When Chef Ehren and Nadine Ryan moved to New Jersey from Australia in 2015, they saw it as the place to carve out their space in the growing dining scene.
Their restaurant Common Lot looked to change the discussion around food in the Garden State. It was unapologetically chef-driven. It often favored tasting menus over a la carte dining. It was a restaurant that, at the time, many thought would never work outside of NYC.
But, it did. Common Lot was a resounding success and it helped to drive the culinary conversation in New Jersey forward. Chef Ryan’s poise and inventive cooking style landed Common Lot spots on NJ dining guides year after year. I personally consider it to be one of the five best restaurants in the state.
Despite all of this, the couple has made the difficult decision to close their doors for good and move back to Australia. Their last service was May 9, 2025.
Ryan cites the current environment and social atmosphere as playing the major part in the decision. “We made this decision for our family first and foremost, preferring to raise our children in Australia,” he stated. “Especially our daughter.”
It’s not just social implications, either.
The economy is similarly unpredictable. Recently announced tariffs have injected a level of uncertainty into all industries and, especially, the food industry. A restaurant like Common Lot will focus heavily on local produce, but imported, hard-to-find ingredients are often just as important. Currently, both domestic and imported foods are spiking. Customers seem to be feeling it too. “We have already noticed people spending less money,” Ryan told me.
For Ehren and Nadine, these things add up—it doesn’t feel like the same place they moved to a decade ago. “This time feels different,” Ryan said.
Broken promises didn’t help either. In 2023, Ryan helped spearhead the initiative to reform liquor licenses in New Jersey. The Garden State is notoriously one of the strictest states when it comes to liquor laws. BYOs are the norm. Restaurants like Common Lot, which are often expected to offer tailored wine pairings and creative cocktails, are instead restricted to a bring-your-own policy. This isn’t a deal breaker, but it becomes frustrating when change is consistently promised only to be lobbied against as soon as legislation begins to form.
“The fact that liquor license reform didn’t get completed was a big factor,” Ryan explained. “It’s difficult to progress [as a BYO], and it’s becoming harder for small businesses to survive long term. This is a real shame for downtowns and the overall diversity of the dining scene in NJ”
Still, Nadine and Ehren wouldn’t trade their time in New Jersey for the world. It was where they started businesses, built a family and helped jumpstart careers. Common Lot has been one of the premier places to cook in NJ for nine years, and many talented chefs and cooks have passed through their doors as a step in their own journey.
“The staff has made the restaurant what it is today. I’m not the easiest person to work for, I have high expectations, but it makes them better in the long run,” he told me. “I think they’ve done really well.”
When they arrive in Melbourne, Chef Ryan will get right back to cooking… but he’s taking a break from ownership for now. “I’m happy to take a step back, not worry about cleaning toilets or grease traps,” he joked.
May 10 was Common Lot’s final service. It closes the book on an important NJ story that has been told through food and not words. Nadine and Ehren Ryan’s contribution to the New Jersey dining scene can not be overstated. Today, we enjoy a better—more talented—restaurant industry thanks in part to their contributions.
A contemporary fine dining restaurant in the middle of Millburn is not the easiest thing to pull off—but it worked, and Common Lot will forever have its name etched in New Jersey’s dining conversation because of it.
Peter Candia is the Food + Drink Editor at New Jersey Digest. A graduate of The Culinary Institute of America, Peter found a passion for writing midway through school and never looked back. He is a former line cook, server and bartender at top-rated restaurants in the tri-state area. In addition to food, Peter enjoys politics, music, sports and anything New Jersey.
