Just off Footscray's Nicholson Street and down a street art-filled alleyway, a small doorway leads you up a set of colourful stairs and into a bright, airy bar. Welcome to Baby Snakes, a European-style wine bar brought to you by Mark Nilson, formerly of Collingwood's The Moon. While there are some left-field offerings on the wine list, the team here aims to demystify and strip away the pretentiousness of old-world wine culture, instead celebrating interesting flavours that are approachable, sessionable and fun. Speaking of fun, there are also a couple of frozen cocktail machines with regularly changing flavours. The food at Baby Snakes Bar is similarly unpretentious, featuring crafty baguettes and sandwiches, and uncomplicated plates of charcuterie and pickles to help soak up the booze. You'll also find six taps pouring crushable craft beers and — best of all — a rooftop bar to sink them in. Images: Julia Sansone Appears in: The Best Wine Bars in Melbourne for 2023
Always craving an espresso martini with your cheesecake? That's exactly how Sarah Ryan and Damien Shaw feel, so they decided to take one for the team and open a boozy bakery. Bad Love Club follows a pretty simple concept — coffee, bagels and jaffles by day, booze and sweet treats by night. What it lacks in complexity, Bad Love Club makes up for in sentimental value. Take the name, which is inspired by an Eric Clapton song that Ryan and Shaw first bonded over, or the location – Shaw grew up in Footscray and, while Ryan hails from Brisbane, she now shares his passion for the eclectic suburb. Shaw caters to the AM traffic with Sensory Lab coffee, 5 & Dime bagels and experimental jaffles, while Ryan shines after dark, serving sweets and cocktails when the sun goes down. Ryan's dream to become a baker didn't mesh well with her lifestyle — she's not a morning person. Her solution? Bake during the day and serve at night. For the dessert line-up, Ryan draws on an assortment of recipes collected from family and friends over the years. A decadent pecan pie is a family recipe from the States, while a vodka fairy bread cheesecake is an experimental creation. Each dessert is well suited to a cocktail from the ever-changing selection. The list currently includes a salted caramel espresso martini along with Ryan's favourite drink, the bacon bourbon old fashioned, a creation of bar manager Braedy Isbester. Those who can't wait until after dark can satisfy their sweet tooth with an apple pie jaffle or the S'more jaffle, oozing with homemade marshmallow and salted caramel ganache. Bad Love Club is now open at Shop 5, 68-82 Hopkins Street, Footscray. Open Tuesday through Sunday from 6am to 1pm and Wednesday through Sunday from 5pm until late. Images: Sensory Lab
Hitting New Zealand for the weekend isn't as much of a faraway adventure as it seems — the flight's just over three hours from Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane. That's almost similar to visiting Canberra or Byron, and there's better wine at the end. And if you're looking for a holiday that ticks multiple boxes, Nelson is a strong choice. An easy 35 minute flight from Wellington, Nelson is one of New Zealand's genuine all-rounders, with a bustling city centre, beautiful breezy seaside and those iconic misty mountains. Outdoorsy types can head for the Abel Tasman National Park, art lovers can find multi-million dollar collections and local galleries in one place, and if you're an enthusiast in the food and wine game, you'll have a hard time leaving. Take Friday off and spend 72 hours in one of New Zealand's most creative cities — heck, check out our Weekender's Guide to Wellington and make a double header of it. EAT/DRINK If you're a wine lover, you'd better get yourself to Nelson quicksmart. There are no less than 28 wineries in the region, all nestled amongst the kind of insanely beautiful rolling hills you'd expect in a world class NZ wine region. Take an easy drive out to Mahana, formerly Woollaston Estates, one of the region's best organic wineries with one of the prettiest cellar doors in the country. Run by vagabond winemaker Michael Glover, Mahana isn't your textbook winery — and they've got the next-level contemporary art collection to prove it. Sculptures, paintings and installations from countless famed Nelson artists are dotted through the cellar door and grounds. Come hungry, because Mahana boasts one of the best restaurants in the region, run by executive chef Alistair Forster. Picture yourself hoeing into a Mahana Riesling poached pear tart with pesto popcorn on the patio overlooking the vineyard across to Tasman Bay and the Southern Alps. Classic Instagram fodder. Got a hankering for good ol' fish and chips? Let's take a little drive to Mapua, a gorgeous little seaside town where a cluster of local businesses draw quite the weekend crowd. Visit The Smokehouse for award-winning fish and chips, taste crisp craft beer from brewpub Golden Bear Brewery, have a hearty lunch at longtime Nelson favourite The Apple Shed, and stock up on local artisan cheese, meats and other yummo things at KETE deli. Back in town, Nelson's got some serious restaurant game. If you're looking for the one restaurant everyone Instagrams, head for The Boatshed, open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, seven days a week. After more hearty New Zealand seafood fare? Head for the Cod & Lobster on Trafalgar Street in town. Established by Nelson couple Nick and Kymberley Widley in 2015, this multi-storey brasserie focuses on fresh regional produce with a daily changing menu. DO Saturday mornings in Nelson mean markets. Pay a visit to the Nelson Market, a bustling smorgasbord of local food, art, sculpture, jewellery, design and fresh, regional, seasonal and organic produce over 200 stalls. It's the perfect place to get a handle of Nelson's local food scene, as you'll find a lot of these products on menus and in stores across the city. Be sure to pick up a jar of Pic's peanut butter from the stall — America wishes this product was closer. Head into a rather unassuming jewellery shop on the edge of the town centre, on a quest to find the One Ring to rule them all. Jens Hansen gold and silversmith has been a Nelson treasure for decades, then Peter Jackson tasked them with making the One Ring from The Lord of the Rings and they quickly became a hallowed stop on the LOTR fan crawl. The gold and silversmith made around 40 rings for the production, including a giant ring for close-ups. They sadly didn't get one ring back from the LOTR crew (come on, Jackson) but still sell at least one a day — you can watch on their website. [caption id="attachment_576573" align="alignnone" width="1280"] RED Gallery.[/caption] If you're an art and design lover, Nelson's got plenty for you. There are over 200 working artists in the city, from modernist ceramicists to abstract expressionist painters. Time your visit with the Nelson Arts Festival, Nelson Fringe Festival or make a trip to the World of WearableArt and Classic Cars Museum — the annual Wearable Art Awards began near Nelson after all. Drop into RED Gallery on Bridge Street, run by Caroline Marshall and Sarah Sharp, for a coffee and a peruse of the region's best local art and design — perfect for non-tacky-fridge-magnet souvenirs. Outdoorsy types will have trouble fitting everything on a trip to Nelson. Surrounded by insanely beautiful mountains, lakes, forests and meadows, Nelson has all your mountain biking, kayaking, paddleboarding, surfing etc. etc. needs covered in one epic spot. If you're a camper or hiker, you probably already know the name Abel Tasman National Park, but if you haven't, consider this one for the bucket list. Sitting just an hour and 20 minute drive from Nelson, the park is a heaving natural cornucopia of activities, from overnight hikes to paddleboarding day trips, kayaking adventures to easy breezy picnic spots. If you don't have enough time to get to the park, you can always go paddleboarding right in Nelson or easy bike riding from Mapua (above). [caption id="attachment_576577" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Mahana Villa.[/caption] STAY Whether you're after a stunning seaside B&B by the bay, a cosy Coventry cottage, or an easy motel/motor lodge, Nelson's home to a host of accommodation to suit all budgets. We snuggled into our own little lodge at the Grand Mecure Nelson Monaco Apartments, which is like a little English village on the outskirts of town. If you're the type who likes to curl up beside your own personal fireplace watching a terrible late night movie with a big cuppa, this place is for you. Looking for a truly local, luxurious stay? Nelson has a handful of genuinely stunning B&Bs worth spending a little more on. There's Te Puna Wai Lodge, and The Wheelhouse Inn and Captain's Quarters, but we'd pick Wakefield Quay House, run by larger-than-life pair Woodi and Johnny. They were married at the Nelson lighthouse, so can spin you quite a few yarns about the area. Woodi's one of the biggest characters around; she'll sit you down for a wine, some local cheese and ocean trout and while the sunset away with fantastically woven tales. If you're a high roller and you're looking to stay in something worth more than your HECS debt ten times over? Mahana Villa. To put this place's importance in context, Charles and Camilla had this place on their itinerary for Nelson. It's an epic Pacific modernist palace sitting at the apex of the 25 hectare Mahana Vineyard, with four private ensuite rooms in the owner's house and two in the Loft. But the real drawcard of the villa? It's home to a multi-million dollar art collection that we can't believe you're allowed to bunk in with. Seriously, you'll be hanging out with some of the country's most impressive modern art while you're watching TV, cooking or doing yoga on the balcony. Just don't touch anything. LET'S DO THIS, HOW DO I GET THERE? Flights to Wellington from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane are super short — around 3.5 hours on average. Jetstar have just launched a direct route from Melbourne to Wellington (from $159) and Queenslanders can fly direct from the Gold Coast (from $169). Air New Zealand fly direct from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane to Wellington (from $297). From Wellington, flights to Nelson from on Jetstar and Air Nelson can go for as little as $55 (or there are indirect flights from Melbourne or the Gold Coast from around $170), just check the website for some sweet cheap deals. Shannon Connellan travelled as a guest of Nelson Tourism. All images SC unless otherwise specified. Want to make it a week? Check out our Weekender's Guide to Wellington and make a real NZ holiday of it.
Spring has sprung and it's time for wine. Namely, glasses upon glasses of the Yarra Valley's finest, poured at the return of the region's long-running wine celebration, Shedfest. From Saturday, October 12–Sunday, October 13, the festival will see 14 of the Yarra Valley's best-loved wineries opening their sheds and cellar doors for a weekend of tastings, tunes and wine-fuelled merriment. Hop between the likes of Tokar Estate, Soumah, Seville Hill, Yering Farm and Yileena Park, tasting an array of wines along the way and soaking up live tunes as you go. Each venue will be offering up its own menu of signature dishes, too — including Texan-style burgers, pizzas, Sicilian barbecue, banh mi and modern Thai eats. You can nab a one-day ticket for $35 to enjoy tastings at all 14 wineries across the weekend, which also includes a wine glass for you to take home. Lots of the wineries are dog-friendly, so you can even bring your pooch along for the ride.
Melbourne may have known it had a world-class cocktail spot in Fitzroy’s Black Pearl and now the proof is in, with big-ticket New Yorker, Please Don’t Tell, choosing the Brunswick Street bar as the location for its first-time, Australian pop-up. Please Don’t Tell is perhaps New York’s most famous modern speakeasy — to locate it, you head through the back of an unassuming East Village hot dog joint on St Marks Place, enter a phone booth and buzz your way through — that is, if you’re lucky enough to score a coveted table. Helmed by founder, Jim Meehan, and managed by US World Class Bartender for 2013, Jeff Bell, the bar has been impressing NYC and the world with its exceptional cocktails, for over 8 years. Now, teaming up with World Class, they’ve connected with the boys from The Black Pearl and descended on Brunswick Street for this weekend, ready to show us Melburnians what they’ve got. The pop-up may be 17,000 kilometres away from the real deal, but Bell and Meehan have done their darnedest to make it feel as though you’re stepping into their beloved Please Don’t Tell home. You’ll find the same logoed leather menus, matching banquettes and bar stools, and the odd taxidermy creation gracing the walls. They’ve even teamed up with Chris Terlikar from Bluebonnet BBQ to emulate the New York bar’s hot dog offerings (from its Crif Dogs neighbour), with the popular Spicy Redneck — a bacon-wrapped house dog, topped with slaw, chilli and jalapenos — making a welcome appearance. As for those world-famous cocktail creations, expect to find a menu that honours the originals, with a bit of well-balanced, local flavour thrown in for good measure. The zingy Nichol Buck blends Tanqueray No.10 with Manzanilla sherry, lemon, honey and ginger beer, while the aptly named Australia Libre features our very own Bundaberg rum. “About 60 percent of the menu is New York stuff, then we added some drinks made on Bundaberg,” confirms Bell. “We also had to tweak a few recipes, because some of our ingredients aren’t available here. My suitcase was already 35 kilos… I couldn’t pack much more!” Running three sessions a night, from the August 6-9, tickets to the Please Don’t Tell pop-up sold out astonishingly fast, which, as Bell explains, is exciting in more ways than one. “Australia’s a mysterious place because it’s so far away, but people know there’s a serious food scene here. It’s on the list of places that people talk about. Because of that, you know the people here are going to be well educated on how to eat and drink, so it’s exciting to be here. It’s a really good fit for us.” And while a reciprocal visit may not be in the works just yet, Bell has little doubt about its potential. “The Black Pearl is one of the most famous Australian bars in the USA. If it came to New York, that’d be a big deal for people there,” he enthuses. “I’d love to be involved in facilitating that, it would be very cool.” The sold-out PDT Black Pearl pop-up runs over August 6-9.
As 2017 continues to fly by, Melbourne's galleries have got your much-needed creative fix covered with a fantastic selection of contemporary art exhibitions featuring some international greats and local legends. This month, head to the Art Gallery of Ballarat to catch the photographs of fashion icon David LaChapelle, tickle your senses as sound and visuals clash in unexpected ways at the Ian Potter Museum of Art and find the best small-scale works across loads of different creative mediums for the Small Works 2017 annual event. With heaps more to choose from, August is bound to keep your creative needs topped-up and ready for the rest of the year.
