One of NYC’s Top Babka Makers Now Has His Own LES Bakery

An Israeli-style bakery from the former executive chef of babka-famous bakery Breads is opening on the Lower East Side.

Michaeli Bakery will sell pastries, breads, and cakes starting this Thursday at 115A Division St., between Allen and Ludlow streets. Owner and pastry chef Adir Michaeli was Breads’s opening executive chef, and he’s implementing a lot of the same items here at Michaeli. There will be chocolate and poppy seed babkas, sesame-studded challah, dark chocolate and Nutella rugelach, savory burekas, and chocolate chip cookies.

But this location, also owned by Anat Sror, will go harder on pastries, with several log cakes, vegan doughnuts, and pies. Coffee and espresso drinks are available, too. The small bakery has just six seats near an open kitchen that will churn out product all day to ensure some is still hot.

Though Jewish food is a large part of NYC’s dining culture, there have been some hits as of late. Glaser’s Bake Shop, which sold iconic black and white cookies on the Upper East Side, as well as Zucker’s in the East Village with its rugelach and matzah ball soup, both closed in July.

Michaeli Bakery opens Thursday at 10 a.m., after which it will be open daily from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Lily Brown/Michaeli Bakery [Official Photo]