If you've got meaty cravings for the delectable dishes of the southern states of the United States of America, then make your way to Roast Republic in the heart of Sydney's CBD. Family-style servings are the name of the game at this joint. The menu is brimming with classic Americana dishes like fried chicken, Mississippi shrimp (no prawns here), Carolina barbecue pork skewers, seafood gumbo, Philly cheesesteaks, and the hero share boards featuring dry-rubbed, slow-cooked and glazed lamb cutlets, pork chops and beef short ribs, grilled elote (corn) and house sauces. Dessert is equally American-themed, with peach cobbler, pecan pie and "American as Apple Pie" fried apple pie gracing the menu. The drinks list has something for everyone. There are plenty of wine options from across Australia, an extensive spirits collection — in particular, bourbon from all the big names — and specialised cocktails and mocktails designed to pair nicely with the American fare on offer. Images: Chris Manos
If you were one of the many (46,000 to be exact) people on the waiting list for London's pop-up nude restaurant The Bunyadi earlier this year, then you'll be stoked with the news that Spain is set to open its own nude restaurant — only this one will be permanent. Yep, there'll be nude meals all year-round at Innato Tenerife, which will be located on the largest of the Canary Islands, Tenerife. According to The Local, the restaurateur behind the concept Tony de Leonardis was inspired by the London pop-up and will have a similar no clothes, no phones policy. Unfortunately that doesn't mean no wallets though — you'll have to pay a hefty price of €70 for the privilege, which includes an all-inclusive buffet. Perhaps most interesting is the table situation — the waitstaff won't just bring your food, they'll stick around so you can eat it off them too. Yum? Apparently they will be wearing loin cloths and vine leaves though. For modesty. Apart from that weird feature, the setting sounds rather nice. Innato will be located in candle-lit private gardens in the town of San Isidro, with room for 44 to dine among fruit trees. Sounds very Garden of Eden. It will open on January 20 next year — here's the Facebook event if perchance you're naked and in town. Via The Local.
When the middle of October hits, celebrating Japan by actually heading to the country will be back on the agenda, with the Asian nation's strict border rules finally relaxing. Can't make the trip ASAP? Fancy getting your Japanese thrills in a cinema instead — or until you can hop on a plane? Then Australia's annual touring Japanese Film Festival has timed its return well. As it does every year, this year's JFF has compiled a selection of must-see recent and retro Japanese movies, and will take its lineup to Canberra, Perth, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. There's two parts, both coming to all locations except Western Australia: a classics series, showing iconic films on 35mm; and a rundown the latest and greatest flicks the country has to offer. When it does the rounds between Saturday, November 5–Wednesday, December 14, the 2022 fest will open with historical drama Dreaming of the Meridian Arc, which hops between present-day Japan and the Edo period to tell the tale behind the man who completed the first-ever map of Japan. Also a huge highlight: the retro season's focus on filmmaker Mikio Naruse, with 1954's Sound of the Mountain, 1960's When a Woman Ascends the Stairs and 1964's Yearning on the bill — and showing for free. Back to the recent titles (and the paid part of the program), standouts include psychological thriller Lesson in Murder, which starts when a college student gets a letter from a serial killer on death row; drama In the Wake, about the victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011; and the animated Blue Thermal, with the world of competitive gliding soaring onto the screen. Anime Supremacy! is unsurprisingly focused on characters who live and breath anime production; Baby Assassins gives battling the yakuza (and being hitmen) a kawaii spin, and culinary documentary The Pursuit of Perfection follows top Tokyo chefs Takemasa Shinohara (Ginza Shinohara), Natsuko Shōji (Été), Yōsuke Suga (Sugalabo) and Takaaki Sugita (Sushi Sugita). JAPANESE FILM FESTIVAL 2022 DATES: Canberra: Special series: November 5–6 at NFSA Latest releases: November 16–20 at Palace Electric Perth: Latest releases: November 21–27 at Palace Raine Square Brisbane: Special series: Friday, November 11–Sunday, November 20 at QAGOMA Latest releases: Wednesday, November 23–Sunday, November 27 at Palace Barracks Melbourne: Latest releases: Wednesday, November 30–Sunday, December 4 at The Kino Special series: Friday, December 2–Sunday, December 4 at ACMI Sydney: Latest releases: Wednesday, December 7–Sunday, December 11 at Palace Central, Palace Norton Street and Palace Verona Special series: Monday, December 12–Wednesday, December 14 at The Chauvel The 2022 Japanese Film Festival tours Australia between Saturday, November 5–Wednesday, December 14. For more information and to buy tickets, visit the festival website. Images: Baby Assassins Film Partners / Blue Thermal Film Partners / AOI Pro/TY Limited.
Danny Harley, the alternative electronic producer and performer better known as The Kite String Tangle, has just released his debut EP Vessel, which debuted at #8 on the ARIA charts and #2 on the iTunes charts. That's not a bad effort for your first solo release, not bad at all. TKST rampaged onto the Australian music scene last year with 'Given The Chance', which landed an impressive place at #19 on last year's Hottest 100. Second single 'Arcadia' — a tale of a relationship that is trying to go back to 'the way things were' with little success — was met with an overwhelmingly positive response. With his ethereal electronic sound and subtle but emotional lyrics, Harley creates a world that we're more than happy to get lost in. As of this week, Harley embarks on a massive national tour; with most of his shows sold out already. We had a chat with the super talented young man about songwriting, his musical influences and his favourite track from Vessel. Your music bas been described as emotionally-driven pop music. What comes first, the lyrics or the beats? Definitely the beats. I guess people wouldn't really expect that but it feels so natural to me to write beats and melodies on synths before writing lyrics. Lyrics almost always come last, which is kind of strange. You have been touring incessantly this year, where do you write music? At home or on the road? Pretty much wherever I can really. I try to write as often as I can on my laptop, which is obviously pretty portable so you can write in hotel rooms or at soundchecks. Whenever I get a big stint at home I try to translate those to the studio and fill them out a bit. That's probably another reason why I write beats first. Your EP debuted at #2 on the iTunes charts, and #8 on the ARIA charts, congrats! How do you feel? It's pretty awesome! I didn't really know what to expect, I haven't had a release like this. I had done one song and it gradually built over six months, so for this it was more like 'Today's the day!' I mean, it's just absurd; I didn't know that could happen. Before now you were in the band Pigeon, but before that, how did you get your start in music? I started playing bass in a band when I was twelve and we lived in the UK. We did Green Day covers and played songs, just generally being rad. I've pretty much been trying to do music ever since. https://youtube.com/watch?v=oMP-X1USOFE 'Given the Chance' was a hugely popular debut, was that reaffirming for you and your musical direction? Yes and no. I didn't exactly know what it was about it that people liked. I troubled myself with that for a little while, then I decided that I don't need to know that; I should just write music I like — if they like it, they like it. It's one of those weird things, it's unpredictable. Previously I had been in high energy bands, and then this one was my chill zone musically. Everything I write is more chilled out down-tempo stuff. In that respect, then yeah, for sure it was reaffirming that it was the right direction. Vessel is an extremely strong, considered EP. Any tracks that you are particularly fond/proud of? There's a track called 'What If' — it's actually one that I did start off with the melody and lyrics first, which I never do. Three months later I translated it into a song that was more stylistically appropriate for the project. It's one that has stuck with me and I still like it now, which usually means it has a bit of longevity. I'm waiting to see what other people think. It's probably more like what the album will sound like as well. Wait, have you already started working on your album? You just released your EP! I know! (laughs). I kind of finished the EP two months ago. I figured the sooner I get started on the album the more songs I'll have to choose from and it can be the best that it can possibly be. You're the triple threat, singer, songwriter and producer. Any plans for collaboration in the future? Yeah for sure, I love collaborating. I think it's really cool because you end up with something you wouldn't have if you were doing it on your own, even if you tried really hard. I'm always open to writing with other artists if it's the right fit, and I'm definitely teeing up a few right now, I want to approach it like 'If it's good, it's good.' Then we'll work out what we'll use it for. You do some cracking remixes, How do you chose what to remix? One or two that I've done I chose the song, and then I've done three or four because people approached me asking if I'll do it. I said 'Hells yeah. I'll do it!' I haven't done a remix in a while and I'm trying to make it more of a thing that I do, but I'll balance it with my original output. I don't want to release too many and I want to choose the right people to work with and to remix. You did a fantastic playlist for Indie Shuffle 'Music for people with feelings'. Would you include those artists as musical influences? Yes, all of those people are hugely influential on my music. I'm a big fan of all of them. For that playlist I tried to throw in a few Australian ones as well. I'm definitely influenced by the beatsy kind of dudes like Bonobo, Jamie XX, Four Tet and John Hopkins. Then from a songwriting point of view I love The xx, London Grammar, James Blake, SBTRKT; they're very song-based, less beatsy and have a really strong foundation of a song — good lyrics, good melody. Finally you're about to embark on a huge national tour next week, what are you plans for the rest of the year? At the end of the tour, which wraps up around September 20, we're just locking in USA tour dates and then hopefully UK tour dates shortly after that. Around mid-November I'll come back here; I have a DJ set in Fiji, then it's writing album time after that. The Kite String Tangle Tour Dates: Sep 6 — The Corner Hotel, Melbourne (SOLD OUT) Sep 7 —The Corner Hotel, Melbourne (SOLD OUT) Sep 12 —Manning Bar, Sydney (SOLD OUT) Sep 17 — Telstra Spiegeltent, Brisbane (SOLD OUT) Sep 18 —Telstra Spiegeltent, Brisbane (SOLD OUT)
If summer always leaves you reminiscing about the balmy school holidays of your youth, you're going to be all about the latest line of frosty creations from Gelatissimo. The gelato chain is throwing back hard and digging up plenty of fond memories with its newly launched Aussie Favourites range — a trio of flavours that includes chocolate crackle, fairy bread and Weet-Bix with honey and banana. They're scooping now at all Gelatissimo stores nationwide, up for grabs until the end of January 2020. Sure to transport you straight back to some childhood birthday party, the fairy bread flavour pays homage to a true Aussie icon. Expect buttery vanilla gelato — made with real butter, mind you — scattered with 100s and 1000s, and crunchy pieces of lightly toasted fairy bread. Cleverly blurring that line between breakfast and dessert, the Weet-Bix concoction is another riff on a favourite, though one you're probably less inclined to scoff a bowl of before netball practice. It teams real Weet-Bix chunks with creamy banana gelato and a splash of Australian wildflower honey. And the nostalgia runs extra deep with the chocolate crackle creation, a sweet tribute to one of the most recognisable party treats in all of Australian history. It boasts rich chocolate gelato infused with chunks of real chocolate crackle, crafted just like Mum used to make, with rice puffs, cocoa powder, desiccated coconut and plenty of chocolate sauce. Of course, Gelatissimo's no stranger to dreaming up wild and innovative new creations. In the past year alone, the brand's launched a dog-friendly peanut butter gelato, a boozy frosé sorbet and even a frozen take on the iconic Bundaberg Ginger Beer. Gelatissimo's Aussie Favourites range is available from all stores nationwide, from Friday, November 29, until the end of January.
