NYCGuide
4 NYC Bakeries That Make Hamantaschen For Purim
photo credit: Michaeli Bakery
It’s hard to believe that just a year ago, some of us New York Jews were celebrating Purim at House Of Yes in Bushwick while adorning feather boas and glitter tu-tus. Or at least, that’s what this particular New York Jew was doing.
Obviously, Purim 2021 looks pretty different. Even if you’re simply booing Haman on a Zoom call with a bunch of drunk people your mom knows, you can still celebrate with hamantaschen - the symbolic, triangular-shaped cookie made with enriched dough and filled with sweets like apricot, raspberry, or poppyseed (apparently our ancestors we’re really into poppyseeds. Who among us understands this?). That’s why we put together a list of four Jewish bakeries around the city where you can pick up a box to go. No matter the flavor, these hamantaschen should complement any conversation you have about how beautiful Esther must have been and the fact that Helena Bonham Carter is a Jew.
The Spots
This Israeli bakery on the Lower East Side has seven varieties of hamantaschen, including halva, apple and dates, banana-chocolate, and a vegan version with poppy seeds. They’re also making hamantaschen for dogs, which we can just hear our dad cackling about and referencing for weeks to come, as well as something called a “purim galette” filled with plums and marzipan cream. While you’re there, you may as well pick up some of Michaeil’s great babka, rugelach, or challah. Place your order online or stop by their bakery on Division Street between Thursday and Sunday, February 28th.
A coworker told us that Orwashers on the UES was her favorite bakery in NYC, and after trying this, we now trust this coworker to do things like babysit children, pay back loans, or pardon a turkey. For Purim this year, Orwashers has hamantaschen filled with apricot, raspberry, and prune, but you don’t have to choose just one since they sell a half-pound of assorted hamantaschen for $12. They also make one of the flakiest almond croissants you can eat in this city. In case you’re on the UWS, Orwashers also has a location there. Preorder or get for delivery here.
Tradition is nice and all, but we think it’s OK to live a little and order hamantaschen filled with mozzarella, parmesan, and walnut pesto. We have no evidence that the fine people of Breads Bakery weren’t sober when they came up with the concept for pizza hamantaschen, but we also have no evidence against it. You can pick up Breads’ savory and sweet Purim specials until Sunday, February 28th at their stores on the UWS and near Union Square - they also have delivery options you can order online here.
If you’re looking for a place in Brooklyn where you can pick up a box of hamantaschen that’s theoretically large enough to feed an entire congregation, check out Green’s Bakery on Franklin Street in South Williamsburg. Their hamantaschen aren’t made with any dairy (Green’s Bakery is kosher), and include fillings like strawberry, mango, poppyseed, chocolate, and prune. They also sell chocolate-dipped hamantaschen with sprinkles, which are objectively more fun than the non-dipped cookie kin.
