Ouch. Surprised at how much this hurts. An end to decades of The. Best. Smoked. Meat. In. Montreal. https://t.co/BQsZWjSNEt
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) May 9, 2023
The funny part in Canadian politics is that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau doesn't often give his personal opinion on matters. Yet Trudeau declares the best smoked meat in Montréal as The Main comes to a close on St. Laurent Boulevard.
Canada has a parliamentary democracy so even the prime minister represents a riding. The deli was in the Laurier--Sainte-Marie riding, south of the Papineau riding Trudeau represents in the House of Commons in the federal capital of Ottawa.
Your humble narrator has eaten at The Main at 3864 St. Laurent Boulevard, a prominent north-south running street. (Technically, north-south in relation to the St. Lawrence River. Trust me, when you are in Montréal, you have to follow that logic.)
The smoked meat was quite good. I need more practice to know which smoked meat is the best, something I won't get to do at The Main anymore.
I have also had the smoked meat at Schwartz's at 3895 St. Laurent Boulevard. The famous Schwartz's can be spotted if you are sitting in The Main. You can see the much longer lines at Schwartz's than you saw at The Main. Yet the prime minister of Canada has officially gone on the record as saying The Main had better smoked meat than Schwartz's.
The smoked meat is also very good at Schwartz's. There is more of a carnival atmosphere at Schwartz's as you may have seen on food TV shows or perhaps a trip to Schwartz's.
If you spent enough time in Montréal, you could sample smoked meat from both places. Maybe one for lunch and the other for dinner.
Trudeau isn't the only major celebrity who loved The Main. The late Leonard Cohen was also a big fan of The Main.
Montréal has a bagel battle: you get asked which bagel you prefer between St-Viateur and Fairmount. Your humble narrator is on Team St-Viateur. The Fairmount bagel is better than most bagels you will ever eat, just not a St-Viateur bagel.
If one of those were to go down, eating a Montréal bagel wouldn't be as awesome, even if your place was the survivor.
End of an era with closure of The Main, an iconic Montréal deli (The Current CBC Radio)
Some might think the smoked meat battle isn't confined to the 3800 block of St. Laurent Boulevard. Yet the competition was mostly The Main vs. Schwartz's.
The funny story is how I ended up at The Main. I was in Montréal heading for Schwartz's. There was a small incident involving the fire department. Nothing significant but I wasn't going to eat at Schwartz's that afternoon. I saw The Main across the street and had their smoked meat.
The sandwich and food was very good. So was Schwartz's. That stroke of fate meant I got to try both places.
This report from CBC News gives an all too familiar explanation for the demise of The Main. Things weren't as good as they used to be. Quality allegedly shifted after the death of the long-time owner Peter Varvaro when the deli was then sold off. Like when you are dating a person and that person seems to change and not for the better.
BalanceofFood.com Canada food policy coverage
BalanceofFood.com travel coverage
I hope to get back to Montréal this summer. A city I adore and have not been there in too long. I have a list of favorites in Montréal and plan to try some places where I have never eaten.
Even if you have been somewhere before, that approach is wonderful. Some of your favorites and perhaps, some new favorites. Unfortunately, The Main will not be one of them. I would have trusted the opinion of a Montréal person — the prime minister of Canada. Guess I will settle for the second-best smoked meat in Montréal.
You may not be into smoked meat, bagels, or even Montréal. You can likely adapt this story, like Mad Libs, and use this as a template over one of your favorite restaurants.
Twitter capture: @JustinTrudeau
photo credit: CFCF Montréal/CTV News
video credit: YouTube/Educate@DIYdocufilms
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