A guide to Jewish food in Montreal with the Wandering Chew's Kat Romanow

Jewish food in Montreal has come to be a jewel in the crown of North America alongside cities like New York and Los Angeles, where it has flourished and become deeply ingrained in the city’s food culture. Wherever it goes, it takes on the flavour of the place it lands in while influencing its food culture.

It's shaped what we think of as Montreal food, with two of the iconic dishes of bagels and smoked meat—but also dishes like matzah ball soup, chopped liver, challah, knishes, and rye bread—brought here by Jewish immigrants. Simultaneously, Jewish food in Montreal continues to be a way for Jews to connect with their identities over a meal.

As Jewish food in Montreal is largely concentrated around five neighbourhoods, this guide’s organised around them: The Plateau and the Mile End are home to many of the well-known and oldest Jewish food businesses in the city; in Saint-Henri, restaurants opened in the mid-2000s by young Jewish chefs serve Jewish food with a modern twist; finally, Cote-des-Neiges and Côte Saint-Luc are primarily home to bakeries and take-out counters, with the exception of a beloved Jewish deli.