Ever wanted to build your own community? And no, I don't mean spending every waking hour on The Sims renovating your virtual dream house. This big idea, straight from TED2011, could empower humans everywhere with the essential tools to create civilisations, DIY-style. TED fellow Marcin Jakubowski has identified 50 machines critical to our modern way of life — everything from tractors to ovens to brick-making machines. Determined to re-design these machines to be modular, long-lasting and made of local recyclable materials, Jakubowski began Open Source Ecology, a project uniting a community of farmers, engineers and supporters hell-bent on developing an open-source 'Global Village Construction Set'. In essence, it's a suite of machines that are essential for setting up any civilisation. The best bit? Machinery is made up of interchangeable life-sized LEGO-like parts, and has the potential to democratise industrial production and enhance supply chains to be more environmentally sustainable. Jabukowski says the Global Village Construction Set "lowers the barriers to entry into farming, building, and manufacturing and can be seen as a life-size lego-like set of modular tools that can create entire economies." https://youtube.com/watch?v=CD1EWGQDUTQ [Via GOOD]
Knowing when to take the one-and-done route isn't pop culture's forte, as too many movie franchises and TV shows extending beyond their best days keep showing. The Tourist falls into the opposite category: initially planned as a once-off with its six-episode first season in 2022, the Australian-international co-production has found a way to return. The catalyst for that comeback isn't just the show's initial success, but teaming up stars Jamie Dornan (A Haunting in Venice) and Danielle Macdonald (French Exit) for a second time because it worked so swimmingly to begin with. Indeed, when The Tourist swiftly earned its season-two renewal, it was hardly a twist. Some on-screen collaborations simply demand more opportunities to keep shining, and Dornan with Macdonald is one of them. Same cast, new location, similar-enough scenario: that's the approach in this also six-episode run, as streaming on Stan in Australia and TVNZ+ in New Zealand since Tuesday, January 2. In season one, Dornan's Elliot Stanley awoke in the Aussie outback with zero memory and his life in danger. When it ended, he'd uncovered who he was, complete with a distressing criminal past, but was on the path to starting anew with Helen Chambers (Macdonald), the constable who helped him get to the bottom of his mystery. Screenwriters Harry and Jack Williams (Baptiste, The Missing, Liar) switch part of their initial setup in season two, moving the story to Elliot's homeland and turning Helen into the tourist. Remaining is the lack of recollection about the former's history, even as he actively goes looking for it. The travelling life has been far kinder to Elliot in the gap between seasons, with The Tourist first rejoining him and Helen on a train in southeast Asia. While not married, they're firmly in the honeymoon phase of their relationship. But the now ex-cop has a revelation for her boyfriend: he's received a letter from one of his childhood pals who wants to meet back home. Quickly, off to the Emerald Isle the show's main duo go. Trying to shave off his bushy holiday beard in a public toilet leads to Elliot being kidnapped, plus Helen playing investigator again. As he attempts to flee his captors (Outlander's Diarmaid Murtagh, Inspektor Jury: Der Tod des Harlekins' Nessa Matthews and The Miracle Club's Mark McKenn), she seeks help from local Detective Sergeant Ruairi Slater (Conor MacNeill, Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre), but any dreams that The Tourist's globe-hopping couple had about happy reunions or relaxing Irish getaways are sent packing fast. Disturbing discoveries; feuding families led by the equally formidable Frank McDonnell (Francis Magee, Then You Run) and Niamh Cassidy (Olwen Fouéré, The Northman); Helen's grating ex Ethan (Greg Larsen, Aunty Donna's Coffee Cafe) hopping on a plane to Ireland in an effort to win her back, even as he's supposedly dealing with his oozing toxicity: they're all key factors in The Tourist's second season. So is doing plot-wise what the series' namesakes often embrace, aka veering here, there and everywhere. The obvious point of comparison has always been the Coen brothers and, in particular, Fargo. Its TV adaptation is currently working through its fifth season, and also hurtles through comic crime chaos as a madcap caper with thoughtful leads. Both have that anything-can-happen feel, and live up to it in their narratives. You betcha both are also well-cast. As Elliot endeavours to evade his abductors, Helen searches and worries, and frays going back decades are pushed to the fore, the Williams' brothers aren't afraid of tonal and storytelling swerves, or of jam-packing a tale that's taut and tense but also regularly amusing. Directors Fergus O'Brien (Happy Valley), Lisa Mulcahy (Lies We Tell) and Kate Dolan (Kin) don't shy away from stressing season two's setting, either. As also served their season-one counterparts Daniel Nettheim (who made the excellent 2011 Australian film The Hunter) and Chris Sweeney (Liar) well, the helming trio take their visual cues from their surroundings — with coolly bleached hues suiting someone with nothing to grasp onto in the show's initial run, and verdant sights lingering now that Elliot can't stop being confronted by his densely overflowing past. So follows car and foot chases among rolling hills, a Saw-esque stint, escaping an island, hanging off cliffs, Helen witnessing a murder, unearthed secrets and others that should be buried, escalating violence, and several folks wanting Elliot to reckon with events and choices that he can't recall, all dropping at a breakneck pace that makes binging the series as rapidly as possible the natural reaction. The Tourist is gleefully written to be moreish, yet never manipulatively so. The only misstep: giving Ethan such a prominent part again. In its jump to the other side of the world, bringing Helen's jilted former fiancé back feels like an attempt to ensure that there's more than one Aussie actor popping up — because it certainly isn't a plot necessity. There's no doubting that The Tourist prefers the rollicking over the realistic in everything that it throws Elliot and Helen's ways; however, Dornan and Macdonald are up to the job. He finds the subtleties and vulnerabilities in a man learning who he is more literally than most, and she gives Helen the perfect balance of kindness and determination. Together and with charisma to burn, they're clearly a pair to build a series around, as the Williams siblings have done twice now. Whether laced with laughs or overtly courting them, comedy suits Dornan — see: Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar — but he brings as much dramatic nuance and depth to the role as he did in fellow recent highlights Belfast and Synchronic. If The Tourist will end with just two stamps on its passport is yet to be announced. Its driving forces patently hope otherwise, setting up a third season that hasn't yet been greenlit in season two's final moments, and showing that they're keen to keep shaking up their overarching narrative by always leaping in new directions. Regardless of whether more comes to fruition, Dornan and Macdonald have a highlight on their resumes, while viewers have a compellingly entertaining thriller-meets-dramedy that not only made the most of its arrival, but does the same with its 2024 return. Check out the trailer for second season of The Tourist below: The Tourist season streams via Stan in Australia and TVNZ+ in New Zealand. Read our review of season one.
After 11 years as our accommodation go-to, Airbnb is now trying its hand at playing travel agent. The booking platform has just launched Airbnb Adventures, a series of all-inclusive, multi-day adventures available around the globe. The experiences act as a one-stop-shop for your next trip, with accommodation, meals and activities all part of the tours. Over 200 of these adventures are already up on the site. You can take a nine-day trek through the Amazon for around $270 per night, a five-day trip through the Oman desert for $300 per night or go on a culinary kayaking trip through Swedish islands for $360 per night. There's also a seven-day accessible experience on Easter Island, an overnight campsite on a cliffside in Colorado, island hopping around the Galapagos and, for something closer to home, an adventure around New Zealand subtropical islands, too. Prices range from a reasonable overnight trip for $115 all the way up to a rather exy 10-day trek for $7200. On average, the adventure packages cost around $850 for a three-dayer. The new platform, while having a different name, is part of Airbnb Experiences: the app's existing range of locally hosted events, such as cooking classes and hikes. And it runs in a similar way, as in all 'adventures' are 100 percent hosted and planned by locals — Airbnb is simply the mediator between the two. Each adventure is also kept quite small and set at groups of 12 max. To launch the new platform, Airbnb is offering an around the world in 80 days adventure to eight travellers for just $7214 per person, which comes down to about $90 per night. The trip will leave from London on September 1 and bring travellers through 18 countries across six continents — including to Bhutan, Iceland, Egypt, Romania, Japan and Ecuador. Bookings for this one will be available on June 20 and it'll likely book out in a minute, so you best get yourself prepped if you want a spot on this trip. Airbnb Adventures are now live and can be booked through the website or via the Airbnb app (available for Android and iPhones). Images: Tara Rice, Mason Trinca, Ryan Tuttle, Oivind Haug
First, you watch Rings. Then, your interest in the franchise quickly dies. That's what happens when someone unleashes a video no one really wants to see, right? If the Ring series has taught us anything, it's that unpleasant content always sparks a nasty end — and that's exactly what happens here. In a way, the saga's own rules explain why these movies keep coming, except for the fact that creating a copy is supposed to stop something bad from happening. In this case, it just makes things even worse. Odds are, you should already have some idea as to what this movie is about. Maybe you saw Naomi Watts in 2002's The Ring and its lacklustre 2005 sequel. Maybe you're familiar with the (superior) Japanese original from 1998, Ringu, and the numerous spinoffs that followed on from that. Perhaps you're even aware of the Korean remake The Ring Virus or the recent crossover with The Grudge franchise Sadako vs. Kayako. Point is, the premise remains much the same in every single one: unsuspecting folks press play on a creepy video tape, a phone call delivers a seven-day deadline, and the long-haired Samara (now played by Bonnie Morgan) starts wreaking havoc once time runs out. Finding a VCR at a flea market, college professor Gabriel (Johnny Galecki) and his student Skye (Aimee Teegarden) are the latest to let the unhinged ghost loose, turning it into a research project about the existence of the soul. Freshman Holt (Alex Roe) gets himself caught up in the mess, and is soon counting down the days as well. Enter his worried hometown girlfriend, Julia (Matilda Lutz), who decides to get to the bottom of the whole unsettling business. Wait, didn't the first two American Ring flicks involve a feisty female trying to thwart death by investigating Samara's background? Yes, yes they did. Doing the same thing over and over is what horror sequels are usually about, so the fact that this F. Javier Gutiérrez-directed effort retraces the same path is hardly a surprise. Indeed, there's basically nothing surprising about this film, other than Vincent D'Onofrio showing up to deliver some exposition. When you're trying to elicit scares, that's a problem. Cue the same tape and the same journey, shot in a style that makes the entire movie look like a digital copy of better material. A video-within-a-video of extra spooky visuals taunt Julia and company, and an expanded backstory tries to explain Samara's actions even further, but both just typify the filmmakers' underlying "more is better" line of thinking, and neither device manages to amp up the scares or the intrigue. Nor does updating the concept for the modern day. Seeing Samara on in-flight screens and smartphones, and watching people duplicate files rather than tapes, still ultimately smacks of more of the same. Even more infuriating is the fact that Rings is blatantly setting the scene for more unwanted chapters. That means that the 102-minute revisit isn't just a routine rehash — it's filler designed to work up a frenzy for something that might never actually get made. Keeping audiences hanging for future fare rather than bothering to really entertain them this time around might be common in an era of endless, interconnected superhero movies, but here, it's a bigger drag than Samara's limp locks.
If you're in Ashfield on Sunday morning and catch the enchanting scent of jam-filled doughnuts or cheese and potato dumplings, you're probably close by the Polish Club. Not-for-profit Polish cultural organisation PolArt is hosting a Pierogi & Paczki Party at the Ashfield Polish Club on Sunday, March 28. The takeaway food market comes in the lead-up to Wielkanoc, the Polish Easter Sunday. On the menu will be paczki, Polish doughnuts filled with plum jam that are consumed by the millions in Poland in the lead up to Easter, and Polish dumplings called pierogi that will be available with cheese and potato, cabbage and mushroom, pork and sweet cheese fillings. Limited stock will be available on the day, so it's recommended that you preorder if you don't want to miss out. To do so, email your order to info@polartsydney.com.au or head to the Polish Club website for more details. The market is raising funds for the upcoming PolArt Sydney Festival, a ten-day celebration of Polish culture that's scheduled for 2022. The festival the largest and longest-running of its kind outside of Poland. If you stick around after the market, from 3pm you can see the Polish Folkloric Ensemble Syrenka perform for the final time at the Ashfield Polish Club before it closes for renovations. [caption id="attachment_804172" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Renata Brak[/caption] Pierogi & Paczki Party runs from 10am–2pm. Top image: Dana Douglas
Since 1999, Longrain has been serving up interesting, modern takes on Thai fare. But now, the Commonwealth Street digs is about to close its doors, with owner Sam Christie announcing this morning that the team will not renew the lease on the site when it ends on Sunday, June 30. When the restaurant first opened, the food it was serving, under then-chef Martin Boetz, was trailblazing for the area — an area better known for its bustling Oxford Street nightclubs than fine-diners. That has since changed, with Surry Hills now a hub of wine bars and restaurants, offering everything from modern Burmese to lively Indian and Sri Lankan hoppers. Commonwealth Street alone is now filled with places to eat, too, with Chin Chin — another modern Thai restaurant — and Poly, by the Ester crew, both opening in the past two years. Christie has not yet commented on whether this had any weight on his decision to close Longrain. [caption id="attachment_625427" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Nikki To.[/caption] Longrain has outposts in both Melbourne and Tokyo, and the Surry Hills closure doesn't mean the end for Sydney, either. Christie has revealed that he's currently looking at other locations around the city to reopen the restaurant. "Leaving Surry Hills gives us an opportunity to explore other sites for Longrain Sydney," said Christie in a statement. If you haven't visited the restaurant yet, or want to go back once more — for one more betel leaf — you still have time. Christie has announced that it'll be service as usual until the restaurant closes on June 30. "We really look forward to welcoming everyone back into the warehouse to dine and enjoy this beautiful space for the last time," said Christie. Find Longrain at 85 Commonwealth Street, Surry Hills until June 30. It will be service as usual until then, with dinner running every night of the week as well as lunch on Fridays. Top image: Nikki To.
Escape the office in time for a game of sunset bowls at Clovelly Bowling Club. Perched right on the cliff overlooking the sea, the bowlo is the perfect place to soak up the last rays of afternoon sun and ogle a glorious summer sunset next to the ocean. Round up the workmates for a $15 (per person) game of barefoot bowls, which also includes a beginner's lesson if needed. Hot tip: stop by the supermarket on the way there to pick up some meaty treats. The club provides free barbecue facilities for bowls players.
