NOMAD Melbourne, the hatted restaurant on Flinders Lane, celebrates its fifth birthday this November. To mark the milestone, a signature dish from NOMAD Melbourne’s history will return to the menu each week throughout November, and the chefs who have shaped the restaurant will reunite for a one-night-only birthday dinner on Thursday 19 November.
Since opening in November 2021 in the former Ezard site beneath the Adelphi Hotel, NOMAD Melbourne has become a Flinders Lane fixture, known for its wood-fired cooking inspired by Spain, Morocco and the Middle East, produce from Victorian growers, and a wine list focused on Australian producers.
“Five years ago we brought NOMAD to Melbourne, and the city has made it its own,” said Rebecca Yazbek, founder of edition Hospitality Group. “So many of our guests still ask about dishes from past menus. This birthday is our way of thanking them, and every chef and team member who has been part of NOMAD Melbourne.”
Throughout November, NOMAD Melbourne will bring back one signature dish each week. Weekly specials include: midye dolma, Baldo rice, pine nuts and currants (from Monday 2 November); wood roasted pumpkin hummus, zeytoon parvardeh, coriander and mint, with wood fired flatbread and za’atar (from Monday 9 November); wood fired wagyu tongue, Jersey milk yoghurt and chermoula (from Monday 16 November); and wood roasted lamb rump, romesco sauce and sugarloaf cabbage (from Monday 23 November).
On Thursday 19 November, NOMAD Melbourne will host a one-night-only, wine-paired birthday dinner featuring a menu of classics from the past five years. edition Hospitality Group culinary director Michael Greenlaw and NOMAD Melbourne head chef Jeremy Swann will be joined in the kitchen by NOMAD Sydney head chef Lahkan Bhounsle and opening head chef Brendan Katich, now executive chef across edition’s Victorian restaurants, with former front-of-house team members expected back on the floor. Menu highlights include: Rebecca Yazbek’s pick of cuttlefish, creamed corn and charcuterie XO; Greenlaw’s Aquna Murray cod, saffron potatoes, erbette and shellfish sauce; Katich’s wood roasted lamb rump, romesco sauce and sugarloaf cabbage; and Swann’s mussel dolma, roasted Turkish salça and Aleppo pepper.
“Every dish on this menu has a story behind it,” said Jeremy Swann, head chef at NOMAD Melbourne. “Cooking them again alongside Brendan and Michael, the chefs who built this kitchen, is a special way to mark five years.”
NOMAD Melbourne’s weekly specials are available throughout November. The birthday dinner is on Thursday 19 November, $189 per person, with bookings here. NOMAD is open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner. nomad.melbourne.