Rebecca Yazbek is the founder and CEO of Edition Group, the group behind Nomad Melbourne, Reine & La Rue, and Florentino – which Edition Group took on late last year. Each venue is quite different, but Yazbek says they’re united by a shared vision: “that really good food and wine, served in a room worth being in, is one of the great things in life”.
Here’s Yazbek on how she got her start, how she keeps the wheels turning, and what things might look like down the line.
How did you get your start?
Nomad opened in Surry Hills in Sydney in 2013. My husband Al Yazbek and I had an idea for what we wanted a restaurant to be – something that felt like a cellar door had come to the city. Generous, produce-driven, the kind of place where the wine list tells a story and the food is cooked with real conviction. This was before “local produce” was a touchstone of restaurant menus.
What do you think it is about your venues that has gained traction in Victoria?
I think people can tell when something is built with genuine point of view rather than just a formula. Every project we’ve taken on has had to mean something – either there’s a story there, a building, a culinary tradition worth honouring, or all three. I think Melburnians especially respond to that. This city takes its dining seriously and it has a very good radar for authenticity.
Is there any other special sauce to what you do?
I’m in this for the long game – that shapes every decision I make. And I genuinely love giving a platform to people who are at the top of their game: chefs, sommeliers, front of house, bartenders, designers. Bringing all of that together in a room and watching people enjoy it – that’s what I’m here for.
Any regrets?
I wouldn’t be here without mistakes and the mistakes have taught me more than the wins. A viable business needs to have scope within it for some shortfalls. Learning how to minimise them while still pushing boundaries is the sweet spot.
What about the big lessons learned?
Culture is everything and it starts at the top. The energy you bring into a building sets the tone for everyone in it. The difference between a good restaurant and a great one is almost never the concept – it’s the people and how much they care on a Tuesday night in the middle of winter when it’s quiet and no one’s watching.
What’s been the key to scaling up successfully for you?
Not scaling for the sake of it. Every time we’ve grown it’s been because something came to us that felt genuinely right – the right building, the right timing, the right team to do it justice. Florentino is a good example of that. It’s not a venue you take on lightly. It has a century of history and a city full of people who feel personally connected to it. We only said yes because we genuinely believed we could honour that and move it forward at the same time.
Any tips on building a great team and workplace culture?
Be honest with people about what you expect and why. Don’t hide behind systems and processes when what you actually need is a real conversation. The best people on the team have stayed because they feel trusted and challenged – not just managed. And hire for values before skills. Skills can be taught. Whether someone actually cares about the guest in front of them isn’t something you can train into people.
Times are tough right now. How are you adapting?
Being really clear about what each venue needs to be commercially, not just creatively. That means looking closely at lunch trade – for example, we have introduced Reine du Jour at Reine & La Rue and Menu del Giorno at Café Florentino – as well as private dining and where we’re leaving revenue on the table. We’re working on something really special in this space.
We’re thinking really deliberately about how to bring people in the door more often – not just for the big occasion, but for the Tuesday glass of wine and a plate of pasta, like aperitivo hour at Cellar Bar. The everyday version of what we do is just as important as the special occasion version. That said, creativity is at the heart of every decision – when my team gets excited, I feel more confident that an idea will work.
Any advice for other operators who are hurting?
Get very clear on what your venue actually is to the people who love it and lean into that hard. Don’t dilute or discount your way through a slow period – you just teach people to wait for a deal. And look after your team. The hospitality industry loses too many good people because operators treat a downturn as a reason to cut rather than a reason to invest in the people who’ll carry you through it.
Who do you look to in Victoria for inspiration? Which venues and people set the bar for you?
Trader House has always done things with incredible integrity – the food, the wine, the way they’ve built their venues over time. And Audrey [Shaw] and her team at Carnation Canteen and Bar Carnation – I’ve always cherished small, local venues in Melbourne, but this one reminds me every time why I love what I do, the industry I’m a part of, and the fact there are real people behind every business.
Best-case scenario, how do you want people to think about what you do?
That we built something that mattered to the cities we operate in. Restaurants that people feel genuinely connected to. That when someone thinks about a meal that meant something, or a room they’ll never forget, or a wine that changed how they thought about Australian producers – one of our venues is somewhere in that story.
Edition Group: editiongroup.au | @nomad.melbourne | @reineandlarue | @florentino.melbourne