Sit down to dinner at Arthur when it opens in Surry Hills later this month and you'll have some idea of how chef-owner Tristan Rosier best remembers his grandfather. The original Arthur, with his love of getting friends and family together over food, was the main inspiration behind Rosier and partner Rebecca Fanning's 35-seat Bourke Street restaurant, which is slated to open its doors on Wednesday, October 24. It marks the first solo venture for the chef (ex-Farmhouse and Dead Ringer), whose focus here is on using interesting, seasonal ingredients in unexpected ways, through dishes as elegant as they are exciting. As much as possible will be done in house from scratch, from the breads and preserves, to a raft of pickled things. Food at Arthur is enjoyed as part of a $70 a head shared feast of around 11 set dishes — a move Rosier says is designed to allow punters space to really enjoy that good eating and company, rather than worrying about the whole decision-making and ordering affair. The menu will be an oft-changing one, though there'll always be at least one raw dish making an appearance and two desserts sweetening the finish. While the starting lineup's being kept under wraps, you can expect plates like crumbed baby globe artichokes, roasted pork neck served alongside crackling and kohlrabi, and carrots elevated with mandarin and horseradish. And for dessert: a chocolate and mascarpone cake served with fresh cherries. As for the wine offering, expect an Australian-heavy selection that trips across the country, showcasing "easy-to-drink wines with brightness, balance and crunch". You'll find Arthur at 544 Bourke Street, Surry Hills, from Wednesday, October 24. It'll be open for dinner Wednesday to Sunday and lunch on weekends. Images: Damian Flanagan
Looking for a cause for celebration? Passeggiata is the place for you. Spearheaded by former 10 William Street chef and ex-Sagra owner Nigel Ward, this ambitious Italian restaurant is decked out in a bright summery yellow facade. Passeggiata takes its name from an Italian tradition — an unhurried, leisurely stroll you take with your family after a hearty meal. This is the energy that Ward brings to this eastern suburbs eatery located on Bronte Road in Charing Cross, Australia's second-oldest shopping strip. "After a big long lunch, everyone puts on their suits and their Sunday best and they all go out to the town square and walk around real slow, go have some gelato, or have a little drink somewhere," Ward told Concrete Playground. "Nobody's in too much of a hurry, the intention is to ... slow down and enjoy the little qualities of life." Passeggiata's menu is seasonal, so you can expect it to change over time, but the initial array of eats offers something for everyone, with a heavy focus on seafood. To start, there's smoked kingfish with crostino and creme fraiche, sardines "aqua pazza" with tomatoes and olives and tagliolini with prawns and calabrian chilli. Moving out of the ocean and venturing onto land, try the fried zucchini flowers with roast potatoes and rosemary salt, veal chop milanese, radicchio with cumquat or the wagyu bresaola with Jerusalem artichokes and anchovies. "I hope when people come here [that] they're not coming with an out time. They just want to come and enjoy themselves and take their time, get a nice bottle of wine [and] eat lots of food," Ward continues. There are two spaces to enjoy your meal at Passeggiata, a 40-seat main dining room downstairs and a more intimate 30-seat upstairs space which Ward plans to use for set menu dinners. "I'm building the restaurant I want to go to," Ward says. "This is it for me. I've bought the building, I want to be here for 30 years. I want this to be the Lucio's of the 21st century." Appears in: The Best Italian Restaurants in Sydney for 2023
The good ol' Marly has bid farewell to its upstairs neighbour Miss Peaches and has welcomed something much quirkier in her place. The Newtown boozer's first floor space is now home to the weird and wonderful Cuckoo — a kooky bar inspired by Germany's alpine resorts. Venture on up and you'll feel a bit like Alice tumbling into the rabbit hole. Brought to life by hospitality group Solotel with help from International Worldwide (the creatives behind the recently renovated George Hotel, The Duke, The Old Fitz) and Monster Children, Cuckoo is filled with knick-knacks, a lounge room bar pulled straight from your opa's house and constant sounds from the collection of cuckoo clocks adorning the walls. It even has a bouldering wall, so you can really pretend you're climbing up Zugspitze. The quirkiness is also embraced wholeheartedly by the drinks list, which boasts eight different house-infused schnapps, alongside crafty cococktails such as the cardamom, sour apple and ginger-laced Apfelschorle cocktail ($18) and the Deer's Blood ($18) with gin, Jägermeister, Campari and honey vermouth. Meanwhile, taps are pouring Germanic-style beers from local breweries like Batch and Wayward — try yours in a stein or in the glass shoey the team's calling Das Boot. If you head in during Schnappy Hour — from 5–7pm, Wednesday–Friday — you'll score yourself a glass of house schnapps for just $5 and a selection of cocktails for $15, too. Sticking with the theme, Cuckoo's food offering is filled with German classics like schnitzels (in chicken, veal and pork varieties), smoked kransky sausage ($8) and spätzle ($8). But, thanks to a fully-stocked condiments station, the house-made pretzels ($12) might just steal the show. Images: Kitti Gould
It might located right in the heart of North Sydney's buzzing city centre, but Green Moustache feels far from it. Instead, this fresh-faced bar and restaurant has embraced Mother Nature, and is filled with an abundance of greenery and plant life. It's a well-executed lushness that's not all too surprising given this is the latest venture from Andrew Utiger and Matt Erby — the minds behind fellow North Sydney foliage den, Treehouse. Sporting primo rooftop views, the pair's new light-filled venue is destined to be a bar of choice for Sydneysiders looking for a warm and lush hideaway this winter. A roll call of hospitality guns are managing the spot, including co-owner David Maisey (Treehouse, Merivale, The Palisade Hotel), who oversaw the menu, which will be executed by chef Peter Fitzsimmons (Chin Chin) and pastry chef Alfredo Jr Peralta (Nomad). Wines have been chosen by sommelier Julien Perrimond (Bambini Trust Restaurant and Wine Room) and bartender Aby Dedej (Ivy Pool Club) will be shaking, mixing and stirring a drinks list that packs a punch. The food menu runs from breakfast through dinner — six days a week. Mornings might mean the likes of haloumi-topped bruschetta with pesto or a loaded brekky bowl, while later visits promise caramelised sticky pork with shredded coconut and snake beans — or a pasta starring hand-picked blue swimmer crab, chilli and lemon. Those heading here in winter will find comfort in the scotch fillet paired with artichoke chips and duck fat-roasted potatoes.
Bored of your usual Wednesday night entertainment? Head to Friend in Hand for something a little different: crab racing. Every last Wednesday of the month, you can expect crisp, cold schooners, or better yet $10 jugs from 7–8.30pm, while you watch an upturned bucket of hermit crabs race to the finish line. The pub's been bringing these crustacean shenanigans to Glebe for over 20 years from 8pm. So grab a jug, and get set to cheer on your fine shelled friends. Image: Kitti Gould.
We all know the idiom, but this art installation, in collaboration with The Empathy Museum, invites visitors to literally walk a mile in someone else's shoes. What's more, the pop-up store in which you find said footwear is shaped like a giant shoe box. These are real shoes, too, but not just anyone's; these are the shoes of people with real stories: refugees and migrants who have come to Australia, made it their home and changed the environment around them in the process. You'll learn, you'll laugh, you'll cry, but one thing's for sure — you'll never think of the famous phrase in the same way again.
It's easy to pass right by this restaurant, which is hidden down a seedy CBD alley. Luckily for O Bal, its reputation precedes it — and for good reason. The bustling, DIY Korean style barbecue is popular among all nationalities. At the centre of each table sits a charcoal barbecue pit, perfect for cooking the selection of meats, seafood and offal that can be found on the menu. Believe it or not, the thinly sliced wagyu and the marinated king prawns go particularly well together. Expect a bit of a wait — but you'll be seated and eating way before your counterpart at the neighbouring Madang. Image: Anna Ayvazyan via Flickr
When a vegan bar opened in the Ovolo Hotel, Sydneysiders moved fast to eat plant-based 'bad food' by chef Matthew Kenney. Alt-Ctrl-Eat is Alibi's fast-food delivery option, with a philosophy of sustainability, quality produce and nutrition. Vegans and non-vegans alike can rejoice in a menu powered by plants that offers open chick'n n waffle, cheeseburgers, Fill It of Fish and barbecue loaded fries with 'bacon bits'. Its cheeseburger patties are made by the Alternative Meat Co, which makes meat-free patties that are high in protein. And if you're after something a little lighter, it also has a range of salads and noodles to keep you fuelled.
Another year has come and gone, and Sydney's cinema community is ramping up for the return of one of its biggest events: the beloved short film festival Flickerfest. If you're not impressed by the slate of Hollywood's full-length film lineup anymore, then you need an evening at this festival of short films, which happens to be Australia's only Academy® Qualifying International short film festival. Returning to Bondi Pavilion for the 34th year running, Flickerfest runs from Friday, January 17 to Sunday, January 26 in Sydney before it packs up to tour screens across Australia. The festival program is comprised of 200 top films (handpicked from over 3500 entries) that will delight audiences while vying for prestigious awards like the Flickerfest Award for Best International Short Film, the Yoram Gross Award for Best International Animation, the Panasonic Lumix for Best Australian Short Film and the Flickerfest Award for Best Documentary - all of which are Academy® qualifying. Flickerfest prides itself on promoting talented, diverse filmmakers of all ages and walks of life. Elements of the program like Rainbow Shorts celebrate the work of LGBTQI+ storytellers; FlickerKids gathers the best of the family-friendly program; FlickerUp showcases the work of young filmmakers and Short Laughs keeps the audience laughing with a focus on hilarious comedy titles. All this, as mentioned, takes place in the stunning Bondi Pavilion. A great location like this means you can enjoy a meal or a swim in Bondi before the show. Then grab a drink from the festivals bar before you take your seat in the comfy indoor air conditioned theatre or outdoors in the Pav's palm tree-lined courtyard and enjoy a night of films under the stars with a drink in hand. After wrapping up its Sydney stint, Flickerfest will embark on its annual nationwide tour, appearing in over 40 venues across the country throughout 2025. The 34th Flickerfest International Film Festival will run from Friday, January 17 to Sunday, January 26. Tickets and the full 2025 program are available now. For more information, head to the website.
Maybe you love nothing more than telling simulated people what to do. Perhaps a fantasy universe is your favourite place to escape to when you're mashing buttons. More than a quarter-century back, virtual critters might've been your go-to pastime. The Sims, World of Warcraft and Neopets have all made an impact on the gaming world, and on audiences. All three are also scoring plenty of love at Game Worlds at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image in Melbourne. For five months between Thursday, September 18, 2025–Sunday, February 8, 2026, this video-game exhibition is shining a spotlight on 30 iconic titles — and making attendees feel like they're stepping inside some of them, too. Expect everything from original concept art and never-before-seen designs to rare objects at the Federation Square site's Gallery 4. Expect to get playing, rather than just peering, as well. [caption id="attachment_997872" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Electronic Arts[/caption] Although the full lineup of games featured hasn't been revealed as yet, they'll span from the 70s until now, and 20 of them will be playable. Demos, games from years gone by, trying to break speed records: they're all part of the setup, which will include international hits, new Australian releases and everything in-between. ACMI has staged major video-game showcases before. This is its third, in fact, following 2008's Game On and 2012's Game Masters. Since the latter, the venue has also hosted smaller gaming exhibitions, such as 2017's Code Breakers — where women in the industry were the focus — and 2024's Honk! Untitled Goose Exhibition. Earlier in 2025, it celebrated 25 years of The Sims across one nostalgic weekend. As it regularly does with its showcases, the gallery will pair Game Worlds with talks, film screenings and other events, family-friendly activities among them. [caption id="attachment_997868" align="alignnone" width="1920"] World of Neopia[/caption] Top images: Blizzard Entertainment.
When Super Mario Kart first rolled onto Super Nintendo consoles back in 1992, it came with 20 inventive courses and endless hours of fun. Nearly three decades later, the game has become a beloved phenomenon — not just speeding through desert tracks and rainbow roads, but onto Google Maps and mobile phones, and also into reality. The hugely popular game's next stop? Theme parks. In the works since 2019, delayed due to the pandemic (like everything else), but finally opening its doors on March 18, Super Nintendo World is now a place that genuinely exists. And yes, you can enjoy a real-life Mario Kart experience as part of the first-ever Nintendo-themed theme park zone, which has joined Universal Studios in Osaka. There's no mistaking this space for anywhere else. Given that it features life-sized recreations of both Bowser's Castle — complete with spiked fences and heavy iron doors — and Peach's Castle, fans of the gaming brand will know exactly where they are. You also enter via a warp pipe, because of course you do. No other entryway would've done the park justice. For those keen to hop on Mario Kart: Koopa's Challenge, you'll be racing through familiar Mario Kart courses that've been brought to life. And yes, as you steer your way along the track, you're surrounded by characters such as Mario, Luigi and Princess Peach. You can also throw shells to take out your opponents — because it wouldn't be Mario Kart without them. If you're wondering how it all works, it's a blend of physical sets, augmented reality, projection mapping and screen projection, all designed to make you feel like you're really in the game. As for Yoshi's Adventure, that lets you climb on Yoshi's back — and, as it sounds, it's very family-friendly. So, you hop on, then set off on an adventure. Specifically, you follow Captain Toad to find three coloured eggs, plus a golden egg as well. View this post on Instagram A post shared by ユニバーサル・スタジオ・ジャパン USJ (@universal_studios_japan) Across its multiple levels — fitting for a gaming-themed space — Osaka's Super Nintendo World also includes restaurants and shops. A certain highlight: the world's first Mario cafe, which launched ahead of the rest of the site. Here, patrons are surrounded by oversized Mario and Luigi hat sculptures, the whole space is kitted out with a red and green colour scheme, and Mario Kart-style checkered floors are a feature. As for snacks, there are Mario pancake sandwiches and cream sodas, plus other drinks available in 'super mushroom' souvenir bottles. The theme park also has wearable wrist bands, called Power Up Bands — which connect to a special app and allow patrons to interact with the site using their arms, hands and bodies. That mightn't sound all that exciting, but the bands enable you to collect coins just like Mario does in the Super Mario games. Like the red-capped plumber, you can also hit question blocks to reveal more coins. There are collectible items to gather, too, such as keys and character stamps, which you can only find after achieving various goals. The stamps also earn you even more coins, so you really will be basically playing Super Mario in real life. You do have to buy a Power Up Band separate to your entry ticket to enjoy that element of the park, though. While no one is venturing far at present — and Japan has just shut out international travellers from the Tokyo Olympics, so you're unlikely to be able to head to the country anytime soon — you can add Osaka's Super Nintendo World to your must-visit list once overseas travel does start returning to normal. You might also want to add ziplining into a life-sized version of Godzilla to the same list while you're dreaming about Japanese holidays. Universal Studios is also planning Super Nintendo Worlds for its other parks in Hollywood, Orlando and in Singapore, if you need to add more places to look forward to visiting sometime in the future. The latter was just announced last year, and is set to open by 2025. Super Nintendo World is now open at Universal Studios Osaka, 2 Chome-1-33 Sakurajima, Konohana Ward, Osaka, 554-0031, Japan. Top image: Nintendo and Universal Studios.
