65+ Years of Bagel Tradition
Proud to be the longest running bagel shop in Montreal, St-Viateur Bagel has been baking our famous hand-rolled, wood-fired bagels with the original recipe since 1957.
A beloved landmark in the city offering a taste of Montreal’s unique bagel tradition, St-Viateur continues to uphold the same quality and dedication that has made us a favourite among locals, tourists, and celebrities alike.
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Rooted in Family
Current owner Joe Morena has been immersed in the bagel business since his teenage years, and was later joined by his sons Vincenzo, Nicolò, and Roberto. They honour the legacy of Myer Lewkowicz, who founded the shop, by upholding the same quality and dedication that has made it an iconic part of Montreal’s history. They attribute the success of St-Viateur Bagel not only to its quality products but also to the dedicated staff who have been part of the family for over 25 years.
Joe first connected with Myer when he started working at the shop at 15, and he quickly became part of the family business. Myer would say “Hey Yosel!” (the Yiddish name for Joe) and serving so many older Jewish customers, Joe even learned to speak Yiddish. After years of learning the trade, he became joint owner in 1974. Following Myers’s passing in 1994, Joe partnered with Marco Sblano to continue the St-Viateur Bagel tradition. Today, Joe and his sons lead the business and they remain dedicated to this historic landmark, the customers it serves, and to preserving the authentic and cherished Montreal bagel tradition.
From Poland to Montreal
In 1953 Myer Lewkowicz arrived in Canada. He’d grown up in a large, poor family in a Jewish shtetl or village near Krakow, Poland. In 1942, he was arrested by the Gestapo and sent to Buchenwald concentration camp. Years later, while speaking to a high school class, Myer said, “At Buchenwald, all I dreamt of was a piece of bread."
After the war, Myer lived and worked in Germany, then when he came to Montreal, he got a job at Hyman Seligman’s Montreal Bagel Bakery on St-Laurent. Myer learned the bagel trade and just five years later, he and his wife Emma set up their own shop with Seligman on St-Viateur street, which is now our landmark St-Viateur Bagel shop.
Growing & Building a Legacy
Over the past 65 years and counting, St-Viateur Bagel has expanded to include 7 locations, including 4 Bagel Cafés.
The shop’s success has earned recognition and featured in newspapers and TV shows on Food Network and the Travel Channel, like Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations and The Layover, Netflix’s Somebody Feed Phil, Bob Blumer’s Glutton for Punishment, The Today Show with Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb. Thousands of customers have visited the Bagel Shop, from native Montrealers to international tourists and celebrities—like local repeat customers Leonard Cohen, William Shatner, Céline Dion, Georges St-Pierre, Roberto Luongo, and Mordecai Richler, and also famous out-of-towners like Harvey Keitel, James Woods, Kelly Ripa, and Jimmy Kimmel.
Giving Back
Despite widespread recognition and fame, St-Viateur Bagel remains firmly rooted in its local community, determined to give back to the Montrealers that have supported them for so long.
For 17 years, St-Viateur bagel hosted an annual charity breakfast at its (now closed) Monkland location to help raise funds for the Generations Foundation, an organization that provides nutritious meals to underprivileged schoolchildren.
To mark major anniversaries, St-Viateur Bagel hosts epic block parties.
Landmark 50th anniversary in 2007 - Raised upwards of $50,000 for the Foundation of Stars, an important organization that supports pediatric research in Québec.
60th anniversary in 2017 - Broke all previous records with the support of so many suppliers, friends, families and volunteers, and raised over $60,000 for the same organization.
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