Montreal bagel
Photo: Coastal Elite from Halifax, Canada · CC BY-SA 2.0

History

Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe brought the bagel to Montreal in the early 1900s, and the city's version set itself apart by the 1950s. Fairmount Bagel dates to 1919 and St-Viateur to 1957, both in Mile End, both still firing wood ovens around the clock. The honey in the boiling water and the wood smoke give the Montreal bagel its sweeter, denser character.

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Common allergens: Gluten, Sesame

Make it at home

Yield Makes 12Hands-on 45 minTotal 3 hrDifficulty Intermediate

Ingredients

  • 500g bread flour
  • 1 tbsp instant yeast
  • 2 tbsp honey, plus 1/3 cup for the boiling water
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 egg
  • 250ml warm water
  • Sesame or poppy seeds

Method

  1. Mix flour, yeast, 2 tbsp honey, oil, egg and warm water into a stiff dough and knead 10 minutes.
  2. Let rise 1 hour until doubled, then divide into 12 pieces and roll each into a rope, joining the ends into a ring.
  3. Bring a large pot of water with the 1/3 cup honey to a boil. Boil each bagel 45 seconds per side.
  4. Press the wet bagels into seeds, then bake at 230C for 15 to 18 minutes until deep golden.

Tip from the editors. No wood oven at home? A pizza stone and your oven's top rack get you closest to the blistered crust.

Where to eat montreal bagel

Montreal bagel in Montreal

St-Viateur Bagel ★ 4.5

$ BakeryMile End

A hot St-Viateur bagel with cream cheese is Montreal's cheapest signature bite, sold around the clock in Mile End for the price of pocket change.

TryBagel with cream cheese

TipBuy a dozen to take home; per bagel it is far cheaper than any cafe breakfast in the city.

Directions

Fairmount Bagel ★ 4.6

$ BakeryMile End

Fairmount Bagel has wood-fired Montreal's oldest bagels since 1919, a 24-hour Mile End window turning out sesame and poppy rings a block from its rival.

TryWood-fired bagel

TipBuy a hot dozen and settle the Fairmount-versus-St-Viateur argument for yourself on the walk home.

Directions

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