After a few weeks of testing, Nama Omakase officially opens its doors. It’s a project that chef-owner GaCong Ruan has been thinking about with the Carma Hospitality group for nearly three years, and which has been joined by executive chef Michael Ho, a finalist on the show The Chiefs ! in 2023.
GaCong Ruan had in mind a restaurant that embraces Japanese tradition with French cuisine and where two services coexist. One of the “omakase” type with people sitting at the counter who let themselves be guided by the chef, and another with an “à la carte” menu and customers who animate the dining room.
The chef-owner and his partners do not hide their ambitions to become an internationally renowned gourmet restaurant and even to become the next Nobu with several addresses.
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PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
Exceptional fish
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PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
Brussels sprouts sautéed in yuzu miso with pickled pearl onions, seasoned with furikake
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PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
The Moriawase sashimi dish consists of high-quality fish (red king crab legs, Japanese sea bream, tuna, Kinmedai, salmon) that the chefs invite us to eat in a specific order with fresh wasabi, ginger seasoned with sesame seeds and salmon roe infused with yuzu.
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PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
Beautiful to look at and tasty to taste, this curly salad is made with fried eggplant. With tomatoes and pine nuts, there’s no doubt about it: Nama Omakase is a French-Japanese restaurant.
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But first, they had to find the premises on rue Viger, which consisted of “four walls” with brick and elegant columns. Hence the word “nama” which means “raw”, which applies to the decor composed of raw materials (designed by Guillaume Ménard of Ménard Dworkind), but also to the menu which focuses on exceptional fish, meats and products: Ora King salmon from New Zealand, Marunaka shoyu sauce aged for more than three years, A5 wagyu beef, etc.
Tip: Listen carefully to your server’s directions, especially about all the edible greens on sushi plates (ginger flowers, sansho pepper leaves) and how to maximize the flavors of fresh wasabi. And a word of caution: the belly part of the bluefin tuna (theotoro) literally melts in your mouth!
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PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
There are two experiences to be had at Nama Omakase: “omakase” mode at the counter with the chef or “à la carte” in the dining room.
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PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
Chef-owner GaCong Ruan and executive chef Michael Ho
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PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
From the Carma Hospitality group, which adds Nama Omakase to its restaurant portfolio, Pietro Maio, Clément Audouy and Lucio Carlomusto
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Chefs GaCong Ruan and Michael Ho, 31 and 28 respectively, have known each other since childhood. A self-taught chef, the former grew up developing the art of service with his restaurateur parents before working in many sushi restaurants, including Maïko and Tori. Nama Omakase represents for him “a dream”.
As for Michael Ho, his culinary studies led him to do internships in Lyon at the Paul Bocuse restaurant and at the Auberge de l’île Barbe. In Montreal, he worked for four years at Maison Boulud.
The two accomplices hope to surprise the most discerning palates with their impeccably presented Franco-Japanese dishes, including the vegetarian eggplant dish. Alongside the plate, you can choose from cocktails (signature or classic), sakes (Kikuchi, Akebono Shuzo) and wines carefully chosen to match the dishes. By the glass, you can drink Sauvignon Blanc from Domaine Lebrun, for example, or Pinot Noir from Domaine Poderi Colla.
Please note that the two omakase services offered each evening (at 6 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.) bring together a group of six people. The dining room has 56 seats.
425 Viger Avenue West, Montreal
Visit the Nama Omakase website