Montreal Jewish chef left curious by prospective diners asking about her views on ‘genocide in Palestine’

“Are we serving politics with a side of pancakes now?” fourth-generation Montrealer, chef and restaurateur, Raegan Steinberg, asked on her Instagram in mid-October.

It was Steinberg’s response to a question from a prospective diner, asking about her views on the “genocide in Palestine.”

“There’s a boycott list that’s been going around since October 7,” she explains in an interview with National Post. It points to Montreal businesses that have allegedly expressed support for Israel. And Steinberg is on it.

“I don’t think I can do anything about it. I think no matter what you do, people will assume a lot of things about you and your policies and your politics.”

However, she points out, “I’ve been very adamant about not discussing politics. I definitely don’t want that to define us. I just thought it was interesting that we were receiving that line of questioning, and I was fairly certain that other fellow restaurateurs were not receiving the same line of questioning.”

As a Jewish restaurateur and chef, she says: “I don’t hide the fact that I’m Jewish, right? I don’t think I should have to. Absolutely not. No. But I also don’t think I need to discuss foreign policy in order to conduct business in Montreal, Quebec. … We all just want to make great food, feed our families, go home. You know, sleep well, wake up the next day, do it all again.”

Broadly speaking, she says she has a lot of respect for the younger generation spending their money at businesses that align with their values: “I respect that 100 per cent.” And if all restaurants are facing this kind of challenge, she says, “then it’s fair game … but I have a feeling that that’s not the case, and that was more or less, proven to me.”

In her post she asks: “I’m just wondering if this happens to other restaurateurs or is it specific to Jewish people? I don’t even know. Is this normal? Is this the new normal?” Afterwards, she spoke with a small collection of fellow Montreal restaurateurs and chefs. The majority of them haven’t faced similar questions. Jewish restaurants were “definitely a higher percentage of the few people that I spoke to, but I think that some Jewish restaurants are more targeted than others.”

At the same time, she insists she is not complaining and does not want to attract negative attention: “I don’t think there’s like a negative stain on us or anything like that. We’re very happy, you know. I just think it’s important for people to know what goes on behind the scenes sometimes.”

Referred to as “a top chef,” by Canadian restaurant guide, Tastet, Steinberg is most notable for three popular restaurants in the Montreal area: Arthurs Nosh Bar in Saint-Henri, Dirty Greens and Arthurs Nosh Bar at Le Cathcart, as well as Romies in Old Montreal.

The prospective diner wrote to her, saying: “Hello!! I’d like to come try the food but I’m mindful where I spend my money these days. I saw your restaurant on the boycott list but I wanted to confirm with you what your views are about the genocide in Palestine (as the boycott lists might be misinformed). Look forward to hearing back. Thank you!”

Steinberg responds that she is “not really even sure how to go about (responding). Anyways, just wondering if anyone else gets these kind of questions.”

Steinberg says she was heavily influenced in her choice to become a chef by her father. She eventually pursued culinary training at the Art Institute of Vancouver, later returning to Montreal to work at the renown Joe Beef.

Then she and her partner, Alexandre Cohen, embarked on Back of House Catering before opening Arthurs Nosh Bar in 2016, a Montreal brunch staple on Notre-Dame Street West. She says the restaurant bears her father’s name as a tribute to him and offers Jewish cuisine reinvented with Moroccan influences.

Later she launched Dirty Greens at Le Cathcart, offering gourmet salads. Then in the fall of 2024, Raegan and Alexandre opened Romies, a contemporary American bistro. And in 2026, they opened Arthur’s Dinette in the NDG neighbourhood.

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