The Montreal hot dog (french: steamé), also known as a steamie, is one of several variations of hot dogs served as a fast food staple at restaurants and

diner A diner is a small, inexpensive restaurant found across the United States, as well as in Canada and parts of Western Europe. Diners offer a wide range of foods, mostly American cuisine, a casual atmosphere, and, characteristically, a com ...

s in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

and other parts of

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. In Montreal (and elsewhere in the province of Quebec), the

hot dog bun A hot dog bun is a type of soft bun shaped specifically to contain a hot dog or another type of sausage. The side-loading bun is common in most of the United States, while the top-loading New England-style hot dog bun is popular in that region ...

s used to prepare steamies are side loading, while a top loading (New England style) hot dog bun is used for toasted hot dogs. Montreal hot dogs are considered to be rather small and are generally sold for between $1.00 and $2.00 depending on the area of purchase and dressing. Popular brands include Lesters, Lafleur's, and Glatt's

kosher (also or , ) is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed kosher ( in English, yi, כּשר), fro ...

. The city of Montreal did not permit street food carts from 1947 until 2011, leading to a proliferation of small "greasy spoon" restaurants which are variations on the classic Québécois ''casse-croute'' (snack bar) restaurants. These restaurants may serve hot dogs with fresh-cut fries (''patates frites'', often served "very brown and greasy"), '' poutine'', hamburgers, ''pogos'' ( corn dogs),

hamburger steak Hamburg steak is a patty of ground beef. Made popular worldwide by migrating Germans, it became a mainstream dish around the start of the 19th century. It is similar to Salisbury steak. It is considered the origin of the ubiquitous hamburger, whe ...

s, in addition to Greek dishes (typically souvlaki and gyro), pizza, and smoked meat. Restaurant chains known for their hot dogs include La Belle Province,

Valentine A valentine is a card or gift given on Valentine's Day, or one's sweetheart. Valentine or Valentines may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Valentine (name), a given name and a surname, including a list of people and fictional char ...

, and

Lafleur Restaurants Lafleur Restaurants (in French, ''Resto Lafleur'') is a chain of family-owned fast food restaurants located in the greater Montreal area. History The business began in 1951 on ''Avenue Lafleur'' in LaSalle, Quebec (in the Montreal area). It wa ...

. One longstanding Montreal independent restaurant that offers hot dogs is the

Montreal Pool Room The Montreal Pool Room is a well-known and well-regarded greasy spoon restaurant, located in the city's former red-light district on Saint Laurent Boulevard, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The restaurant has been open since 1912 (registered 1921) an ...

. The 'steamie' hot dog variety has become quite popular across Canada, now frequently replacing the traditional one. Steamie parlours, called 'wieneries', have opened across Canada and are replacing typical hot dogs at franchised restaurants, too.

Variations

Montreal hot dogs may either be ''steamé'' (also ''stimé''), translated into English as "steamies", (a term briefly used by an Ontario chain affiliated with the La Belle Province chain), which are fresh from the steamer and rather soft, or ''toasté'' (referred to in English as "Toasties"), which are grilled or toasted until crisp. ''Toastés'' are slightly more expensive and less popular. In Montreal, hot dogs generally come dressed one of three ways: *''All-dressed (Montreal Style)'': This hot dog, usually a 'steamie', is topped with mustard, chopped onion, relish and fresh coleslaw or plain chopped cabbage ("''choux''" in French); however,

sauerkraut Sauerkraut (; , "sour cabbage") is finely cut raw cabbage that has been fermented by various lactic acid bacteria. It has a long shelf life and a distinctive sour flavor, both of which result from the lactic acid formed when the bacteria ferme ...

, or coleslaw of the creamy variety, is rarely used. An all-dressed hot dog typically does not include ketchup, which must be requested specifically. *''

Michigan hot dog A michigan hot dog, michigan red hot, or simply "michigan", is a steamed all-beef hot dog on a steamed bun topped with a meaty sauce, generally referred to as "michigan sauce", and is a specialty in and around Plattsburgh, New York. Origin There ...

'': This hot dog is topped with meat chili sauce or spaghetti sauce. It can be served with or without diced onions and mustard. *''Supreme'': The hot dog is topped with cheese and bacon. This variation comes from

References

External links

''Moutarde-Choux'' by De Émilie Villeneuve and Olivier Blouin

Reviews and photos of the World Famous Decarie Hotdogs, Montreal
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montreal Hot Dog Hot dogs Montreal cuisine Cuisine of Quebec Canadian cuisine

Variations

See also

References

External links