Butter just keeps giving Sydneysiders more reasons to go absolutely crazy for it. The cult favourite is already a palace of fried chicken, sneakers, Champagne and truffle. Now, you can add limited-edition ramen to that list, too. Executive Chef Julian Cincotta has teamed up with Nick Smith of Newtown's super-popular Rising Sun Workshop to create a tantamen ramen. Available for four weeks only — starting Tuesday, September 3 — the rich, spicy ramen features a sesame chicken broth, rayu (Japanese chilli oil), hot and numbing ground chicken, fermented bamboo, noodles, pickled wasabi leaf and marinated egg. Oh, and it's topped with Butter's fried chicken tenders, of course. If you've eaten Rising Sun Workshop's ramen before, you'll know it's good. And we're expecting this will be, too. You can find these tasty noods at Butter's stores in Surry Hills and Parramatta, and at its pop-up at Mrs Sippy in Double Bay. To celebrate the collab, the duo will be throwing a fried chicken party at Rising Sun Workshop sometime in spring. We'll let you know when more info on that drops. Images: Sean Alcantara
Believe: it's the one-word slogan that helped a fictional football club change its mindset and its fortunes on the turf, and truly become a team. IRL, it was even adopted by the AFL's Brisbane Lions on their way to winning the 2024 premiership. It's also what Ted Lasso fans have been doing since 2023, having faith that the kindhearted Jason Sudeikis-starring Apple TV+ hit would return after its third season seemed to wrap up the show's storyline. That belief has proven well-founded: Ted Lasso is officially returning for season four. And yes, lead and executive producer Sudeikis (Hit-Monkey) will be there with it, stepping back into his two-time Emmy-winning role, donning the American-in-London coach's moustache again and presumably continuing to improve the character's knowledge of soccer. Keen to know what's in store? Other details are scarce for now, including who else among the cast will be returning. Brendan Hunt (Bless This Mess), aka Coach Beard, has been named among the new season's producers, however — a behind-the-camera role he also held in the first three seasons — so fingers crossed that he'll be back on-screen, too. Announcing Ted Lasso's fourth season, Sudeikis did provide broad details about the theme in the spotlight this time around. "As we all continue to live in a world where so many factors have conditioned us to 'look before we leap', in season four, the folks at AFC Richmond learn to leap before they look, discovering that wherever they land, it's exactly where they're meant to be," he shared. "Ted Lasso has been nothing short of a juggernaut, inspiring a passionate fanbase all over the world, and delivering endless joy and laughter, all while spreading kindness, compassion and unwavering belief. Everyone at Apple is thrilled to be continuing our collaboration with Jason and the brilliant creative minds behind this show," said Apple TV+ Head of Programming Matt Cherniss about the fourth season. Bill Lawrence, who co-developed Ted Lasso with Sudeikis, Hunt and Joe Kelly (Detroiters) — and who has been busy on the also-warmhearted Apple TV+ comedy Shrinking, which he co-created with its star Jason Segel (Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty) and Ted Lasso's Brett Goldstein (The Garfield Movie) — will be back for season four as an executive producer as well. How will Ted Lasso pick up from the end of season three? Will Goldstein return — and be here, there and everywhere — as Roy Kent? Is everyone from Juno Temple (Venom: The Last Dance), Hannah Waddingham (The Fall Guy), Jeffrey Swift (Sweetpea) and Nick Mohammed (Renegade Nell) to Phil Dunster (Surface), Toheeb Jimoh (The Power), Cristo Fernandez (Sonic the Hedgehog 3), Kola Bokinni (Foresight), Billy Harris (The Outlaws) and James Lance (The Famous Five) also coming back? Hopefully more will be revealed soon, although recent reports have mentioned Goldstein, Waddingham, Swift and Mohammed's involvement, as well as possibly Hunt and Temple. There's no trailer yet for Ted Lasso's fourth season, understandably, but check out the trailer for season three below: Season four of Ted Lasso will stream via Apple TV+ — we'll update you when a release date is announced. Read our full review of season two and season three, and our interview with Brendan Hunt.
Giving the traditional steakhouse experience a refined twist, Marrow & Co. has launched at the Bankstown Sports Club, offering famished diners a menu that is a veritable celebration of Australian beef. With 13 exceptional cuts to consider, this diverse selection is designed to showcase the diversity and quality of the local industry through a range of textures and flavours. From grass-fed and wagyu to inventive takes on secondary cuts, a pleasure-filled dining experience is assured. The menu's signature dish is an indulgent experience, featuring Riverine tomahawk dry-aged on-site for up to four weeks. Landing at a whopping 1.5-kilograms, guests are invited to select their cut from the specialised dry-aging fridge before the meat masters in the kitchen take over to ensure it's cooked to perfection. Adding a little theatre to the dining experience, this concept is conceived to set Marrow & Co. apart from other steakhouses. Also on the menu is a series of elevated steakhouse starters, like hand-cut beef tartare, chicken liver parfait served with house-made pickles, and truffled brie cheese soufflé. The beef Wellington is a shareable highlight, with 400 grams of grasslands eye fillet layered with prosciutto, mushroom duxelles and rich pâté, then wrapped in flaky puff pastry. Served alongside creamy mashed potato and a choice of sauces, this certified pub classic has never tasted so good. Leading this new venture is Bankstown Sports Club's culinary director, Evan Burgess. Bringing two decades of experience to the role, he's worked in top-notch venues across Australia and the UK, including Michelin-starred restaurants like The Ledbury and Pied à Terre. While steak is a staple of high-end dining around the globe, Burgess saw an opportunity to bring a little more creative flair to Sydney's scene. "Marrow & Co is more than just a place to eat – it's a destination where we've combined the art of steak preparation with a setting that makes people feel at home," he says. "The combination of classic steakhouse fare with contemporary elements allows us to offer something special to our guests, whether they are passionate steak lovers or simply looking for a great meal in a relaxed and welcoming environment." Complementing the cuisine on the plate is a stellar wine and cocktail list shaped by renowned sommelier Ben Moechtar, while guests can also sip on house-brewed craft beers from Bankstown Sports' Basement Brewhouse. The restaurant's design also levels up the sophistication, with a unique layout spanning two dining carriages that evoke train journeys of the past through plush leather seating, aged brass accents and rich wooden panelling. Marrow & Co. is open now at Bankstown Sports Club, 8 Greenfield Parade, Bankstown. Head to the website for more information.
Choice is never a problem when it comes to shopping and dining in the heart of Sydney. In fact, some may say finding a great inner-city gem is more difficult than ever before. From hidden breweries to deluxe cake shops, there's plenty of great stuff waiting to be discovered. So, where should you start? To give you the insider scoop of where to shop like the locals do in Chippendale and beyond, we've partnered with American Express to bring you a curated guide of some of the best locally owned boutiques, eateries and wine bars. You can shop small here with your American Express Card.
What's better: free KFC, or bites to eat other than chicken being double-breaded and fried just like the Colonel's finest? The answer: a place that does both. Australia is getting one, albeit temporarily and only in Sydney. But hit up The Original Crispery, as the two-day-only world-first pop-up is called, and you'll nab a burger without spending a cent — and also get the chance to enjoy an entire menu that's been given the KFC treatment. Have you always thought that vegetables such as broccolini and asparagus would taste better if they were coated and fried just like KFC chicken? Cheesecake, too? Peanut butter and jam sandwiches? They're some of the items on the menu at The Original Crispery — and, like the burgs, they're also free. The place: 118 Crown Street, Darlinghurst. The dates and times: 10am–7pm on Friday, May 17 and 10am–5pm on Saturday, May 18. Everyone who drops by will get one free original crispy burger and one other free item from the menu, as suitably "crispified" as the fast-food chain is calling it. Why? Whenever a pop-up like this happens, it's always to promote something. This time, the brand is spreading the word about its permanent new original crispy burger series being added to the menu at KFCs Australia-wide, where every burger fillet is double-breaded. It hits outlets on Tuesday, May 14. As for what else is on offer at The Original Crispery, you'll have to show up to find out. Until then, dreaming up a list of other foodstuffs that KFC can crisp up will pass the time and make you hungry. And yes, this is the latest pop-up from a brand that's done 11-course fine-dining degustations, Peking Duk-led festivals, a nightclub, weddings, cocktails, ugly Christmas sweaters for humans and pets alike, free international trips, and a soothing playlist of chicken frying and gravy simmering — which is genuinely relaxing. KFC's Original Crispery will pop up from 10am–7pm on Friday, May 17 and 10am–5pm on Saturday, May 18 at 118 Crown Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney. Head to the brand's website and Facebook page for more details.
The next time you watch two of Disney's best-loved animated hits, you won't be belting out "it's the circle of life" and "let it go" (or trying to resist the urge to sing along while sitting in a crowded cinema). When The Lion King Reo Maori and Frozen Reo Maori hit theatres in Australia and New Zealand in 2022, they'll still include everything that's made audiences adore both movies over the years — and both films will be dubbed in te reo Māori as well. The Mouse House has announced that it's creating and releasing new Māori-language versions of The Lion King and Frozen in conjunction with NZ company Matewa Media, after Moana Reo Māori proved a big hit. Producers Chelsea Winstanley (Jojo Rabbit) and Tweedie Waititi (Moana Reo Māori, Rūrangi) are behind the new releases, and have started work on giving the two Oscar-winning flicks a new voice. "It was always our dream to dub more Disney films that our tāmariki love into te reo Māori. We are extremely thrilled to continue this journey with The Walt Disney Company — it clearly demonstrates their commitment as a company to diversity and inclusion," said Winstanley. It might seem like a straightforward change, but the importance of giving audiences access to beloved tales in different languages — and, for New Zealanders, in the country's Indigenous language — really can't be underestimated. And, it's hardly common practice, but Moana and now The Lion King and Frozen are leading the charge. Viewers will be able to check out the results in June and September 2022, with The Lion King Reo Maori releasing first to commemorate Matariki (Māori New Year) and Frozen Reo Maori hitting cinemas around Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, Māori Language Week. Presumably, the films will also then head to Disney+ — which is where you can stream Moana Reo Māori right now. Trailers for The Lion King Reo Maori and Frozen Reo Maori don't yet exist, understandably, but you can check out a video for Moana Reo Māori below instead: The Lion King Reo Maori will hit cinemas in June 2022, and Frozen Reo Maori will follow in September 2022 — we'll update you with exact dates when they're announced.
Visit this elegant brow boutique to get dolled up before an event, or just to pamper yourself. Brow services include waxing and tinting, so you can boast the perfect eye-framing arch. Or, you can get a lash lift and tint, so your eyes are open and bright from the minute you wake up, all without mascara. It also offers semi-permanent brow tattooing, where trained technicians use ombre or feathering techniques to create the illusion of fuller brows with ink. To top it off, you can shop a carefully curated selection of candles, Maison Balzac glass carafes, collagen supplements, beauty tools and haircare products, so you can continue the pampering from home. Images: Caroline McCreedie
When Netflix added DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story to its catalogue in 2022, complete with WandaVision, Mare of Easttown and American Horror Story actor Evan Peters playing the titular IRL murderer, it popped another true-crime effort on its ever-growing pile. Whether Zac Efron is playing Ted Bundy in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, the sadly finished Mindhunter is tussling with real-life killers, or The Serpent, The Stranger and The Good Nurse are also dramatising reality, the streaming platform isn't short on movies and shows that bring grisly slices of history to its queue. Next up: the Menéndez brothers. When DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story proved a hit, as it was predictably going to, Netflix made the next least-surprising move it could: it renewed Monster as an anthology series. At the time, the service revealed there'd be at least two more seasons— "two more instalments that will focus on other monstrous figures who have impacted society", in fact — but exactly who would be in the spotlight wasn't announced. Now, the platform has named Lyle and Erik Menendez as Monster's next subjects, and advised that Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menéndez Story will arrive in 2024. There's still a shortage of details otherwise, including exactly when next year viewers will be streaming the show and who'll be starring in it — but this too is a well-known true-crime story that's earned plenty of media attention before now. In a teaser to announce the series, Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menéndez Story plays the infamous 911 call featuring Lyle sobbing on the night that his parents died. For those new to the story, Lyle and his younger brother Erik were investigated, tried and convicted for the 1989 shootings of their parents José and Mary Louise 'Kitty' Menéndez, who were killed in their Beverly Hills home. Monster creator and prolific TV producer Ryan Murphy remains behind the series, adding another anthology effort to his resume after American Horror Story and American Crime Story. And whoever he gets to play the brothers, Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menéndez Story isn't the only new dive into their tale that's heading to Netflix. The platform also announced that it's making a documentary feature about the case as well, aided by exclusive access to Lyle and Erik. Check out the teaser announcement video for Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menéndez Story below: Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menéndez Story will stream via Netflix in 2024. We'll update you with an exact release date when one is announced. DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is available to stream now via Netflix. Images: Netflix.