If you're partial to a good dumpling night, you're in luck. Chapel Street's new South-East Asian restaurant, Wong Baby, is launching a bunch of special weekly events, with bottomless dumplings every Monday. The event is dubbed 'Dim Sum and Then Some' and there are four seatings to choose from every Monday: 12pm, 2pm, 5:30pm and 7:30pm. An easy $49 will get you bottomless dumplings, plus all-you-can-drink peach cocktails and Carlton Draught. Each session runs for 90 minutes, so you are technically on the clock. As far as the dumpling lineup goes, expect the likes of wagyu shiitake shumai, chilli oil wontons and crystal skin prawn dumplings. Probably best to pace yourself. Wong Baby is also running unlimited bao nights on Tuesdays, a 2-for-1 menu on Wednesdays, and Drag Yum Cha on Saturdays. You can browse the full calendar via the Wong Baby website. Images: supplied.
After a lengthy stint in lockdown, Melburnians could do with a bit of a laugh. Thankfully, seven of Australia's best comedians have come together for a series of side-splitting performances in Comedy SOS. Kicking off in August, the seven-week comedic program saw a different comedian stream a show every Saturday night. Now, you can binge them all in one laugh-filled session from Friday, October 2–Monday, October 5. Cough up $49.90 and you can spend the weekend cackling to Kitty Flanagan's talk about sex and algorithms in Smashing, Ross Noble's nonsensical El Hablador and Steph Tisdell's educational Identity Theft, which includes an abridged history lesson and a policy discussion delivered as a comedy rap. Also on the program: Arj Barker with We Need to Talk, The Gloves Are Off by George Carroll, Lawrence Mooney's Like Literally and Jimeoin's Ramble ON!. If you don't think you'll make it through all seven shows, you can watch individual ones for $14.90 a pop. [caption id="attachment_784962" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Steph Tisdell[/caption] Top image: Lawrence Mooney
Plans for Melbourne's newest openair plaza, officially named Cato Square, were released by the City of Stonnington over the weekend. The $60 million, 'European-style' project will be located on the site of Prahran's old Cato Street car park just behind the Coles on Chapel Street, turning it into an urban oasis. The plaza, said to be ten years in the making, is planned to be nearly the size of Federation Square at a huge 9000 square metres. "This public area is most importantly going to provide open space and recreation for the residents who are living in tight spaces and in dense apartment buildings," City of Stonnington Mayor Jami Klisaris told Concrete Playground. The elaborate plans reveal nine outdoor zones which will include 'themed' green zones, a central square with a water feature and free public Wi-Fi, dining spaces and a small forest. Seriously. The lawn, which Cr Klisaris says is her favourite element of the plaza, will be especially useful for public events, festivals and performances. "The lawn will not only be an open grass area that can be used by everyone, but will also be flexible with moving furniture and potted trees, so we can change the space and accommodate for any vibe or event," says Klisaris. To replace the existing parking, two underground levels consisting of 500 spaces will be built beneath the plaza, resulting in 20 percent more parking than was previously available. This transformation from drab car supermarket parking lot to public park will significantly up the green space in the Chapel Street surrounds. "This green space is particularly important because we have the second lowest amount of open space (per capita) of all councils in Victoria," says Cr Klisaris. The plaza's construction will also focus on environmental factors, using sustainably sourced, recyclable and energy efficient materials in the building process. For concerned taxpayers, the project will be funded by a combination of developer contributions, council funds and borrowings. Construction is expected to begin in the next 18 months and is due for completion in 2019; it is being designed by Australian architectural firm Lyons, who won the tender last year. The site is bounded by Prahran's Cato, Izett, Wattle and Chatham streets, so parking and surrounding businesses will be affected during this time frame. UPDATE FEBRUARY 2, 2018 — Construction on Cato Square commenced last month. This affects traffic and parking, so if you live, work or visit the area, check the project updates here.
One of Australia's most redeeming qualities is its ability to give good afternoon sun. There's something about its familiar glow that almost demands casual drinks – whether it's cracking open a cold beer after a day out, heading to the pub after a long day of work, or deciding on a whim that your backyard is perfect for having friends over. We love summer afternoons, and we've partnered with Heineken 3 so you can get the most out of them. We've spoken to a few of our favourite chefs, musicians and artists to get their insights on creating the perfect balmy afternoon. Having colourful paper backyard decorations may not be essential, but it's sure to take your casual backyard gathering to the next level. We asked the incredible paper engineer Benja Harney to help us out with some tutorials for easy backyard decorations. The first is a burger piñata, the second is a lantern covered in colourful streamers, the third is a string of sandwich bag bunting. Harney has done some incredible work in the past, so these simple projects are maybe a bit of an insult to his skills. He's worked on window installations for Hermès, he's made paper versions of Adidas shoes, and makes paper vegetables, grass and furniture for clients on the regular. His studio space is Surry Hills is filled to the brim with coloured paper and intricate paper sculptures. Not only is he good at his job, he's also really good at teaching. Follow the instructions below and make your backyard a little more fancy (and fun) the next time you have people over for a Heineken 3. BURGER PINATA When was the last time you whacked a piñata? It's fun, and even more fun when your piñata is shaped like a novelty version of your favourite food. This one is a little more tricky, so Benja has kindly drawn up some templates of the shapes you'll need to cut out to make your burger ingredients out of coloured cardboard. Print off the PDF in A3 and trace. Easy. You'll need: Thin cardboard (in the colours of your burger ingredients, and A3 size), thin corrugated cardboard, tape, scissors, glue, lollies, string. Method: Cut out your coloured cardboard into the shape of lettuce, tomato, burger bun and any other ingredients you want to pop in your burger. Use four strips of corrugated cardboard (about 15cm wide) and tape to make a square frame. Place a large piece of corrugated cardboard over the top, so it resembles a shallow open box. Glue your pieces of coloured cardboard to the box — it should now look like a burger. Flip the box over and fill it with lollies. Then, cover the box with a piece of thinner cardboard and tape it together. If you want to make it a little easier on your guests, you could glue this piece down instead of taping it, so it comes apart easier when you start to smash. Pop a piece of string onto the top and hang. SANDWICH BAG BUNTING This brown paper bag bunting is the easiest backyard decoration you'll ever make. Who knew that some scissors and string could turn the humble sandwich bag into a classy decoration for your backyard? You'll need: PVA glue, scissors, string, brown paper sandwich bags. Method: Grab yourself some brown paper sandwich bags from your local supermarket (they'll set you back a maximum of $2 — cheapest project you'll ever do). Cut each bag into a triangle shape like the one above, making sure that the 'seam' of the bag isn't at the triangle's point. Place a long piece of string inside the fold and glue it there. Repeat, repeat and repeat until your bunting has reached the length you want it to be. A LANTERN OF STREAMERS This is a simple way to spice up those cheap paper lanterns most people have in their backyards. It's colourful, looks like a jellyfish and blows in the wind. Make multiples and hang them in a row for maximum effect. You'll need: A cheap lantern from a discount store, string to hang it up, glue, scissors, three colours of streamers. Method: Cut the three colours of your streamers into pieces, all different lengths. Glue the top of each piece of streamer around the lantern in layers, starting from the bottom and repeating until the whole lantern is covered. Enjoy your summer afternoons with the new low-carb Heineken 3 — we're helping you make the most of them. Images: Kimberley Low.
Open since 1972, this is the longest running vegetarian-turned vegan restaurant in Melbourne, and the experience shows in its well-loved and crafted dishes. The hearty meals are Japanese and Indian focused, from curries to pies and dumplings. The Legendary Satay Shakahari is, well, legendary, as are the melt-in-your-mouth krub phom dumplings filled with sweet corn, mushroom, pumpkin and walnuts. Appears in: The Best Vegan Restaurants in Melbourne for 2023
The NGV has hosted some pretty epic exhibitions over the last few years — Ai Weiei and Andy Warhol, Hokusai and Van Gogh are just a few— but this might be its most ambitious exhibition yet. Descending on the gallery from today — Friday, December 15 — and then every three years after that, the NGV Triennial presents a smorgasbord of art and design, plucked from all corners of the globe and representing established artists, emerging talent, and plenty else in between. And the first one is nothing short of grand. The free exhibition will take over all four levels of the gallery until April 2018 and host a slew of newly commissioned works by over 60 artists and designers. But where it's really upping the ante is in the audience experience, with visitors invited to present their own ideas through cross-platform content, and the exhibition's participatory works designed to engage like never before. Legendary Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama, best known for her obsessive patterning and vibrant representations of the infinite, will invite glimpses into the artist's mind with a work titled Flower obsession. Created especially for the NGV Triennial, the interactive exhibition will have visitors unleashing some creativity of their own, as they help plaster a furnished space with an array of colourful flower stickers and three-dimensional blooms. Another highlight is an epic display of 100 oversized human skulls created by Australian artist Ron Mueck, and you'll want to step inside teamLab's immersive mirrored room that reacts to visitors' movements. Kusuma joins other international names like Germany's Timo Nasseri and Canada's Sascha Braunig, alongside an Aussie billing that includes the likes of Ben Quilty, Louisa Bufardeci, and Tom Crago. There'll be an installation from Chinese haute couture fashion guru Guo Pei, designer of Rihanna's canary-yellow Met Ball gown, and chemist and odour theorist Sissel Tolaas will create the 'scent of Melbourne' exclusively for the Triennial. And Alexandra Kehayoglou will be creating one of her monumentally-sized, lushly illustrated carpets, spanning over eight metres long. The NGV Triennial will be on display at the National Gallery of Victoria from December 15, 2017 till April 15, 2018. For more info, visit ngv.com.au.
Nightcrawler glides through the streets of Los Angeles, following the efforts of a young man doing whatever he can to make a living. Trying to survive and thrive, Lou Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal) warms to a career as a freelance cameraman. He stalks the Los Angeles streets by night to find and film humanity at its worst, all for television news consumption — and maybe gets a little too good at his new profession. Nightcrawler also brings two familiar creative forces together, but in a new fashion. For writer/director Dan Gilroy, Nightcrawler marks his first helming effort after more than two decades writing screenplays for the likes of The Bourne Legacy, Two for the Money, The Fall, and Real Steel, among others. For star Jake Gyllenhaal, his leading man looks are whittled down to a lean, mean figure of determination and desperation. Their combination results in what's widely regarded as one of the best films of the year — and certain highlights of both of their careers. We chat to Gilroy about collaborating with Gyllenhaal, creating such a distinctive character, and telling this dark, cynical and twisted tale of modern life. How did Jake Gyllenhaal come to be involved in the film as an actor and a producer? Jake's agent read the script. Jake responded to the script. I flew to Atlanta when he was doing Prisoners. We had a four-hour dinner, and we had just an instant creative spark. If I was going to distil it down, Jake very much wanted to rehearse and be a collaborator, and I very much wanted to collaborate with Jake. He never changed a word of the script, but what we did do is, we rehearsed for months before we started to shoot. We would discuss the script, the scenes, the character. We would then start to rehearse the scenes themselves, trying them different ways — "what if the character was this? What if the character was that?" And was Jake's physical transformation part of that? During the process, Jake came up with a number of very crucial components. One was that it was his idea to lose the weight. He was thinking about a coyote, which you see at night in Los Angeles. They're very hungry and lean looking creatures, and Jake used that as a sort of symbol animal for himself. So it was Jake's idea to lose like 26, 27 pounds, and it utterly transformed him. It was a very bold decision. Very difficult to keep that weight off, and it changed him physically, but it also gave him a tremendous odd energy in the film. I feel like he just wants to consume everything around him — and it's not just food. I feel like he wants to consume ideas and people and anything he can get his hands on. It is a very scary energy that it adds to the character, and to the movie. It was Jake's idea to put his hair up in a bun any time he does something larcenous. These are the small things. Jake and I worked as creative collaborators on this film in every way. Let's talk about Lou Bloom. He's such a distinctive character. Where did Lou Bloom as a creation come from? I have tremendous empathy for tens of millions of young people around the world who are looking for work, and being offered internships and wages that you can't sustain yourself on. So I was very interested in a younger man who was desperate for work. That was the doorway that I came through for the character, which is why at the beginning of the film, he is truly desperate for work. I took that desperation and started to play around with it, and use it as an inner force that has driven this character over the bend in terms of what he was willing to do and not to. And that was pathway to lead me into the character. Looking at the film more broadly, what inspired the story? There's many components — the media, at face value, as well as questions of ethics and the complicit nature of the audience in consuming news stories, and also the current state of the American economy, trying to chase the American dream... Well, the story on its largest level, I wanted to do an entertaining, engaging story, so obviously there's suspense and there's uncertainty and there's drama. So all those things I knew were going to be the things that were at the top of my list when crafting the story. As I started getting into the story, it started to become personal on the level that you just talked about. Which is, I feel that the world I am seeing right now, that I am living in right now in Los Angeles, and I guess the United States, and probably globally in some degree, is one where everything has been reduced to transactions. It seems like the bottom line is driving everything, that capitalism — and I'm not advocating any other system other than capitalism, because I don't know if there is anything better — but capitalism seems to be becoming hyper-capitalism, and it is forcing people to do things in the workplace that I don't think is healthy and I don't think they would normally be inclined to do if they weren't being forced to do it. I saw in Jake's character the opportunity to create an employer who has started a business and very much embodies that principle — that because of the landscape and the lack of work for people, he can pretty much get people to do whatever he wants to each other. The film is set in Los Angeles, showing a side of LA we don't often see. How did the location shape the film? Could it have been set and made anywhere else? Well, the location shaped the film in the sense that Robert Elswit, the cinematographer and I, were trying to show the Los Angeles you don't normally see. Los Angeles is usually a very urban environment with cement and buildings. Los Angeles for me is a place with much more of a wild, untamed energy. It is place of mountains, ocean and desert. So we were looking for locations where civilisations met a national park, as in literally. Or we were up on top of a hill looking down, on top of almost a mountain, looking down where you could see forever. We were trying to show a large, sprawling landscape that was physically beautiful — that really was as untouched by man as it tamed by man. And that the character of Lou is like a coyote moving through this nighttime environment of this wilderness. The sense of tension is unrelenting — not just in the action scenes, with cars racing along the street, but in all of Lou's conversations. How did you maintain that sense of pressure throughout? The pressure, in many ways, came from the script. The script is designed that way. He is an unsettling character. He is a character who has all these touchstone qualities of humanity — he wants a job, he wants a relationship. He is earnest, he is polite, he is respectful. But at the same time, he is utterly unhinged, and because we shot so close to him, and we would always keep him in frame, and because the score was always going counterpoint, I think the tension is an inner tension of "why am I so emotionally involved in this character?" Or "why are they making me pay attention for this guy? Why am I rooting for him at times when I know I shouldn't be rooting for him?" And I think there's a subconscious energy that starts to build up, a disquieting energy of tension. Questions of "where is it going?" and "why do I like him?", which was as much a design of the script as anything. Given that Nightcrawler falls into a number of genres, were there films that inspired you in writing and making it? The films that inspired me more weren't so much journalism films, but films where the hero was also the antihero. Where you could take a character who was your hero and your villain at the same time. One of them was Scorsese's The King of Comedy. And another one is actually Nicole Kidman in To Die For. I loved that film, and I thought she did a great job. I love the idea that she is so perky and personable, and she is a complete murderer. But at the same time, she is your hero — she is your hero and your villain. That was very illuminating when I saw that film. That film was in my mind. Nightcrawler opened in cinemas on November 27. Read our full review.
