Montreal v. NY bagels in the New York Times

[Fat Guy]

A recent New York Times "City Room" piece by Jennifer 8. Lee pits Montreal bagels against New York bagels. Hardly a new debate, but the piece has the distinction of quoting me in favor of Montreal bagels.

Steven A. Shaw, a New York City food writer, did a comparison for the Montreal Gazette in 2000, which involved purchasing bagels in New York and Montreal at the same exact minute and then flying the Montreal bagels to New York for a side-by-side taste test. The Montreal bagels won hands down, he said.

This is also to be the subject of a radio interview today on CBC Montreal at about 5:45pm, I'm told.

[howsmatt]

Anything in a wood burning oven is awesome. One of my cooks prefers NY bagels to Montreal style... I'm looking for his replacement.

The city of Montreal has put a moratorium on wood burning ovens and if any of these places close they will lose their right to have a wood burning oven ever again. Still, the bagel places ARE Montreal and will not likely be denied their delicious polluting bagels.

Fat Guy--> Let me know when you visit and we'll go for a REAL bagel.

Matt

[Darienne]

A bagel so near and dear to my heart. I am Montreal born and raised and although I haven't been to Montreal for quite a long time now...I still long for the bagels.

[mcdobson]

I love the Montreal bagels with Montreal seasoning!

Myers Montreal Style Bagels here in Burlington, VT are simply awesome!

[agray]

It just isn't even a fair comparison, is it? Montreal by a country mile - and even Montreal-style elsewhere if they do it right. Siegel's in Vancouver, for example, makes a pretty decent bagel, especially when they're hot out of the wood-burning oven. Mmmm...

[mcdobson]

I believe the owner of Myers here in town owns a shop in Montreal as well. Or at least he did at onetime. We can get them frozen, and precut. Not as good as fresh, but really good for a quick breakfast or snack!

[Peter the eater]

I hope this rivalry never ends. Good bagels are a divine gift from someplace.

[Darienne]

So a friend came to stay last week from Ottawa, ON, and brought a dozen bagels. I specified...Montreal bagels or nothing bagelish.

Unfortunately, I did not also say...buy them the day you are coming or don't bother. Not only did he buy them the day before, he didn't bother to put them in the provided plastic bag to keep them a tad fresh. Aficionados of Montreal bagels are aware of the stale factor.

It is a tribute to my essentially forgiving nature that I did not mention it to him nor strangle him either, but smiled sweetly and ate the bagels, stale as they were.

DH ran each remaining bagel under the tap very briefly and put them into a plastic bag into the fridge and truly, it did rescue them to a great extent.

Visitor left his suit here by accident, so...I shall make a note of the house bagel requirements for his return visit. Bring 'em right...or don't bring 'em.

[porkpa]

Just got back from Montreal yesterday. I bought 12 dozen bagels - 6 dozen sesame seed, 6 dozen poppy; half from St Viateur, half from Fairmount. I gave half away to friends and relatives. I packed the remaining half individually in baggies and put them in the freezer. I had one of each toasted this morning - deliceux!! I've had them as much as a year old and they are still good.

[Darienne]

 

 

On 3/14/2010 at 12:30 PM, Darienne said:

So a friend came to stay last week from Ottawa, ON, and brought a dozen bagels. I specified...Montreal bagels or nothing bagelish.

Unfortunately, I did not also say...buy them the day you are coming or don't bother. Not only did he buy them the day before, he didn't bother to put them in the provided plastic bag to keep them a tad fresh. Aficionados of Montreal bagels are aware of the stale factor.

It is a tribute to my essentially forgiving nature that I did not mention it to him nor strangle him either, but smiled sweetly and ate the bagels, stale as they were.

DH ran each remaining bagel under the tap very briefly and put them into a plastic bag into the fridge and truly, it did rescue them to a great extent.

Visitor left his suit here by accident, so...I shall make a note of the house bagel requirements for his return visit. Bring 'em right...or don't bring 'em.

Such wonderful  memories of Allan who brought the stale bagels each time until we encouraged him to bring us a bottle of Panama Jack instead and we all enjoyed Ed making Road's End Frothy Coffees for us.  It's now  2023 and Allan passed away over a year ago now.  And we miss his crazy visits to the farm and we now buy our own PJ (change of name to keep with the times??).  

 

And Ed's sister and husband arrived from Ottawa a couple of days ago...we hadn't been able to see them for 4 years now...and brought Montreal bagels (fresh) and I thought I'd died and gone to bagel heaven.  

 

Don't talk to me about New York Bagels.  The Fat Guy, much missed, knew his  bagels.

Edited July 20, 2023 by Darienne (log)

[lindag]

43 minutes ago, Darienne said:

 

 

...we all enjoyed Ed making Road's End Frothy Coffees for us.  

 

 

 

Can you expand on that, please?

[blue_dolphin]

1 hour ago, Darienne said:

...we encouraged him to bring us a bottle of Panama Jack instead and we all enjoyed Ed making Road's End Frothy Coffees for us.

 

17 minutes ago, lindag said:

Can you expand on that, please?

 

Yes, on the frothy coffee explanation.  And what's Panama Jack?  Google shows me sunscreen and sunglasses, etc. Nothing I'd think to put in coffee, frothy or otherwise!

[Darienne]

8 minutes ago, lindag said:

Can you expand on that, please?

 

37 minutes ago, blue_dolphin said:

 

 

Yes, on the frothy coffee explanation.  And what's Panama Jack?  Google shows me sunscreen and sunglasses, etc. Nothing I'd think to put in coffee, frothy or otherwise!

 

"Panama Jack LCBO" (Liquor Control Board of Ontario).  Now called PJs to keep up with the times.  A fortified wine...look in the wine section in some stores...the liqueur section in others...  It's a cream liqueur, like Bailey's, only to us more interesting because it's got a tiny bite to it.  To me Bailey's is too sweet and goes down like cough syrup in comparison.  And it's cheaper in Canada to boot. 

 

OK.  The Road's End Frothy Coffee.  First of all Road's End because we are Road's End Farm, situated as you might guess, at the end of the road just before it becomes impassible bush and now belongs to the Buddhist Temple which is to the west-south-west of us.  You can see the temple (still under construction 10 years later) from a high point in our land.  

 

The recipe:  about 10 ounces of decaf coffee...a bedtime drink traditionally for us...  1 3/4 oz Panama Jack, 1 3/4 oz vodka (all Canadian vodka is triple distilled, inexpensive American vodka can curdle a cream liquor sometimes) and 2 tablespoons chocolate milk mix.   Into the blender and buzzed.  And then into my favorite huge blue glass mugs.  Yumm.

 

[Margaret Pilgrim]

On 7/20/2023 at 8:06 AM, blue_dolphin said:

 

 

...what's Panama Jack?  Google shows me sunscreen and sunglasses, etc. Nothing I'd think to put in coffee, frothy or otherwise!

A local "Irish Cream"?

Edited August 5, 2023 by Margaret Pilgrim (log)