It’s always a punt visiting a new restaurant when you haven’t yet heard any first-hand reports from a trusted source, whether that be friends, bloggers dining on their own dollar, critics, or guides.
After all, with so many good restaurants out there, life’s too short and expensive for a duff meal out.
In these situations, it’s a case of utilising the evidence at hand before making a decision.
This was certainly the case before we pitched up at Nomad, the reincarnation of the short-lived Terra Mare, on Cardiff city centre’s High Street.
Firstly, I was sold on the news that Lali Suto had taken over the reins in the kitchen. The former head chef at the sadly departed Poca, who’s also done stints at Nook, Matsudai Ramen and Pasture, certainly knows how to knock out big flavoured and technically accomplished food.
Secondly, I’ve got a lot of time for Silures, Nomad’s sibling restaurant in Roath, with its luxury vibe, excellent service, cracking cocktails and refined comfort food.
The team are clearly aiming for something similar at Nomad and its immediately apparent from their beautiful wood-panelled dining space and impressive selection of classic and creative cocktails.
As we were lining our stomachs before an afternoon of drinking, we both ordered alcohol-free cocktails. Complex and not too sweet, they were bobby dazzlers that were no worse off for their lack of booze.
A Scarlet Jimador (£8) combined fragrant sweet and sour citrus with a subtle kick of chilli. Whilst a New Day (£8) popped with fruity cherry and plum that was balanced by the tang of lime and fragrance of mint.
As we were lining our stomachs before an afternoon of drinking, we both ordered alcohol-free cocktails. Complex and not too sweet, they were bobby dazzlers that were no worse off for their lack of booze.
A Scarlet Jimador (£8) combined fragrant sweet and sour citrus with a subtle kick of chilli. Whilst a New Day (£8) popped with fruity cherry and plum that was balanced by the tang of lime and fragrance of mint.
Nomad’s menu very much lives up to its name, taking its inspiration from across the globe with dishes like pork schnitzel with fried egg and anchovies (£22), teriyaki chicken thigh (£12) and roasted cauliflower with harissa yoghurt (£18). There’s perhaps a slight bent towards Italian cuisine, with pasta and risotto as well as pizza-esque topped flatbreads all featuring.
We ordered a few small and large plates and sides to share. However, if you’d prefer to go for a more traditional starter and main set-up, then I think things would work just as well.
We kicked off with a pretty as a picture disc of smoked fish pate (£10) that was topped with plump pickled mussels, salty pearls of salmon roe and what I assume must have been faux caviar, otherwise it would have cost a hell of a lot more than a tenner. The pate itself was excellent, having a good creaminess and plentiful pieces of smoked mackerel. Accompanying toasted sourdough was slightly over-toasted, meaning that it put my creaking gnashers to the test.
Crab caesar salad (£14) was a mammoth flavour combination and an upgrade on the original in my book. Crisp leaves were well dressed with earthy brown crab, sweet white meat, a flurry of savoury Spenwood cheese, briny boquerones, umami-packed bottarga, and crisp croutons. However, considering its £14 price tag, it perhaps could have benefited from a few more leaves to bulk it out a little more.
Onto mains, and pork and fennel ragu strozzapetti (£16) was a knockout pasta dish. The generous portion of homemade pasta was beautifully al dente, and its spiral nooks and crannies were perfectly engineered to grab hold of a belter of a meat ragu that was heady with the fragrance of fennel. A liberal grating of savoury parmesan sealed the deal.
A loaded flatbread (£13) had a nice light and airy texture with a delicate chew. It was topped with a lovely mix of flavours too – a molten ooze of mozzarella, sweet sunblush tomatoes, fiery ‘nduja and salty cured ham. Despite its deliciousness, it was the least memorable dish of the meal, probably because of the inevitable comparisons it made me draw with Cardiff’s best pizzas.
A side salad of heritage tomatoes (£6) ticked all the right boxes. Sweet and savoury room temperature tomatoes, good quality olive oil and vinegar in the right balance, a clutch of capers, leaves of micro basil, and a scattering of salt demonstrated that the simple things are often the best.
Impressed by our meal so far, dessert was inevitable.
A log of soft toasted brioche (£8) was shrouded in creamy molten taleggio and the funk of truffle honey and served alongside a big blob of sweet date puree. It was a beautiful sweet-savoury hybrid course, the likes of which I’ve encountered in some of the most highly acclaimed restaurants.
Don’t get me wrong, I love a Basque cheesecake as much as the next person, but their rise in popularity seems to have led to the sad demise of the traditional biscuit base version. Nomad’s cheesecake (£8) is resolutely old skool yet refined, combining a gorgeously crisp biscuit base with a light, creamy and tangy vanilla-flecked topping. Extra interest was provided by sweet pistachio puree and cleansing macerated strawberries.
We had a cracking lunch at Nomad and it’s well worth a visit if you’re looking for somewhere new to try in Cardiff city centre. There’s certainly a lot more on their globetrotting menu that I’d like to explore.
The Details:
Address - Nomad, 28 High Street, Cardiff CF10 1PU
Web - https://nomad-amh.com/
Telephone - 029 2297 0921
