Hamantaschen year-round? Yes, please. This Purim favorite is one of the specialties at Mar Vista’s New York Bagel Deli and Bakery (aka NYBD & Bakery), which recently changed ownership.
It’s important to the owners, Lenny and Adaeze Rosenberg – and the neighborhood – to stay true to its longtime recipes, including and especially the authentic New York-style bagel recipes. “Bagels are everywhere these days,” Lenny told The Journal. “Ours we consider one of the best because it’s more the true traditional New York style.”
The Rosenbergs, whose ownership of Bea’s Bakery in the Valley resulted in a series on JLTV – “It’s a Sweet World” – and cookbook of the same name, returned to the Westside of Los Angeles last year. When NYBD co-founder Brian Gruntz decided to retire, the duo purchased the business. The agreement was to take over the Santa Monica store first, which they did in February 2025; The Mar Vista location reopened this past May.
“Bea’s was something that we had to get because it was a landmark location,” Lenny said. “Now we’re back where we’ve been for the last 25, 30 years.”
The Mar Vista location – established in 1993 – has a fresh new look, courtesy of Adaeze’s design background. This includes their updated logo, merchandise section and flat screen TVs; one with the menu, the other with baking segments from various shows nationwide.
“The videos take [customers] on a journey, while they’re ordering,” Adaeze told The Journal. “The colors make it pop; they get you excited and make you hungry at the same time.”
For the menu, the Rosenbergs kept the traditional New York-style bagels, bialys and shmears, along with breakfast sandwiches, deli options and whole pizzas. Additions include their scrumptious French toast bagel, challah, and challah French toast, gluten-free bagel options and new espresso machine.
The most notable change is the addition of a bakery section. Alongside traditional Jewish fare like black-and-white cookies and Lenny’s favorite – the chocolate rugelach (“It’s what I make all the time at every shop, and in my opinion is the best-tasting pastry we have,” he said) – the shop now offers Italian rainbow cookies and Mar Vista-exclusive snickerdoodles, which is part of their new Mar Vista cookie collection.
“I just love the snickerdoodle,” Adaeze said. “Biting into the moist, delightful cinnamon-y cookie makes me feel like everything’s going to be okay for a couple of minutes.”
And then there is the hamantaschen. “It’s made with a traditional butter cookie recipe,” Lenny said. “It’s very simple and [the combination of] the butter cookie recipe and the fruit filling … is delicious.” Their recipe is below.
They also love its durability and cultural versatility. “It does not fall apart, which makes eating it year round a blessing,” they said. “It is also an interactive family bonding desert, [watching families decide] which filling; that’s relevant any time of the year.”
NYBD & Bakery Mar Vista is at 11700 National Blvd, Los Angeles (https://nybdmarvista.com). The Santa Monica location is 2216 Wilshire Boulevard (https://nybdbakery.com). Both have parking and outdoor seating; only the Santa Monica location has places to sit inside.
Apple or Raspberry Hamantaschen
with butter cookies variation
Yields: 12 3/4-inch in diameter cookies
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
2 ½ cups butter
Pinch table salt
1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
2 ¼ cups pastry flour
2 large whole eggs
Apple or raspberry pie filling
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Combine sugar, butter, salt and vanilla in a mixing bowl.
Mix at low speed for 5 minutes, until the dough is all combined.
Sprinkle flour on the table/surface, so the dough does not stick.
Roll out dough to about ¼ inch thickness.
For butter cookies:
Cut out your favorite cookie shapes.
Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
Bake at 350°F for 12 minutes.
For hamantaschen:
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Cut dough into 3/4-inch rounds.
Put about a teaspoon of apple or raspberry filling in the middle of each cookie.
Then pinch three ends together, so it forms a triangle.
Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
Bake at 350°F for 12 minutes.
