hof kelsten

growing up in a family obsessed with good food, i quickly learnt the difference between fresh baked bread and day old stale bread. on a daily basis, my dad or mom would come home with fresh bread and once we ate what we needed that day, we would immediately freeze it to ensure freshness. call me crazy, but i for one still cannot eat day old bread. a few weeks ago on a chilly sunday morning, my best friend and her fiancée invited me to grab a quick bite and then some shopping. as i jumped into their car, they both informed me they wanted schwartz’s, without hesitation we set off towards st. laurent blvd. arriving at schwartz’s, the line up was huge and we decided not to wait. i immediately suggested hofkelstenas i had been dying to try their gravlax sandwich and of course buy some bread. we headed up st. laurent blvd and found parking right in front of hof kelsten. the un-finished decor at hofkelstenprovides for a laid back casual and comfortable vibe. the staff is very friendly and

you may have heard about hof kelsten. in a short time, the legend has grown about the bread guy, jeffrey finkelstein. he is montreal’s prodigal son, who has worked at some of the top restaurants around world. his list includes toque, french laundry, per se, and even el bulli. now back in montreal he has been making bread over at hofkelstenand also has some other items that are a little more than just bread. simply put hofkelstendoes brunch. so one saturday morning, the montreal food divas were miraculously awake and not hungover so it seemed logical to do brunch. now finding a spot that will impress the divas is not always an easy task but we knew that hofkelstenwould not disappoint. hof klesten is an un-assuming place, not too fancy, with a long table on the right, some smaller tables on the left and a counter by the window. lots of people come in for take-out as the space available is limited and you may have to wait a while to get a spot. the process is that you place your order, pay, they take your name and call it when it’s ready so you can pick it up and seat yourself. food brunch is available saturday and sundays from 10am to 4pm. the menu has a handful of items each priced at around $12-$14 with coffee at $3.75. so your bill will get to a little under $20 when you factor in taxes. there is no filter coffee so no refills, and payment is by cash or debit card , so no credit card. the menu draws inspiration from an historical montreal jewish breakfast food scene – the use of challah , schnitzel and salmon has the old school eastern european influence you can still find after all these years, and the shakshuka has that north african (morrocan) flavour that we are seeing more and more of in brunch menus which is great for mixing things up on the menu. shakshuka $12 schnitzel $14 salmon croquettes $12 french toast $12 we started with the french toast $12 which uses challah bread and is topped with a fried egg and veal pancetta and maple syrup. using challah

hofkelstenis another boulangerie that's been on my hit list since i first heard about them. they're nearby melbourne cafe. 

the inside is chic and they play some chill indie pop music. i messed up and came on a thursday afternoon (friday they have challah bread). fyi, you can reserve their speciality breads ahead of time. 

they have bread, pastries, sandwiches and brunch (only on weekends). lots of people came in and grabbed baguettes to go. 

- bialis ($1.50) - apparently, they only make a handful each day but i was able to snag the last one. great chewy bagel like texture with some sweet grilled onions. the touch of salt sprinkled on top is fantastic. 
- pain au chocolat ($2.75) - flaky in touch and tastes better after your first bite. 

man, people are so lucky if they live in this area. so many quality boulangeries within a 5 minute walking radius.

when you walk in and see the head chef of les 400 coups ordering at the counter, you know you are at the right place. hofkelstenis well known for their bread. as such, it became one of the major suppliers for top restaurants in the city. so don’t be surprised if the bread you ordered tastes exactly like last night’s dinner at some restaurant!

if i have to choose one bakery to buy bread, hofkelstenis my top pick. we bought 3 loaves of his signature rye bread with caraway seeds along with a container of dill cream cheese. we also had their famous babka - a sweet swirly chocolate jewish cake. everyone who grabbed a slice enjoyed its soft chocolate taste.

hofkelstentook montreal by storm when it opened earlier this year. unlike most bakeries that focus on pastries, this place is all about the bread. challah bread, raisin bread, ciabatta, etc. are all lined up behind the counter. many montreal restaurants are using hofkelstenas their bread provider, and that is how we first tried their delicious crusty bread.

the vibe inside hofkelstenis super laid back with good music and a lot of beautiful natural light streaming in through the expansive window panes across the clear glass storefront. it’s a perfect spot to grab a quick bite to eat and a little coffee or iced tea during the day or a faster paced brunch over the weekend.

with a modest counter display of homemade pastries and a roster of 10 different kinds of bread with specialties on particular days (babka on wednesdays and challah on fridays), hofkelstenis definitely breaking bread with their breadwinning loaves along with all the other sayings where bread is involved. a solid place to grab a soup and sandwich along with a loaf of bread for the road – i killed half a loaf of their raisin challah on the drive home. did hofkelstengive me the same feeling as i got when i accidentally found my dad’s porn stash with i was 12? no. but it did give me that warm tingly feeling inside knowing i’m about to smash a brisket sandwich homemade with love from the bottom up… so yes, maybe a little bit of the same as the porn stash thing.

read more: http://www.shutupandeat.ca/2014/01/22/breaking-bread-hof-kelsten/#ixzz2royle7jn

emma. i'm very happy to find hofkelstenbakery. they make very, very good bread, especially their ciabatta is the best in montreal. their bread is very much remind me of those german style bread i had in switzerland before.

so, yeah, the hype is warranted. there are a lot of good bakeries in montreal (the aforementioned guillaume is one of them), but it wouldn’t be hyperbole to call hofkelstenthe best. ■ - see more at: http://cultmontreal.com/2013/10/hof-kelsten/#sthash.piv3jizb.dpuf