Tucked away on Lennox Street, along the Newtown side of Camperdown Memorial Rest Park, A Loft Story is a leafy oasis of a hair salon. Here, you can have your hair cut among plants aplenty, adding to the relaxing vibe that is so necessary at any salon. True to its Newtown home, these specialists offer up the latest, greatest and funkiest hairstyles around. The shop specialises in colouring, so expect to see patrons leaving the salon with turquoise and bright pink dos aplenty — along with the more typical platinum blondes, balayage and tints. Women's' cuts start at $100 and men's' from $75, with treatments starting at $120. And at 240-square-feet, the beautiful warehouse has plenty of space to spare, so it often hosts workshops, parties, gigs and other events. Images: Cassandra Hannagan
Maybe it's the twilight glow. Perhaps it's the stars twinkling above. Or, it could be the cooling breeze, the picnic blankets and beanbags as far as the eye can see, and just seeing a movie grace a giant screen with a leafy backdrop. When the weather is warm enough Australia-wide, a trip to the cinema just seems to shine brighter when it's outdoors. That's Sunset Cinema's whole angle, in fact, and it's returning for another season across the east coast. Over the summer of 2022–23 — and into autumn, too — this excuse to head to the flicks in the open air has seven stops on its itinerary: one in Canberra, three in New South Wales, two in Victoria and one in Queensland. In each, movie buffs can look forward to a lineup of new and classic titles, and a setup perfect for cosy date nights or an easy group hangs outdoors. NSW's run gets started on Friday, December 9 at St Ives Showgrounds, screening through till Saturday, January 28 with a lineup that includes box-office behemoths Top Gun: Maverick and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Disney's Strange World, Aussie drama Blueback and Olivia Wilde's Don't Worry Darling. Also on the bill: a heap of festive flicks leading into Christmas, such as Elf, Love Actually, Home Alone and The Nightmare Before Christmas; and three dog-focused films in January, spanning Marley & Me, Scooby-Doo and 101 Dalmatians. Sunset Cinema will also head to North Sydney Oval from Wednesday, January 11—Saturday, April 1, featuring the likes of 2022 hits The Menu and Everything Everywhere All At Once, Steven Spielberg's latest The Fabelmans, Whitney Houston biopic I Wanna Dance with Somebody, throwbacks such as There's Something About Mary and Crazy Stupid Love, and more. And, at the Wollongong Botanic Garden from Thursday, December 15–Saturday, March 11, the season covers many of the aforementioned titles — the Christmas lineup included — and also Mean Girls, Freaky Friday and The Parent Trap as part of a Lohan Fest. In Victoria, Mt Martha is first on the agenda, with Sunset Cinema hitting The Briars from Wednesday, December 21—Friday, January 20. Those festive films get a run here, too, as do classics Dirty Dancing and The Princess Bride — and many of the new titles showing at other venues. Melburnians don't miss out, however, thanks to a new St Kilda run from Friday, February 1—Saturday, March 4 at St Kilda Botanical Gardens. The lineup for that spot hasn't yet been revealed. And, in Brisbane, mark April in your diaries — with the exact dates, venue and program to be announced. At all stops around the country, BYO picnics are encouraged here, but the event is fully licensed, so alcohol can only be purchased onsite. Didn't pack enough snacks? There'll be hot food options, plus plenty of the requisite movie treats like chips, chocolates, lollies and popcorn. SUNSET CINEMA 2022–23 DATES: Canberra, ACT: Thursday, November 24—Saturday, February 25 at Australian National Botanic Gardens St Ives, NSW: Friday, December 9—Saturday, January 28 at St Ives Showgrounds Wollongong, NSW: Thursday, December 15–Saturday, March 11 at Wollongong Botanic Garden North Sydney, NSW: Wednesday, January 11—Saturday, April 1 at North Sydney Oval Mt Martha, VIC: Wednesday, December 21—Friday, January 20 at The Briars, Mt Martha St Kilda, VIC: Friday, February 1—Saturday, March 4 at St Kilda Botanical Gardens Brisbane, QLD — from April 2023, exact dates and venue TBC Sunset Cinema's 2022–23 season runs at various venues around the country from November 2022. Head to the Sunset Cinema website for further details.
UPDATE, May 21, 2021: Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles is available to stream via Docplay, Google Play, YouTube Movies, iTunes and Amazon Video. Marie Antoinette didn't actually say "let them eat cake", no matter how often the statement is misattributed to the 18th-century royal before her date with the guillotine. But New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art was surely hoping she would've approved of its hedonistic June 2018 food gala, which tied into the venue's Visitors to Versailles exhibition in the same year — and, in line with the place and period under the grill, put decadence on the menu. Overseeing the spread of desserts fit for a queen: renowned Israeli English chef and restaurateur Yotam Ottolenghi. He didn't make the Feast of Versailles' lavish cakes himself; instead, he trawled Instagram to source and select five pâtissiers known for delicious, innovative and aesthetically appealing wares. He found them, too, enlisting Dominique Ansel, the NYC-based French pastry chef who invented the cronut; Sam Bompas and Harry Parr, the London food artists known for their striking jellies and unique food events; architecturally trained Ukrainian Dinara Kasko, who approaches her desserts with the same design principles; Ghaya Oliveira, an award-winner and veteran at the Michelin-starred Restaurant Daniel; and Singapore's Janice Wong, who aims to turn chocolate into edible art. The exacting theme that approaches art and history through an untraditional lens, the melding of varying creative arenas, the roll call of significant names in their field, the theatricality on display, the iconic setting — if it all sounds a bit like a culinary version of The Met Gala, that was undoubtedly the intention, too. Celebrities didn't attend, paparazzi weren't on hand to snap photos, fundraising wasn't the name of the game and no one broke the internet, but this was no ordinary serving of sugar. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that, as the venue's fashion-focused event did before it, Feast of Versailles has also earned the documentary treatment. Where The First Monday in May chronicled the preparations for 2015's Met Gala, Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles does the same with the quest to recreate the Palace of Versailles' gardens with chocolate and multi-coloured fondant, whip up a tiered mousse cake that resembles the French castle's sculptured detail, and pair them all with swan-topped pastries, wobbling palace-shaped jellies and a cocktail-filled whirlpool fountain. Viewers of cooking-focused reality television will know what's in store. That may not be the comparison one expects with a doco about a Met event, but it fits. Documentarian Laura Gabbert (City of Gold) deploys the personable Ottolenghi as her guide, and gets him to chat through the task at opportune moments. Her film also spends time first introducing Ansel, Bombas and Parr, Kasko, Oliveira and Wong, then watching them work towards the big gala evenings. Periodically, Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles has Ottolenghi chat with Met staff about logistics as well, and to historical experts. The former reveal their horror at having liquid anywhere near the gallery's exhibits, and the awareness that events with a live component are so much trickier to control than inanimate displays; the latter discusses 18th-century Versailles in general, the culinary excesses of the royal courts, the fact that chocolate was used for drinking long before it was eaten and, only briefly, the fate that befell Versailles' most famous figures in the French Revolution. Combine all of the above ingredients in a 75-minute documentary, and it's as formulaic as it sounds — even if the gala itself, the chefs behind it and their dazzling desserts could never earn that description. The First Monday in May was helmed by a different director to Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles; however, both films struggle to bring their concepts to life. As a mere record of occasions that happened, they do a fine job of showing what goes into staging these types of extravagant events. They also capture the tension and drama beforehand, and the indulgence and luxury when everything comes to fruition. But it seems that docos about Met galas are fated to take a superficial and straightforward approach, despite striving for more, and attempting to mimic the layers and textures of the venue's exhibitions and festivities. In Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles' case, the NYC institution clearly didn't hold a lavish Versailles-themed feast without intending to get everyone involved and in attendance thinking about the vast disparities between the haves and have nots — aka the whole reason that the "let them eat cake" misquote exists. Alas, Gabbert's film is mostly content to depict rather than interrogate this idea. A few very late shots, including of Trump Tower's garish gold interior, endeavour to stress modern-day parallels between Versailles and today's one-percent, but hardly delve deep. Accordingly, Ottolenghi and the Cakes of Versailles is glossy, gleaming eye candy for those with a sweet tooth. It never feels like a full meal, though. That may be apt given that it's about dessert, but there's more substance in the tables piled high with cake and confection seen within the movie's frames than in the documentary's examination of its subject — and of the topic driving Feast of Versailles, and therefore sparking the film in the first place. While interesting tidbits pop up frequently, relating to food and history alike, they're akin to an entree. Viewers keep expecting something heartier, only to be left intellectually hungry. The audience is left physically ravenous, of course, because roving over all those spectacular dishes is a sure-fire way to whip up an appetite for a treat. This pleasant, palatable but slight movie obviously can't leave stomachs satisfied either, but it will make mouths water. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uan6MDxf3wU
Music festival fans, it's time to take your horse to the old town road — hat down, cross-town, livin' like a rock star. New South Wales end-of-year staple Lost Paradise has announced its return for 2022, and it's making a comeback with two huge headliners: Lil Nas X, clearly, as well as Arctic Monkeys. Since first unleashing its specific flavour of festival fun back in 2014, Lost Paradise has become an end-of-year staple — and the Glenworth Valley event returns from Wednesday, December 28–Sunday, January 1 for another packed year. Joining Lil Nas X and Arctic Monkeys will be a massive lineup of genre-diverse artists ranging from local up-and-coming bands, powerhouse international DJs, Tik Tok sensations and festival favourites. Across the festival's four stages you can catch the likes of Jamie xx, Ocean Alley, Spacey Jane, Ben Bohmer, G Flip, PinkPantheress, Cub Sport and Genesis Owusu performing live, as well as Peggy Gou, Mall Grab, Folamour, DJ Boring, HAAi, TSHA, Ebony Boadu, CC:Disco!, Dameeeela and Latifa Tee jumping on the decks. [caption id="attachment_687549" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jordan Munns[/caption] Also on the lineup: Young Franco, The Vanns, May-A, KiNK, Furnace and the Fundamentals, King Stingray, 1300, Big Twisty & the Funknasty, Elsy Wameyo, Heidi, X Club, Flava D, Telanova, Lazywax, and Wongo DJing back-to-back with Little Fritter. Outside of the music, there will be talks from Dr Karl and Dancewize, DJing workshops with Luen, a full yoga program, hula hooping sessions, and a whole lot more — all as part of a four-day camping festival. So, there's plenty to get excited about and to tempt you to make the journey an hour out of Sydney. Lost Paradise 2022 will introduce a ban on single-use plastics, too — which'll mean that you'll need to acknowledge the 'Paradisian Pledge' to minimise pollution and leave the campsite with no waste in order to purchase tickets. Also, this year's event will only use building materials built from 100-percent recyclable materials, and produce zero landfill. [caption id="attachment_687550" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jordan Munns[/caption] LOST PARADISE 2022 LINEUP Music: Arctic Monkeys Lil Nas X Jamie xx Ocean Alley Spacey Jane G Flip Pinkpantheress Cub Sport Genesis Owusu Young Franco The Vanns MAY-A Furnace & The Fundamentals King Stingray Pacific Avenue Telenova 1300 Stumps Big Twisty & The Funknasty Egoism Yung Mtyr Lazywax Elsy Wamayo Eagle Eye Jones Abby Bella May Greatest Hits Sweetie Liyah Knight Coconut Cream Liquid Time Casual Fan Peggy Gou Mall Grab Ben Böhmer Folamour DJ Boring KiNK HAAi TSHA CC:DISCO! Heidi X Club. Flava D Shanti Celeste Moxie Loods Wax'o Paradiso Wongo Little Fritter Merve Luen Ebony Boadu Ayebatonye Crush3d James Pepper Elijah Something Latifa Tee Willo Dameeeela Mincy Conspiracy Crew Luke Alessi Troy Beman Mintox Waxlily Uncle Ru Girlthing Dj's Cleo Clutch 4 Love Roxy Lotz Madami Shambhala Fields: Yoga Sharing Loving Energy with Simon Borg-olivier Restorative Yin Acro Yoga Laughter Yoga Primal Flow Intro to Vedic Meditation Mindfulness Mastering the Handstand Workshops Move & Manifest with Mimi DJing 101 With Luen Effigies & Idols Pottery Hula Hooping Re-Wilding Women and the Feminime Soul Drumming Foraging & Bushcraft Skills Breathwork Cacao Love Ritual Samba Reggae Belly & Bootydance Love Out Loud Movement Talks Messages of Good Hope With Dr Karl A Human's Guide to the Future Party Safe with Dancewize Nsw Transformational Mindsets & Rites Of Passage Ai And the Future of Humanity Open Up With One Eighty Culture Weaving Workshop Wyappa Wurk: Aboriginal Yoga & Movement Seeds Of Peace with Uncle Phil Indigenous Dance Moving Beyond Sustainability Yidaki (Didgeridoo) Sound Of Moon & Healing Healing Haven Remedial Massage Tarot & Astrology Reiki Healing Energetic Healing Ambience After Dark Baran Yildiz Dave Leha AKA Radical Son Billsbry Luminous Sounds With Sati Delojaan: Sydney Sufi Ensemble Nye Cacao Ceremony Top images: Ruby Boland
Having launched in 1992, Simon Johnson has been selling quality ingredients sourced from the world's best artisan producers to chefs and home cooks for nigh on thirty years. But this old dog still has a new trick or two up its sleeve. Forced to adapt during the COVID-19 pandemic, after seeing its usual restaurant and hotel customers drop off because of the closures, Simon Johnson opened a warehouse clearance store — which is great news for you. The providore market transformed its Alexandria shop into the SJ Outlet Store, a permanent direct-to-the-public clearance shop with discounted bulk and wholesale items, as well as its usual retail offering. And the discounts it's offering are, frankly, wild. We're talking 35–90 percent off everything from caviar and fancy condiments to cheese. Ninety percent off cheese, folks. Cheese. As well as cheese, the store has its usual array of chocolates, honey, coffee, crackers, cooking equipment and so much more. While the hefty discounts do only apply in-store, Simon Johnson is also offering a delivery service to homes across Sydney metro.
