transit. It’s a teeny stroll from the station!
Robbie Young
I am by no means a bagel expert but I do love them, and even more importantly my wife and toddlers love them. There is just something different about this place and their product.
This is not going to be yet another comparison to NY/NJ bagels because I have no experience in that realm. According to my wife, they more than hold their own in that regard.
There are a couple reasons why they are my favorite in western PA. First off – when you pull the bagel apart, the is a sort of crackle like an old AM radio coming through. The crunch/chew ratio (I just made that term up) is at a perfect level of homeostasis.
In terms of their varieties, I am particularly fond of the asiago, but I have a long way to go before I try them all. They have what appear to be several robust sandwich options, but I try to get in and out quick there because I usually have my three-year-old hanging off my leg and the space is not conducive to three-year-olds (That’s a “me problem”).
Another clear winner for me is their scallion cream cheese. I make sure to get a full container of it so I can continue to use it to bless other sandwiches once my weekend allotment of bagels is depleted.
A couple of caveats – I am only in the Castle Shannon area on Saturdays around 10:30a. Sometimes at that time they are completely out. I recommend getting your fix early. IMO, this is something to be proud of on Balena’s end. I find Castle Shannon “claustrophobic” in nature, and space both inside and outside the store is tight – another reason to get in early. Parking is extremely tricky, but they are very conveniently located for “T” riders.
My hope for Balena is that they someday outgrow the space and have to move operations to fabulous Bridgeville (selfishly, I know). I think they are well on their way. The product absolutely slaps and brightens my day and is worth the rigamarole to get there and acquire it.
… moreThis is not going to be yet another comparison to NY/NJ bagels because I have no experience in that realm. According to my wife, they more than hold their own in that regard.
There are a couple reasons why they are my favorite in western PA. First off – when you pull the bagel apart, the is a sort of crackle like an old AM radio coming through. The crunch/chew ratio (I just made that term up) is at a perfect level of homeostasis.
In terms of their varieties, I am particularly fond of the asiago, but I have a long way to go before I try them all. They have what appear to be several robust sandwich options, but I try to get in and out quick there because I usually have my three-year-old hanging off my leg and the space is not conducive to three-year-olds (That’s a “me problem”).
Another clear winner for me is their scallion cream cheese. I make sure to get a full container of it so I can continue to use it to bless other sandwiches once my weekend allotment of bagels is depleted.
A couple of caveats – I am only in the Castle Shannon area on Saturdays around 10:30a. Sometimes at that time they are completely out. I recommend getting your fix early. IMO, this is something to be proud of on Balena’s end. I find Castle Shannon “claustrophobic” in nature, and space both inside and outside the store is tight – another reason to get in early. Parking is extremely tricky, but they are very conveniently located for “T” riders.
My hope for Balena is that they someday outgrow the space and have to move operations to fabulous Bridgeville (selfishly, I know). I think they are well on their way. The product absolutely slaps and brightens my day and is worth the rigamarole to get there and acquire it.
Sandra Catinello
Pretty good bagel selection- reminded me of Pigeon bagels. They may actually be associated with them. Unfortunately we came for bacon egg and cheese and they were out of bacon. Nice selection of interesting cream cheese flavors.
… moreTristan Slater
Love that we have a great bagel shop in the area!
Pros: delicious bagels, nice staff, cute little shop that is tight but I kind of like it – it feels like you just popped into a little bagel shop in NYC and it’s always bustling
Cons: sell out very early, I wish they could up supply a bit sometimes for demand. Parking is tough, but worth it if you know you can actually get a bagel! Also they only have American cheese for sandwiches. I’d love to see cheddar or provolone or an alternative to American – I can’t eat American so I don’t get the sandwiches but I would!
… morePros: delicious bagels, nice staff, cute little shop that is tight but I kind of like it – it feels like you just popped into a little bagel shop in NYC and it’s always bustling
Cons: sell out very early, I wish they could up supply a bit sometimes for demand. Parking is tough, but worth it if you know you can actually get a bagel! Also they only have American cheese for sandwiches. I’d love to see cheddar or provolone or an alternative to American – I can’t eat American so I don’t get the sandwiches but I would!
Emmylou Dail
woke up this morning craving one of their bagels so bad. It is a Tuesday and they are closed so I decided to leave a review instead. Their rosemary sea salt bagel was so good. I think about it constantly. Customer service is great and they always have a good variety of flavors and yummy cream cheese options!
… moreGreg Furer
I often told I am a bagel snob. My family owned bagels shops in Pittsburgh for most of life so know what makes a great bagel and love bagels.
When we closed in 2002 I have struggled to find a great bagel.
This is hands down the best bagel in Pittsburgh! I cross rivers and bridges and actually willing make the trek to the South Hills just to get these bagels!
These bagels have a true thin chewy outside with a dense inside! These are not bagel shaped bread like Panera.
I have had Three Brothers and Pigeon, although a huge upgrade for the Pittsburgh Bagel community over Bagel Factory, Brugger’s and Einsteins they do not even come close to how good Balenas are!
Make sure you go often to keep them on business for years to come so we can enjoy great bagels in the Burgh!
… moreWhen we closed in 2002 I have struggled to find a great bagel.
This is hands down the best bagel in Pittsburgh! I cross rivers and bridges and actually willing make the trek to the South Hills just to get these bagels!
These bagels have a true thin chewy outside with a dense inside! These are not bagel shaped bread like Panera.
I have had Three Brothers and Pigeon, although a huge upgrade for the Pittsburgh Bagel community over Bagel Factory, Brugger’s and Einsteins they do not even come close to how good Balenas are!
Make sure you go often to keep them on business for years to come so we can enjoy great bagels in the Burgh!
Chance Neff
Excellent bagels. We just moved to the area and we’re so happy to have a great bagel shop close by. They mean it when they say come early though. They definitely get a crowd and sell out.
… moreAnn Barish
Outstanding bagels! My first visit, I had lox on an Everything bagel, which was delicious with a generous portion of lox. My second time, I had an Asiago bagel toasted with scallion cream cheese. And it was the best bagel I’ve had in Pittsburgh and possibly anywhere. The blistered, crispy exterior combined with a chewy, tender middle. Perfection. The Asiago and sourdough flavors were discernable but not overpowering. Top Notch!
… moreEd Noschese
Went today for their soft opening! The South Hills really needs a good bagel place and this definitely is the place!!
The staff is friendly. The service was quick. I was there for a soft opening with a limited menu – we had the everything bagel with cream cheese and a rosemary bagel with cream cheese. Both were excellent!!
I took my non-bagel eater with me. She ordered the rosemary bagel. I was surprised by her order. She was hoping for a fruity bagel and I was nervous by what she ordered because I wasn’t sure she’d like it.
Well 10 minutes later she ate the whole thing and said that was delicious!! so you may have made a bagel fan out of her.
I’ll definitely be back for me and can’t wait to try the bacon egg and cheese sandwich!
… moreThe staff is friendly. The service was quick. I was there for a soft opening with a limited menu – we had the everything bagel with cream cheese and a rosemary bagel with cream cheese. Both were excellent!!
I took my non-bagel eater with me. She ordered the rosemary bagel. I was surprised by her order. She was hoping for a fruity bagel and I was nervous by what she ordered because I wasn’t sure she’d like it.
Well 10 minutes later she ate the whole thing and said that was delicious!! so you may have made a bagel fan out of her.
I’ll definitely be back for me and can’t wait to try the bacon egg and cheese sandwich!