Ex-Hazel chef opens Lost Cat Warrnambool restaurant
A Melbourne chef has made the ultimate homecoming by opening a “simple” and “seasonal” restaurant in the coastal town.
Food
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If anyone knows how to embrace the unexpected, it’s Zac Nicholson.
The inaugural Hazel chef didn’t think he’d be moving back to his hometown Warrnambool to open a restaurant, let alone name it after his long-lost cat Larry.
“It was actually the kids’ idea to move down here,” he told Kitchen Confidential.
“They all found Melbourne a bit of a rush, and wanted to try something new.”
After living the fast life in the big smoke, cooking at Jamsheed and City Larder for three years, Nicholson and his partner Jasmine Leung packed up their lives to start a new chapter last month.
Lost Cat opened at the old Hairy Goat restaurant site in the first week of January to a roaring holiday trade, just up the road from where Nicholson did his apprenticeship at Fishtales.
“We’re open seven days at the moment, but may change that up after the long weekend. It’s been really good though — we’ve been packed every night,” he said.
“It’s by definition a true family restaurant... Jasmine organises front of house and the kids are running round clearing tables. My eldest son has also been in the kitchen too.”
Nicholson flexes a “simple” and “seasonal” menu loaded with a mix of both city and country faves. Think snapper crudo lolling in white soy, char-kissed cabbage smothered in cashew cream, chicken schnitzel and scotch fillet dripping in umami butter.
“I am also getting a heap of veg from Merri Banks Market Garden (from Warrnambool), for some simple dishes,” he said.
The offering will be ever-changing, with Nicholson following the beloved ‘Melbourne bistro’ template.
“I want to make a restaurant that you’ll see on most corners in the city,” he said.
“I kind of always wanted to come back (to Warrnambool) eventually, and was probably the last one (in my family) to do so. But I liked my job in Melbourne and just couldn’t see myself working down here until we saw the building and decided to go for it.”
Lost Cat Dining, 69 Liebig Street, Warrnambool, lostcatdining.com
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