Prepare to party like it's 1945 at Bopp & Tone on Carrington Street. The first CBD venture from hospitality group Applejack (Della Hyde, The Butler, Endeavour Tap Rooms), the bar and eatery takes both name and inspiration from the founders' grandfathers — Keith 'Bopp' Evans and Anthony 'Tone' Adams — revisiting the era of optimism and opulence enjoyed by post-WWII Australia. Without the food rationing, we hope. Inside, award-winning design firm Luchetti Krelle (responsible for a tonne of restaurants, including Manly Greenhouse, ACME and Matinee Coffee) helped to create a welcoming old-world space that nods stylishly to the past, combining marble, panelled timber, velvet booths and hanging light fittings, as we've come to expect from most Applejack venues. It looks similar to the CBD's other post-WWII bar, Kittyhawk. In a plus, it also has a sizeable terrace filled with greenery for al fresco dinners and drinks. From the kitchen comes a contemporary Australian menu, prepared by chef Sa Va'afusuaga (The Botanist), with influences from across the Mediterranean. The woodfired grill and charcoal oven get a thorough workout, and are used to deliver dishes like free-range spatchcock and chargrilled whole calamari from the Hawkesbury River. The cocktail offering works to the same Oz-Mediterranean brief, featuring classics reimagined with Aussie ingredients while the wine list champions sustainably produced drops from both overseas and closer to home.
It's hard to imagine sharing anything else with a complete stranger on public transport than the very seat you both happen to sit on. But the Bibliotaxi project based in Sao Paulo, Brazil, makes sharing things on public transport sound not half-bad. The concept behind Bibliotaxi or 'library in a car' was developed by Instituto Mobilidade Verde, or Green Mobility Institute, and combines their causes of sustainability and mobility. The project also aims to encourage 'sharing' in the city of Vila Madalena. Taxi passengers who enter a Bibliotaxi are free to leisurely peruse the books inside the taxi and even borrow (and return) the books if it becomes too hard to part with once their destination is reached. What a great way to revive books. Perhaps the awkward taxi conversation may become more interesting and informed in Sao Paulo, now that there is a library at the passenger's disposal. [Via PSFK]
One day, glowing plants might provide enough energy to light up entire buildings. At least, that's the hope of Antony Evans, Kyle Taylor and Omri Amirav-Drory. They have the science to justify it, and the support behind their Kickstarter campaign to attempt its realisation. Their plan has been made possible by developments in synthetic biology over the past 30 or so years. Back in 1986, scientists cultivated the very first radiant seeds but discovered that their effectiveness required the addition of luciferin (the pigment that illuminates fireflies). Three years later, the luciferase-luciferin gene was sequenced. However, it wasn't until 2010 that researchers at the State University of New York managed to add the gene to plants, giving them a dim glow. Around the same time, on the other side of the Atlantic, the University of Cambridge's iGem team was recycling luciferase to create bacteria that beamed with the ferocity of Kryptonite. Fast-forward three years, and the aforementioned trio of scientific talents is building on these developments to hatch a plan that has the dramatic reduction of CO2 at its heart. They've already raised the $65,000 necessary to achieving their initial aim — the cultivation of Arabidopsis plants. Now, they're on the cusp of reaching their first stretch goal — $400,000, which will enable the development of glowing roses. So far, 6,981 backers have committed funds, to the tune of $395,135. Supporters who pledge $40 or more are promised a batch of seeds, meaning they'll be able to grow their own glowing plants at home. $150 or more buys a bioluminescent rose. The project has received the backing of some of the highest fliers in the fields of Genetics, Biotechnology and Biochemistry, including George Church (Head of Genetics at Harvard Medical School), Andrew Hessel (Autodesk Distinguished Research Fellow) and Austen Heinz (Founder of Cambrian Genomics). [Via Inhabitat]
In Sydney, we're blessed with an abundance of excellent places to eat. Whether it's a spot for date night, somewhere to catch up with your crew or just to break up your mid-week routine, you generally don't have to go far to find a great meal. Harris Park, a buzzing multicultural neighbourhood with a friendly village-like atmosphere, is certainly one such place. It punches above its weight when it comes to great places to eat in this suburb that sits just south of Parramatta. In partnership with the City of Parramatta, we've put together this list of the six must-try dishes in Harris Park. BYO stretchy pants. BUTTER CHICKEN DUMPLINGS Where to find them: Momozz, 104-108 Wigram Street What they are: Some of the greatest combinations in life are often the most unexpected. Did ice cream and fries walk so freshly steamed momos luxuriating in butter chicken sauce could run? Possibly. This signature serve from bustling diner Momozz is one of those dishes that makes you wonder why nobody thought of it sooner. Your choice of veggie or chicken momos are steamed to order, before being tossed in the restaurant's special butter chicken sauce — which itself hits the sweet, earthy and creamy notes you want it to — and finished on the plate with a generous helping of raita to bring the flavours together. We'd say these packages of pure pleasure do what they say on the tin, but that'd be underselling them. MEETHA PAAN Where to find it: Durga Paan and Falooda House, 3/14-20 Station Street East What it is: As one of the most ubiquitous snacks in the subcontinent, paan is everywhere in India — but it's a lot harder to track down in Australia. For the uninitiated, paan is a betel leaf stuffed with an assortment of ingredients and folded up into a bite-sized morsel (a lighting-fast yet hypnotic process which can elicit an ASMR response in some viewers), typically consumed as a post-meal treat or palate cleanser. Paan has such a legacy in India that it's endorsed by Ayurveda practitioners thanks to its being rich in carotene, calcium and vitamins, and also makes an appearance in the Kama Sutra. You can try the delicacy at Harris Park's Durga Paan and Falooda House, one of the very few spots in Sydney dedicated to the treat (and a TikTok favourite, too). There's a sweet (meetha), savoury (sada) and chocolate version available, but we love the sweet version. It's a texture-laden flavour bomb in which a fresh betel leaf envelops a colourful array of crunchy tidbits, dried fruits, fennel seeds, sweet chutney and desiccated coconut. Durga has also become known for its fire paan, which is by no means a hyperbolic misnomer. ZNOUD EL SETT Where to find it: SweetLand Patisserie, 55 Wigram Street What it is: This legendary Lebanese dessert — also known as a lady finger — is a bona fide indulgence. Especially popular during Ramadan as a post-iftar treat, these creamy and crispy pastries are a perfect pairing for a cup of coffee or tea. The version from family-owned SweetLand Patisserie is an excellent rendition of the classic dessert. Expect a beautifully rich and delicately flavoured ashta — which is similar to clotted cream — encased in layers of filo pastry which is wrapped into a finger-sized cigar, baked until perfectly golden and doused in a fragrant rose and orange syrup. It's then finished with a dollop of ashta and a drizzle of crushed pistachio. Stopping at just one might be a challenge. DAHI PURI Where to find it: Chatkazz, 14-20 Station Street East What it is: The clue's in the name here, folks. Think of dahi puri as the zingy cousin of the much-loved chaat pani puri. This one-bite wonder might be less well known than pani puri, but it is still definitely worthy of your attention. And Harris Park institution Chatkazz is one of the few places in town where you can get it. So, how does it differ from its similarly named sibling snack? The base of puffed, deep-fried bread filled with a layer of boiled potato is the same, but that's where the similarities end. Dahi puri sees hearty chickpeas packing out the crunchy base which is then topped with yoghurt, various chutneys, sev for extra crunch and finished with a pomegranate seed for an extra bit of depth. A true delight. MANGO KULFI Where to get it: Rocket Kulfi, 84/65 Wigram Street What it is: Perhaps one of the subcontinent's best-loved desserts, kulfi is often thought of as India's answer to ice cream — but that's not quite the case. Where ice cream is whipped before being frozen, kulfi is not, and the result is a more solid, dense dessert that's more like a frozen custard. Its density also causes it to melt more slowly than ice cream, making for less sticky fingers (at least in theory). As its name would suggest, Harris Park go-to Rocket Kulfi specialises in the frozen treat and uses a traditional recipe to create its range of classic and contemporary flavours. You'll likely want to work your way through the whole list of flavours, but you can't go wrong with the sweet, creamy mango. Bonus: the icy-pole sticks are made with 100% pure Australian milk and are also free of gelatin, artificial flavours and preservatives (Apk Ticket). LAMB CHOWMEIN Where to get it: Chulho, 59-61 Wigram Street What it is: Nepal's incredible cultural and geographic diversity means that its cuisine is really more like several cuisines under the one proverbial banner. There are a few dishes that are enjoyed throughout the mountainous, landlocked nation though — and chowmein is one of them. Thought to be introduced to Nepal by Tibetan settlers, chowmein has become one of the country's most popular and ubiquitous fast food items. The Nepali take on the Chinese stir-fried noodle dish doesn't stray too far from the version you've likely already had, but that doesn't mean it's not worth your time. Wigram Street restaurant and live music venue Chulho prepares its version with expertly cooked thin egg noodles wok-fried with a medley of fresh vegetables, soy sauce and a secret homemade sauce that adds a whack of umami. We love the lamb version, with the tender protein adding a layer of subtle sweetness to the palate. To discover more excellent eats and things to see and do in Harris Park, head to the website. Images: Nikki To
Through their Fresh Ink program, the Australian Theatre for Young People (ATYP) has been giving Australia's finest emerging writers space to play on stage, page, film and online. Their latest development under the banner of the Voices Project is worth checking out. It takes two heartbreaking monologues about first love and turns them into different but equally heartbreaking short films, which can be viewed online. Bat Eyes by Jessica Bellamy will give you a whole new appreciation of WH Auden, as it hones in on the fleeting bond shared between a teenage bully and his visually impaired, poetically charged target. The optometrist's office has never before seemed so romantic. Bat Eyes and its counterpart, Boot — about teenage recklessness and tense girl best-friendships — have been beautifully shot by director Damien Power. The great thing about the Voices Project is that it brings together young people from different backgrounds and disciplines, and it makes writers and viewers think about how storytelling changes from medium to medium. As well as the adapted short films, you can watch the original monologues (directed by Laura Scrivano) and see how they've changed while making the jump out of just one person's head. If you're under 26 and have your own thoughts on love to share, you can enter Fresh Ink's current Love Bytes competition, open until Friday, May 4. https://youtube.com/watch?v=qyDEEQoVqjY
Something delightful has been happening in cinemas in some parts of the country. After numerous periods spent empty during the pandemic, with projectors silent, theatres bare and the smell of popcorn fading, picture palaces in many Australian regions are back in business — including both big chains and smaller independent sites in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. During COVID-19 lockdowns, no one was short on things to watch, of course. In fact, you probably feel like you've streamed every movie ever made, including new releases, Studio Ghibli's animated fare and Nicolas Cage-starring flicks. But, even if you've spent all your time of late glued to your small screen, we're betting you just can't wait to sit in a darkened room and soak up the splendour of the bigger version. Thankfully, plenty of new films are hitting cinemas so that you can do just that — and we've rounded up, watched and reviewed everything on offer this week. THE INNOCENTS Thanks to his Oscar-nominated work co-penning The Worst Person in the World's screenplay, Eskil Vogt has already helped give the world one devastatingly accurate slice-of-life portrait in the past year. That applauded film is so insightful and relatable about being in your twenties, and also about weathering quarter-life malaise, uncertainty and crisis, that it feels inescapably lifted from reality — and it's sublime. The Innocents, the Norwegian filmmaker's latest movie, couldn't be more different in tone and narrative; however, it too bears the fingerprints of achingly perceptive and deep-seated truth. Perhaps that should be mindprints, though. Making his second feature as a director after 2014's exceptional Blind, Vogt hones in on childhood, and on the way that kids behave with each other when adults are absent or oblivious — and on tykes and preteens who can wreak havoc solely using their mental faculties. Another riff on Firestarter, this thankfully isn't. The Innocents hasn't simply jumped on the Stranger Things bandwagon, either. Thanks to the latter, on-screen tales about young 'uns battling with the supernatural are one of Hollywood's current favourite trends — see also: the awful Ghostbusters: Afterlife — but all that this Nordic horror movie's group of kids are tussling with is themselves. Their fight starts when nine-year-old Ida (debutant Rakel Lenora Fløttum) and her 11-year-old sister Anna (fellow first-timer Alva Brynsmo Ramstad), who is on the autism spectrum, move to an apartment block in Romsås, Oslo with their mother (Blind's Ellen Dorrit Petersen) and father (Morten Svartveit, Ninjababy). It's summer, the days are long, and the two girls are largely left to their own devices outside in the complex's communal spaces. That's where Ida befriends Aisha (Mina Yasmin Bremseth Asheim) and Ben (Sam Ashraf), albeit not together, and starts to learn about their abilities. One of The Innocents' most astonishing scenes — in a film with many — springs from Ida discovering what the sullen, bullied Ben can do solely with his brain. Indeed, one of Vogt's masterstrokes is focusing on how she reacts to the boy's telekinesis, as demonstrated by flinging around a bottle cap. Ida is almost preternaturally excited, and she's lured in by the thrall of what Ben might be able to do next, even though she can visibly sense that something isn't quite right. Another series of unforgettable moments arises shortly afterward when her new pal, lapping up the attention from his only friend, cruelly and sickeningly shows off without even deploying his superpowers. It's a deeply disturbing turn in a movie that repeatedly isn't afraid to find evident terrors in ordinary, everyday, banal surroundings, and Ida's response — horrified, alarmed, yet unwilling to completely cut ties — again says everything. Vogt doesn't shy away from intimating something that society often doesn't, won't or both: that childhood and innocence don't always go hand in hand. En route to their new home in the film's opening sequence, Ida is already spied pinching the non-verbal Anna just to glean what