by Claire Lassam | When I was younger, Sunday mornings were bagel mornings. My dad would haul himself out of bed and let my mom sleep in, and we’d tiptoe out the door and drive to the Jewish area of Toronto. It was always the same; bagels from the Old Fashioned Bagel Factory, Western cream cheese (which ironically you can’t buy in Western Canada) and lox from Kristapsons, an old Jewish man with a tiny shop that had a salmon smoking a cigar and saying “Smoking is good for you” on the door. We’d rush home while the bagels were still so hot that steam would puff out when we sliced them open. They we’re soft and salty, the whipped cream cheese almost melting on top. The salmon was thick and buttery. It was a flawless combination.

But here’s the trouble: Vancouver, with a significantly smaller Jewish population, has significantly fewer bagel shops. I’ve been trying to recreate my experience of yore for as long as I’ve lived here, but it wasn’t until recently that I decided to intensify my efforts as a Scout mission. I phoned various bakeries, looked on Jewish directory sites and trucked all over the city from North Van to Oakridge to find a true bagel.

First was Solly’s, the always busy shop off Main that’s overflowing with rugalechs and babkas. Unfortunately, the bagel was cold and dry; too chewey for my liking and in need of more salt. So I headed to Kits, home of Siegel’s, where my bagel was undercooked and slightly doughy. Then came Benny’s, where I had the surliest service and the most expensive bagel of the lot – $3.50 with cream cheese! It was very bready, and not nearly dense enough. And you should never toast a fresh bagel. Ever. Though they knew enough not to toast them, the bagels at the Euro Cafe on The Drive had similarly bready and dry bagels. I was starting to get worried on my way to Kaplan’s on Oak Street, and rightly so. They bought their bagels from Benny’s.

The last on my list was a well recommended shop in North Van called Mount Royal. It was strictly Kosher, and of course named after the original, legendary Montreal bagel shop. I’d been hearing about it a fair bit, first from friends in Victoria where the first Mount Royal bakery was started, and lately from a friend who swears by it and lives nearby. The bagels were soft, slighly sweet, well-salted and with just enough heft to really allow for your teeth to sink in. It was a damn good bagel, and still hot from the oven.

Did it live up to the name? Well, a Montreal bagel in Montreal might always be better, but it certainly the best facsimile I’ve found in Vancouver.

Side Missions

Best cream cheese in Vancouver: Quebec’s Liberty Organics.

Best lox: The Daily Catch.

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Claire Lassam is a baker, blogger, and freelance writer based in East Van. She has been cooking and baking her way through the city for nearly five years, working in restaurants ranging from Cioppino’s to Meat & Bread. She currently toils at Beta 5 Chocolates and runs the baking blog Just Something Pretty.

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