Not all that long ago, the idea of getting cosy on your couch, clicking a few buttons, and having thousands of films and television shows at your fingertips seemed like something out of science fiction. Now, it's just an ordinary night — whether you're virtually gathering the gang to text along, cuddling up to your significant other or shutting the world out for some much needed me-time. Of course, given the wealth of options to choose from, there's nothing ordinary about making a date with your chosen streaming platform. The question isn't "should I watch something?" — it's "what on earth should I choose?". Hundreds of titles are added to Australia's online viewing services each and every month, all vying for a spot on your must-see list. And, so you don't spend 45 minutes scrolling and then being too tired to actually commit to anything, we're here to help. We've spent plenty of couch time watching our way through this month's latest batch — and, from the latest and greatest through to old and recent favourites, here are our picks for your streaming queue from April's haul. Brand-New Stuff You Can Watch From Start to Finish Now Ripley Boasting The Night Of's Steven Zaillian as its sole writer and director — joining a list of credits that includes penning Martin Scorsese's Gangs of New York and The Irishman, and also winning an Oscar for Schindler's List — the latest exquisite jump into the Ripley realm doesn't splash around black-and-white hues as a mere stylistic preference. In this new adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's 1955 book, the setting is still coastal Italy at its most picturesque, and therefore a place that most would want to revel in visually; Anthony Minghella, The Talented Mr Ripley's director a quarter-century back, did so with an intoxicating glow. For Zaillian, however, stripping away the warm rays and beaches and hair, blue seas and skies, and tanned skin as well, ensures that all that glitters is never gold or even just golden in tone as he spends time with Tom Ripley (Andrew Scott, All of Us Strangers). There's never even a glint of a hint of a travelogue aesthetic, with viewers confronted with the starkness of Tom's choices and actions — he is a conman and worse, after all — plus the shadows that he persists in lurking in and the impossibility of ever grasping everything that he desires in full colour. On the page and on the screen both before and now, the overarching story remains the same, though, in this new definitive take on the character. It's the early 60s rather than the late 50s in Ripley, but Tom is in New York, running fake debt-collection schemes and clinging to the edges of high-society circles, when he's made a proposal that he was never going to refuse. Herbert Greenleaf (filmmaker Kenneth Lonergan, who has also acted in his own three features You Can Count on Me, Margaret and Manchester by the Sea) enlists him to sail to Europe to reunite with a friend, the shipping magnate's son Dickie (Johnny Flynn, One Life). As a paid gig, Tom is to convince the business heir to finally return home. But Dickie has no intention of giving up his Mediterranean leisure as he lackadaisically pursues painting — and more passionately spends his time with girlfriend Marge Sherwood (Dakota Fanning, The Equalizer 3) — to join the family business. Ripley streams via Netflix. Read our full review. Fallout A young woman sheltered in the most literal sense there is, living her entire life in one of the subterranean facilities where humanity endeavours to start anew. A TV and movie star famed for his roles in westerns, then entertaining kids, then still alive but irradiated 219 years after the nuclear destruction of Los Angeles. An aspiring soldier who has never known anything but a devastated world, clinging to hopes of progression through the military. All three walk into the wasteland in Fallout, the live-action adaptation of the gaming series that first arrived in 1997. All three cross paths in an attempt to do all that anyone can in a post-apocalyptic hellscape: survive. So goes this leap into a world that's had millions mashing buttons through not only the OG game, but also three released sequels — a fourth is on the way — plus seven spinoffs. Even with Westworld' Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy as executive producers, giving Fallout the flesh-and-blood treatment is a massive and ambitious task. But where 2023 had The Last of Us, 2024 now has this; both are big-name dystopian titles that earned legions of devotees through gaming, and both are excellent in gripping and immersive fashion at making the move to television. Fallout's vision of one of the bleakest potential futures splits its focus between Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell, Yellowjackets), who has no concept of how humanity can exist on the surface when the show kicks off; Cooper Howard aka bounty hunter The Ghoul (Walton Goggins, I'm a Virgo), the screen gunslinger who saw the bombs fall and now wields weapons IRL; and Maximus (Aaron Moten, Emancipation), a trainee for the Brotherhood of Steel, which is committed to restoring order by throwing around its might (and using robotic armour). The show's lead casting is gleaming, to the point that imagining anyone but this trio of actors as Lucy, Howard-slash-The Ghoul and Maximus is impossible. Where else has Walton's resume, with its jumps between law-and-order efforts, westerns traditional and neo, and comedy — see: The Shield, Justified, Sons of Anarchy, The Hateful Eight, Vice Principals and The Righteous Gemstones, as a mere few examples — been leading than here? (And, next, also season three of The White Lotus.) Fallout streams via Prime Video. Read our full review, and our interview with Walton Goggins, Ella Purnell and Aaron Moten. Heartbreak High When Heartbreak High returned in 2022, the Sydney-set series benefited from a pivotal fact: years pass, trends come and go, but teen awkwardness and chaos is eternal. In its second season, Netflix's revival of the 1994–99 Australian favourite embraces the same idea. It's a new term at Hartley High, one that'll culminate in the Year 11 formal. Amerie (Ayesha Madon, Love Me) might be certain that she can change — doing so is her entire platform for running for school captain — but waiting for adulthood to start never stops being a whirlwind. Proving as easy to binge as its predecessor, Heartbreak High's eight new episodes reassemble the bulk of the gang that audiences were initially introduced to two years ago. Moving forward is everyone's planned path — en route to that dance, which gives the new batch of instalments its flashforward opening. The evening brings fire, literally. Among the regular crew, a few faces are missing in the aftermath. The show then rewinds to two months earlier, to old worries resurfacing, new faces making an appearance and, giving the season a whodunnit spin as well, to a mystery figure taunting and publicly shaming Amerie. The latter begins their reign of terror with a dead animal; Bird Psycho is soon the unknown culprit's nickname. Leaders, creepers, slipping between the sheets: that's Heartbreak High's second streaming go-around in a nutshell. The battle to rule the school is a three-person race, pitting Amerie against Sasha (Gemma Chua-Tran, Mustangs FC) and Spider (Bryn Chapman Parish, Mr Inbetween) — one as progressive as Hartley, which already earns that label heartily, can get; the other season one's poster boy for jerkiness, toxicity and entitlement. Heightening the electoral showdown is a curriculum clash, with the SLT class introduced by Jojo Obah (Chika Ikogwe, The Tourist) last term as a mandatory response to the grade's behaviour questioned by Head of PE Timothy Voss (Angus Sampson, Bump). A new faculty member for the show, he's anti-everything that he deems a threat to traditional notions of masculinity. In Spider, Ant (Brodie Townsend, Significant Others) and others, he quickly has followers. Their name, even adorning t-shirts: CUMLORDS. Heartbreak High streams via Netflix. Read our full review. Such Brave Girls If Such Brave Girls seems close to reality, that's because it is. In the A24 co-produced series — which joins the cult-favourite entertainment company's TV slate alongside other standouts such as Beef, Irma Vep, Mo and The Curse over the past two years — sisters Kat Sadler and Lizzie Davidson both star and take inspiration from their lives and personalities. Making their TV acting debuts together, the pair also play siblings. Josie (Sadler) and Billie (Davidson), their on-screen surrogates, are navigating life's lows not only when the show's six-part first season begins, but as it goes on. The entire setup was sparked by a phone conversation between the duo IRL, when one had attempted to take her life twice and the other was £20,000 in debt. For most, a sitcom wouldn't come next; however, laughing at and lampooning themselves, and seeing the absurdity as well, is part of Such Brave Girls' cathartic purpose for its driving forces. If you've ever thought "what else can you do?" when finding yourself inexplicably chuckling at your own misfortune, that's this series — this sharp, unsparing, candid, complex and darkly comedic series — from start to finish. Creating the three-time BAFTA-nominated show, writing it and leading, Sadler plays Josie as a bundle of nerves and uncertainty. The character is in her twenties, struggling with her mental