In Patricia Piccinini's mind, bulbous creatures float through the sky. In her imagination, automobiles may as well be animals, and the line between humans and other critters is razor thin. It all sounds like something out of a science-fiction movie (or several), but the Australian artist's output isn't just confined to a screen. Across a variety of media, Piccinini explores the way that nature and technology, people and animals, and the unusual and the sublime all combine — and, more than that, she finds ways to make their weird and wonderful blend appear, feel and seem real. With Piccinini's body of work spanning from figures that look so naturalistic you'll expect them to start moving, to looping short film installations that bring strange beings to life, to paintings and sculptures made with actual human hair, wandering through her creations is like wandering into another realm. At Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art until August 5, that's exactly what's on offer. Taking over the entire ground floor of the building — and filling the place with more than 70 sculptures, photographs, videos, drawings and large-scale installations, including both exisiting favourites and newly commissioned pieces — Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection transforms GOMA into a pleasingly intriguing playground. Indeed, if Piccinini's famous animal-shaped hot air balloon, The Skywhale, literally unleashed her unique sensibilities out into the world, then Curious Affection does the opposite: it invites everyone into the acclaimed artist's mind and lets them roam around. Inside, visitors get a peek at not-quite-human lovers cosying up in a caravan, walls filled with alien-like mushrooms, and a vast array of peculiar yet beautiful creatures. And, in an exhibition designed to make you ponder what it means to be human, that's just a fraction of its treasures. In short: entering the otherworldly showcase is an experience like few others, crafted by an artist who has taken her visibly distinctive sensibilities everywhere from the Venice Biennale to Japan's skies to galleries around the world over the past two decades. Discovering exactly what her imagination has brought forth is part of the fun, but here are five things to look out for along the way — and, whether you're a Brisbanite keen on an arty staycation or you're travelling from interstate to see the exhibition, we've found you somewhere to stay as well. [caption id="attachment_667357" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Installation view 'Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection' at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, 2018, featuring The Field 2018. Photograph: Natasha Harth, QAGOMA.[/caption] WANDER THROUGH A FIELD OF OTHERWORLDLY FLOWERS The Field isn't the first thing you'll see at Curious Affection, but this darkened room will stay with you long after you've left GOMA. It's the exhibition's main attraction for a very good reason: there's nothing quite like walking into a cavernous hall filled with more than 3000 flower-like sculptures, lightly bouncing along the spring-loaded floors and finding out that nothing's really as it seems. Each individual stem is a feat of astonishing artistry that'll make you think about the real meaning of beauty, not to mention the kind of creations that sci-fi filmmakers like Ridley Scott (Alien) and David Cronenberg (The Fly) would be proud of. When you're not staring into their hypnotic expanse, the four larger-scale sculptures — two of mothers with children, two of curious creatures — scattered around the gallery are just entrancing, not to mention perfectly on-theme. [caption id="attachment_667360" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Patricia Piccinini, Australia VIC. b.1965. Pneutopia 2018. Ripstop nylon, shed, air. Courtesy the artist, Tolarno Galleries, Melbourne; Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Sydney; and Hosfelt Gallery, San Francisco.[/caption] ENTER A GARDEN SHED — AND LOOK UP Maybe you saw The Skywhale float through the sky back earlier this decade. Maybe you just wished you did. Either way, if you ever wondered what it looked like inside, then inflatable installation Pneutopia almost has the answer. It's not Skywhale 2.0, but this custom-built blow-up creation comes close — just confined within GOMA's huge two-storey hallway rather than roving free on the wind. Roam around either the ground or second level, and you can feast your eyes on the outside of this billowing orange and pink structure. Enter the ordinary-looking garden shed underneath, however, and you'll peer through a window into the heart of the balloon. [caption id="attachment_664391" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Installation view 'Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection' at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, 2018, featuring The Young Family 2002. Photograph: Natasha Harth, QAGOMA.[/caption] GET UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL WITH CURIOUS CREATURES In one corner, a girl sits with an owl flapping over her shoulder. At several other points around the exhibition's first few rooms, kids reach out to strange critters, or cradle them in their arms, or find them laying on their backs. On a leather platform, a pig-human chimera feedings her suckling offspring. In a life-sized bed, a toddler stands shoulder-to-shoulder with a creature that could've stepped out of her dreams (or nightmares). There's more where they came from, representing some of Piccinini's best-known sculptures, and they really are the best introduction to the artist's work that you can get. Each attention-grabbing piece makes a statement, whether about natural evolution, genetic experimentation, the open mind that comes with child-like wonder, or the fine line between horror and empathy. As the exhibition's explanatory text describes, it's a collection that's "startling but rarely fearsome". [caption id="attachment_664396" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Installation view 'Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection' at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, 2018. Photograph: Natasha Harth, QAGOMA.[/caption] MOSEY THROUGH A STRANGE PATCH OF GREENERY In the last corner of the exhibition, GOMA becomes a forest — but you don't usually see creatures called 'tyre lions' and 'butthole penguins' in a standard patch of greenery. Yes, that's their actual name, and they're bizarre but delightful, like figures from an offbeat animation you now definitely wish existed. Piccinini arranges these pieces as if she's arranging a display in a natural history museum, which only adds to their uncanny allure. It's the final piece in a gallery-wide puzzle that presents an assortment of seemingly familiar figures, animals, scenes and objects, but shows that they really couldn't be less ordinary. [caption id="attachment_667355" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Installation view 'Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection' at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, 2018. Photograph: Natasha Harth, QAGOMA.[/caption] KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE SCREENS As well as Piccinini's eye-catching sculptures, installations and other pieces, GOMA's walls are lined with multiple screens playing her video works. Each runs on a loop, ranging from 90 seconds to a couple of minutes in duration — and if you're keen to dive even deeper in the artist's mind, they're all well worth your time. Gaze at Ghost, aka a hairy chicken-like creation hanging from the ceiling, for example, then watch In Bocca Al Lupo, a mesmerising short film filled with similar critters. If you only make time for one, however, then head to an adorably odd effort called The Seedling's Dance. It runs for less than three minutes, and it's playing on a cinema-sized screen that you you really won't be able to miss. COMING FROM OUT OF TOWN OR INTERSTATE? Can't get enough art? Not quite ready to re-enter reality after wandering through Piccinini's intriguing creations? Heading in from out-of-town and looking for a suitably creative place to stay? Brisbane's Art Series Hotel The Johnson fills its walls, halls, rooms and suites with abstract works from its namesake artist, Michael Johnson, offering the closest thing you'll find to sleeping in a gallery. And, for the duration of Curious Affection, the boutique hotel has a stay-and-see deal that includes one night's accommodation and two tickets to the GOMA exhibition. When you're not marvelling at Piccinini's work, you can look through the in-house art library, watch the dedicated in-room art channel, or get a dose of outdoor splendour while you're taking a splash with a view in the 50-metre pool or lazing around on the luxe deck. Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection exhibits at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art until August 5, and includes a film screening series and Friday night art parties throughout June and July. For more information, head to the gallery website. Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection images: Natasha Harth, QAGOMA.
It's ten years since Danny Rogers and Jerome Borazio decided to fill a Melbourne alleyway with tunes in 2005. This year, Laneway Festival blows out the candles with one of its biggest lineups yet. Kicking off in Singapore on Saturday, January 24 in The Meadow, Gardens by the Bay, Laneway will run through seven dates including Sydney's Sydney College of the Arts on February 1 and Melbourne's Footscray Community Arts Centre and River's Edge on February 7, finishing up at its new home in Fremantle's Esplanade Reserve and West End on Sunday, February 8. Returning to the Australian touring circuit is UK on-repeat outfit Jungle, festival jaw-droppers Future Islands and Melbourne's lives-up-to-the-hype queen Courtney Barnett. Two of the biggest hypecards of the bunch, FKA Twigs and BANKS, will fight for the midnight hushed vocal crown. Then there's the ever-epic St. Vincent, punk-as-fuck UK band Eagulls, smooooooth king Flying Lotus, Harlem's top-of-the-game hip hop outfit Ratking and the triumphant returns of Lykke Li, Rustie, Jon Hopkins, POND and crisp-as-blazes Caribou. Then there's Mac DeMarco and his mum, Agnes. But enough talk, here's that lineup you're after. LANEWAY FESTIVAL 2015 LINEUP: Agnes DeMarco* Andy Bull Angel Olsen BANKS Benjamin Booker Caribou Connan Mockasin Courtney Barnett Dune Rats Eagulls Eves*** FKA Twigs Flight Facilities Flying Lotus (Layer 3) Future Islands* Highasakite Jesse Davidson** Jon Hopkins* Jungle Little Dragon Lykke Li Mac DeMarco Mansionair Perfect Pussy Peter Bibby POND Ratking Raury Royal Blood* Rustie Seekae SOHN St Vincent* Vic Mensa *Exclusive to Laneway: no sideshows **Laneway Adelaide only ***Exclusive to East Coast shows only
St Kilda may be known for its backpacker-filled pub crawls, but we get more excited about the Fitzroy Street precinct's annual restaurant crawl — spending a night sipping and snacking around the neighbourhood's top eateries. This year, 18 local venues have banded together to put on Around the World in One Night, which takes place from 6–9pm on Wednesday, September 18. Restaurants championing cuisines from across the globe — including India, Italy, West Africa, Thailand, France, Scotland and China — are each creating two small dishes for the night that you can pick up and eat as you move from venue to venue. Every snack costs $5.65, and needs to be ordered ahead of time — so the kitchens know how much food to make. That means you'll need to plan your restaurant crawl route ahead of time, picking up your pre-ordered food as you go. [caption id="attachment_908470" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Louey's[/caption] These dishes will be served as takeaway bites, but some venues will let you dine in if you buy a bev. Otherwise, you'll eat it as you wander around the Fitzroy Street precinct, catching some live music and entertainment in the streets as you go. Basically, think of it as a restaurant crawl and a block party all in one. You'll find all 18 participating restaurants' menus on the event's website, but you can expect West African spiced wings from Akwaaba Restaurant & Bar; Himalayan prawn dumplings from Babu Ji; steak tartare from Bistro Voliere; pad grapow from Derby Thai; empanadas from La Bodega; chicken tikka from Mukka; scallops with black pudding from The Cross; and pumpkin and blue cheese arancini from Louey's Bar & Kitchen at The Espy. According to the crew who ran last year's Around the World in One Night, four to five tasters are about enough to fill you up, but we suggest getting a few more just to be safe. [caption id="attachment_926672" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Mukka[/caption]
Get lost in a maze of mirrors at NGV International where a brand new installation work has just been unveiled. Premiering earlier this week, Semicircular Space is a new piece by Berlin-based Danish artist Jeppe Hein, and consists of dozens of polished steel pillars more than 2.5 metres tall. Erected in a labyrinthine pattern, the work aims to distort the observer's perception of reality and call into question the way they view the world. The maze-like sculpture has been installed in Federation Court in the foyer of the NGV building, where it can be accessed by the public without charge. Point is, if you've ever wanted to run through a hall of mirrors like the hero and/or villain in a Saturday morning cartoon, this is your chance. You can visit Semicircular Space at NGV International until Friday September 16. It's the latest in a series of contemporary art commissions for Federation Court, made possible by the support of the Loti & Victor Smorgon Fund.
