Let's Hear It For The Bagel!

Is there anything better than a fresh, warm, moist wood-fired bagel?

In town there is only one place to get such a treat and that is the City Cafe Bakery. They live up to everything one imagines when they say the words "Montreal Style Bagel" (MSB). What exactly is an MSB? Well, these bagels are soaked in sweetened water before being baked in a wood-fired oven. They have larger holes than your typical New York style bagel, and traditionally they come in only two flavours: sesame and poppy seeds. These bagels are denser than other bagels, but because they don't contain any preservatives they go stale after sitting out for a few hours. City Cafe nails the art of the MSB and the result is the best bagels in town! But make sure you go quick as they are often sold out by noon!

This summer I obsessed over making the perfect MSB veggie sandwich after a trip to Ottawa. Ottawa's famous MSB place is Kettleman's. While there I tried a tasty Vegetarian sandwich with marinated spicy eggplant, cheddar, swiss, pesto, tomato and lettuce held together by their famous chewy, warm MSB, oh, and topped off with a house made dill pickle spear. Not a bad way to start off your day. I downed not one but TWO of these babies for breakfast that day.