Inside Montreal’s Sultriest New Resto-Bar, ‘La Femme Fontaine’

Perhaps Montreal’s wildest restaurant, the 2016 closure of Bethlehem XXX was a sad one, but now a kind of follow up to Bethlehem is here, as La Femme Fontaine has opened in its place.

It’s co-owned by Brett Stabler, one of the minds behind Bethlehem, along with three former Bethlehem employees: musician and performer Bernardino Femminielli, Julia Daigle, and Thea Govorchin.

Speaking to Eater, Femminielli says La Femme Fontaine appears to be well, more of a “normal” restaurant, at least in contrast to its predecessor.

“We wanted to go further, to be less chaotic, more professional, to give ourselves a défi, a project.”

“Bethlehem was more of a social experiment rather than like a functional restaurant. Brett hired staff with no experience. We were changing the style [of food] every week,” adds Govorchin.

Govorchin remembers one such situation that exemplified Bethlehem, but which likely won’t happen at La Femme Fontaine.

“Brett was serving Somalian food, he did the whole menu in Somali so you couldn’t read it at all…we’re trying to be a little bit more accessible.”

The ownership team brushed up on their wine knowledge and say that natural wines from small producers, including skin-contact orange wines, are a big focus.

“There’s one wine on the menu where the guy owns like one hectare of grapes... we pushed our focus more onto wine and are gaining inspiration from that menu and working around it,” says Govorchin.

The initial menu keeps things simple, allowing ingredients to speak for themselves — charcuterie and cheese plates, and conservas, marinated seafood which is having a resurgence in Portugal at present — it’s a very apéro-friendly place.

A beef tartare, marinated octopus with romanesco, heirloom tomato salad and fennel-artichoke salad round out the options. As the weather cools, Le Femme Fontaine will likely move into some stews and potages.

Eater Montreal

Eater Montreal

One of the most attention-grabbing aspects of La Femme Fontaine is its name: Govorchin calls the French version of the name “beautiful”, while Le Journal de Montréal deemed it “controversial”. It translates to the much-less-eloquent “the Squirter” in English; in any case, the restaurant design leans into the name.

There’s ample imagery of artfully drawn or painted feminine nudity, along with screens showing a video loop of a slightly yonic-looking rose with petals falling; in one corner, a fake oyster sits on a pedestal with a luminous colour-changing pearl inside (this item was found on a Plateau street). The entire 40-seat dining room is bathed in red light, too.

It was a DIY operation, with Stabler and team avoiding using contractors, says Govorchin.

“We’re all artists so we built the space. I describe it was discount art-déco meets 80s public bathhouse. It’s ‘bathroom vibes’.”

While the space is less chaotic than Bethlehem, a good number of odd objects bring it all together: plants that were featured at a Bjork show in Montreal, a DJ booth from when Iggy Pop played the Montreal edition of the Red Bull Music Academic, and a silver arch that a set-designer friend made for a Quebec government PSA: “an elegant iteration of some of the same energy,” says Stabler.

STATUS — La Femme Fontaine is open at 6568 St-Laurent from 5:30 p.m. to midnight Tuesday and Wednesday, to 12:30 a.m. Thursday and to 1:30 a.m. Friday and Saturday.

• La Femme Fontaine [Facebook]
• Chef Shuffles at SAT Foodlab, Bethlehem XXX Shutters, and More Intel [EMTL]
• Un nouveau bar à vin au nom controversé vient d'ouvrir à Montréal [Le Journal de Montréal]