Steel your livers, drinking buddies — the booziest week (and a bit) of the year is upon us once again. Running from May 11–20, Good Beer Week celebrates everything you can pour into a pint glass, and this year's lineup looks as thirst-quenching as ever. From brewery tours to workshops to mouth-watering dinners – not to mention an alcohol-fuelled mini golf tournament – the Good Beer Week 2018 program is packed to the brim with highlights. Gastronomers will be licking their lips at the Foodie section, too, which features events from some of the city's top eateries. Meanwhile, the Beer Geek and Beer School streams are perfect for anyone hoping to better understand their booze. You can even pick up some tips on how to brew your own. To help you sort the Tecate from the trub, we've rounded up our top seven hop-filled events happening during the ten days.
UPDATE: DECEMBER 12, 2019 — If you've been umming and ahhing about getting tickets to this show, you now have an additional reason to buy them: the MSO has just announced another magical Ghibli night under the stars. The second show will take place the following night, on Sunday, March 1. Tickets are on sale now over here. For more than three decades, Hayao Miyazaki has been hailed as the shining star of Japanese animation house Studio Ghibli, spinning gorgeous on-screen stories about magical worlds, buses shaped like cats, moving houses, friendly fish and more. No one can tell an enchanting tale like the masterful filmmaker — but, no one can make melodic music to match like Joe Hisaishi. First collaborating with Miyazaki on 1984's Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, the composer has provided the score to every one of the director's features since then, spanning everything from My Neighbour Totoro and Spirited Away to Ponyo and The Wind Rises. That's quite the collection of moving movie music, and it's coming to Melbourne for two nights with Hisaishi himself at the podium. After taking over Hamer Hall for four sold-out shows in 2018, Hisaishi and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra are heading to the Sidney Myer Music Bowl on Saturday, February 29 and Sunday, March 1 for Music from the Studio Ghibli Films of Hayao Miyazaki. The sounds of Ghibli will echo through Kings Domain while Hisaishi conducts the full orchestra and the MSO Chorus, and a montage of clips from the likes of Howl's Moving Castle, Princess Mononoke — and the rest of Miyazaki and Hisaishi's shared filmography — plays on the huge screen.
The two-kilometre coastal walk between Bondi and Tamarama is always a stunning Sydney sight no matter when you mosey along it — and for locals and tourists alike — but it's especially impressive during Sculpture by the Sea. Once a year since 1997, except during the pandemic's early days, the outdoor art event displays large-scale pieces with the ocean as a backdrop. Understandably, it isn't just one of the annual highlights of Sydney's cultural calendar, but of Australia's. That excuse to soak up the great outdoors in the Harbour City returns again in 2023, from Friday, October 20–Monday, November 6. On the agenda once more: 100-plus artworks by Australian and international sculptors, all along a two-kilometre walk. But this is the 25th Sculpture by the Sea, so it's celebrating notching up that milestone with pieces by artists who displayed at the event back at its beginning. Paul Bacon, Stephen King, Michael Le Grand, John Petrie, James Rogers and Margarita Sampson earn those honours, bookending a quarter-century run. [caption id="attachment_911393" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Artist: Nigel Washington. Photo: Jack Bett.[/caption] Sculpture by the Sea 2023 also features works by Philip Spelman and Ron Gomboc, who reach double decades displaying at the event; Lucy Barker and Ayako Saito, who hit a decade; and Chinese artist Chen Wenling. Discovering exactly who'll be showing what and where is part of the fun of taking the spring stroll, but this year's event clearly won't be short on talent. Another huge must-see: the return of 2006's famous melting ice cream van, aka Hot with a Chance of a Late Storm by Glue Society + James Dive, which will display at Tamarama Beach. As always, the exhibition is set to draw a crowd. Each year, Sculpture by the Sea attracts approximately 450,000 visitors over 18 days, with the same number of art lovers expected this time around. [caption id="attachment_922730" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Artist: Glue Society + James Dive. Photo: Louise Beaumont.[/caption]
The afternoon before I'm due to hop on a plane for my first ever skiing experience, I decide to be a little more organised than usual and make a list of things to pack. After all, I'd never even seen proper powder before — it couldn't hurt to make sure I was prepared. The QT Falls Creek, where I'd be staying, assured me I could hire everything I needed, but I checked in with Facebook anyway. "You need a facewarmer!" "THIN woollen socks under your boots!" "No cotton!" "You'll need goggles, you can't hire them!" "SERIOUSLY I'M NOT KIDDING ABOUT THE FACEWARMER." The Snow had always been something other people did; I am not outdoorsy, my family holidays tending towards reading and puzzles rather than adventure sports, and the whole skiing-snowboarding thing seemed to me to be an expensive, bro-y pastime that required wearing more neon manmade fabrics than I cared to think about. QT Falls Creek had three days and two nights to convert me. [caption id="attachment_587920" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Falls Creek QT.[/caption] DO If you're a nervous flyer like me, you might need to take a moment after the flight to Albury in a propeller plane. We were shuttled to the casually glam Atura Hotel in Albury, where we enjoyed a very good breakfast buffet in the huge open-plan lobby/dining area,which looks a little like a Typo exploded in it (lots of dark industrial textures, whimsical mismatching and pastel ceramic pineapples). You've got a long drive out to Falls Creek ahead of you, so it's a great option to stay or at least rest in Albury first. It's slowly building a rep as a great foodie regional centre, and the low-lying, hill-fringed farmland just outside the city is an extremely pretty place to drive through — read our Weekender's Guide to Albury for tips. The family-owned Falls Creek Coach Services will drive you and up to three mates the hour and a half from Albury to the door of your hotel or lodge and then back again, all for a bit over $700 — which, compared to wrangling a hire car up snowy mountain roads only for it to sit covered in snow for three days, is solid value. After being driven out through vast, hilly countryside and up the mountain in a super-comfy new Land Rover (while I made squee noises as the size of the ACTUAL SNOW snowdrifts on the side of the road increased the higher we climbed), we were checked into the QT Falls Creek, fitted for gear at the hire shop, and booked into a private ski lesson. QT Falls Creek is a ski-in-ski-out resort — this means it's right there where the slopes and lifts are, so you can come and go as you please, instead of having to schlep to where the skiing is with all your gear and then schlep back. This is perfect for the newbie skier; it was hard enough working out how I was supposed to walk in my rented boots (tip: don't do them all the way up until you're at the lift) as I clumped the ten metres from the door of the QT to the Cloud Nine lift for my lesson. [caption id="attachment_587914" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Falls Creek QT.[/caption] As the lift scooped us up I squeaked in surprise at the speed, trying to hold onto all my skis and poles and bits as the ground dropped away, but then suddenly it was quiet, and all there was was a white sky dropping flecks of itself into the wind, dark trees with white-laden branches, skiers weaving silently beneath us, and it was the prettiest damn thing ever. Those interludes between the hubbub at each end were easily my favourite way to appreciate this new landscape. Also, guys, skiing is hard. You'd think that there wouldn't be much more to it than just letting gravity win in a controlled fashion — kids can do it! — but that control is hard to get. Snow is slippery, it turns out, particularly when it's packed down, and rented boots aren't ideal when you need to have both comfort and control (thick socks are your enemy); but they're very welcoming to adult newbies, and a couple of ruddy, polite young men had me pizza-slicing like a pro (that's how you stop) and edging up tiny snowdrifts sideways with a sure-footedness that would make mountain goats jealous. Despite taking multiple breaks to get the feeling back in my feet, on the second day I managed to slide, terrified, and fall, confidently, down a gently sloping 100m strip of mountain, while being overtaken by literal toddlers. You go downhill a lot faster than you'd think, but the first time I tucked in my elbows and picked up a teeny bit of speed, I felt like Bond. After copping my first ever windburn that first afternoon, I was a little nervous about the facial treatment booked in for me at the cosy SpaQ. But, duh, they're used to dealing with skin that's been out in the weather all day, and therapist Tara worked mandarin-scented scrubby aloe vera magic on my poor face. (I'm not a massage person, but if you're ski-sore, the thermal massage with warming oils got rave reviews from my dinner companions.) A couple of days later, when the ruddiness was completely gone, my skin looked better than it has in years — I'll be paying a visit to the SpaQ in the Sydney CBD soon to try and replicate the magic. STAY The QT consists of a couple of discrete angular buildings along the main road; if you drive up yourself, you can park further down the mountain and catch shuttles up to the resort. Our three-bedroom apartment was large and surprisingly airy, with a tiled living area (all the better for shedding snowy layers, but still somehow warm underfoot), a decent kitchen with a well-stocked minibar and free tea and Nespresso, sleek bathrooms supplied with extremely stealable unisex Malin + Goetz toiletries, and a fairly neutral colour scheme (rather than locking themselves into a style, QT wisely kept the trendy decorative touches to easily swapped-out things like textiles). There was also our very own hot tub outside, which seemed hilarious to me, given how exposed the balcony was, jutting out from the corner of the building. But the view from there, and from the tall windows inside, allowed for both people-watching and snow-watching, and even glimpses of the valley below during short gaps in the whiteout. There are heaps of activities at Falls Creek outside the snow season, like mountain biking and bushwalking, and I figured you could certainly do worse than to hole up in front of that view with a beer on a balmy afternoon, all for seriously bargain off-peak rates. As well as the gear hire shop, which also functions as a souvenir and apparel shop, there's a well-stocked Foodworks and even a little boutique selling drapey knits and locally made jewellery — and that's just around the QT buildings. You can go for a walk to the other resorts and lodges, but there's no need to leave the QT area at all if you just want to chill. Tucking into the full-sized bottle of extremely decent Cab Sav from the minibar before bed, we debated trying out the jacuzzi; but the wind was whipping sleet against the windows, and extremely comfortable beds with crisp white sheets called to our tired newbie bones. EAT AND DRINK The breakfast and dinner buffets at QT's main restaurant, Bazaar, were so good-looking that I found myself cackling with glee under my breath as I surveyed my options, much the same way I once did as I planned tactical assaults on the Sizzler all-you-can-eat dessert bar. There are no cubes of jelly and tubs of smarties here, though; the desserts include bijoux bites of panna cotta or crèmes in tiny jars sprinkled with crushed pistachios or brownie crumbs, pleasingly rustic eclairs in various flavours, and heavy dishes full of homey puddings (a rhubarb crumble one night, choc-espresso bread and butter pudding the next). The savoury options — grouped loosely into cuisines, ranging from East and South Asian to Italian and Just Give Me All The Cheese You Have — vary every day, making every meal an adventure in avoiding food FOMO. I managed to remember to order from the chefs standing patiently behind the counters a couple of times (a slim but juicy rump steak on my first night, and an omelette with everything the next morning) but mostly got distracted piling my plate up with bright noodle salad and clouds of bacon risotto, and gazing wistfully at regimented rows of shellfish on ice that were so cartoonishly beautiful I considered trying to just talk myself into liking the taste of seafood. Breakfast is similarly generous: whether you want a full English, a bowl of porridge to sustain you through the day, or one of every flavour of milk and juice in tiny bottles with striped paper straws, you're sorted. The Stingray Lounge offers a range of things for lunch that are fried and/or covered in cheese; it's a little half-hearted, but after a morning of getting your cheeks ruddy up on the big hill, you'll want to fold that basic fried chicken burger in half and swallow it whole, so there's no need to overthink it. Cocktail-wise, keeping to the classics pays off: a spot-on espresso martini here, a brightening rum toddy there. As I hopped off the lift after an ill-fated snowboarding lesson on my last morning (two points of contact with the ground are definitely better than one), I spotted the hole-in-the-wall coffee shop tucked away near the SpaQ entrance. One of the hire shop staff recommended their coffee as the best on the mountain, but I found myself ordering a Polar Bear — a white hot chocolate with peppermint schnapps and Baileys — as I was convinced that my ski-bunny initiation was incomplete without warmed alcohol. Then, back in the apartment, I eyed off the icicles on the balcony railing and the gentle waft of the snowflakes, and decided it was now or never. Beanie on head, still-warm Polar Bear in hand, I placed my towel within arm's reach and slid into the welcoming embrace of the hot tub. I sat there for a good 20 minutes, gazing out at the flashes of dark-ridged mountains visible through the mist on the other side of the valley, cosier than a joey in a jumper, not even thinking about what I might be missing on the internet, thinking about nothing at all except how nice it was. Drinking hot, boozy milk in my balcony hot tub, with the sounds of kids laughing and lift machinery clanking and Feist on the Stingray sound system, all damped by that canopy of white that went forever — I can see myself doing The Snow again, but boy, did this place set the bar high. Dylan French stayed as a guest of Falls Creek QT.
