Montreal bagels vs New York bagels: the ultimate comparison

Every few years, a food writer reopens the Montreal-vs-New-York bagel debate, and both cities react as if their civic honour is at stake. The debate is usually framed as “which is better,” which is the wrong question — the two are different products, made differently, meant to be eaten differently. The right question is: what is each tradition actually doing, and what should a visitor taste to understand both?

This guide compares the two bagel styles along every axis that matters, explains where each tradition came from, and gives specific addresses for tasting the best of each.

At a glance

	Montreal	New York
Size	Smaller (80-100 g)	Larger (100-130 g)
Hole	Larger	Smaller
Shape	Rounder cross-section, asymmetric	Thicker, more uniform
Dough	No salt, egg and honey added	Salt, no egg or honey
Boiling	Honey-sweetened water	Malt-sweetened or plain water
Baking	Wood-fired oven	Gas/electric deck oven
Texture	Denser, chewier, sweeter	Fluffier, softer, saltier
Crust	Darker, crisper	Lighter, softer
Typical eaten	Plain, with cream cheese, lox, smoked salmon	Full sandwich with meat, eggs, cheeses

The Montreal bagel in detail

The dough

Montreal bagel dough contains egg, honey, and malt, plus no salt. This is the most important difference. Egg and honey in the dough itself create the characteristic sweetness and denser crumb. The absence of salt in the dough (salt is on the water, not in the bread) contributes to the sweeter flavour profile.

The boiling

Shaped bagels are boiled in water sweetened with honey for roughly one minute before baking. This is where the Montreal bagel gets its additional sweetness and its glossy brown crust.

The baking

Montreal bagels are baked in wood-fired ovens, traditionally heated with maple, beech, or oak wood. Both Fairmount and St-Viateur (the two institutional Montreal bagel bakeries) have wood-fired ovens in continuous operation 24 hours a day. The wood heat gives Montreal bagels a slight smokiness and a faster, hotter bake that creates their distinctive crust.

The seeds

Montreal bagels come in two dominant varieties: white (sesame) and black (poppy seed). Sesame is more popular. Everything bagels and other variations exist but are less traditional.

Size and density

Smaller and denser than NY bagels. You can comfortably eat 2-3 Montreal bagels where you’d eat one NY bagel. The dense chew is part of the point.

The New York bagel in detail

The dough

NY bagels use plain flour, yeast, salt, water, and malt — no egg, no honey. Salt is mixed into the dough. The dough is allowed to proof longer.

The boiling

Boiled in water that is either plain or slightly sweetened with barley malt (not honey). Typically boiled for 1-2 minutes.

The baking

Baked in gas or electric deck ovens, not wood-fired. The heat is lower and more even than a wood fire, producing a softer, fluffier result.

The varieties

NY bagel varieties are more diverse: everything, sesame, poppy, salt, onion, garlic, pumpernickel, cinnamon raisin, and more. “Everything” bagels (mix of sesame, poppy, onion, garlic, salt) are a NY invention.

Size and density

Larger, heavier, but less dense in texture — more air in the crumb. Easy to slice in half and make into a substantial sandwich.

The best Montreal bagel bakeries

Fairmount Bagel

74 Avenue Fairmount Ouest, Mile End

Opened 1919. The older of the two institutions. Narrow shop, 24-hour operation, line on weekend mornings. Considered by many the more traditional of the two. Sesame and poppy only, paper bags, no seating.

St-Viateur Bagel

263 Rue Saint-Viateur Ouest, Mile End

Opened 1957. The other institution. A few blocks from Fairmount. Multiple locations now across Montreal, but the original Saint-Viateur shop is the one to visit. Sesame and poppy, plus a broader menu at their café locations.

The Montreal bagel ritual

The correct way to eat a Montreal bagel:

1. Buy them hot — within 20 minutes of baking. Both Fairmount and St-Viateur bake continuously, so hot bagels are almost always available.
2. Open the bag on the sidewalk and eat one standing. Still warm.
3. Take the rest home, eat the second within 24 hours.
4. Preferred topping: plain cream cheese. Lox or smoked salmon if you want more. Nothing else is needed.

Neither bakery makes bagel sandwiches on-site. These are bagels, not breakfast sandwiches. For sandwiches, go elsewhere.

The best New York bagel bakeries (for reference)

If you’re also visiting NYC: Ess-a-Bagel, Russ & Daughters, Zabar’s, Absolute Bagels, H&H Midtown are all widely considered excellent. But this is a Montreal-focused guide, so treat this as an acknowledgment that NY has its traditions.

Which is better?

The honest answer: they’re different foods. Both are legitimate; both have evolved to their current form over a century; both have passionate adherents who are correct about their own tradition.

• If you like dense, chewy, sweet bread: Montreal
• If you like fluffier, saltier, more versatile sandwich bread: NY
• If you want to eat a bagel plain: Montreal (more flavour without toppings)
• If you want to build a big breakfast sandwich: NY (structurally better for it)

Most Montreal food writers will grudgingly admit NY bagels are excellent; most NY food writers will grudgingly admit Montreal bagels are excellent. The rivalry is affectionate.

The origins

Both traditions come from Ashkenazi Jewish immigration to North America in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The bagel itself originated in Poland centuries earlier. Different immigrant groups, different local resources, and different urban circumstances led Montreal and New York to diverge by the 1920s-1930s.

Montreal’s Jewish community concentrated in the Plateau and Mile End, where Fairmount and St-Viateur established themselves. New York’s Jewish community was vastly larger and more spread out, and the NY bagel industry commercialised earlier (and later industrialised — most Manhattan bagels today are factory-produced, unlike Montreal’s which remain hand-rolled).

Montreal bagels are still hand-rolled at both Fairmount and St-Viateur. Bagels are formed by hand, one at a time, 24 hours a day. This is one of the few commercial breads in North America still produced entirely by hand.

Bringing Montreal bagels home

Both Fairmount and St-Viateur will pack a bag for travel. Bagels freeze well — wrap individually in plastic and freeze for up to 3 months. Reheat by thawing, splitting, and toasting.

Customs in most countries allow baked goods in carry-on or checked bags. US border crossings have been known to confiscate them if declared as “food”; Montrealers driving to the US will often say they’re carrying “baked goods” or simply “bagels,” which is usually fine.

Combining with a Montreal food trip

A good Montreal food morning:

• Early: Fairmount or St-Viateur for a hot sesame bagel, eat on the street
• Mid-morning: Café Olimpico for coffee, Mile End atmosphere
• Lunch: Schwartz’s for smoked meat (see our Montreal smoked meat guide)

For the full food context, see our Montreal food guide and French Canadian cuisine guide.

Final word

Don’t pick sides unless you’ve eaten both. Then pick a side. Then defend it against all comers — and welcome to the debate.