Absolute Bagels — The Line & How to Get In · Upper West Side, NYC

//The line

Absolute Bagels closed in December 2024 after the NYC Health Department shut it for 67 violations, per The Forward. It reopened at the same address as "New Absolute Bagels" on December 29, 2025, under new owner Kyung Mi Kim, with much of the old staff and, by most accounts, the same recipe. The Forward's headline on the return: "Absolute Bagels is back — and Jewish New Yorkers are lining up in droves." The line is for hand-rolled, hand-boiled bagels the shop has sold at 2788 Broadway since 1990.

On reopening week the crowd showed up before the doors did. NY1 reported that by 7:50am, ten minutes before the 8am open, the line had reached the corner of West 107th and was turning down the block. West Side Rag reported customers arriving as early as 6 to 7am, a half-dozen waiting by 7:30, and the line stretched down the block by opening; staff handed out free bagels about three and a half hours in. The Forward counted roughly 70 people snaking around Broadway and 107th on day two.

The line predates the reboot. West Side Rag noted the queue had formed on the north side of the door "for 20 years," then shifted south in spring 2024 after the neighboring Garden of Eden market closed and freed up awning shelter for rainy mornings. One regular's verdict, per West Side Rag: "It changes nothing, there is still a line." damnlines has no camera at Absolute Bagels; the reporting above is the record, not a live measurement.

//When the line peaks

Before the 8am open on reopening week — NY1 reported the line reaching the corner of West 107th about ten minutes before doors opened. Early mornings, ~6-7am arrivals — West Side Rag saw a half-dozen waiting by 7:30am and the line down the block by 8am on opening days. Weekend mornings historically — West Side Rag described a weekend queue that had run outside the shop "for 20 years." Day two of the reopening — The Forward counted roughly 70 people around Broadway and 107th at opening. Until sellout — West Side Rag reported soft-opening hours of "8am until the bagels run out."

Patterns as reported by press and regulars — not measured by damnlines.

//FAQ

How long is the line at Absolute Bagels?

On reopening week NY1 reported the line reaching the corner of West 107th roughly ten minutes before the 8am open, and The Forward counted about 70 people around Broadway and 107th on day two. (No live damnlines camera here yet — this is reported guidance, not a live count.)

What time should I go to beat the line at Absolute Bagels?

Reporting points to before opening. West Side Rag saw customers lining up as early as 6 to 7am on opening days, with the line already down the block by 8am. Bagels also sell out — soft-opening hours ran "8am until the bagels run out," per West Side Rag.

Is Absolute Bagels open again?

Yes. After closing in December 2024, it reopened as "New Absolute Bagels" at 2788 Broadway on December 29, 2025, under new owner Kyung Mi Kim and with much of the original staff, per NY1 and The Forward.

Does Absolute Bagels take credit cards?

The reopened shop dropped the old cash-only policy, according to The Forward's reopening coverage. The original Absolute Bagels had been cash-only for decades.

Where is Absolute Bagels?

2788 Broadway, between West 107th and 108th Streets on the Upper West Side. The nearest subway is the 1 train to 110th St–Cathedral Parkway, per Time Out.