Cult New York-founded perfume house Le Labo made quite the splash when it opened its first Melbourne store in Fitzroy back in 2017. Known for its "slow perfume" approach, the fragrance brand has earned a particularly devoted following with its bottles of hand-blended and hand-labelled products. If you're looking to expand your scent repertoire beyond Santal 33, this is your chance. Le Labo is hosting its annual City Exclusive collection, which will see fragrances from around the world land in each of Le Labo's olfactory playgrounds. Usually, these City Exclusive perfumes are only available in the stores they hail from. Explore the understated and classic Myrrh from Shanghai, a sandalwood and vanilla number from Paris, or a citrus, lemon and jasmine blend from Seoul. Other scents include a woody musk hailing from the streets of Tokyo, and Chicago's pink pepper and rose blend. Perfumes from Moscow, Hong Kong, London, Dallas, Dubai, New York, San Fran, Los Angeles, Amsterdam, Miami and Berlin are also coming to Fitzroy. City Exclusive fragrances will be available in the Fitzroy lab all through September. Samples and discovery sets are available now in stores and online.
Finding it hard to meet new people? 90% of new people probably feel the same way. That's why Fitzroy's La Vineria runs 'Dine With a New Friend': a recurring weeknight event built around good food and even better company. Dine With a New Friend is the brainchild of Vineria's Italian-born owner and chef, Stefano Maffei, who migrated to Melbourne eight years ago and opened Noi Pizzeria in the middle of COVID. Bold move. After noticing a dire need for connection and community during the pandemic, Stefano started Dine With a New Friend on Wednesday nights at his new restaurant, La Vineria. The event was a hit from the beginning, with over 60 people in attendance. The event has grown over the years, and now features a DJ and dance floor, to give people a better chance to mingle. La Vineria is also giving away a ticket to Italy as part of Dine With a New Friend. Everyone who attends the event goes into the draw. Bookings are essential for this one. $40 bucks gets you an Italian prosecco on arrival, main meal and a glass of wine. You can come with friends, or by yourself. Either way, you'll be seated next to new friends at random. No swiping required. Images: Giorgia Maselli
You might not have heard of Minor Figures, Australia's new cold brew-on-the-go coffee popper distributors, but you will soon. The coffee wizards, comprised of Jonathan Chiu, Stuart Forsyth and Will Rixon, have had a massive year since setting up their own microbrewery in London in August of 2014. After taking out the 'Most Innovative Product' award at the London Coffee Festival, they found their particular brand of ethically-sourced, ready-to-drink, long-life cold coffee on the shelves of Whole Foods, Selfridges and Harvey Nichols. Now they’ve conquered the north, their sights have been turned to us here in the Southern hemisphere. Jonathan and Stuart are both Melburnians at heart and when they collectively decidedly to bring their on-the-go cold brew to Australia, Jonathan packed up and came with it. Attempting to offer an alternative to the coffee powder-made, factory-produced iced coffees dominating the Australian market, Minor Figures has just launched two cold brews: a straight black version and one with organic milk. We had a chat to him about what it's like to move halfway around the world for the love of good coffee. So Jonathan, what made you come back to Australia after such a long sabbatical? I’ve been over in London for eight years. We started the Minor Figures business in August last year and one thing we realised pretty quickly was that it’s a summer drink and we were going straight into winter and we wanted to be able to sell all year round. Stuart Forsyth, one of the co-founders, and I are both from Melbourne, so we thought it seemed like the logical market to open a second office. From #bellsbeach to #bournemouth. #coldbrew #beach #esky #surf #takeanywhere #specialtycoffee A photo posted by Minor Figures (@minorfigures) on Oct 8, 2015 at 10:09pm PDT So the idea is specialty coffee in a stay-fresh popper. How exactly do you make it? Ours is a cold brew, we use an immersion method. We put our coffee straight into a tank, we control the oxygen and temperature of the tank and brew it for around 18 hours, using cold filtered water, and then we filter it out, catch all the coffee grounds and make sure it’s super clean. Can you walk us through why we should trade in our flat whites for cold brew? What happens when you brew in cold water over a long period of time, it reduces the acidity and bitterness of the drink and it leaves a naturally sweeter, clean coffee. It’s different from, say, if you had hot coffee that’s gone cold, that would be bitter, thicker almost, whereas this is cleaner, lighter and it’s a great alternative to a hot milky coffee on a hot day. It's just water and coffee, so you can’t hide behind anything — it has to be really high quality. Who brought the #ducks to the #swan party? #InDisguise #coldbrew #coffee A photo posted by Minor Figures (@minorfigures) on Apr 25, 2015 at 4:25am PDT What’s your aim with Minor Figures? What’s in the future for the brand? The future for us is to be the ones who make cold brew coffee more mainstream accessible so that more and more people drink good quality coffee, rather than the rubbish iced coffees that are out there. This is in a Tetrapak so you just stick a straw in and you’ve got real, specialty, single origin coffee ready to go whenever you want. We want it to be for everyone, not just the cool kids in the know who’ve got the disposable cash to buy it. It’s not about being just for the cool kids. I was out sampling at Narre Warren a couple of weeks ago and I was happiest to see the mums of Narre Warren buying it to go on their caravan holidays, rather than the cool kids in Collingwood. Find a Minor Figures cold brew coffee distributor here and get gulping the good stuff. Images: Simon Shiff.
Almost two decades after closing its doors, one of Melbourne's most notorious prisons is about to be rehabilitated. Once the home of dangerous criminals including bushranger Ned Kelly and Mark "Chopper" Read, the former Image site in Coburg will soon trade its iron bars for a microbrewery, restaurant and beer garden. Lock us up and throw away the key. The bar will be run by Daniel Caneva of the nearby Post Office Hotel, and is a partnership between Coburg Larger, award-winning architecture firm Techne Architects, and Future Estate, the property developer whose owns the Pentridge site. The Coburg Brewing Co. is set to open later in the year, and will be located in the prison's old heritage listed laundry building. The original laundry machinery will remain in the venue, although you can expect there to be a few adjustments to the decor. It's official! We are opening a Brewpub at the old Laundry site in Pentridge Prison as part of the new Coburg Quarter Development. Excited to be working with the boys at Future Estate & Techne Architects @futureestate @technearchitects @coburglager #coburgbrewingco A photo posted by Coburg Brewing Co. (@coburglager) on Dec 21, 2015 at 3:24am PST It's just one small part of Future Estate vision for the old bluestone gaol, which is set to be transformed in a suburban precinct dubbed Coburg Quarter, complete with bars, cafes, shops, markets and an outdoor cinema. Just try not to think about the fact that it's also the site of Australia's last execution. The Coburg Brewing Company should be open for business in the second half of 2016. Stay in the loop at www.coburgbeer.com. Image: Stephen White.
Lygon Street doesn't have any shortage of Italian wine bars, but Agostino is certainly notable — if not due to its food and wine offering, then because of its history. Making its home in the strip's King and Godfree building — that recently reopened after a huge multi-year renovation and relaunch — Agostino was named in a nod to one of the area's original Italian food pioneers. It's a homage to Vincenza-born Carlo Valmorbida, the man who originally opened grocery store Frank Agostino's and whose family has owned (and continues to run) the building since 1955. The space itself boasts a rich riot of textures against clean lines, brought to life under the guidance of award-winning Melbourne architect Chris Connell. You'll spy further collaborative efforts in the commissioned collection of ceramics, featuring exclusive pieces by local artist Shari Lowndes. From the kitchen, comes a food offering that's concise, yet punchy, starring drinking fare with a clear northern Italian lean. You might find plates like grilled octopus teamed with nduja new potatoes and salsa verde; sardine beccafico with bread crumb, pine nuts and parsley; and a calamari fritti with lemon. But it's the wine program that takes centre stage, heroing a diverse spread of drops from across Australia and the homeland, including a rotation of tap wine. A solid retail selection offers bottles to enjoy in-house or at home, while the temperature controlled cellar plays host to a covetable reserve list, filled with rare labels that have been housed here for years. It's all backed by a classic-leaning cocktail lineup and a beer list offering both local brews and Italian craft labels. Drop by Agostino for an after-work drink, then finish off with a scoop of Pidapipo on the way home. Appears in: The Best Wine Bars in Melbourne for 2023
Ever pondered what the human body might be like a couple more decades into the future? What sort of weird and wonderful things it'll be able to do by the time next century rolls around? Award-winning Aussie-born, Los Angeles-based artist Lucy McRae sure has, and she's offering a peek at her most captivating musings in a new free exhibition at NGV Australia, titled Lucy McRae: Body Architect. As a designer, science fiction artist, filmmaker and 'body architect', McRae's on a constant journey of contemplation, her work reflecting on the future of human existence through collaborations with everyone from scientists, to pop musicians. Kicking off today and running until February 2020, this survey of her work — which has strong The Fifth Element vibes — dives deep into these questions, showcasing a body of work that will not just pique the interest of art lovers, but sci-fi fans and philosophers, too. For Lucy McRae: Body Architect, you'll see the artist's filmmaking skills at play in seminal work Institute of Isolation: an observational documentary exploring the concept of isolation and the impact it might have on people when experienced for decades at a time. It's questioned through the lens of space travel and how human resilience might be tweaked in order to better handle it. Meanwhile, immersive work Future Day Spa will see you hanging out in a vacuum pressure chamber, which mimics the feeling of being hugged tightly, boosting relaxation levels in the process. You can also get your own face up on the gallery's walls — and tweak it — with Biometric Mirror. Elsewhere, you'll spy the series of bold and ethereal digital images McRae created alongside Dutch textile artist Bart Hess. The pair's work imagines high-tech, futuristic body functionalities – like colour-excreting skin – captured in striking lo-fi imagery using things like pantyhose, balloons, grass and bath foam. Then, there are the pieces from McRae's many collaborations with musicians, both local and international. The iconic image created for pop-star Robyn's Body Talk album cover is on show, as are the artist's music videos for bands including Architecture in Helsinki and Reptile Youth. For a quick intro to her work, watch this TED Talk. As one of the youngest ever TED Fellows and having earned a spot on Fast Company's list of people shaping the future, McRae's an exciting pull for the NGV's next season of solo exhibitions, which is set to feature the work of Aussie photographers Polixeni Papapetrou and Petrina Hicks later this year. Images: Installation shots by Tom Ross; Lucy McRae portraits by Eugene Hyland; © Lucy McRae.
What would you do if you were a little less freaked out by consequences? Would you talk to more new people, fear a bit less, dance a little more like FKA Twigs, or quit your desk job and start that business you've always wanted to give a red hot go? Some sparkling young Australians are already flinging their inhibitions into a ziplock bag and seizing this little ol' life with both hands. Concrete Playground has teamed up with the Jameson crew to give you a sneak peek into the lives of some of the country's boldest characters who took a big chance on themselves. They've gone out on a limb and rewritten their path, encapsulating 'Sine Metu', the Jameson family motto which translates to 'without fear' — getting outside your comfort zone and trying something new. After all, we only get one shot at this. Take notes. Having dabbled in his fair share of pulse-quickening activities as a youngster, Sydney street artist and skateboarder Sid Tapia is no stranger to the concept of overcoming big fears. In a career that started at age ten, he's hung out of train doors to tag them, skateboarded at a pro level and even founded his own label, Crown St. rediscover a passion he thought he'd lost forever. FUEL THAT FIRE IN YOUR BELLY Sid got cracking on his creative pursuits pretty early on, recalling being captivated by his mother's old handwriting textbooks at the age of four. Soon after that, Sid began recreating the characters in his life: the faces of friends and family. "I'd spend ages trying to do what I saw," he says. "I would see someone or something that I thought was beautiful and be like, 'I want to do that on paper'." It's an interest that would eventually lead him into the graff scene, swapping out paper and pens for trains, walls and spray paint. Meanwhile, Sid's older brother Walker was offering his own brand of influence, introducing him to alternative music genres, hip-hop culture and, ultimately, the street art movement. "He was like my mentor-slash-father figure growing up," Sid explains. "He really taught me a massive step in being able to overcome not just challenges, but confrontations as well." NEVER STOP LEARNIN' At around age ten, Sid discovered the world of graffiti, and he was instantly hooked on this risky, yet exhilarating form of creative expression — especially the risky sport of train tagging. The fact that he could lean out of a train, paint his name up and others would see it was both scary and adrenaline-pumping (not to mention highly illegal). But just a few years later, Sid's flirtation with locomotive art was rattled, after his friend was injured in a serious train accident, reminding him (very bluntly) of the elephant in the room: mortality. "Graffiti was never the same after that," Sid says. "It was nerve-wracking — it was scary." And so he gave up graff. Having come so close to paying the ultimate price for his passion, Sid diverted his attentions to skateboarding — and despite being discouraged from the sport by his family, it was clear he had some serious skills. "My grades were really bad, but I knew that my skating was really good," he says. "And I was like, 'I'm gonna do this thing.'" Skating was a passion that continued well into his twenties, landing him sponsorship deals and a heap of recognition on the Sydney scene. He was even profiled in the awesome 1997 short film by Warrick Thornton for SBS's Eat Carpet. Like many twenty-somethings, at the time it looked as though Sid had, in his own words, "everything sorted" — but he was really "a wreck". So he turned to an old friend to navigate through it: books. "To understand what it is to overcome, what it is to get through a challenge, what's needed — and a lot of the time what's needed is knowledge." TACKLE THE CHALLENGES AND GET BACK IN THE DAMN GAME 23 years later, Sid was still shaken by that train accident — and his own decision to run away. "I had to live with that for a long time," he admits. "I knew I ran away from something massive that could have helped her out. I was just too scared. But about a year ago, I thought: 'I have to face up to this'." So he located his former friend and reached out to her on social media, laying down the emotional apology that had been such a long time coming. "I was in tears…it was heavy," Sid says. "That was a fear I had to overcome by literally confronting it…having to just man-up and be emotional and apologise." Like the big cats he spray paints on his walls, Sid was finally fierce in approaching the situation, and moved forward regardless of harboured fears. And in doing so, he not only opened up a positive new relationship with his old friend, but a newfound positive relationship with his art. Sid's back doing the graffiti thing again — only this time around, it's in a much more holistic (and completely legal) capacity. Working on both commissions and his own pieces, his striking large-scale murals grace walls across Sydney, from the skate park at Bondi Beach to countless buildings in Stanmore, Camperdown, Newtown and the inner west. His lettering and illustration work is equal parts mind-blowing and mindful. He's a highly sought-after, full-time working artist now, running the odd class with Work-Shop and the Museum of Contemporary Art, and working with Marrickville Council's 'Perfect Match' program pairing residents with street artists. All those setbacks? Turns out he didn't let them set him back at all. "I love that I'm able to get what I do and bless people with it. I want to put something out that's going to inspire, or encourage… spark a little bit of wow in someone's life." Want to experience a little bit of 'Sine Metu' yourself? Thanks to Jameson and The Rewriters, one extremely fortunate Concrete Playground reader (and their even more fortunate mate) will get the chance to 'fear less' and go on a big ol' adventure to Ireland. In addition to two return flights departing from your choice of Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane, this epic giveaway comes with five night's accommodation and $500 spending money you can use to paint the Emerald Isle red. ENTER HERE. For more about how 'Sine Metu' influenced John Jameson's journey visit Jameson's website. Images: Sid Tapia.
