Norwood's much-loved deluxe fast food eatery Nordburger evolves with a new location in the West and the introduction of a soft serve brand - both of which launch today.

The second Nordburger has all the hallmarks of the first – a semi-industrial material palette, emphasis on quick and delicious food and a bright and comfortable, American-diner influenced atmosphere.

But the new venue, which opens today, is nonetheless an evolution for co-owners James Hillier, Sondra Deering and Victoria Martin.

Most significantly (or do we mean deliciously?), the larger Port Road site introduces a new brand – Rainbow Island Soft Serve.

“With the soft serve we’re making these things called Rumbles. They’re all made with a basic vanilla soft serve that has some creme anglaise mixed through to give it that little bit of gourmet flavour,” says Victoria.

“Then we add in nostalgic flavours like oreo and cherry bounty and that’s mixed in the traditional way a McFlurry is supposed to be mixed – but those unfortunately don’t get mixed that way anymore.”

The Rainbow Island icecream will also be used in Nordburger’s much-loved range of shakes and deployed to make sundaes that Victoria says will incorporate traditional elements like fudge, but be made “with a little bit more love using the best quality products for every part”.

A new fried chicken range and some tricked up chips (including the Crinkle Cut Royale which will involve caramelised onion) are also being added to the menu, which brings over all the burger favourites from the Norwood store too. Wine and beer will be on offer at the Port Road site, which has a little more room for sitting and relaxing than its eastern counterpart.

The decision to open a second store in the west was an easy one, says Victoria.

“There’s not a lot over here – it’s under-serviced but there’s so much industry and so much residential around,” she says. “It’s nice to be able to have a bit of a greater reach into the western suburbs.”

“We were just driving along and the space had come up for lease a few days before. James had just been to Chicago and in America its very much more about the remote, big destination venues. So we wanted to bring in something that had a bit more of an American feel – something bigger and with a diner edge without being too naff. A really warm and comfortable space.”

With an affordable but still high quality menu, a space that has all the design features needed for comfort and the prospect of soft serve mixed with all manner of excellent things, Nordburger II is set to be a much-loved addition to the up-and-coming side of town.