First Street vs National Brands: Breakfast Bagel Recipe

by Tonya Staab
Published: Last Updated on

Is First Street from Smart and Final a good brand? I’m doing a price comparison for products and sharing an easy breakfast bagel recipe.

Disclosure: I am a member of the Collective Bias® Social Fabric® Community. This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper amplification for Collective Bias and its advertiser. #ChooseSmart

Have you ever done a comparison shop to see how your local store brand stacks up against national brands? The cost is generally significantly less when purchasing store brands, but does the taste measure up?

I created a breakfast bagel comparing First Street products (from Smart & Final) with national brand products and I’m going to share my thoughts on the taste and cost.

a breakfast bagel with sausage and egg

I’m going to show you the step-by-step instructions for making this sausage and egg breakfast bagel using both the First Street and National Brands. You’ll find the complete instructions in the recipe card at the end of the post.

First Street price and product comparison

first street breakfast products and national brand breakfast products

These are the food products I purchased and used for this comparison shop:

  • Plain Bagels – First Street and Sara Lee
  • Eggs – First Street and Egglands Best (Grade AA Large)
  • Pork Sausage Roll – First Street and Jimmy Dean
  • Sliced Swiss Cheese – First Street and Kraft
  • Bacon – First Street and Farmer John

I preferred the taste of the First Street bagels and at .50c less for a bag ($1.99 compared to $2.49), I will definitely purchase those in the future.

bagels topped with swiss cheese

Both cheese brands tasted great, and although both are gluten-free, the national brand contains MSG. The national brand comes in a 2lb roll vs First Street which is a 1lb roll. Even if you purchase 2 of the First Street rolls, the total cost is still $1.71 cheaper than the national brand.

first street sausage and cheese on a bagel compared to national brands

I don’t taste any difference with eggs, however, the First Street eggs do have the Real California Milk seal and are .60c cheaper than the national brand.

first street eggs on a breakfast bagel

Bacon is bacon to me. I’ll take it anyway I can get it.

first street bacon

Overall I preferred the taste of the bagel made with First Street products, I think this had a lot to do with the taste of the bagel itself. The cost of the First Street food products overall was much cheaper than that of the national brands.

side-by-side photos comparing first street brand food products in a bagel compared to national brands

Sausage and Egg Breakfast Bagel

Print
Serves: 1 Prep Time: Cooking Time:
Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat
Rating: 4.5/5
( 4 voted )

Ingredients

  • Plain Bagels
  • Eggs
  • Pork Sausage Roll
  • Sliced Swiss Cheese 
  • Bacon
  • Cracked Pepper

Instructions

  1. Slice the pork sausage roll using the guides on the packaging - note, these are easier to slice when frozen.
  2. Grill the pork sausage and bacon - I use my small stovetop grill pan.
  3. Crack the eggs into a pan and fry, right at the end of cooking I like to break the yolk a little, that way they cook just a little, so they don't make a complete mess when you are trying to eat them in your sandwich.
  4. Toast the bagels and immediately top with a cheese slice so that it melts a little.
  5. Top the cheese with the sausage. I found that I needed two slices each cut in half.
  6. Add the egg and top with cracked pepper.
  7. Now add the pre-grilled bacon.

About Smart & Final

Smart & Final is a great place for one-stop shopping for everything from produce to meats and bakery items. They carry warehouse size items without a club fee, making shopping easy, less expensive, and less daunting to shop in than a big warehouse store.

Looking for more delicious recipes using First Street and Smart and Final products? Try these:

If you live near the Poway area (San Diego), there is a new Smart & Final Extra! store opening on April 30 where the old Michael’s store was at 12339 Poway Road, Poway 92064.

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1 comment

Carolyn West April 23, 2014 - 8:00 am

I probably shouldn’t have read this before I ate breakfast… now I need to run out and get bagels. Yum! #Client

Reply

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