It was an incredibly sad day when iconic St Kilda venue Stokehouse burned down in 2014. But after a three-year hiatus, it returned with a bang, renovated and designated into a 'precinct' of multiple bars and restaurants, adding plenty of glamour to the seaside like only Stokehouse can. The Van Haandel Group opened the first two stages of the beachside precinct. Fish and chip kiosk Paper Fish followed by ground floor venue Pontoon. But while the 400-capacity casual beachside bar and eatery was an exciting opening, it was certainly no match for the hardcore anticipation that has surrounded the relaunch of the one and only Stokehouse Restaurant, that finally opened in December 2016. The new building was designed by architect Robert Simeoni which, as well as having a five Green Star rating for sustainability, looks pretty epic due to half of it being covered by a sand dune. After doing a stellar job on Stokehouse's previous 2010 refurbishment, Pascale Gomes McNabb returned to fit out the new restaurant space, which includes a 12.5-metre oval bar and room for 130 diners. Chef Jason Staudt is on the pans, and his menu kicks off with starters such as roasted southern calamari with caponata and tarragon, beef tartare with Oscietra caviar jacket potato and a premium oyster service. Mains include local rock flathead served with spaghetti squash and fish collar nduja, a Gundagai GLQ 5+ lamb tomahawk with puntarelle and sweetbread and a steamed wild barramundi with pickled dill blossom. Be sure to stay for dessert and enjoy a strawberry Eton mess with forage frais and black pepper meringue, or a selection of cheeses with condiments and lavosh. Alternatively, dine downstairs to Stokehouse Pasta & Bar if you're feeling in the mood for carbs over seafood — or just a few cheeky seaside cocktails. Images: Emily Weaving. Appears in: Where to Find the Best Pasta in Melbourne for 2023
Over the span of the universe, ten years is the blink of an eye. In a human lifetime, a decade can zip by unnoticed. In the realm of public works (a realm so dense that all previous laws governing time and space break down around it) ten years is, in practice, a millisecond. Projects can drag on for eternity before we see a single blade of grass (hell, in six seasons of Parks and Rec they only managed to fund one weeny little park). So you can understand why people may secretly believe Leslie Koch, president and CEO of The Trust of Governors Island in New York City, to be some kind of time-travelling magician. Since her instatement in 2006, she's worked with city government and private sector alike to transform a flat, derelict military island off Manhattan into a thriving public space with nearly half a million visitors each summer. Under Leslie's guidance, the first phase of the master plan, including 12 hectares of parkland, was opened to the public in May 2014. The second phase (named The Hills for the rolling Teletubbyland-esque vista and 360 degree panoramic views of New York City) is slated to open in July, a year ahead of schedule. And the next phase for Governors Island is even more ambitious: a 13.4 hectare innovation incubator and public campus to service the growing startup culture in New York. Leslie's flying in to Sydney to appear as one of the keynote speakers for REMIX Sydney 2016, so we found a tiny window in Leslie's obviously jam-packed schedule to sit down and talk big. [caption id="attachment_572737" align="alignnone" width="1280"] The Hills, Governors Island.[/caption] THE PESKY PROBLEM OF HAVING MORE IDEAS THAN EMPLOYEES Revamping Governors Island as a startup haven is a superhuman feat in itself, but let's backtrack for a moment. America is in a bind: the age of manufacturing has passed and technological innovation is now the hot economic commodity to sink graduates into. Tech startups are bread-and-butter for the emerging generation of computer scientists. However, there's a gaping crevasse between practice and education theory. The tech industry waits for no one, particularly not one who spends four years and a small fortune on a tertiary education only to emerge and find the skills they've learned are not the skills employers want — nor, often, are they even relevant anymore. "I was meeting with a very successful serial entrepreneur the other day and he said, 'Look we actually can't hire enough people for the ideas that we have'," Leslie Koch muses "There's no shortage of ideas, there's a shortage of people." The solution, she believes, begins with physically merging private sector components into the education model, eliminating the lag between industry practice and educational canon. It's an inevitable direction, considering our career path structure is changing — everyone's a freelancer, untethered by company loyalty, each in possession of a long resume dotted with short tenures. If you want to stay employable in a competitive marketplace rocked to and fro by the all-powerful internet and all her resplendent memes, you've got to freshen up your skills every now and then. ON BUILDING THE SILICON VALLEY OF THE EAST COAST Governors Island represents more than a green lung to New York City's concrete playground. In its second phase it will become an incubator for innovation, the Silicon Valley of the east coast and, as Jack Donaghy would say, 'innoventually' develop a solution to the human capital crisis in the tech industry in NYC. But just what is so magical about Silicon Valley that's worth mimicking? Does innovation bubble up from the very ground water? General consensus is the Valley works for two reasons. First, early in the game, big companies collaborated with educational institutions (to mould their chickens before they hatched). Second, a close physical proximity, as well as a focus on innovation, encouraged knowledge convergence and cross-fertilisation between tech startups. The underlying lesson here? Physical space organisation is incredibly important for knowledge sharing (there's a reason why open-plan offices are everywhere, and it's not just to keep you off Facebook during work hours). ON CREATING AN 'INNOVATION INCUBATOR' ON THE ISLAND The next stage for Governors Island is to build an 'innovation incubator'. It may sound like jargon, but the articulation of an 'incubator' draws on those ideas that people, and young startups in particular, hugely benefit when they physically share space with their contemporaries. "[A technology incubator] gives companies flexibility in leasing and acts as a social space, a cross-fertilisation space, that you wouldn't have in a conventional 'I'm going to rent my office, hire my people and I'm never going to interact with the other companies in my building' model," says Leslie. The needs of early stage technology startups go beyond infrastructure and financial support — expertise and knowledge must be shared freely to the benefit of all. WHY NEW YORK CITY GENERATES A DIFFERENT KIND OF STARTUP TO CALIFORNIA The Silicon Valley of New York (coming soon to Governors Island!) won't actually be all that similar to the Californian model. The startups coming out of New York (such as Tumblr, Kickstarter, Etsy) are an intrinsically different breed than the West Coast startups (Facebook, Google, Apple) — they're flavoured by the city. Leslie is very aware of this. "The second chapter of my career was in technology on the West Coast. I worked at Microsoft and, like its analogist companies in the Valley, it started in the suburbs and there were a few of us who commuted out to Redmond, Washington. What you're now seeing is companies recognising that to innovate, there's something about being in a city rather than isolated. When you create campuses with an urban flavour, that really makes sense for innovation." A city, unlike the 'burbs, is a cluster model in itself. The Governors Island incubator model will perhaps not be a scaled down version of Silicon Valley but of NYC itself, with educational institutions and private sector components physically merged instead of adjacent. "High-tech companies move to the city because of the messiness of the city and the interactions you have with all kinds of people and different kinds of industries… I personally believe that cities are the place where innovation takes place," she says "What I couldn't have planned for was the amount of emotion that New Yorkers have for Governors Island. We made a place people have embraced, have come to love, even though it's a place no-one has ever spent the night and it's never been open for more than 120 days a year." Australia has only 10 percent the urban density of America so notions of space can be a tricky to wrap your head around; space is a nuisance most of the time. But the cluster model is starting to take hold in Sydney and it works, no doubt in part, thanks to the mapping done on the front lines in the US. [caption id="attachment_572738" align="alignnone" width="1280"] The Hills, Governors Island.[/caption] WHAT'S NEXT? Sadly, Leslie recently announced she'll be stepping down as CEO after the Hills opens to the public. "This is a natural inflection point and when you run a seasonal recreation destination, you're on-duty every weekend so the thought of having my first summer off in 11 summers was just too good to pass up." And what a hard-earned summer it'll be. You can catch Leslie speaking at REMIX Sydney from June 2-3 at Sydney Town Hall. Your mates Concrete Playground will be there too, introducing you to Sydney's most successful entrepreneurs — the businesses we couldn't write fast enough about — with a special curated session on 'How Long Does It Take to Become an Overnight Success?'. More info right here. Top image: Iwan Baan/Governors Island.
With locations across Sydney and Melbourne and all over the USA, you know The Boiling Crab must be doing something right to be able to expand so much. The story here is a fun tongue-in-cheek idea that while other fishermen were off boozing and telling tall stories in bars, the honest and hardworking fishermen of The Boiling Crab were toiling through sleepless nights, trying to concoct the perfect spices and recipes for their restaurant. Whether this is true or not (it isn't) isn't the point; the point is this is a place that, despite having seriously good food, doesn't take itself too seriously. And you don't have to take it too seriously, either. They actively encourage diners to get sauce all over their bib and beer all over the table — just don't tell the waitstaff we said so. The Melbourne CBD venue features an interior that looks like some kind of acid trip along the San Francisco wharves, which you never quite came down from. It's all nets from the ceilings, life buoys on the walls and fake fish singing at you. In a word — subtle. If you're here for the food, though, and not interior design tips, then you're well and truly in luck. It's delicious. The Boiling Crab menu goes like this — step one: choose your catch, step two: add your sauce, step three: pick your spice level. The catch includes everything from king crab legs, live mud crab, Boston lobster, baby octopus, crawfish and abalone. The sauces feature options such as Rajun Cajun, lemon pepper, garlic sauce and the mysteriously titled Extra Juicy. Spice levels start at non-spicy for the kids to XXX (I can't feel my mouth!) for those who don't like the taste of food, just chilli. Pair it up with a cocktail such as the Blue Margarita (think a margarita, but blue) and you have yourself a wild night on the town.
The weather has turned a corner in Melbourne, so if you're looking for any (and all) excuse to capitalise on the city's sunny afternoons, this wallet-friendly cocktail special should be at the top of your list. Head to any Lucas Restaurants venue from 4–6pm every Thursday, and this multi-location happy hour deal will see you sipping on $9.50 cocktails along with a range of craft beer, wine, bubbles and share plate specials. [caption id="attachment_896790" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Society, Tom Blachford[/caption] Across the program, Richmond's Baby Pizza is shaking up spicy margs and Aperol spritz; Windsor's Hawker Hall bar will be pumping out I Just Called to Say I Love Yuzu and Welcome To the Junglebird cocktails on the cheap; and Flinders Lane favourite Chin Chin is serving up a take on the classic negroni spiked with strawberries, cirtus and white cardamon. At Chin Chin, you can also snag a vodka and lychee number, or small plates including a stellar yellowfin tuna tartare with shiso ($11.50). Grill Americano is tempting workers in with bellinis and chardonnay ($15), or head to Society for a classic G&T, martini or luxe fries served with a caviar aioli ($18.50). Meanwhile, modern Japanese favourites Yakimono are offering beef skewers in a wasabi citrus oil ($15.50), a tequila and lychee cocktail and $6.50 beers. [caption id="attachment_854382" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Grill Americano[/caption] For the full list of food and drink specials, head to each venue's website. Cocktail Hour is reserved for walk-ins only at each venue.
