New Braunfels is a great place to go eat, and it even has the best bakery (and oldest) around. If you like pastries glazed, Naegelin's is the place to go. Not the junk you find in the big chains. There is a special taste to how the glaze mingles with the dough that you will only find at a mom-n-pop bakery.
Naegelin's is located on Seguin Avenue just east of the Circle in downtown New Braunfels. If you are coming from San Antonio or Austin, just get off at the Seguin exit and drive west on Seguin until you see a circle. Just before the circle, Naegelin's will be on the right. If you go too far, just go around the circle back to the bakery (which will be on the left this time). If you're coming east on TX46 from US281 and have never been to New Braunfels, consult your GPS or Map Quest. Getting from US281 to New Braunfels is easy; once in the city, getting from TX46 to Naegelin's is another story.
I grew up in New Orleans when the mom-n-pop bakeries were everywhere. Then a local chain put many of them out of business. Many of those remaining went by the wayside when the inheritors didn't want to maintain the family business. But, they all had that special taste to their donuts and other glazed products that you won't find in a grocery store. Naegelin's has that special taste as well.
The Cherry Turnover -- A Glazed Masterpiece:
Glazed Apple and Peach Turnovers:
Inside the Peach Turnover:
Peach is my favorite filling at Naegelin's.
Bear Claws:
Bear claws are a mainstay pastry at a German bakery. You have to try one of their claws. See the bite out of one in the picture. I had to try one before taking a photo.
Iced German Pretzel:
Sweet pretzel dough twisted around a cinnamon interior, then twisted like a pretzel, probably deep fried and finally iced. Anywhere else, it wouldn't get any better than this, BUT THIS IS NOT ANYWHERE ELSE. This is Naegelin's. And it does get better.
Naegelin's Best: The Strudel
Here is a sampling box of strudels. Naegelin's sells them by the slice or the whole strudel. The whole strudel has to be two feet long, but I often exaggerate. I get the slices for my wife and me, or if I'm going to visit my Aunt Mildred in Houston. Suggest you save the whole strudel for office parties and family reunions.
Peach Strudel
Apple Strudel
Cherry Strudel
Remember, at Naegelin's, if it's glazed, it's great.
I've tasted the doughnut holes and the doughnuts. Both the doughnuts and holes were great. Remember if it's glazed at Naegelin's, it's great.
By the way, the reason that there is a hole in the doughnut is that in the olden days (when I was a kid) doughnuts were fished out of the fryer with a wooden stick and hung for the oil to drip off. Then the stick of doughnuts was dipped in the glaze. Generally the Achilles tendon of the doughnut was in the inside loop where the stick came in contact with the doughnuts ... not much glaze there. Now everything is done with a basket. So generally there will be less glaze on the bottom side of a doughnut (where it comes in contact with the basket) than the top.
As a teenager, I had the opportunity to eat doughnuts just after they came out of the glaze. It was like eating cotton candy. The doughnut literally dissolved in my mouth. That was heaven on earth.
The bakery was first opened by the Naegelin's family in New Braunfels in 1868. The Granzin family bought the building, business, and recipes in the 1980s. For more information go to naeglins.com
