this montreal institution celebrated it’s 50th anniversary in 2007 with a street party and free bagels. they have a lot to celebrate since their bagels are world-renowned and appear on many best of lists. the bagels have also been the subject of many debates: st-viateur vs. fairmount bagels, montreal vs. toronto, montreal vs. new york… in blind taste tests, montreal bagels wins hands down, giving us bragging rights and upping the level of bagel cockiness.
often copied, but never mastered, st-viateur bagels are the only ones worth tasting (fairmount lovers: please don’t shoot! i just prefer st-viateur bagels.) nothing has changed much in the past 50 years: they still roll their bagels by hand, an art long abandoned by the majority of competitors; they still dunk their bagels in a honey water concoction before placing them in the wood-burning oven; and they still make only two kinds of bagels — the sesame seed and the poppy seed. there is a rumour that they now sell other kinds of bagels like cinnamon-raisin… since i haven’t been to st-viateur in a while, i cannot confirm nor deny. all i know is that to eat one would be scandalous! cream cheese, smoked salmon spread, butter, or just plain – these are the ways i like my st-viateur bagel.
the bagels here are lighter than those found elsewhere. they also have a larger hole in the center as they are handmade. they are soft on the outside and moist on the inside with a sweet taste to them. they are so unique that you can smell it when someone boards the bus with just one. although best eaten at its freshest — straight out of the oven, they are also good up to 5 days (just pop them in the toaster). you can keep them in the fridge up to 10 days and in the freezer for 2 months.
if you live in toronto and are too lazy to hop on the 401 and drive east for a few hours, or if you live anywhere outside of quebec for that matter, st-viateur bagels can be shipped to you. it will be expensive, but it will be worth it!
st-viateur bagel
263, rue st-viateur ouest
montréal, québec
H2V 1Y1
T: 514.276.8044
www.stviateurbagel.com
payment: cash
hours: 24/7