‘Scrumptious, delightful’ what makes a Montreal-style bagel stand apart?

You’ve probably heard of a New York-style bagel – but have you heard of a Montreal bagel?

In Montreal, the bagel is a staple for residents and a must-try for visitors! But what sets Montreal’s bagel apart from the others and makes it so memorable?

“Scrumptious. Perfect crust. Delightful. Airy. Chewy. Interior,” explained Irwin Shlafman, third-generation owner of Fairmont Bagel, a business started by his grandfather in 1919.

Irwin Shlafman (right) making Montreal bagels at Fairmont Bagel. (Photo Credit: Felisha Adam, CityNews)

The Montreal bagel recently made headlines with Nike’s latest creation the “Dunk Low Montreal Bagel shoes”.

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“They’re proud of their bagel. They’re proud to be able to say that they’ve got the best bagel no matter who they’re talking to, that they’re confident in their stance and they have some pretty, pretty good stuff to back it up,” said Shlafman while noting Fairmont Bagel’s secret is keeping with tradition.

Montreal bagels being made at Fairmont Bagel. (Photo Credit: Felisha Adam, CityNews)

“We still do it the same way my grandfather did it. Therefore, we are still really the same as we always were,” he explained. “We roll by hand, we bake in a wood-fired oven. So really our bagel is different because it’s still the same.”

Producing nearly 12 thousand bagels a day – all by hand.

“We pick it up, we turn it over, we overlap it, we snap it off, we close it, and we start the next bagel as we throw that. Wow. We just made that look so easy,” said Shlafan.

“There is no hesitation or concern or jealousy or anything like that about like, yeah, we have the best bagel because it’s known around the world that Montreal is really a place to come for bagel and for smoke meat.”