Bernstein uses organic barley malt syrup instead of malt powder, a popular substitute. He also hand rolls all the bagels and lets them rise in the fridge for two days to give them a deep flavor not unlike a sourdough pretzel. He also boils with lye, which is a traditional way of boiling bagels and pretzels. It's super-dangerous—highly basic and corrosive—he says, "but the quality of bagel when it's done is so much better."