Montreal is famous for smoked meat and bagels. Both foods had humble beginnings in Mile End – a former immigrant, working-class Jewish neighbourhood. My father also grew up in the ‘hood so, on a recent trip, I decided to visit two of his old haunts: Schwartz’s Deli and St-Viateur Bagel. At St. Viateur, Saul Restrepo shared the owners’ history across three generations including how their bagels compare to those of long-time rival Fairmount Bagel. But first to Schwartz’s, renowned for its smoked meat and now partly owned by Celine Dion, for a chat with general manager Frank Silva.