The ploughman's lunch: it's a meal packed with old-world connotations of country living and hard labour, loved by many, even those who have never touched a plough in their lives. A standard definition is a small meal of bread, cheese and pickle, generally eaten in the middle of the day, usually served in a pub. From its time as a farmer's mainstay to the pub classic it is today, the dish has gone through many changes. When we tried the ploughman's at the White Rabbit Brewery in Geelong, we wondered, where does the dish actually come from? What is it that makes it such a legend? Here's a little bit of history, from ye olden days to the here and now. [caption id="attachment_584446" align="alignnone" width="1280"] Flickr.[/caption] YE OLDEN DAYS Back in the day, the world ran almost exclusively on agriculture. Aussies were farming as early as 1788, and agriculture remains a large part of Australian trade today. This is likely why the dish remains so prominent and evokes such overwhelming cultural nostalgia – even in those who have never stepped foot on a farm. For the farmers of old, the meal made perfect sense; clearly, the ploughmen of centuries ago didn't return home for a long lunch and siesta before finishing the day's work. Nor did they spend lunchtime hours hanging at the pub over a few pints — tough days, we know. Historians surmise that it is more likely farmers took with them some cheese, bread and pickles for luncheon, which didn't need to be refrigerated and could last out in the heat of the day. The notion of a 'pub lunch' is a much more modern and luxurious one than could have been afforded centuries ago. FROM RAGS TO RICHES While the meal itself was certainly a mainstay of farmers, its name, and indoctrination into society, came way, way later. The meal actually gained popularity after a nation-wide marketing push that happening between 1958 to 1977. At this time, post-war rationing was a thing of the past and businesses were not happy with the swift decline in the amount of cheese being eaten. To whip up nostalgia for this time-honoured dish, a marketing company made a bold claim that English cheese and beer have for centuries formed a perfect combination enjoyed as the 'Ploughman's Lunch'. This is the first historical reference to the dish, which was essentially invented as a marketing ploy to sell cheese — and not just one type of cheese, but all cheeses, thus making the dish popular across all regions and allowing for the creation of endless regional versions. Of course, the combination of bread and cheese was a timeless one and an obvious accompaniment. At that time, many rural pubs wouldn't have had a proper kitchen, so the Ploughman's Lunch was embraced as it could include simple ingredients that would be stored in the cellar and assembled easily by staff. THESE TIMES, THEY ARE A-CHANGIN' Once the dish was named, it was swiftly taken from the fields into the pubs. The emphasis on fresh produce, which in the past was a necessity, is a big part of why it fits so well into today's organic culture where we expect nothing less. Since the derivation of the dish is a farce, the components of a 'traditional' ploughman's lunch are also widely open to interpretation. An entire book was written on the subject – The Definitive Ploughman's — which found that one region of England uses thirteen ingredients in their ploughman's, adding sweetcorn, olives and beetroot components to your average cheese and bread. The variations don't stop there – Jamie Oliver's version contains spinach and fennel artisan bread and a scotch egg, while Barfoot Contessa's Ina Garten prefers an English-American fusion of thickly sliced Virginia ham and English cheddar. The restaurant within Geelong's White Rabbit Brewery allows patrons to pair any number of craft cheeses and meats, like wagyu bresaola paired with a Barossa triple cream. Each platter is served with a baguette from local bread makers Born & Bread and Yarra Valley's Cunliffe & Waters chutneys and spreads, along with pickled veg galore. This is truly the crème de la crème of ploughman's. Also agreed upon is that a good ploughman's lunch is a true testament to the overall quality of a pub. The dish continues to take many forms, and at its fanciest, better resembles a charcuterie. But even in its simplest form, there really is nothing better than a plate of crusty bread, homemade chutney, pickled vegetables and of course, a wedge of artisan cheese. Don't forget to wash it all down with a nice cold pint — it makes the dish taste just right. Find White Rabbit Brewery at 221 Swanston Street, South Geelong. Open Sunday to Thursday 11am – 5pm, Friday to Saturday 11am – 9pm.
A number of prominent Australian musicians, including Little May, Montaigne, Ngaiire and Abbe May, are uniting through social media in order to throw their support behind International Breast Cancer Awareness month. The I Touch Myself Project was inspired by the 1990 hit song by Australian rock band Divinyls, whose lead singer Chrissy Amphlett died from breast cancer in 2013. The campaign was originally launched by the Cancer Council in 2014, with the likes of Megan Washington, Sarah Blasko and Olivia Newton John collaborating on a music video to encourage women to check themselves for the disease. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FeaO2BrrIf8 Now the campaign has been resurrected by a new group of female artists, who have taken to Instagram to share photos of themselves holding their breasts in their hands and encouraging other women to do the same, using the hashtag #itouchmyselfproject. "Every year, hundreds and thousands of women die from treatable breast cancer, simply because they are diagnosed too late," posted the members of Little May. "In memory of the late legend, Chrissy Amphlett, we have joined friends @ngaiire @actualmontaigne @katysteele @abbemayzing to touch ourselves as she had asked." Every year, hundreds and thousands of women die from treatable breast cancer, simply because they are diagnosed too late. In memory of the late legend, Chrissy Amphlett, we have joined friends @ngaiire @actualmontaigne @katysteele @abbemayzing to touch ourselves as she had asked. The Divinyls 'I Touch Myself' is now an anthem for the early detection of breast cancer. For International Breast Cancer Awareness month take a picture of your own hand bra, and tag 5 of your friends to do the same.. @becsandridge @catalish @ella_hooper @lexi_b__ @jessicahamiltn #myhandbra #itouchmyselfproject @itouchmyselfproject A photo posted by Little May (@littlemaymusic) on Oct 3, 2016 at 8:54pm PDT Every year, hundreds of women die from treatable breast cancer, simply because they are diagnosed too late. @actualmontaigne @abbemayzing @katysteele , @littlemaymusic and I have stepped out in our hand bras in honour of the late Chrissy Amphlett who wanted her song 'I Touch Myself' to be an anthem for spreading the awareness of touching ourselves for early detection. Spread the word this Breast Cancer Awareness Month by taking a pic of your own hand bra and tagging 5 of your friends to do the same. Will you touch yourself @beemcsee @haileycramer @julianedisisto @summerpagaspas @mamikoyo @vassi_lena ? #myhandbra #itouchmyselfproject #ngaiire A photo posted by N G A I I R E (@ngaiire) on Oct 3, 2016 at 7:07pm PDT Chrissy Amphlett did a wonderful thing before the world lost her to breast cancer, and that was to make sure she was doing the most she could to avail women of a similar fate. I am proud to be a part of the #itouchmyselfproject and to raise awareness of breast cancer alongside a plethora of other excellent women and @berleiaus. I touch myself for breast cancer awareness. Will you? Photographed by the amazing Tony Mott! A photo posted by Montaigne (@actualmontaigne) on Oct 4, 2016 at 2:08am PDT Every year, hundreds and thousands of women die from treatable breast cancer, simply because they are diagnosed too late. In memory of the late legend, Chrissy Amphlett, I am humbled to join friends @ngaiire @actualmontaigne @littlemaymusic @abbemayzing to touch ourselves as she had asked. The Divinyls 'I Touch Myself' is now an anthem for the early detection of breast cancer. For International Breast Cancer Awareness month take a picture of your own hand bra, and tag 5 of your friends to do the same.. @tanzertanzertanzer @leelulahula @sezzyfilmy @wheelsanddollbaby @jaala_bandthing Photo by #tonymott @itouchmyselfproject #itouchmyself #myhandbra A photo posted by Kａt y S t e e l e (@katysteele) on Oct 4, 2016 at 3:02am PDT Every year, hundreds of women die from treatable breast cancer, simply because they are diagnosed too late. The great @ngaiire, @actualmontaigne, @katysteele , @littlemaymusic and I have stepped out in our hand bras in honour of the late Chrissy Amphlett who wanted her song 'I Touch Myself' to be an anthem for spreading the awareness of touching ourselves for early detection. Spread the word this Breast Cancer Awareness Month by taking a pic of your own hand bra and tagging 5 of your friends to do the same. #itouchmyselfproject #myhandbra Photo taken by the radical Tony Mott. A photo posted by Abbe May (@abbemayzing) on Oct 3, 2016 at 7:10pm PDT
Melbourne's latest CBD pub looks set to tower over the competition. Opening on Tuesday, July 19 after years of planning, the Garden State Hotel is a sprawling four-storey watering hole complete with public bar, beer garden, private dining room, subterranean saloon and New York-style grill. The way things are shaping up, we'll never have to go anywhere else. Garden State is located at 101 Flinders Lane, inside a 130-year-old building that began its life as a saw mill before playing host to Rosati, one of Melbourne's top dining destinations in the '80s and '90s. Now, under the new ownership of Sand Hill Road Hospitality – the same team behind the Prahran, Bridge and Terminus Hotels – the space has been transformed once again. In the centre of the building, punters will find a multi-level beer garden built around three large ficus trees. The space is served by a long bar, with a self-order kiosk that delivers snacks and toasted sandwiches in a flash. At the rear of the beer garden is the venue's main dining area, the appropriately named Garden Grill. There you'll feast on Modern Australian cuisine including an array of fresh seafood. Also on the ground level is the Garden State's public bar, featuring booth seating, bar tables and views onto bustling Flinders Lane. Shuckin' for days #gardenstateblooming #menutasting #flinderslane #melbournebarsandrooftops #blkboardmelb #melbourneeats RG @dp_chef A photo posted by Garden State Hotel (@gardenstatehotel) on Jul 13, 2016 at 11:19pm PDT Head downstairs and you'll end up face to face with the Rose Garden, an intimate saloon decorated with French crystal chandaliers, vintage vases and rose bouquets, with a cocktail menu overseen by ex-Eau de Vie barman Kevin Peters. The first floor, meanwhile, is home to the Balcony Dining Room, a private space for 18 people with its own bar and balcony. And on the second floor? The venue's premier function space, described as "a glamorous, light-filled space for up to 120 people." Find Garden State Hotel at 101 Flinders Lane from Tuesday, June 19. For more information visit www.gardenstatehotel.com.au.
When I first signed up for a day of whitewater rafting on Tropical North Queensland's Tully River I was pumped. I can't say it had ever been on my bucket list, but as a new resident of North Queensland I was keen to do anything that meant I got to explore the deep north – so I couldn't turn down this RedBalloon experience. My alarm on the morning of the adventure went off at 5.15am, and my dreams of being flung out the raft and thrown into white water came to an end. Mild panic had begun to settle in. By the time I arrived at the meeting point in Cairns where our tour bus was waiting to drive us to the riverside destination, I was scheming ways to get out of it. We travelled down the Bruce Highway past sugar cane fields, banana plantations and cloud-covered coastal mountains. About an hour later, the road started getting narrower, the surrounding vegetation more lush, and glimpses of the river opened up to full views. We got off the bus and our guide Gregor helped with my helmet and life jacket, then I grabbed a paddle and headed down the path with five strangers towards our raft. As we paddled towards our first lot of rapids I tried to recall the instructions on what to do. I realised that upon entering the raft, I'd been way too focused on wedging my foot in between the seats to ensure I was attached no matter what and forgot to listen. As the menacing whitewater looked like it was about to engulf us I didn't know whether to squeeze my eyes shut or hold on tight, or both. Neither of the options included helping to paddle. [caption id="attachment_593255" align="alignnone" width="1280"] This is me terrified and holding on to the rope.[/caption] Then Gregor's clear, calm voice came from the back of the raft, "Okay guys, this is how today will work," he said. "Listen to me and you'll be fine. I promise to give really simple instructions. We're going to have heaps of fun getting to know this river." I wasn't 100 per cent convinced but I did listen to him. My life was in his hands. "Okay guys, here we go! Paddle forward, forward, forward aaaand relax. Now back paddle, back, back, back aaaand relax." I did relax. Honestly. As soon as we'd cleared the first lot of rapids I knew I was in safe hands with a pro river guide and a bunch of people who were a mix of fairly experienced thrill-seekers and newbie thrill-seekers like me. Gregor maneuvered the raft through the first lot of rapids expertly. With names like 'Double D Cup', I couldn't help but giggle (nervously) as we approached them and then scream/laugh as we rode through them. Gregor informed us they were the trickiest set we'd encounter. I didn't want to ask if he meant before lunch or throughout the whole day, so I kept my mouth shut and rejoiced with the rest of my team that we'd aced it. As we floated into calmer waters we got out of the raft for a swim, letting the cool, crystal-clear waters take us past springs and falls while the magnificent rainforest growth of the gorge towered overhead. Ulysses butterflies flying above us came along for the ride too. After a refreshing shower under Pony Tail Falls we hopped on to dry land for a barbecue lunch in the middle of the rainforest before setting off to tackle the rest of the rapids. This time around, it was panic-free. By the end of the day I was jumping off a 5-metre-tall rock formation. As I bobbed up to the surface, I was chuffed with myself for being a bit of a daredevil. I knew I would've regretted not giving the jump a go, which sums up how I felt about the whole day. From the first "aaaand relax" from Gregor, my worries seemed silly. Photos from the day show that I was holding on to the safety ropes a lot, which made my team mates ask whether I'd actually done any paddling. But I did. I promise. Book your white water rafting adventure (or gift it to someone else) at RedBalloon. Images: RedBalloon.
