If you have never heard Winston's Bagels, let me introduce you...Foodie, meet Winston. Winston,…read moremeet foodie. You can now fall in love. Winston's Bagels are LEGENDARY in Carbondale, IL. The genius behind the tasty treat is Winston. He's a hippy 60(?) something man with a food cart who, in my day set up his mobile shop on "The Strip" - Carbondale's main bar scene. I hear he's moved onto Grand now, but wherever he is, YOU NEED TO BE THERE TOO. Here's the scoop... Winston comes out at night, just about the time the college kids are bar hopping. He sets up his small mobile cart, and starts cranking out The. Best. Bagel. Treat. You. Will. Ever. Eat. Winston grills the bagels over charcoal, which gives the bread a traditional char taste and creates this fantastic crunch when you bite into it. He drizzles the bagel with margarine (I think it's Parkay from the yellow and blue squeeze bottle), and generously tops each bagel side with plain cream cheese. Then the magic happens. You choose your toppings. I'm partial to the Everything: apple, cinnamon, sunflower seeds, cucumber, red onion, garlic powder, bacon bits, and raisins. It's the perfect morsel to have when you're out drinking in Carbondale - every college student learns this lesson to perfection at SIUC - or even if you just have a late night craving for a sweet / savory treat. Of course as alumni (Class of '95!), we all crave a Winston Bagel now and then, and when we go back it's a must eat treat! I've tried to make them at home, but it's just not the same. It's missing Winston's je nais se quoi. He generously doles out hugs, stories, jokes, and charm along with his bagels. Plus the man is a total genius. He charges $2.25 for a bagel. That fits any pocket book - and more often than not - you give him three dollars and tell him to keep the change. The man is making some dough. I hear he takes a couple vacations a year just with his tip money. Go fall in love with Winston The Bagel Man. He'll be there in Carbondale grilling his bagels into the wee hours of the morning!

I noticed that Winston's Bagels has 5 stars with 11 reviews, and I am not surprised one bit. This…read moreis the ONE THING every SIU-C graduate talks about and craves after they move away. At last visit, they were $2.25 each and still worth every bite. Winston sets up shop across the street from Pinch Penny Liquors near Saluki Bookstore. Options are the same as I remember: Cream Cheese, Garlic Salt, Butter, Ground Cinnamon, Cucumber, Apple, Raisins, Sunflower Seeds, Bacon Bits, Onions. I used to get sunflower seeds, butter, and cucumber but recently tried all-but-onion and am not quite sure I can go back. Remember cash only, and they don't break $20s. Definitely tip Winston or any of his helpers running the cart! Truly an institution in Carbondale!

This was such a cute spot! The lady at the register was wonderful!…read more I learned about this place simply from the bakery crawl! I'm happy I did. Located in soulard. This bagel place is YUMMY!! It is hard to find a real bagel place in the Midwest. STL is extremely lucky to have this place. I got a bacon egg and cheese sandwich on a onion and garlic bagel Being someone who grew up on New York bagels & New York bakeries. I can happily say that this is very impressive place!! Jalapeño cheddar bagel YESSS!! It's a nice spot to sit and eat inside or outside. The staff are friendly and knowledgeable. You can also sit and read or even work. It's just a nice little spot!

What a cool spot in Soulard. My husband and I live in the area and frequesnt iTap pretty often, so…read morewe always see this spot, but had yet to make it in. A lot of my coworkers highly recommend it so I knew I had to try. We finally had a morning playing at the market, and decided to swing in for breakfast. WOW. It definitely lives up to the hype. Their bagels are SO flavorful, and their sandwich options are delighful. I just got the standard egg and cheese on the onion bagel and it was SO GOOD. My husband got the pruscuitto sandwich and he was a big fan. For what you get, I think the pricing is super fair. Really cool you also get to see the kitchen and everything they're making in back. We will absolutely be back, and will recommend it to all our friends who visit!

Go here a couple times of week for coffee and chai tea. Also get the occasional lemonade with honey…read moreand ginger. Everything is made well and never really had a bad experience. Definitely the place to go to in West Frankfort. My only complaint would be consistency with product. Each employee seems to make the drinks differently depending on who you get. The owner being the one who makes the best drinks of course. Would be a 5 star place if it was consistent.

This is cute coffee spot on the main strip. There is ample seating options and counter space. I…read moreordered their floral lemonade and it was incredible. I came with friends and they ordered a cold brew and the red riding (a signature seasonal drink) and they both loved their selection. The food selection is limited so the coffee/beverages are truly the star. We ordered some bagels with cream cheese and they were warm and toasty. They have a chess set on one of the tables and a shelf with games. It was peaceful and the person who took our order was really sweet and helpful! We loved everything he recommended. It seems like a great place to cowork or grab a coffee with friends.

Best bagel in STL . Love their selection of schmears and that it's a quick place to get in and out…read moreof on the way to work

Great bagels, unfortunate parking…read more Parked around the corner and walked there. Just a couple of people in line ahead of me. Young lady behind the counter was friendly and helpful in picking flavors. Store is clean and bright. Smells wonderful! Was disappointed that not all of the flavors are available all the time, was there almost an hour ahead of one being available to sell, boo... Also wished that they would have asked about slicing the bagels for us, would have been very helpful. Still the best bagels in town!

Their chicken salad is out of this world. Now I know not a lot of people are chicken salad fans,…read morebut I love their chicken salad and her soups are very good. She has a nice cookies and lots of fun Chatzky.

Ruined our wedding and still charged us. we paid $4000 for them to cater our wedding, they were…read moresupposed to begin serving food "Serving" at 5, they didn't even show up till 6:30. They managed to set up the food in about 15 mins but by that time over half the guest had left. They upcharged us from $2700 for 75 people to $4000 for 125 ppl by the time the cold food was served we had less then 75 ppl left. They offered $500 back that's all. Worse once the food was served most of it was cold including the bread that was still freaking frozen. The workers who were there though were extremely polite and hard working trying to please everyone but hard to do when the company don't bring the food. I only recommend this company if you want to pay extra for sub par food, and have them show up 2 hours late

Great food and beautifully restored double decker bus. Fun for the entire family. The food is…read moreconsistently great and the service is top notch. I'm so glad The Bustaurant is back!

This place is just cool. The food is excellent and the staff is friendly…read more I had the steak kebabs with sticky rice. The steak was tender with a slight char, which is perfect in my book. The rice had a sort of Thai/Indian fusion drizzle that was slightly sweet, spicy, and earthy all at once. I also had the humus, and it was excellent. This place just made the regular lunch rotation.

Wow blow away! In a small town this IS THE PLACE to go! So delicious…read more Bathrooms are cute. We came in around 9:30 am had about a 20 minute wait but utilize outside bar. Sitting was nice it is small inside. We had a Benny bowl, blueberry lemon something it was so sweet definitely split, BLT and peach drinks festive for the leach festival in town. Highly recommend

Best Lox & bagels in Cobden…read more This is my best acerbic statement on the choices locally have been extremely limited, but the iron whisk really does an amazing breakfast, I miss Tom's Mary's inherent is excellent, but if you want breakfast, the iron whisk is the best

I had the best sandwhich of my life here. I had the black granddaddy Philly…read more The bread was incredible. I also got baked goods from the bakery. The cookies were a big hit with my kiddo. 100% go here.

Delicious bread and cookies! The lunch side has fantastic food as well. Huge sandwiches!read more

It's okay. Prices are somewhat unreasonable but I guess the bagel offsets some of it. I saw Taylor…read moreFarms sources some of their stuff so I haven't been back since I saw that. Small indoors. Nice outdoor space for whenever it's not hot and crowded. Limited hours.

Stopped by on my way home from the Tower Grove Farmers Market, it was such a beautiful day outside,…read morelots of people had the same idea. I parked on a side street although there are a few spots in the parking lot with the picnic tables. Waited outside behind another couple as it was busy. After going in you wait in line to place your order. There are lots of things to look at! Line moved quickly, counter service was super friendly and efficient. She was charming and helpful. I ordered the Tzitzelnickel bagel with veggie schmear, a biscuit to try, coffee, and a sesame hoagie. After making my coffee at the counter, I had a seat at one of the outside picnic tables. My food came out right away, so fast! I love that bagel with the veggie schmear! You can order breakfast sandwiches on a bagel or on the biscuit, it was huge and would stand up to a hearty sandwich. Can't wait to eat the sesame hoagie! Plain or use it for a sandwich