Rôtisserie La Lune is a Mon Lapin masterclass in classic Quebecois chicken dinners

"I’ve always wanted to do a rotisserie," says co-chef Marc-Olivier Frappier between bustling services of the new restaurant Rôtisserie La Lune.

Opened quietly in December 2024 by the team behind the nationally acclaimed Mon Lapin—Jessica Noël, Vanya Filipovic, Marc-Antoine Gélinas, Alex Landry, and Frappier—it appears deceptively simple on paper: A 70-seat restaurant (plus two private rooms for groups) centred around Quebec's love affair with spit-roasted chickens, designed by Zebulon Perron with work by the carpenter Antoine Chouinard.

But at its core, La Lune is both a nostalgic touchstone and the realization of a longtime dream of a 15-year-old Frappier, back when he knew he wanted to be a chef while working at a Saint-Hubert outpost in Saint-Hyacinthe.

"My first job was at that rotisserie, and I’ve always loved it. Nothing makes people happier than roasted meats, vegetable sides, and that kind of dining," he says, recalling fond memories of eating as a kid at the local rotisserie Ti-Père.

"It’s closed now, but it was the local rotisserie, the kind every small Quebec town has and is always the best kind of place: Privately owned, everything homemade, and not industrialized in the way it is today. So my idea was to bring that back."

And so it goes at La Lune, thoughtfully connected to that vision: The birds are raised on small, family-owned farms like Ferme Antoine, the fries are punched by hand daily, the gravy takes three days to make and uses no powders, and the hand-rolled bread comes from a collaboration with the local Automne Boulangerie.

"It’s not intellectual; it’s just for people who love to eat. There's no tasting menu, it’s generous portions—and I like that," Frappier adds.

"Making people happy through food is what I love. I’ve never seen myself as a fine-dining chef. I just cook what I like to eat. This restaurant is more approachable, and that’s important to me."

A menu for people who love to eat

"We wanted a place where we’d want to eat ourselves after work—a simple spot where you can have liver toast, a salad, a glass of wine, and call it a night. It’s larger and more family-friendly than Mon Lapin," says co-chef Jessica Noël.

"It’s more about good, straightforward food—great products with a nice sauce or vinaigrette."

While Noël echoes Frappier's points about how La Lune is simple food, it's no less done with incredible detail and attention: The centrepiece is the poulet à la broche—chicken on the rotisserie spit, visible ever so slightly through a porthole as customers enter.

Cooking about 32 chickens at once, which translates to 64 portions since half chickens are the standard here, La Lune embraces a herbaceous profile with garlic, herbs, and alliums in its dry-cured chickens, evoking a French culinary sensibility.

"This is our first time working with equipment like this, and we were honestly amazed when we got it," Noël recalls.

"We just stared at it, imagining all the possibilities. For now, we’re staying conservative, focusing on mastering the core menu items like chicken and fries. In the coming months we’re excited to experiment with more dishes in the rotisserie," she notes.

"We also have deboned stuffed chicken wings, fried and served with hot mustard. And we’re exploring offal with dishes like chicken liver toast—Marco’s idea—that's more Italian-inspired with anchovies, herbs, and onions, chopped into a rustic paste. It’s not as pretty as a parfait, but it’s so delicious, especially with a drizzle of gravy. We also have a chicken noodle soup with tiny raviolinis stuffed with rotisserie chicken and classic vegetables, served in a fortified broth."

While staying true to the rotisserie concept, La Lune will also play with seasonal ingredients, like tomatoes or crab in the summer. But as the restaurant was opened around the first days of winter, the kitchen wasn't able to enjoy the bountiful dog days Montreal restaurants usually enjoy, so they leaned into the lighter, fresher offerings of root cellars, serving crinkle-cut Badger Flame beets with honey vinaigrette and turnip salad atop taramasalata.

"The desserts are also especially important to us—they bring in that nostalgic element. We’ve got carrot cake, chocolate cream pie, maple cookies, and a Neapolitan semifreddo," Noël explains.