health and aspiring to be an artist, but is largely working her way through a never-ending gap year. Davidson's Billie is the eternally optimistic opposite — albeit really only about the fact that Nicky (Sam Buchanan, Back to Black), the guy that she's hooking up with, will eventually stop cheating on her, fall in love and whisk her away to Manchester to open a vodka bar bearing her name. Both girls live at home with their mother Deb (Louise Brealey, Lockwood & Co), who also sees a relationship as the solution to her problems, setting her sights on the iPad-addicted Dev (Paul Bazely, Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves) a decade after Josie and Billie's father went out for teabags and never came home. With actor-slash-director Simon Bird behind the lens — alongside first-timer Marco Alessi on one episode — if Such Brave Girls seems like it belongs in the same acerbically comedic realm as The Inbetweeners and Everyone Else Burns, there's a reason for that, too. Such Brave Girls streams via Stan. Read our full review. Baby Reindeer A person walking into a bar. The words "sent from my iPhone". A comedian pouring their experiences into a one-performer play. A twisty true-crime tale making the leap to the screen. All four either feature in, inspired or describe Baby Reindeer. All four are inescapably familiar, too, but the same can't be said about this seven-part Netflix series. Written by and starring Scottish comedian Richard Gadd, and also based on his real-life experiences, this is a bleak, brave, revelatory, devastating and unforgettable psychological thriller. It does indeed begin with someone stepping inside a pub — and while Gadd plays a comedian on-screen as well, don't go waiting for a punchline. When Martha (Jessica Gunning, The Outlaws) enters The Heart in Camden, London in 2015, Donny Dunn (Gadd, Wedding Season) is behind the counter. "I felt sorry for her. That's the first feeling I felt," the latter explains via voiceover. Perched awkwardly on a stool at the bar, Martha is whimpering to herself. She says that she can't afford to buy a drink, even a cup of tea. Donny takes pity, offering her one for free — and her face instantly lights up. That's the fateful moment, one of sorrow met with kindness, that ignites Baby Reindeer's narrative and changes Donny's life. After that warm beverage, The Heart instantly has a new regular. Sipping Diet Cokes from then on (still on the house), Martha is full of stories about all of the high-profile people that she knows and her high-flying lawyer job. But despite insisting that she's constantly busy, she's also always at the bar when Donny is at work, sticking around for his whole shifts. She chats incessantly about herself, folks that he doesn't know and while directing compliments Donny's way. He's in his twenties, she's in her early forties — and he can see that she's smitten, letting her flirt. He notices her laugh. He likes the attention, not to mention getting his ego stroked. While he doesn't reciprocate her feelings, he's friendly. She isn't just an infatuated fantasist, however; she's chillingly obsessed to an unstable degree. She finds his email address, then starts messaging him non-stop when she's not nattering at his workplace. (IRL, Gadd received more than 40,000 emails.) Baby Reindeer streams via Netflix. Read our full review. Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV One of the most difficult episodes of documentary television to watch in 2024 hails from five-part series Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV. It's also essential to see. In its third chapter, this dive into the reality behind Nickelodeon's live-action children's TV success from the late-90s onwards gives the microphone to Drake Bell, who unravels his experiences while first working on The Amanda Show (led by Amanda Bynes, Easy A) and then on Drake & Josh (co-starring Josh Peck, Oppenheimer) — specifically his interactions with dialogue coach Brian Peck, who became immersed in Bell's life to a disturbing degree and was convicted in 2004 of sexually assaulting him. The case wasn't a major scandal at the time, incredulously. Even with Bell's name withheld because he was a minor, it was the second instance of a Nickelodeon staff member being arrested for such horrendous crimes in mere months, and yet widespread media coverage and public awareness didn't follow. Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV marks the first time that Bell talks about it publicly. Witnessing him speak through the details is as harrowing as it is heartbreaking. Originally releasing as four episodes, then adding a fifth hosted by journalist Soledad O'Brien to reflect upon the revelations covered, this docuseries has much that's distressing in its sights — much of it under television producer Dan Schneider. From sketch series All That onwards, he was a Nickelodeon bigwig; Kenan & Kel, Zoey 101, iCarly and Sam & Cat are also among the shows on his resume. Former child actors such as Giovonnie Samuels, Bryan Hearne, Alexa Nikolas, Katrina Johnson, Kyle Sullivan, Raquel Lee and Leon Frierson talk about the pressures on set, and the inappropriate jokes that they didn't realise were inappropriate jokes worked into their material. Ex-The Amanda Show writers Christy Stratton (Freeridge) and Jenny Kilgen step through the misogynistic environment among the creatives; that they were forced to split a salary between them but do the same amount of work as their male colleagues is only the beginning. Parents, including Bell's father Joe, share their unsurprisingly upset perspectives. Bynes' post-Nickelodeon fortunes also get the spotlight. Clips and behind-the-scenes footage are weaved in throughout, too, and looking at any of the network's shows from the era the same way again is impossible. Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV streams via Binge. Scoop What did it take to get one of the most important interviews with a member of the royal family that has ever aired on British television (and most important interviews in general)? That's Scoop's question — and not only do director Philip Martin (The Crown) and screenwriters Peter Moffat (61st Street) and Geoff Bussetil (The English Game) ask it while adapting Sam McAlister's 2022 book Scoops, but their compelling journalism thriller answers it in detail. The bulk of the feature is set in 2019, spending its time among the BBC staff at news and current affairs show Newsnight as they first try to lock in and then attempt to execute a chat with Prince Andrew. The end result, aka the program's 'Prince Andrew & the Epstein Scandal' episode, will go down in history; even if you didn't see it then or haven't since, everyone knows of that discussion and its ramifications. Getting it to the screen was the result of hard work, dedication and smarts on the parts of booker and producer McAllister, host Emily Maitlis and editor Esme Wren — and a tale that deserves to be just as well known. Billie Piper (I Hate Suzie) plays McAllister as whip-smart, fiercely determined and indefatigable when she's chasing a story, but undervalued at her job, so much so that her colleagues regularly accuse her of wasting time following up the wrong guests instead of simply complying with their requests. She's certain that a class clash isn't helping — and just as confident that she knows what she's doing, including when she begins corresponding with the Duke of York's (Rufus Sewell, Kaleidoscope) private secretary Amanda Thirsk (Keeley Hawes, Orphan Black: Echoes) about getting him on-camera to discuss his connection to Jeffrey Epstein. She needs backup from both Maitlis (Gillian Anderson, Sex Education) and Wren (Romola Garai, One Life), as well as the entire team's support, in bringing the chat to fruition. Just like the IRL interview itself, this polished how-it-happened procedural is riveting viewing as it slides into its genre alongside Spotlight and She Said. Scoop streams via Netflix. New and Returning Shows to Check Out Week by Week Sugar Colin Farrell's recent hot streak continues. After a busy few years that've seen him earn Oscar and BAFTA nominations for The Banshees of Inisherin, collect a Gotham Awards nod for After Yang, steal scenes so heartily in The Batman that TV spinoff The Penguin is on the way and pick up the Satellite Awards' attention for The North Water, Sugar now joins his resume. The Irish actor's television credits are still few — and, until his True Detective stint in 2015, far between — but it's easy to see what appealed to him about leading this mystery series. From the moment that the Los Angeles-set noir effort begins — in Tokyo, in fact — it drips with intrigue. Farrell's John Sugar, the show's namesake, is a suave private detective who takes a big Hollywood case against his handler Ruby's (Kirby, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off) recommendation. He's soon plunged into shadowy City of Angels chaos, bringing The Big Sleep, Chinatown, LA Confidential and Under the Silver Lake to mind, and loving movie history beyond sharing the same genre as said flicks. Softly spoken, always crispy dressed, understandably cynical and frequently behind the wheel of a blue vintage convertible, Sugar, the PI, is a film fan. The series bakes that love and its own links to cinema history into its very being through spliced-in clips and references elsewhere — and also foregrounds the idea that illusions, aka what Tinseltown