Yonah Schimmel Knishes
New York, NY
96% love this shop
The Oldest Knishery in America
Without a physical storefront, Romanian immigrant Yonah Schimmel first sold his knishes using a pushcart around the Lower East Side. As business grew, he established his bakery on Houston Street in the 1890s. Yonah Schimmel Knishes has since been a neighborhood fixture, even despite the continuous changes on the Lower East Side over the decades. Today, Yonah Schimmel’s still makes knishes the traditional way—hand wrapping a filling of potatoes or kasha (buckwheat grain) with a thin layer of dough before sending it to the oven to bake. On top of the traditional potato and kasha knishes, they have also added modern flavors—sweet potatoes, mushrooms, broccoli, jalapenos, and even sweet cheese ones!