she'll do. Later, as conveyed in economical imagery lensed by stellar cinematographer Sturla Brandth Grøvlen — who already has Another Round, Last and First Men, Shirley, Rams and Victoria to his name, and uses blood here with haunting precision — she's seen escalating that pain-fulled experimentation in a gutwrenching fashion. This side to the girl's personality isn't played as a twist or shock, and neither are Ben's skills and proclivities, or the friendly Aisha's telepathic powers (including the ability to communicate with Anna). Instead, The Innocents is positively matter of fact about what its pint-sized characters are capable of, and also steadfastly avoids trading in simplistic ideas of good and evil, or offering up neat rationales. Read our full review. HOW TO PLEASE A WOMAN When Magic Mike stripped its way into cinemas a decade ago, it didn't just turn Channing Tatum's IRL background into a movie and give his chiselled torso oh-so-much attention; it understood that women like sex, boast libidos and have desires, too. Its sequel, Magic Mike XXL, doubled down on that idea, and winningly so — even if the saga dances with a notion so blatant that it definitely shouldn't feel revelatory to see it thrust front and centre in a big-budget Hollywood film. There's no trace of Tatum in How to Please a Woman, and it has nothing to do with the saucy franchise that has a third flick on the way, but this Aussie comedy nonetheless follows in Magic Mike's footsteps. Here, women also like sex, boast libidos and have desires, and that's something that the stuck-in-a-rut Gina (Sally Phillips, Off the Rails) turns into a lucrative business. When first-time feature writer/director Renée Webster begins her sunnily shot, eagerly crowd-pleasing leap to the big screen — following helming gigs on TV's The Heights and Aftertaste — Gina's relationship with sex is non-existent. She has long been wed to lawyer Adrian (Cameron Daddo, Home and Away), but he still thinks that having a tumble on their last holiday years ago is enough bedroom action to keep their marriage going. Gina's resigned to that fact, too, until her ocean swimming club pals book her a stripping surprise for her birthday. Tom (Alexander England, Little Monsters) shows up at her door, starts gyrating and undressing, and says he'll do whatever she wants. Although her friends are later horrified — and its their eagerness to truly take Tom up on his offer that inspires a brainwave — Gina asks him to clean her house instead. Men doing housework shouldn't be revolutionary or subversive either, but How to Please a Woman still uses it as a doorway to exploring other female yearnings that are often left unsatisfied. It's as cliched a move as Webster makes — and her movie makes plenty — but it's also part of the film's devotion to celebrating what women genuinely want. Here, a comedy can be overt, easy and obvious (all things that Gina's sex life isn't), and also delightfully well-intentioned in embracing a fact of life that's rarely given much attention, especially if women past their 30s are involved. Indeed, when a suddenly unemployed Gina, devastated by being the only one downsized out of the insolvency firm she dutifully works for, spots a removalist company she thinks she can save — by turning it into a male escort service, covering scrubbing and shagging alike, and both if customers would like — How to Please a Woman is both broad and joyous. There's a caper attitude to Gina's operations from there, after convincing Tom's removals colleagues Anthony (Ryan Johnson, Doctor Doctor), Ben (Josh Thomson, Young Rock) and Steve (Erik Thomson, Coming Home in the Dark) to widen their professional repertoire. She's skirting the law, Adrian's none the wiser, and the customers (including characters played by Blacklight's Caroline Brazier, Mystery Road's Tasma Walton, Rams' Hayley McElhinney and The Heights' Asher Yasbincek) keep coming. Sometimes, those between-the-sheets antics are clumsy, and Gina's new stable of prostitutes need a few pointers. That applies to getting their paying clients' homes spick and span, too. And, it also covers How to Please a Woman overall, which is always cosier and less risqué than its sex-positive, age-positive and female-focused premise implies. It also leans on the expected rather than takes risks, but remains wonderfully cast — especially Phillips — and gleefully wears its message about finding happiness by knowing what you need and going for it. LAST SEEN ALIVE Perhaps the most positive thing that can be said about Last Seen Alive is this: it's definitely a Gerard Butler-starring kidnapping thriller. That isn't meant as praise, though; rather, the film simply manages to be exactly what viewers would expect given its star and premise. There's clearly far less cash behind it than the also-terrible trio of Olympus Has Fallen, London Has Fallen and Angel Has Fallen — or Geostorm, Den of Thieves, Hunter Killer and Greenland among the Scottish actor's career lowlights over the past decade, either. There's visibly less effort, too, and more of a phoning-it-in vibe. The second collaboration between actor-turned-filmmaker Brian Goodman (What Doesn't Kill You) and producer/writer Marc Frydman after 2017's Black Butterfly, it plays like something that a streaming platform's algorithm might spit out in an AI-driven future where new movies are swiftly spliced together from pieces of past flicks. Yes, among Butler's output and with its abduction storyline, it's that derivative. Butler plays Will Spann, a real estate developer who already isn't having a great day when the film begins — but it's about to get worse. He's driving his unhappy wife Lisa (Jaimie Alexander, Loki) to her parents' home, where she's keen to decamp to find herself and take a break from their marriage, and Will is desperate to convince her to change her plans en route. His charm offensive isn't working when they stop at a petrol station mere minutes away from their destination, and he has zero charisma for anyone when Lisa unexpectedly disappears while he's filling the tank. Fuming that local police detective Paterson (Russell Hornsby, Lost in Space) hasn't just dropped everything immediately, and that he also has questions about their relationship, Will decides to chase down any lead he can himself. Meanwhile, Lisa's unsurprisingly wary parents (Queen Bees' Cindy Hogan and Master's Bruce Altman) direct their suspicions his way. Perhaps the most backhanded compliment that can be given to Last Seen Alive is this: it'd make a better Liam Neeson movie. Both Frydman's script and Goodman's execution feel like they're aiming for Taken; instead, even this year's dismal Blacklight looks better. With Butler in the lead, Will comes across as overbearing and insufferable rather than concerned and committed to doing whatever it takes — and nothing that the character does makes much sense as a result. He refuses to let the cops investigate because, basically, he's played by an angry Butler. He can't even wait at the petrol station that Lisa disappears from for seemingly the same reason. When he gets a tip about a suspect, he takes matters into his own hands rather than tells Paterson because, you guessed it, he's played by an angry Butler. Accordingly, the entire movie is little more than an exercise in answering the same question over and over again: what would a jerk of a character played by an angry Butler do in any given situation? It doesn't help that Last Seen Alive is shot as if the bane of every recently made television's existence, motion-smoothing settings, were already set in-camera. There's low-budget naturalism and then there's the flat, dull, soap opera-style look that this film sports. And, the special effects used for explosions simply demonstrate how vast the gap between unconvincing CGI and the real thing can be. Similarly doing the film no favours: the complete and utter absence of tension that stems from its central casting, and also its eagerness to prove as generic as possible. Little that Spann does is logical, but it's also ridiculously predictable because it's exactly what has to happen with Butler in the part. That he's easily and quickly overshadowed by Ethan Embry (First Man) in a thankless supporting role says everything it needs to. If you're wondering what else is currently screening in Australian cinemas — or has been lately — check out our rundown of new films released in Australia on February 3, February 10, February 17 and February 24; and March 3, March 10, March 17, March 24 and March 31; April 7, April 14, April 21 and April 28; and May 5 and May 12. You can also read our full reviews of a heap of recent movies, such as Belfast, Here Out West, Jackass Forever, Benedetta, Drive My Car, Death on the Nile, C'mon C'mon, Flee, Uncharted, Quo Vadis, Aida?, Cyrano, Hive, Studio 666, The Batman, Blind Ambition, Bergman Island, Wash My Soul in the River's Flow, The Souvenir: Part II, Dog, Anonymous Club, X, River, Nowhere Special, RRR, Morbius, The Duke, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Fantastic Beasts and the Secrets of Dumbledore, Ambulance, Memoria, The Lost City, Everything Everywhere All At Once, Happening, The Good Boss, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, The Northman, Ithaka, After Yang, Downton Abbey: A New Era, Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy, Petite Maman, The Drover's Wife The Legend of Molly Johnson, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Firestarter, Operation Mincemeat, To Chiara and This Much I Know to Be True.
UPDATE, April 19, 20201 The Invisible Man is available to stream via Amazon Prime Video, Binge, Foxtel Now, Google Play and YouTube Movies. In the latest version of The Invisible Man, Universal unwraps the bandages from one of its iconic horror figures in an astute, unnerving and thrillingly contemporary fashion. But it almost didn't happen, with the studio originally pursuing completely different plans. Let's all take a moment to thank the cinema gods that Tom Cruise's stint as The Mummy didn't work out. If his time dallying with Egyptian spirits had been a success, we'd now be watching Johnny Depp as The Invisible Man instead. That's what Universal's 'dark universe' — aka the studio's modern-day remakes of its old 1930s monster movies — had in store. Then the 2017 version of The Mummy proved a flop, forcing the company to change course. Suddenly, Depp's slated film disappeared into thin air just like the imperceptible man he was supposed to play. So too did an Angelina Jolie and Javier Bardem-starring take on The Bride of Frankenstein. And that left Universal with a gap — which Australian writer/director and Saw co-creator Leigh Whannell fills grippingly and convincingly with his top-notch update of cinema's most famous see-through character. In the Upgrade filmmaker's hands, The Invisible Man has been through some significant changes since HG Wells' 1897 novel and James Whale's 1933 first film adaptation. In fact, this movie doesn't really tell the eponymous figure's story, but that of the woman terrorised by the unseen guy. After years of suffering through an abusive relationship with hotshot optics pioneer Adrian Griffin (Oliver Jackson-Cohen), Cecilia Kass (Elisabeth Moss) works up the courage to leave him. Fleeing from his remote mansion in the middle of the night with the help of her sister (Harriet Dyer), she's petrified that he'll track her down and retaliate. But, as she hides out with a cop friend (Aldis Hodge) and his teenage daughter (Storm Reid), word arrives that Adrian has committed suicide — although when strange things start happening around Cecelia, she's convinced that he's still somehow messing with her. To not only make The Invisible Man today, but set it in today's world too, two areas needed to be addressed. The first is technology, recognising that turning a person invisible is far more plausible than it once was — and that being involved in someone's life without being physically present isn't just possible these days, but commonplace. The second is gender politics. Watching a man terrorise a woman sight unseen has very different connotations in the 21st century, as does the stalking and gaslighting that comes with it. Crucially, Whannell embraces the complexities of both areas in this thoroughly modern take on the tale, switching focus from villain to victim, and bolstering his narrative by pondering the underhanded capabilities of technology as well as the ongoing problem that is domestic violence. Accordingly, this slow-building version of The Invisible Man isn't an account of a scientist corrupted by his latest discovery, as seen in its predecessors. Rather, it's a portrait of a woman at the mercy of a man who'll do anything and use any means to get what he wants. The end result: psychological horror mixed with futuristic science-fiction and layered with a piercing societal statement, and it's as effective as it sounds. Of course, anyone who saw Upgrade will realise that this is the only interpretation of The Invisible Man that Whannell could've made. The Aussie filmmaker continues his fascination with body modification and tech-enabled surveillance, as well as his fondness for hyper-kinetic action, a pervasive mood of dread and tension, and a sparse, sleek look — plus his interrogation of the kind of society that, with not too many imaginative tweaks needed, we just might be headed for. Forgetting the terrible Insidious: Chapter 3, the only blip on his directorial resume to date, Whannell is swiftly establishing a reputation as a genre filmmaker with smarts, style and something to say — as well as the skill to combine all of the above into a thrilling, harrowing and engaging package. He also has canny casting instincts, with The Invisible Man as much Moss' movie as Whannell's. The Handmaid's Tale and Her Smell actor has had more than a little practice in this terrain of late — aka battling insidious enemies, navigating persecution, and devolving into distress, distrust and paranoia — and she draws upon that experience here. Indeed, watching someone face off against an unsighted foe can play as hokey or unintentionally comic, but not with Moss and her haunted yet determined stare taking centre stage. This definitely isn't the movie that Universal imagined when, high on dreams of building its own megastar-studded, monster-fuelled universe, the studio announced its now-defunct Depp-led project. That's something else to continue to thank the movie gods for — because no one needed Depp's usual daffy schtick wrapped in gauze, but cinema definitely does need Whannell's savvy, unsettling, spirited and refreshing The Invisible Man remake. Great horror movies have always reflected and responded to the times they're made in and, in the same vein as Jordan Peele's Get Out and Us, The Invisible Man helps lead the charge as the 21st century reaches its third decade. This is a socially conscious, savagely creepy, supremely clever reinterpretation of a classic scarefest that takes every part of that equation seriously. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLAJyugYEiY
Her Banana's delicate handmade jewellery is the perfect way to treat yourself — or gift a friend, if you have the self-control. The small boutique store and studio focuses on minimalist designs that have a timeless quality, showcasing a collection of reasonably-priced rings, earrings and necklaces made of stirling silver and 14k gold. This is the sort of understated jewellery that will transcend seasonal trends. There's also the alluring opportunity to personalise your own piece, through lettering, length, engraving — or just about anything else you can think of. Visit the King Street shop and studio to purchase your own dainty design; or bring your special someone and not-so-subtly peruse the custom-designed engagement ring section together. Whatever your intention, staff go the extra mile to ensure you walk out the door happy.