If you've been looking for an excuse to visit Maha North, Shane Delia's elegant meze and cocktail bar, this could be it. Maha North is teaming up with Yarra Valley's born and bred Mac Forbes, who is known for his experimental cool climate wines which champion the region's unique terroir. On Tuesday, October 3, Shane and the team will throw a specially-designed, three-course culinary journey, paired with a curated selection of Mac Forbes' wines. Mac Forbes will also be on hand to share his unique knowledge on the world of Victorian winemaking. The menu for this once-off evening will run to the likes of a prawn tartare, paired with local kataifi and wakame salmon caviar. Salted cod is dressed with a dill falafel, while oysters are married with basterma and capsicum jam. Also on the lineup: a cheese and truffle medfouna, and stuffat tal-fenek bhal tal familija Delia — braised rabbit served with an array of sides. Where Delia's long-running CBD fine diner Maha is pushing the creative envelope, Maha North is the more classic-leaning, smart-yet-casual counterpart. It has similar vibrant flavours, but with a menu that beckons you to sit down and settle in for some good old-fashioned feasting. Images: supplied.
Not every ballet features dancers forming constellations, gramophone-shaped mirrors creating kaleidoscopic visuals, refractive and reflective surfaces making it appear as though performers are overlapping, and choreography created for every leaf in a 134-page text — but, not every ballet is Tree of Codes. Music, dance, art and literature fans, hold on to your hats: Tree of Codes is a collaboration between Jamie xx, Royal Ballet choreographer Wayne McGregor, Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson and novelist Jonathan Safran Foer. First previewing in Manchester in 2016, it's named after and based on the latter's book-based artwork of the same name. Also described as a "sculptural object", the printed work took Bruno Schulz's Street of Crocodiles, cut out the majority of words and fashioned what remained into a new post-apocalyptic story. We originally wrote about the show when it showed in London, but now it's making its way to our shores for a few shows as part of Melbourne Festival 2017.
You may not know it, but ramen, the quintessentially Japanese dish, may have actually originated in China. Traditional Chinese noodle dishes are very similar in style to ramen, and Lamian, a Chinese noodle similar to the type you find in ramen, may be the linguistic origin of the word ramen. But this is all conjecture. Now you can try for yourself and see. Shanghai Street Noodle Wizard has recently opened on Russell Street in the city and it’s serving up Suzhao noodle soups from China’s Jiangsu Province. Apart from having the all-time best name for a venue, Noodle Wizard also wins our hearts by being a part of the Shanghai Street Dumpling family. As such, they'll not only be serving up soup, but sets of your favourite dumplings and dumpling-adjacent cuisine (hellooooo spring onion pancakes). The menu and ordering system looks slightly confusing, as there are some options for how the noodles are served, so it's best to apply the KISS approach – keep it simple, sexy. For comparative data, traditional Japanese ramen joint Menya Sandaime is just up the road and open 24/7. You kind of owe it to science to compare the pair. Shanghai Street Noodle Wizard is located at 167 Russell Street, Melbourne. Open Monday - Thursday 12:00pm -3pm, 4:30pm-9:00pm; Fri 12:00pm -3:00pm, 4:30pm - 9:30pm; Sunday 12:00pm - 3:00pm, 4:30pm-8pm. Via Goodfood. Image via Faye.
If you can hear 'Greensleeves' on the wind, you'd better chase the ice cream truck down to Queensbridge Square. King of dessert-for-dinner degustations Pierre Roelofs will be giving out free ice creams today. Parking the truck at Queensbridge Square on Tuesday, September 29 from midday t0 1pm (yep, it's a tiny window of sweet, sweet glory, so get there early), Roelofs will be handing over the goods to the first 200 people to show up. It's all to celebrate the announcement of this year's Good Food Month program today — and you can pick up a copy while you're there, or have a sneaky peek at our breakdown over here. If you can't get down to the square today, never fear. Roelofs will be serving up the goods at Sweetfest at GFM, a dessert-only festival featuring Katherine Sabbath, Philippa Sibley and more at North Melbourne’s Meat Market on November 28-29. If you can't wait that long, Roelof's insane dessert evenings have just returned to Melbourne, this week. Roelofs will be giving out free ice creams from midday to 1pm on Tuesday, September 29 at Queensbridge Square. For more information about Good Food Month's 2015 program, head over here.
Grab a cup of coffee and your best highlighter pen because the program for Melbourne Fringe has just been revealed — and boy is it a doozy. From circus and dance to mind-popping installations and everything in-between, this year's festival consists of more than 450 events, brought to life by literally thousands of passionate artists. For punters, it's both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, there's certainly no shortage of things to see. On the other, it's basically impossible to get to them all. Inspired by the theme 'step into the light', this year's program is bookended by a pair of significant works from acclaimed audio-visual artist Robin Fox. Lighting up the city from September 15 to 18, Sky Light is a city-scale artwork that will connect iconic Melbourne skyscrapers with powerful lasers, invisible from some angles and breathtaking from others. Similarly, from September 29 until October 2, White Beam will pierce the sky above Prahran's Grattan Gardens with a focused beam of shimmering white light. But that's just the tip of a very impressive iceberg. As one of the biggest and most eclectic events on the city's cultural calendar, the Fringe lineup caters to every conceivable taste. There'll be eye-popping cabaret shows from the likes of James Welsby and Yana Alana, alongside a music lineup that covers everything from jazz to orchestral to disco. Comedy is, as per usual, a major focus of the festival, with Sammy J, Bev Kilick and rising star Laura Davis among those slated to perform. The latter, in particular, comes highly recommended. This year also marks the 30th anniversary of the Fringe Furniture exhibition. Showcasing the work of exceptional Melbourne designers, find it at the historic Abbotsford Convent throughout the duration of the fest. And, of course, you'll want to spend plenty of time at the Festival Club in North Melbourne, where you can mingle with like-minded patrons and catch a different show every night. The Melbourne Fringe Festival runs from September 15 until October 2. For the full program visit melbournefringe.com.au.
When we take that first sip of our barista-brewed coffee on a workday morning, a lot of us can't actually imagine living without coffee. But what about living without a roof over your head or a guaranteed meal? Unfortunately, this is what many homeless people around Australia face each day, but on Friday, August 5, you can help your fellow Aussies out simply by buying a coffee as part of CafeSmart. CafeSmart is an annual event from StreetSmart that raises money and awareness for the homeless and is back for its fourth year running. So how does it work? From every coffee purchased on August 5 at a participating cafe around Australia, $1 will be donated towards local projects. So if your go-to local isn't participating, shake things up for a day and head to one that is. Prefer a hot chocolate? You can also donate at the counter. Simply by aiming for a bighearted cafe, you'll be helping some of our country's most in-need humans, so treat yourself to a third or fourth coffee guilt-free. CafeSmart is happening around the country on Friday, August 5. Check the website for participating cafes near you.
It is a truth universally acknowledged that Melburnians love Nutella. Like, love Nutella. In fact we love it so much that we may have accidentally caused a nation-wide shortage earlier in the month. Oops. Sorry everyone in the rest of the country. That one was on us. Now you might have hoped that we'd have learnt something from that experience — that perhaps Melbourne should be enjoying Nutella in moderation, to ensure that we're never confronted with such a scarcity again. But that just wouldn't be our style. Instead, we're doubling down, with a full blown Nutella pop-up. We're talking s'mores, truffles and tarts by the hundreds. Because if anyone is going to wipe those heavenly nuts off the face of the earth, then you better believe it is going to be us. Organised by City Lane, the pop-up pops up at The Alehouse Project in Brunswick East on Saturday, September 12. The service window opens at 9am sharp, at which point you'll be able to grab yourself a $10 'bento box' containing a Nutella and peanut butter s'more, a Nutella and salted caramel chocolate truffle, and a Nutella and maple syrup tart with smoked hickory Italian meringue. If 9am sounds too early to be scoffing all that sugar then move to Adelaide, you traitor. Besides, they've only made 500 boxes — and we have a sneaking suspicion they're not going to last. Hell, we're planning on grabbing at least a dozen boxes for ourselves. The pop-up will also be serving Japanese style V60 pour over coffee at $3 a cup. Their set-up is cash only, so make sure you bring the Benjamins. You'll also be able to grab a glass of beer or wine once The Alehouse opens at midday — although again, that's only if you're willing to run the risk of missing out on the sweet stuff. Your call. Image: Dollar Photo Club.
One of Australia's most beloved historic cinemas, for more than 75 years the Astor Theatre has been home to some of the finest movies ever made. Silent classics and masterpieces of foreign cinema regularly light up the art deco auditorium, transporting audiences to worlds beyond their imagination. But all that pales in comparison to what they've got in store this Friday night. Forget about Casablanca, Metropolis and Apocalypse Now. Things are about to get... magic. Led by Channing Tatum's abs, The Kings of Tampa will strut their stuff across the screen for both Magic Mike films from 7.30pm sharp. No word on whether The Astor will be providing any live entertainment during intermission, although it'd seem like a pretty big missed opportunity if they don't (maybe the staff will show off a few dance moves?) Either way, pre-film cocktails on Chapel Street are highly recommended.
Friday Nights at the NGV are back. Coinciding with the last few weeks of the current Melbourne Winter Masterpieces exhibition, Masterpieces from the Hermitage: The Legacy of Catherine the Great, the gallery is inviting visitors to enjoy a jam-packed late-night program complete with food, booze, talks and live performances. The six-week program begins Friday, October 2, with a night headlined by contemporary jazz group The Paul Grabowsky Trio. Other musical guests on the program include Glenn Richards, Gareth Liddiard, Laura Jean, Underground Lovers and Jaako Eino Kalevi, as well as DJ sets from Darcy Baylis, Banoffee, Airwolf and Edd Fisher. In addition to the music lineup, other Friday night activities include drawing classes and short academic talks. Food-wise, the gallery kitchen will be serving casual dining fare and share plates in the Great Hall. All in all, top notch Friday adventuring in the gallery. Image: Banoffee, Sarah Chav.
Slow food? What's slow food? Nope, it's not the eating of snails. The philosophy of slow food (for those who may need a cheeky reminder) essentially boils down to produce that is good, clean and fair. If those principles resonate with you and your preferred eating habits, this farmers market is for you. Going strong since 2006, and in partnership with Melbourne Farmers Market, this smorgasbord of delectable produce calls the Abbotsford Convent home on the fourth Saturday of each month. The market features 60 of Melbourne's most hardworking local growers and food producers. These farmers' unwavering dedication to the quality of their produce and the integrity of their production methods ensures buyers that their dollars are going directly towards maintaining this high standard. It’s a $2 donation on entry, and we should also let you know that it is a plastic bag-free zone, so please BYO calico. If you have a well behaved pooch (or kitty) they are also welcome to attend, just keep them on a lead and you're golden.
Five seasons in, and you’d think Game of Thrones fans would have resigned themselves to the fact that most of their favourite characters are probably going to die. And yet, as the recent season five finale showed, audiences are still holding on to a faint glimmer of hope — and are then venting their agony on the internet when HBO stabs them through the heart. To help you cope with George R. R. Martin’s latest batch of executions, ACMI have assembled a team of four diehard Thrones fans for their latest edition of Talking TV. This Tuesday, June 30, film critic Luke Buckmaster, freelance culture journo Mel Campbell, broadcaster/writer Clementine Ford and writer/comedian Luke Ryan will examine the public reaction to the show and pitch their answers to some of the biggest questions in Westeros. Is you know who really dead? Is Daenerys ever going to fly to King’s Landing? Will anyone who swore to boycott the show next year actually stick to their guns? Just try not to like any of the panelists too much. Because you’d basically be signing their death warrant.
A big happy birthday is in order for one of Australia's greatest electronic music promoters. Over the past 11 years, The Operatives have showcased world-class electronic music figures, as well as sending Australia’s finest into the world to make a name for themselves with international audiences. The Operatives are sure as heck going to party like it’s, well, their bday, with some very special international guests dropping in to help blow out the candles. Leading the charge is LA’s rabbit-lovin' producer Jennifer Lee aka TOKiMONSTA, the darling of Flying Lotus’s label Brainfeeder. There'll also be first-time Australian performances by BBC Radio 1 regular Toddla T, and Belgium-based collective Losco. Joining this already-epic lineup is Beat Spacek, Sunit, A13, Amin Payne, Headstone, Jade Zoe and Mimi, JPS vs NAM, Kano and Lady Banton. Throw on some Camo and head down to Revolt Artspace to get amongst the birthday festivities.
After years of gigging and tireless campaigning from the likes of FBi Radio, Sydney-based foursome Gang of Youths are nationally-appreciated hot stuff right now. They’ve played sold-out shows alongside Vampire Weekend, Frightened Rabbit and Foster the People, done the Aussie festival circuit, toured the States, and been compared to Arcade Fire and Bruce Springsteen — and that was all before their debut album The Position was released last month. Now they’re setting off on a national tour, and the GOY-hungry public can’t seem to get enough of them; lapping up tickets faster than the band can announce new shows. GOY play rock that’s big on catharsis. Frontman David Leaupepe’s inspiration for the band’s raw, guitar-heavy debut was the emotional rollercoaster of his four-year long-distance relationship with a girl who had been diagnosed with stage four cancer. It makes for a sound that seems bound to fill stadiums one day — so consider yourself lucky if you manage to bag a ticket to one of these more intimate gigs.
