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Steel-cut oats in Montreal?

Perfect for a raw day like today.

Finished off my can of McCann's Original Steel-Cut Irish Oatmeal last spring and haven't had any luck in finding another in Côte-des-Neiges or at a few other stores I've checked (most notably PA).

Any suggestions of where to look? Who has the best prices?

What about competing brands? Has anyone tried President's Choice Blue Menu 100% Whole Grain Steel Cut Oats? To be honest, I'm a little leery: while the Country Choice Organic Irish-Style Steel-Cut Oats I found at ExoFruits are about half the price of McCann's, they're also about half as good.

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  1. Les douceurs at Atwater Market had them about a month ago.

    4 Replies
    1. re: Claudine_d

      Les Douceurs always has several varieties and formats of McCann's.

      1. re: Claudine_d

        Should have guessed. Don't imagine they -- or Le Maître Boucher on Monkland, where my last can came from -- will win on price. But thanks. While I'm not often in that part of town, I'll keep them in mind if a closer source doesn't turn up.

        1. re: carswell

          My loblaws has steel cut oats from the Bob's Red Mill brand. It is with the bio stuff and comes in a bag.

          1. re: PadmeSkywalker

            Have you tried them? Can you say how they compare with McCann's?

            Gotta say that if I'd had only the Country Choice oats -- made from US oats, like Bob's Red Mill -- to go by, I'd never had understood what the fuss was about.

      2. pretty sure I've seen it at the IGA on Cote St-Luc, with the other oat products about 1-2 months ago. The price stopped me... i think it was around 18$ a can? I'll check on my next visit. Guess it's worth it's price from what you're saying.

        By the way, what's 'PA'?

        8 Replies
        1. re: Chocolatine

          >By the way, what's 'PA'?

          Supermarché PA

          PA du Parc
          5029 du Parc
          Montreal, Québec

          PA du Fort
          1420 du Fort
          Montreal, Québec

          1. re: Chocolatine

            «i think it was around 18$ a can»

            Whoa! My last can cost me something like $10-12.

            1. re: carswell

              Saw steel cut oats at Vieille Europe recently .. can't remember what brand though. Something dark blue ...

                1. re: eat2much

                  Ha! Thanks for checking. Just in from a bike ride out to Lachine and back. Stopped by the Atwater Market on my way home and bought a 1-lb can. Yep, $8.99. That's more like it. Will see about picking up a couple other brands and doing a taste-off.

                2. re: carswell

                  I stopped by the CSL IGA today; no can on the shelf, but a carton of 1 lb of McCann's Original steel-cut oatmeal was under 5$ (there was also a quick cooking version for the same price). Less fancy packaging than the can, but looks like the same product. based on their web site: http://www.mccanns.ie/p_SteelCut.html

                  Perhaps the more expensive can I saw a while back was the larger format (1lb 12 oz)... if my memory is right :)

                  1. re: Chocolatine

                    Thanks for checking.

                    Just looked at the $8.99 can I bought yesterday and saw that I'd misread the label. It is, in fact, 1 lb 12 oz (28 oz). So, ounce for ounce, hardly more expensive than the box. Maybe the larger volume compensates for the higher cost of the container.

              1. I used to live on McCann's, but they are just too expensive for what you get. Now I just go to my local health food store and buy steel cut oats from the bulk bins. Much less expensive and it's the same product. Better packaging on the McCanns though.

                2 Replies
                1. re: bigfellow

                  i detect little difference between the mccanns and presidents choice

                  1. re: celfie

                    My daughter very much likes Presidents choice.

                2. We've moved a question regarding the qualities of steel-cut oats vs. other types of oats to a new thread on the General Chowhounding Topics board:


                  Feel free to add to the discussion there.

                  1. Funnily enough, I found McCann's at the Latina grocery on St-Viateur -