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Nama, a Japanese-inspired dining concept from Melbourne, will be hosting pop-ups at No Sleep Club and Amy's Wine Bar over the next few weeks
If you were at or around Park Bench Deli this Sunday, you would have seen the crowds snaking around the block. They were there for Nama—a Melbourne-based dining concept that's taking over Singapore over the next three weeks in a series of pop-ups.
Since it was founded in 2020, Nama has been taking their Japanese-inspired menus to some of Melbourne's buzziest restaurants and hosted lively private dinners, delivering an electric experience that challenges conventional ideas of catering and pop-up dining.
"There was as stigma towards private dining…[that] you get the old style caterers with little vans and chef whites making salmon blintzes, that it's something formulaic and boring," says Raphael Hyams, co-founder of Nama. "They're often surprised to see a few young dudes cooking exciting food and having a drink with them."
"We want to bring a restaurant experience to your home," says Nama co-founder Geoff Marett—who cut his teeth at Hong Kong's Michelin-starred Yardbird. "Magnum sake bottles, smoky charcoal grills, and great tunes."
While they won't be doing private dining this trip, they're giving Singapore a taste of that unmistakable Nama energy at some of the coolest restaurants in the town, with the help of fellow Melbourne chef, Drew Thornton.
Coming up next is No Sleep Club—which was named the 15th Best Bar in Asia 2022—on September 3rd.
On September 9th, they'll be taking over Amy's Wine Bar, a neighbourhood wine bar in Holland Village opened by Jerome Lam and Jereborne Lam of Two Men Bagel House.
Diners will get to enjoy dishes like tsukune meatball subs, cacio e pepe mee pok with uni butter and aonori, corn tostadas with miso butter and yuzu kosho mayo, and Nama's signature dish, Ebi Toast.
"This dish was inspired by the prawn toast you get at yum cha," says Geoff. "We’ve amped it up with Turkish bread, which has a more airy texture, then we blitz up prawn mousseline seasoned with white pepper, kombu extract and egg white to give it body and bounce. Then what makes it different is Namamite. Inspired by Vegemite, but more balanced… it's a mix of shio kombu, nori paste, black vinegar and soy."
Its conception was actually a "drunken mistake", the boys say.
"We had all the ingredients for prawn toast, we had Namamite lying around ,we put all those ingredients together and thought, heck, let's put some caviar on top," Geoff explains, adding that even the name "Nama" was something of a fluke.
"When I was living in Japan, I mistakenly thought 'nama' meant 'one more'. Then, while working at Yardbird [in Hong Kong], I kept saying 'nama' and everyone corrected me, saying, 'you’re an idiot, it actually means raw'," says Geoff. "It was an ongoing joke that stuck. When we were thinking of a name for the business, Nama seemed obvious. We always encourage people to have one more drink, one more dish."
Hyams adds, "We’re not in the counting calories business, we cook delicious and fun food. It’s of excess most of the time, so [Nama] was fitting. Even though we kind of made up what Nama means."
Paying homage to the foods and flavours they grew up with plays an important role in Nama's ever-evolving menus. One dish Hyams is particularly excited about is a brand new addition—a lasagna tostada.
"We use a Korean-style bolognese. A gochujang and kimchi based Bolognese that's a bit spicy and funky. Then you have bechamel and parmagiano on top, torched so it's crispy like those perfect, crunchy end bits of a classic lasagna."
"We always try to filter our dishes through a childhood lens," says Geoff. "Our cooking is fun. It’s nothing pretentious."
Find out more about Nama at namatable.com
Coco Marett is a writer and editor who grew up between Hong Kong and Melbourne. She currently heads the travel section for Tatler Asia, and manages the Tatler Travel account on Instagram. She is known for her features on unique, under-the-radar properties and destinations. She's also known for her in-depth interviews that paint a refreshingly candid portrait of influential figures across various industries —from artists to political figures, CEOs to celebrity chefs. Follow her on Instagram @cocomarett
