I'll admit, as someone who has been to New York City hundreds of times, I wasn't expecting to find any decent bagels in Florence, Kentucky. We're too far from the bagel capital of the United States out here, at least in my opinion.
My east coast boyfriend and I have been trying to find a decent bagel place since we moved here back in July 2020, and haven't had any luck ... until now. Emo's Bagels has quite the impressive bagel quality and available choices. They may not be NYC bagels, but they're pretty dang close.
Emerson's Bakery and Emo's Bagels Partnership
From poking around online, Emerson's Bakery seems to have multiple locations, but Emo's Bagels is strictly in Florence, KY. Both businesses in this particular location are merged, and you can order bagels and baked goods such as cakes and donuts at the same time. They also share a seating area and ordering space.
We arrived here at 9 AM and waited in line for fifteen minutes. When we reached the register, the line was out the door and down the sidewalk. This place may not look like much from the outside and tourists may not be able to find it, but it's truly a hidden gem that the locals love.
Our order, prices, and review
On the day we went, Emo's was offering thirteen different types of bagels and nine types of customized cream cheeses. They also offer deli meats, dressings, and veggies if you want a sandwich-style bagel for lunch.
We ended up ordering two toasted blueberry bagels with plain cream cheese. The shop also has an extensive drinks cooler, where we grabbed two Prairie Farms orange juices. Each bagel was approximately $3.00, and our grand total including drinks came to $8.98. We thought this was an extremely affordable, quality breakfast.
The bagels themselves were delicious and perfectly toasted. The shop uses a conveyor belt toaster that has a timer you can manually set to deliver a perfect bagel every time. The bagels were the right amount of chewy and fluffy. The cream cheese was yummy and very generously applied. Our drinks were refreshing, high-quality orange juice.
We are thrilled to have found a great local bagel place; I think knowing about Emo's makes you a bit more of a local. It is hidden quite well in a small plaza off the beaten path.
Final thoughts
If you want a great bagel out here in Kentucky, Emo's is the place to go. The line may be twenty people deep when you get there, but that's how you know the bagels are worth the wait. They also have homemade bread available, and Emerson's Bakery has plenty of sweet treats and breakfast donuts you can order at the same time. The businesses blend together quite well, and you'll see a lot of parents getting bagels while their kids order donuts.
Emo's Bagels is a great place to grab a convenient, delicious, and affordable breakfast for your morning commute, but make sure to budget some waiting time! They are open Tuesday - Saturday 5 AM to 6 PM, Saturday 5 AM to 5 PM, and Sunday 7 AM to 1 PM. Located at 8459 US-42 in Florence, KY.
#HiddenGems