Bona Fide, the intimate Italian restaurant that brought Roman-style pasta and natural wine to a narrow stretch of Saint-Laurent Boulevard in Villeray, is closing after nearly two years of operation.
The announcement came quietly: On April 7, the restaurant posted a brief bilingual note to Instagram stating it was closing "for an undetermined period." A follow-up post on Reddit from someone believed to be one of the owners was more candid: "I am closing Bona Fide. It's been an incredible journey, but also hands down the toughest 2ish years I have ever experienced in my 17 years in this industry."
The restaurant opened in late October 2024 in the former Paloma space, the project of Liverpool House alumni Renaud Bussières and chef David Alfred, alongside partners Camille Laura Briand and Luigi Minerva, who had all crossed paths at Antonietta. The concept was straightforward in ambition if not in execution: Roman cooking with a New York-Italian aesthetic and the kind of casual, connected service that Montreal does well. The pasta—particularly the doppio and the duck ragù radiatori—earned real admiration, and the wine list, skewing heavily Italian with smart French diversification, was quietly one of the more thoughtful in the neighbourhood. The restaurant was longlisted among Canada's best new restaurants for 2025.
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