"It’s about combining familiarity with great technique, balancing between nods to Quebec rotisserie and elements you’d find in a French restaurant... We’re aiming for a lively, family-forward atmosphere."

While La Lune seeks to hit all the right notes a rotisserie should, dishes like these bear the mark of Noël and Frappier's refined collaborative menu process. "After almost seven years of working together, it’s almost intuitive. We bounce ideas off each other constantly. Our different backgrounds bring unique perspectives, which creates a balance," Noël says.

"If one of us suggests something that doesn’t work, the other will adjust or suggest an alternative. It’s always collaborative, never about ego."

The same old great things

The story of La Lune's christening is similar to Mon Lapin's, says Vanya Filipovic.

"The name came from (the winemaker) Jean-Pierre Robinot. He came to Montreal in December of 2023—his first visit to Quebec ever. It was a special moment for us. We’ve been working with him and his wines for over a decade, so introducing him to people was amazing," she remembers.

"Robinot has this larger-than-life personality, even though he’s not a large man. He’s so creative, with this genius aura. We had dinner at Mom Lapin, and at one point, he said, 'Your chicken is going to take people all the way up to the cosmos!' We had just signed the lease for the spot, and the project was just starting to take shape. I told him I was looking for a name, and it kind of just happened from there."

Other similarities emerge as well: Just because La Lune is a rotisserie, it still carries the same chemistry.

"It has our DNA," explains Vanya. "It’s hard to imagine doing something without that same level of detail—casual-seeming service, but with a lot of rigour and knowledge. That’s what we love to offer: a nice vibe, great music, dim lighting—it’s our style."

This extends to the service—which leverages the expertise of Morgane Muszynski and Rosalie Forcherio, who've earned stripes at spots like Denise & Joe Beef and the now-closed Paloma & Montréal Plaza, respectively—in addition to the wine directed by Alex Landry. Think a lot of Gamay, Beaujolais, Burgundy, and more with accessibility in mind.

"At Mon Lapin, we expanded to an 800-reference cellar recently, which has been fun for us wine geeks," says Vanya. "At La Lune, the vibe inspired us to create a more classic list—French classics with a lot of appearances by the phenomenal work of Quebec producers."

"The list is approachable, with all price points covered. You can have a quick glass or go all out. It’s an “all killer, no filler” list—every wine is meaningful to us and the relationships we’ve built with producers. Right now, it’s about 50 references, but it’ll grow."

"There's also a proper cocktail program... It's a solid selection by our bartender Simon Lemay full of options that blow me away, from martinis and Bloody Caesars to more elaborate creations."

The rituals of its comforts

To say Quebec's love of rotisserie runs deep would be both an understatement and a mystery: The exact reasons why this type of restaurant became so popular in the province, to the point of being the basis for massive chains and beloved institutions, are elusive.

"It’s hard to say exactly, but it’s just ingrained here. When I was young, I craved chicken and rotisserie more than poutine or hot dogs. It’s also about the dining experience—we used to go out to eat in dining rooms, not just order delivery. I wanted to create a space where people could enjoy something simple and delicious, done with care," Frappier says.

"It’s comfort food. It’s always been there—something approachable that people could have at home or, back in the day, in an actual restaurant," Noël adds.

"When I was a kid, going to Saint-Hubert was a special occasion. For a lot of families who didn’t go out to eat much, it was the one place they could go without it being astronomically expensive. Over time, it became a tradition, especially with the takeout culture. Some families have it every week. It’s comforting, and it doesn’t leave you feeling heavy like some fast food might."

"When you travel elsewhere, you realize how unique our classic rotisserie chicken spots are. People grow up on different comfort foods—mac and cheese, burgers, etc.—in other parts of North America, but in Quebec, it’s very chicken-heavy. It’s tied to nostalgic memories," says Vanya.

"What we’re doing now is the result of years of eating rotisserie—ordering in or going out to eat in dining rooms as kids."

"Even in the short time we’ve been open, it’s clear how much it means to people. They have so many memories of eating rotisserie chicken with family. It’s really cool to see."