Sales manager Steven Kovanda discovered a passion for bagels last summer when he and his wife brought home chickens.

“I wanted to have a farmstand to sell the eggs in the spring,” he says. “Then I started thinking about what else I could offer, and bagels came to mind.”

One small obstacle stood in his way, however: he’d never made a bagel before. The internet offered little help. “There’s surprisingly limited info online about how to make an authentic New York City bagel,” he says. “It’s not something you can just look up and master overnight.”

Through rigorous research and tireless trial and error—for a time he was baking a batch a day, regularly setting his alarm as early as 3:30 a.m.—Kovanda managed to achieve what he describes as “a real New York texture: crisp skin, chewy interior, and those tiny blisters you only get from a long, cold proof.

“Each batch,” says the self-avowed perfectionist, “is made from extra high-gluten flour and mineralized water that matches New York City’s, then boiled in a malt-lye bath and baked on stone for the perfect snap and flavor.”

Having fine-tuned the recipe, he posted an ad on Facebook Marketplace in November. Orders began arriving almost immediately and have continued ever since. Over the recent holiday period, several customers placed orders for family gatherings.

“It’s a wonderful feeling knowing that my bagels are bringing people together,” says Kovanda. “Especially gratifying has been the praise from New Yorkers living in Ann Arbor.”

Flashback
A brief bagel shortage during Covid: Table Talk: October 2020

“[T]hese are the best dam[n] bagels I’ve ever had outside New York,” writes one customer on Facebook. “They taste just like home!!”

Encouraged by positive customer feedback and steady demand, Kovanda began trading as Batch House Bagels. The name is intended to capture his artisanal, small-batch methods, which he says treat bagels as “a craft rather than a commodity.” He is now looking to secure a spot at the Ann Arbor Farmers Market in Kerrytown. “Eventually I’d like to make my own cream cheese too,” he adds.

In the meantime, he continues to sell bagels through Facebook Marketplace, as well as via Instagram (@batchhousebagels) and email at [email protected].