Nomad

Nomad is undoubtedly one of the coolest places to eat and drink in Birmingham (and beyond) at the moment, serving up innovative menus of unusual foods and plenty of tasty beverages.
I first discovered Nomad by going to one of their ‘no rules’ dining events. True to their name, the Nomad chefs moved from location to location across the city, setting up temporary kitchens and releasing tickets for one-​off events. The ‘no rules’ format involved following a set of clues to find the secret venue. Once there, we were treated to a taster menu of several small plates. For our drinks we played wine roullette, hopefully parting with £15 and selecting a bottle at random.
Now Nomad has settled down, with a new home at BOM (a cool new arts venue) on Dudley St., two minutes from New Street Station. On the menu you can expect to see such combinations as miso, olive, white chocolate, caramel and seaweed, and fresh ricotta in ashes with garlic. Nomad also make great cocktails, including a very tasty Douglas fur martini (v.strong, recommended).
Nomad are often found collaborating with different arts organisations in the city, so keep an eye out for their more unusual arty events.

A first for me… l love Nomads menu and was attracted to #norules where you can sample future tasting menus on a pay as you feel. Tickets to attend were snapped up within one hour on Christmas Day to the lucky ones… including me ! Invite included a ten course menu … you only see the menu on the night, and provide feedback .My evening was #sexfish .lm not going to review every course… My personal highlights were the scallop with a crunchy puffy rice… the Cod, vinegar and IPA which to me was like tasting the best ever fish and chips from your childhood memories … but not really chips ! Fried fish skins… think fishy scratchings (if you need to Google scratchings shame on you) Monkfish liver was a bit «Marmite» in terms that people loved or left .l personally loved this … pud was chocolate and damson heaven .To appreciate Nomad you really have to experience the menu personally… Would l return? Yes ! Whilst waiting for my taxi l mentioned the reindeer moss and acorn gin, and was offered a taste … like walking through a Nordic forest… an amazing end to a wonderful evening

Funny little venue just at the back of John Lewis within easy walking distance of Grand Central and most of the city centre. This is now a permanent location, though it still feels quite temporary. I went for the no rules event, which means you don’t quite know what food you are going to be served, but you pay what you feel at the end-​such a great idea! Apart from one course which I couldn’t eat, the food was fantastic! I recommend a visit whatever the theme!

The finest of fine dining with a wonderfully casual attitude.
After a tour around Birmingham the Nomad team have settled down in BOM, it’s a lovely little space and a comfortable place to relax and enjoy some of the best food Birmingham has to offer.
Multi course taster menus are the order of the day here. We had 10 courses and, despite the prolific number, we left feeling satisfied but still fully able to walk. This is largely down to the attitude of the restaurant, as far as possible everything is local or at least British, plenty of foraging going on, and meat isn’t the focus of every course. Yes this is a fine dining place that is perfectly happy to send out mostly vegetarian courses (and will be very happy to send out completely vegetarian courses for you), glory in the common carrot and takes a serious approach to food sustainability, you won’t see more than a handful of meat.
This fearless approach means that you will try things you haven’t had before and there is a good chance you’re going to be challenged so bring an open mind with you. Happily the kitchen doesn’t lack for skills and any experimentation is only there with a purpose, using a flower to flavour cream rather than vanilla because it can be sourced locally for example.
Service here is equally refreshing, the staff have a really great, relaxed and casual attitude, the kind that other fine dining restaurants try so hard to get but, of course, fail through trying.
On top of that it’s a bargain for the type of food on offer, £50 for 10 courses at the time of writing (£75 if you want matching drinks).
Booking is essential so do yourself a favour and get onto the website.

I went to Nomad at Kitchen Garden Café, Man and the Myth at Urban Coffee Company and now they have their own space at BOM Lab. It’s near the John Lewis entrance to Grand Central. We found it by walking down Theatre Approach and then turning right but I’m sure there’s easier ways.
The space itself is a little ramshackle with a wooden partition separating us from the rest of the building. Saying that, the walls are painted a lovely deep grey, the chairs were comfortable and it felt warm and intimate.
The menu is ten courses for £50 at the moment, which is a lot cheaper than similar places. We also had the matched drinks for an extra £25. Not just wine, this included a Japanese beer, English sparkling wine and a splendid dessert wine which tasted of raisins.
Our ten courses were of the wonderful standard we’ve come to expect from Nomad. They included several starters, a fish course, duck and three puddings. As usual, the emphasis is not on meat and cream and I left feeling comfortably full.
Highlights included a little mallard ‘lollipop’ with pickled vegetables, perfectly cooked red mullet with ramson and the most delicious potatoes, poached pear with almond sponge and pretty much the whole thing.
Nomad have an emphasis on using UK ingredients, meaning they used something called melliot instead of vanilla. I love how Nomad challenge your expectations and give you something you’ve not tried before.
Service was lovely, relaxed and friendly but also efficient and knowledgeable. I really hope Nomad continue to push things forward and are rewarded for it.