Rumi’s Middle Eastern classics – plus some fresh flavours – hitch a ride to its new home

“When you go to a 17-year-old restaurant, you don’t want to find it flipped on its head,” says Rumi owner-chef Joseph Abboud. He’s just relocated the enduring Middle Eastern restaurant he runs with his wife, Nat, from Lygon Street to nearby housing development East Brunswick Village.

“There are dishes that, if I took them off the menu, people would find where I live and do bad things,” he adds. “I’m kidding … sort of.” Among the non-negotiables at the new Rumi: sigara boregi (three-cheese-filled cigars); fried cauliflower studded with currants and pine nuts; and a saffron-marinated, charcoal-fired quail kebab that the late, great Anthony Bourdain waxed lyrical about when he visited the OG Rumi in 2009.

But despite a rollcall of regulars who Joseph is grateful “will come wherever we go”, he’s not resting on his laurels as he ushers Rumi into a new era.

“My all-time favourite snack is labne and flatbread,” he says. “But we’ve pimped our dips, so you can add muhammara [red capsicum and walnut dip] or almond tarator by the spoonful.” And he’s excited about a new brisket dish that riffs on bastourma, the Turkish air-cured beef, but which is instead slow-cooked and served hot with a bean salad.

For the first time, he’s also recruited a dedicated drinks expert. Steven Kimonides (Kanenas Wines, ex-Burn City Smokers) has taken the wine list from 20- to 100-odd, splitting it into four sections that cater to the clientele’s varied vino preferences. Most interesting – and in tune with Rumi’s food philosophy – are those under “The Old, Old World” header, from the wine regions of Lebanon, Turkey, Armenia and Georgia.

The 80-seat restaurant’s fitout is reminiscent of the old Rumi, with a green terrazzo floor and green-tiled bar, and bronze and brass accents throughout. But a new 20-seat private dining room and an 80-seat events space will allow the Abbouds to diversify into functions.

The relaunch precedes the release of Joseph’s debut cookbook, Rumi: Food of Middle Eastern Appearance, and the Abbouds’ new all-day bar, Rocket Society, which opens alongside Rumi this month.

East Brunswick Village is also home to Bridge Road Brewers and will soon welcome a Blackhearts & Sparrows wine shop and a new food-focused cinema called Fomo from some of the Cinema Nova team – the clincher in Joseph’s decision to move in.

“Already it feels like a community,” he says. “We’re all excited to collaborate with each other.”

Open daily 5.30pm-9.30pm.

2 Village Avenue, Brunswick East, rumirestaurant.com.au