Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Nomad, Tommy Andrew’s chef-driven concept going into Tamm Avenue Bar, is planning to open its doors soon. “Let’s say within a few weeks,” Andrew says.
After Mac’s Local Eats left Tamm Avenue Bar last August to move into the Bluewood Brewing space on Cherokee, Tamm Avenue Bar co-owner Bob Brazell approached Andrew, whom he'd previously worked with at Monarch.
Andrew brings his fine-dining experience to the fore, lending an elevated take on everyday fare. The forthcoming restaurant's tagline: "Sandwiches and Fine Eats." House-cured pastrami, for instance, will be piled high between marbled rye and topped with house-made bread-and-butter pickles stacked on a skewer. “We’re making a half-sour pickle now to serve with the pastrami,” he says.
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Then there’s the Dumpster Fire, a sandwich homage to one of Andrew's friends who goes by that nickname. “I called up the best line cook I’ve ever worked with and said, ‘If you were a sandwich, what would you be?’ Two patties of Berkshire pork. Smashed and charred with strips of crisp bacon on a bed of lettuce. The patties get topped with house-made Southern-style pimento cheese and red onions. His namesake.”
Another sandwich found its beginnings in Andrew’s past as executive chef at Randolfi’s. “People still come up to me today, two years after we closed, and say, ‘Man, those meatballs. I still think about those meatballs.’ So we named it RIP Randolfi’s, in a nod to Mike Randolph.”
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Andrew combines ground veal, pork, and lamb with sourdough bread crumbs soaked in buttermilk. “If you want a juicy meatball, don’t add dry breadcrumbs to the mix,” he says. Served on a burger bun, the sandwich is topped with melted Provolone cheese, marinara, and basil pesto.
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Andrew also offers a few international-inspired items. The Canadian-style pastrami poutine combines house fries with pastrami chunks, gravy, and scallions. Korean-style kimchi makes an appearance in a caramelized Brussels sprouts dish topped with black-and-white sesame seeds.
A Mediterranean staple, falafel on pita, also gets is served with a twist. “Our falafel is strongly herbaceous, and I love it," says Andrew. "We serve it on pita bread baked fresh each day from the family-owned Cham Bakery in Maplewood. We top it with a poblano crème fraiche and yogurt sauce.” The falafel’s orange-red color comes from the blend of spices, which includes smoked paprika and parsley, as well as secret spices. “It’s not spicy hot," he says. "It’s just good.”
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Yes, there’s also a burger, a smash burger that can be ordered with a single patty or in multiple stacks. “We’re using a custom blend of grass-fed beef from Price Family Farms," says Andrew. "It’s made fresh for us by Chris Bolyard of Bolyard’s Meat and Provisions."
“We’re offering a high-quality food experience combined with a more comfortable customer experience,” Brazell says. Diners will no longer enter in the bar. No longer will lines snake around tables and bar patrons to order at a tiny window. Instead, a walk-up counter should eliminate the types of bottlenecks that sometimes occurred in the past.
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
Andrew put his personal stamp not just on the menu but also on the expanded dining room space. “The black-and-white floor was a must for me when we looked at tile patterns,” he says. The classic pattern recalls the old-style floor at Randolfi’s.
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
The black-and-white color scheme of the dining room places it squarely in a modern mold, though. An eye-popping mural features Patrick Swayze pointing the way to the order counter. “He’s my personal spirit animal,” Andrew says. “I grew up with Roadhouse, Ghost, and Dirty Dancing in the background. It’s a silly, nostalgic joke with my family members. My cousin Jimmy and I send each other Swayze memes to this day.”
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
The Nomad sign carries another subtle Andrew signature. The slender fletched arrow points to his past and present, to the time that he spends on his family’s farm in Rhineland, Missouri. “Hunting has always been part of my life and of my family members’ lives," he says. "All my friends know that if it’s the middle of November, don’t bother calling Tommy. That’s no-electronics-time for me.”
He will be electronically engaged shortly, however, putting up Nomad’s Facebook page and plans to post the opening date soon.
Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