Honestly? I've never considered a cruise holiday before. So when an opportunity came up to see New Zealand by boat I jumped at the opportunity, but given that my only reference for travelling on water was a round trip on a Sydney ferry, I truly didn't know what to expect. In the end, it turned out to be the voyage of a lifetime — being greeted by bottlenose dolphins as we coasted by Milford Sound's soaring cliffs at sunrise, sipping Aperol Spritz while gazing at ocean sunsets from the ocean, and eating our weight's worth of meals on the ship's many restaurants. Here's an account of how the trip went down here. FIRST IMPRESSIONS When me and my partner boarded the ship, we made a beeline straight to our new home-away-from-home: a surprisingly spacious room with a luxurious king size bed, cosy living space, fully stocked mini bar and private verandah which served as home base for many room service breakfasts and sunset drinks. After settling in, we were ready to explore the labyrinth of amenities. If you're anything like me (a complete cruise novice), you probably hazard a guess that a cruise ship is akin to a large resort with a pool, some snazzy restaurants and a few shops. What you might not realise — and what I quickly discovered on board the Celebrity Eclipse (the vessel I traveled on, one of many from the Celebrity Cruises fleet) — is that the inside of a cruise ship is more comparable to a mini floating city. It had everything from a giant broadway theatre, spacious grass lawn, basketball court, and more pools, spas, restaurants, bars and shops than you could count on your fingers and toes. CRUISE CUISINE When it came to its dining options, the Eclipse really blew my expectations out of the water (pardon the pun). From immersive 3D concept dining at the Le Petit Chef, to ocean-fresh sashimi and caramelised gingerbread with wasabi gelato at Sushi on 5, to the fully stacked and ever-changing buffet that you'd anticipate on a cruise. The Le Petit Chef 3D projection dining experience was a strange highlight — watching a tiny 3D-animated chef prepare tomato tartine in front of you while you are 100km away from land was a surreal experience to say the least. Another culinary highlight was Murano, a restaurant where chefs masterfully prepared traditional recipes like lobster bisque in front of your very eyes. This is clearly a difficult thing to express in words and kind of just needs to be experienced. The all-inclusive dining options were also well worth writing home about. Between the crowd-pleasing menu at the chic Moonlight Sonata with well-executed retro classics like prawn cocktail, creme brulee and New York cheesecake, to the clean eating options at Blu, which boasted biodynamic wines and dishes like Beyond burgers, black truffle gnocchi and tuna tataki with spicy mango scallions. [caption id="attachment_900893" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Room service breakfast on the balcony of a Celebrity Cruise cabin[/caption] And when it came to drinks, you couldn't find a more picturesque place to sink back a beverage. From the breezy Sunset Bar with sweeping ocean views, to the cosmopolitan Martini Bar with top-notch bartenders, or the premium concoctions at Blu with names like Nightfall Elixir and Garden Breeze and tasting notes of fresh crushed strawberry, maple and Veuve Clicquot. (We had the classic drinks package which entitled us to unlimited drinks in the 'classic' category, which included everything from beers to bubblies). ENTERTAINMENT AT SEA (AND LAND) If you've ever wondered what one does on a 12 day cruise besides eating and drinking, I was surprised to discover it's a whole lot more than you might expect. Cruise guests are encouraged to download an app that surfaces a menu of entertainment and experiences for each day of the journey. The seemingly endless list of activities included everything from Broadway shows with acrobatics to rival Cirque Du Soleil, to an endless supply of luxury treatments and massages at the spa and salon. If you want to get your daily steps in, the Eclipse features a substantial running track, a premium gym and fitness centre and plenty of workout options from barre to boxing. Which brings me to my next point, which everything that happens onboard it's surprisingly easy to forget that you actually get to visit the incredible travel destination that is New Zealand. We had a whole host of New Zealand cities on our cruising agenda - from the staggeringly beautiful Milford Sound, to the cultural hub of Wellington - and each city we saw came with a curated list of Celebrity's shore excursions. Our most memorable excursion saw us hopping on board a WWI-era train through New Zealand's wine country, beginning in Picton and travelling through Marlborough's lush hills and valleys where 85% of New Zealand's wines are made. We enjoyed complimentary wine tasting, lunch and views that could only be described as cinematic. This was definitely one for the proverbial picture books, or Instagram Story highlights. [caption id="attachment_900843" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The view from on board the train during the shore excursion in Picton[/caption] WOULD I CONSIDER FUTURE CRUISES? Overall, going on a cruise was one of the most unique and memorable holidays I can recall. While being away from land was something I'd never experienced, the whole encounter made being away from home feel very homely indeed from the ultra lush rooms to the endless entertainment, and some of the kindest hospitality and staff I've encountered on any type of holiday. If you want to be the main character on your next trip, satisfy your wanderlust without having to pack and unpack your bags, and eat and drink to your heart's content a cruise holiday is an option I would definitely consider again. If you're curious about doing some cruise-based exploring of the Southern Hemisphere yourself, Celebrity Cruises has announced the arrival of one of its most luxurious ships yet: the Celebrity Edge which will debut Down Under in late 2023 or early 2024, allowing you to traverse the coastlines of Australia, New Zealand and the tropical South Pacific including Bali. Set to rival the world's most luxurious land-based resorts, the 2023/24 intake promises to reimagine cruise travel with some of the world's most indulgent on board amenities. Concrete Playground travelled as a guest of Celebrity Cruises. Main image: The view from Celebrity Eclipse near Dunedin on the South Island of New Zealand
Since opening its first shop in Taiwan in 2006, Gong Cha has already grown to 1500 stores globally. And, because that's clearly not enough, the brand also operates the first boba tea shop at sea. Gong Cha's luxury cruise liner — dubbed the Majestic Princess — sails all around the world, from Alaska and Europe to Tahiti and the Panama Canal. It also offers guests 15 different teas to choose from, including a trio exclusive to the cruise. If you'd rather get your Gong Cha fix on land, you can choose from a whopping 36 stores in Sydney, stretching from Campbelltown to Castle Hill to Penrith and everywhere in between. It's a big menu, so newbies should go for one of the top ten — which includes milk tea with pearls, mango and jellies, matcha red bean and milk foam green tea. Plus more unusual items like rosella plum tea with white pearls and lemon-roasted melon with basil seeds.
No one loves long-haul flights. If you don't have the cash to upgrade your seat, no one loves trying to get some sleep when you're soaring through the air for nine, 13 or even 17-plus hours. But thanks to Air New Zealand's new economy skynest, getting some shuteye midair is about to get a whole lot easier — come 2024, when the airline's new Dreamliners will take to the skies. First announced back in 2020, and now confirmed to come into operation in just two more years, Air NZ's economy skynest is a first-of-its-kind option that'll feature six lie-flat pods. Yes, they look like bunk beds on a plane, and you'll be able to slumber in them while zooming to your destination. If it sounds like a game changer, that's because it is. Back in 2020, Air NZ announced the pods as part of filing patent and trademark applications, and noted that it'd make a final decision on whether they'd come into effect within a year. That go-ahead might've arrived a bit later — aka now, not in 2021 — but that doesn't make it any less exciting. "New Zealand's location puts us in a unique position to lead on the ultra-longhaul travel experience. We have zeroed in on sleep, comfort and wellness because we know how important it is for our customers to arrive well-rested. Whether they are heading straight into a meeting or to their first holiday hotspot — they want to hit the ground running," said Air New Zealand Chief Executive Officer Greg Foran. "It's a proud moment to finally unveil five years of hard mahi, in what truly is a cabin of possibility. One that will provide customers with options to get some shut eye wherever they're sitting." While the full details are yet to be revealed, when they were first announced, the pods were intended to include a full-size pillow, sheets, a blanket, ear plugs, privacy curtains and lighting designed for sleep. The airline also said it was exploring other features such as separate reading light, personal device USB outlet and ventilation outlet. Also on the way: new business premier luxe suites and business premier seats, if you are flush with cash. The former will include a door that closes, plus a space to dine; the latter will let you share your nest with a friend if you're in the middle row. The new Dreamliners will also feature premium economy seats, with more protected space to recline without annoying the person behind you; economy skycouch, so you can spread out, lie down and sleep; and economy stretch, with more leg room than a regular seat. And, those usual seats will get more storage space, a 50-percent bigger entertainment screen, and bluetooth audio and pairing. Also, the aircrafts will feature care stations in the premium economy and economy cabins, letting travellers stretch their legs, grab a bite to eat and get a drink whenever they wish. Design-wise, the planes' interiors will take cues from Aotearoa in a number of ways, too — such as carpet inspired by the forest, and nodding to the tūī in the seats. Air New Zealand's Economy Skynest will be available from 2024. For more information in the interim, visit the airline's website.
As Dale Kerrigan in the iconic Australian comedy The Castle, Stephen Curry famously dug a hole. Twenty years later, in Hounds of Love, he's splashing blood around, kidnapping young women, and just generally digging his character into trouble. Curry has popped up in everything from Neighbours and The Wog Boy to The Cup and Save Your Legs! in the years since his breakout role, but you've never seem him quite like this. His utterly against-type turn is just one of the factors than ensures this serial killer thriller makes for extremely jolting viewing. Set in Perth during the sultry summer of December 1987, and inspired by real-life crimes in the area at the time, Hounds of Love steps inside the turbulent marriage of John and Evelyn White (Curry and Emma Booth), a couple that likes to lure teenagers into their car and house. There's no mistaking John's sinister motives, or that Evelyn is not quite as willing a participant as she pretends. When they pick up 17-year-old Vicki Maloney (Ashleigh Cummings) as she's sneaking out of her freshly divorced mother's home one evening, their new captive is quick to spot the imbalance at the heart of their relationship. Exploiting that rocky dynamic will prove crucial for the young woman after she's drugged, chained to a bed and forced to fight for her life. While Curry turns in an astonishing performance that no one will forget in a hurry, this isn't a one-man show. Booth and Cummings are even more commanding and revelatory as two women immersed in a hellish domestic nightmare not of their own making – one equally fragile and determined, the other an enterprising survivor. Together, the actresses help illustrate the film's real thematic focus. Indeed, first-time writer-director Ben Young isn't merely concerned with the sociopathic underside of a seemingly ordinary-looking man; many a movie has been there and done that before. Hounds of Love still features a few predictable twists and turns, but at its heart the film is a deeply unsettling exploration of the way that men dominate and victimise women — be it their long-term partner or a fresh-faced stranger. Violent deeds fill the movie's frames, some seen and others only hinted at. But it's the savage psychological damage brutally inflicted on Evelyn and Vicki that ultimately has the strongest impact. Of course they're not the only ones left feeling uncomfortable, and that's putting things mildly. Dread and unease seeps through the film, with Young setting out to evoke the same kind of distress in the audience. If Snowtown tested your mettle, consider yourself warned. It's a handy reference point. Like Justin Kurzel's first feature, Hounds of Love is a highly unsettling debut that heralds the emergence of a promising new Aussie filmmaking talent. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqCXqWdlKrk
