NOMADIC JACK'S

Hoppen Hierarchy:★★★★

Burgers & Comfort Food

Perfect For: Casual Dining; Lunch; Takeout

Standout Dishes: Nomadic Jack Burger; 3 AM Jack Burger; Currywurst; Chicken Thighs

After getting his start cooking burgers around age 10, Jack Heiman developed a great curiosity when it came to food. He constantly wanted to learn more about different cuisines, traveling around the country and the world to discover more of what food had to offer.

So there’s a part of Jack that didn’t want his first solo food concept to involve burgers. He wanted to branch out and do something different. But every times those feelings arise, Jack tastes one of his burgers and, though he’s a humble soul, even he has to admit: it’s a damn good burger.

That’s why burgers of the backbone of Nomadic Jack’s, Jack’s pop-up that operates inside Millwork Commons. He works for Clean Slate Cafe during the day, then uses the kitchen at Wednesday-Saturday nights to cook burgers and other comfort food, serving hungry patrons across the hall inside Kros Strain Draft Works.

The business started in April of 2023 and gained a cult following, but growth wasn’t as rapid as Jack hoped. Then he competed in and won the 2023 Omaha Burger Battle, besting some well-known Omaha restaurants. That trophy, along with the memory of an expansive line waiting for his food, spurred Jack on and gave him the confidence that this business had a future.

And once you taste one of Jack’s famous smash burgers, you’ll have no questions about how he won the event.

Jack starts each burger with two balls of about 4 oz. of beef, which he aggressively smashes onto the flattop. This method gives the burgers a great caramelized crust with plenty of crispy, delicious bits. It also intensifies the deep, savory flavors and aromas of the beef and gives more surface layer upon which to melt gooey cheese.

Jack is best known for his signature burger, the simply named Nomadic Jack Burger. The pressed patties are adorned with melted American cheese and joined with thick-cut bacon slabs inside a pillowy brioche bun. To balance the rich, saltiness of the meat mountain, Jack uses grilled onions, house pickles, and his signature mustard to add sweetness and tang. The mustard is the true star; it’s not as sweet as honey mustard, but definitely has some sugar to go with the crisp tartness of yellow mustard.

The standard menu has six burgers with wildly different flavor profiles, including offerings with Cajun, Hawaiian, and barbecue influences. Nomadic Jack’s also has 1-2 monthly specials that truly allow its owner’s creativity to shine. One example is the Nice Jack Burger, which starts with the same brilliant patties and bacon as the Nomadic Jack. This time the meat is accompanied by tangy cream cheese, a sweet red pepper jam, and creamy kewpie mayo. The sweet/salty balance is one unlike any burger I’ve had. If the onions rings were homemade or a touch crispier, it would truly set this burger off.

Or you can go for a completely different take on the burger with the 3AM Jack Burger, so named because this is they type of creation one dreams up when the late night munchies hit. It’s a play on Taco Bell’s famous Crunchwrap Supreme, an item I have much love for. But Jack’s puts the original to shame.

It starts with two smash patties and enough bacon to fill each bite with a bomb of salty pork flavor. Queso and sour cream add creaminess, and a tostada cooked in Valentina hot sauce brings an awesome crunch and a touch of heat.

That’s all packed inside a tortilla and finished on the flattop, giving it a nice crunch and locking in all the flavor.

This item is typically available during brunch pop-ups, which Nomadic Jack’s offers every so often. When it does hit the menu, rearrange your eating plans and get it.

Burgers are Nomadic Jack’s calling card, but it’s not all this pop-up serves. Jack became fascinated with Currywurst during a trip to Germany and, upon finding there was no authentic version of it back home in Omaha, decided to make his own. This bratwurst has nice warming spices and develops a great snap during its time on the griddle, and the sweet, smoky curry ketchup is a condiment that would improve absolutely anything it’s paired with.

You can’t have a comfort food concept without fried chicken, and Nomadic Jack’s Chicken Thighs are among the best fried poultry in the city. The thigh meat maintains its rich, fatty goodness while the exterior develops a crispy, salty crust.

Another great non-burger dish appears on the brunch menu: the Sweet Yam Hash Bowl. Jack’s excellently balances sweet (tender roasted yams, caramelized onions) and savory (steak, spicy mayo) to create an excellent rice bowl, and a perfectly cooked over easy egg is the crown on top of it all.

And if you need something sweet to end the meal, snag a cup of Nomadic Jack’s Puppy Chow. The combination of chocolate, peanut butter, and cereal creates a sweet, crunchy, salty treat that will ruin potluck versions of this dish for you forever.

What’s special about Nomadic Jack’s is that it takes simple dishes but hyper focuses on the details to create the best versions of them. There’s nothing particularly chef-y about burgers, brats, and fried chicken, but Jack has worked tirelessly to perfect his recipes and create components that make each menu offering stand out.

Jack hopes to turn Nomadic Jack’s into a food truck someday, thrilling late night crowds wit his burgers and comfort fair. For his sake, I certainly hope that dream comes to fruition.

But for the time being, this food is worth making the effort to attend his pop-ups for. The burgers alone are worth the visit, and the more of the menu you explore at Nomadic Jack’s, the more you fall in love with the concept.