Nomad
3950 Main
604-708-8525
Open Monday-Friday, 5pm-midnight; Saturday-Sunday, 3pm-midnight
There’s something romantic about being a nomad, wandering from place to place according to the seasons. At Nomad, the newest addition to the South Main dining scene, that concept is eminently practical, translating into a menu that uses what’s local and seasonal, focusing on partnerships with local growers and producers, and offering an exclusively BC-based list of grapes and hops.
The quartet of youngbloods behind the dream are a promising bunch. Taylor Burnham, who runs the front of house, obviously contributes business savvy, thanks to a degree from the Sauder School of Business at UBC. I’ve been served by him during his time as manager at Burgoo, and his people skills are equally solid.
Matt van Dinther is the other FOH partner, covering the bar program. He’s got excellent cred from his time at The Diamond, Wildebeest and London’s Savoy Hotel.
The drinks list felt a little summery for a January menu, but I couldn’t argue with The Wandering Mule ($9) I had one night. Gin, aperol, kaffir lime and lemongrass syrup, all played nicely with the fresh lemon juice and ginger beer. (By the by, is ginger beer the new hot hooch? It’s been cropping up all over town.) The bourbon-based Witching Hour ($11) was more seasonally apropos and darkly attractive, combining roasted pumpkin and sage syrup, a house walnut tincture and PX sherry.
The food is put out by the other two partners, Ryan Reed and Scott Swanson. Reed, who has been named Vancouver Island Chef of the Year, worked under Mark Filatow at Waterfront Wine Bar in Kelowna, and recently won an episode of Chopped Canada. Swanson is also a Waterfront graduate who went on to work as a private chef before jumping into Nomad. Anyone who worked under Filatow is worth consideration, and there are some standouts on the menu here.
Veggie pakoras ($8), with panang cream and cilantro, are soft, fresh and perfectly fried into small, chewy bits. Grilled squid ($12) with chickpeas and guanciale chimichurri is brilliant. Fork-tender chunks of “calamari” with lovely charring is well-matched with the bacon-studded relish. We had it as share plate to start, but I would recommend ordering your own. Sunchoke and wild mushroom soup ($10) with a terragon and beet “essence” (think oil) is earthy, rich and almost too large. Paired with the pakoras, it could be a full meal. Warm apple fritters for dessert ($8) are excellent. A round slice of apple is at the centre of each doughnut, and the morello cherry caramel sauce is a rather nice dip.
There are some misses here as well, however. There’s a strong preserving program in place, and a starter of marinated olives and pickled vegetables ($6) is generously sized. The olives are lovely, but the pickle brine is mouth-puckering, making beans, carrots and onions taste indistinguishable from each other. Pork belly ($23) in sweet plum wine is solid, but the garlic mashed potatoes are bland, with almost no garlic in evidence. Braised lamb ($24) was unctuous and fell apart at the touch of the fork, but the fenugreek ricotta gnocchi were heavy and tasteless.
It’s a new operation, so there are bound to be kinks to work out, but overall, Nomad has a promising future in its bright new room. And with such a solid team in place, one hopes that these wanderers have found a permanent home.
All ratings out of five stars.
Food: ★★★
Service: ★★★★
Ambiance: ★★★
Value: ★★★★
Overall: ★★★1/2
Anya Levykh has been writing about all things ingestible for more than 10 years. Hear her every Monday on CBC Radio One’s On the Coast and find her on Twitter @foodgirlfriday and Facebook.com/FoodGirlFriday.