so eagerly sells via its celluloid dreams, are inescapable in its narrative in the process. Twists come, not just including a brilliant move that reframes everything that comes before, but as Sugar endeavours to track down Olivia Siegel (Sydney Chandler, Don't Worry Darling). She's the granddaughter of worried legendary film producer Jonathan (James Cromwell, Succession); daughter of less-concerned (and less-renowned) fellow producer Bernie (Dennis Boutsikaris, Better Call Saul); half-sister of former child star David (Nate Corddry, Barry), who is on the comeback trail; and ex-step daughter of pioneering rocker Melanie (Amy Ryan, Beau Is Afraid). Trying to find her inspires heated opposition. Also sparked: an excellently cast series that splashes its affection of film noir and LA movies gone by across its frames, but is never afraid to be its own thing. Sugar streams via Apple TV+. Read our full review. The Sympathizer Fresh from winning an Oscar for getting antagonistic in times gone by as United States Atomic Energy Commission chair Lewis Strauss in Oppenheimer, Robert Downey Jr gets antagonistic in times gone by again in The Sympathizer — as a CIA handler, a university professor, a politician and a Francis Ford Coppola-esque filmmaker on an Apocalypse Now-style movie, for starters. In another addition to his post-Marvel resume that emphasises how great it is to see him stepping into the shoes of someone other than Tony Stark, he takes on multiple roles in this espionage-meets-Vietnam War drama, which adapts Viet Thanh Nguyen's 2016 Pulitzer Prize-winning book of the same name. But Downey Jr is never the show's lead, which instead goes to Australian Hoa Xuande (Last King of the Cross). The latter plays the Captain, who works for South Vietnamese secret police in Saigon before the city's fall, and is also a spy for the North Vietnamese communist forces. It's his memories, as typed out at a reeducation camp, that guide the seven-part miniseries' narrative — jumping back and forth in time, as recollections do, including to his escape to America. As the Captain relays the details of his mission and attempts to work both sides, The Sympathizer isn't just flitting between flashbacks as a structural tactic. The act of remembering is as much a focus as the varied contents of the Captain's memories — to the point that rewinding to add more context to a scene that's just been shown, or noting that he didn't specifically witness something but feels as if he can fill in the gap, also forms the storytelling approach. Perspective and influence are high among the show's concerns, too, as the Captain navigates the sway of many colonial faces (making Downey Jr's multiple roles a powerful and revealing touch) both in Vietnam and in the US. Behind it all off-screen is a filmmaker with a history of probing the tales that we tell ourselves and get others believing, as seen in stone-cold revenge-thriller classic Oldboy, 2022's best film Decision to Leave and 2018 miniseries The Little Drummer Girl: the inimitable Park Chan-wook. He co-created The Sympathizer for the screen with Don McKellar (Blindness) and it always bears is imprint, whether or not he's directing episodes — he helms three — with his piercing style, or getting help from Fernando Meirelles (who has been busy with this and Sugar) and Marc Munden (The Third Day). The Sympathizer streams via Binge. Loot Across ten extremely amusing initial episodes in 2022, Loot had a message: billionaires shouldn't exist. So declared the show's resident cashed-up character, with Molly Wells (Maya Rudolph, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem) receiving $87 billion in her divorce from tech guru John Novak (Adam Scott, Madame Web), then spending most of the sitcom's first season working out what to do with it (and also how to handle her newly single life in general). That she had a foundation to her name was virtually news to her. So was much about everything beyond the ultra-rich. And, she was hardly equipped for being on her own. But Loot's debut run came to an entertaining end with the big statement that it was always uttering not so quietly anyway. So what happens next, after one of the richest people in the world decides to give away all of her money? Cue season two of this ace workplace-set comedy. Created by former Parks and Recreation writers Alan Yang and Matt Hubbard, in their second Rudolph-starring delight — 2018's Forever was the first — Loot splices together three popular on-screen realms as it loosely draws parallels with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his philanthropist ex-wife MacKenzie Scott. At her charity, as Molly's staff become the kind of friends that feel like family while doing their jobs, shows such as 30 Rock and Superstore (which Hubbard also has on his resume) score an obvious sibling. As its protagonist endeavours to do good, be better and discover what makes a meaningful life, The Good Place (which Yang also wrote for) and Forever get company. And in enjoying its eat-the-rich mode as well, it sits alongside Succession and The White Lotus, albeit while being far sillier. Loot streams via Apple TV+. Read our full review. The Big Door Prize If there was a Morpho machine IRL rather than just in The Big Door Prize, and it dispensed cards that described the potential of TV shows instead of people, this is what it might spit out about the series that it's in: "comforting". For a mystery-tinged dramedy filled with people trying to work out who they are and truly want to be after an arcade game-esque console appears in their small town, this page-to-screen show has always proven both cathartic and relatable viewing. Its timing, dropping season one in 2023 as the pandemic-inspired great reset was well and truly in full swing, is a key factor. Last year as well as now — with season two currently upon us — this is a series that speaks to the yearning to face existential questions that couldn't be more familiar in a world where COVID-19 sparked a wave of similar "who am I?" musings on a global scale. The difference for the residents of Deerfield in this second spin: their journey no longer simply involves pieces of cardboard that claim to know where the bearer should be expending their energy, but also spans new animated videos that transform their inner thoughts and hopes into 32-bit clips. When the Morpho first made its presence known, high-school teacher Dusty (Chris O'Dowd, Slumberland) was cynical. Now he's taking the same route as everyone else in his community — including his wife Cass (Gabrielle Dennis, The Upshaws) and daughter Trina (Djouliet Amara, Fitting In) — by letting it steer his decisions. But whether he's making moves that'll impact his marriage, or his restaurant-owning best friend Giorgio (Josh Segarra, The Other Two) is leaping into a new relationship with Cass' best friend Nat (Mary Holland, The Afterparty), or other townsfolk are holding the Morpho up as a source of wisdom, easy happiness rarely follows. Season two of this David West Read (Schitt's Creek)-developed series still treats its magical machine as a puzzle for characters and viewers to attempt to solve, but it also digs deeper into the quest for answers that we all undertake while knowing deep down that there's no such thing as a straightforward meaning of life. As well as being extremely well-cast and thoughtful, it's no wonder that The Big Door Prize keeps feeling like staring in a mirror — and constantly intriguing as well. The Big Door Prize streams via Apple TV+. Read our full review. An Excellent Recent Film You Might've Missed Showing Up Kelly Reichardt and Michelle Williams are one of cinema's all-time great pairings. After 2008's Wendy and Lucy, 2010's Meek's Cutoff and 2016's Certain Women, all divine, add Showing Up to the reasons that their collaborations are an event. Again, writer/director Reichardt hones in on characters who wouldn't grace the screen otherwise, and on lives that rarely do the same. With her trademark empathy, patience and space, she spends time with people and problems that couldn't be more relatable as well. Her first picture since 2019's stunning First Cow, which didn't feature Williams, also feels drawn from the filmmaker's reality. She isn't a sculptor in Portland working an administration job at an arts and crafts college while struggling to find the time to create intricate ceramic figurines, but she is one of America's finest auteurs in an industry that so scarcely values the intricacy and artistry of her work. No one needs to have stood exactly in Showing Up's protagonist's shoes, or in Reichardt's, to understand that tussle — or the fight for the always-elusive right balance between passion and a paycheque, all while everyday chaos, family drama and the minutiae of just existing also throws up roadblocks. Showing Up couldn't have a better title. For Lizzy (Wiliams, The Fabelmans), who spends the nine-to-five grind at her alma mater with her mother (Maryann Plunkett, Manifest) as her boss, everything she does — or needs or wants to — is about doing exactly what the movie's moniker says. That doesn't mean that she's thrilled about it. She definitely isn't happy about her frenemy, neighobour and landlord Jo (Hong Chau, Asteroid City), who won't fix her hot water, couldn't be more oblivious to anyone else's problems and soon has her helping play nurse to an injured pidgeon. Reichardt spins the film's narrative around Lizzy's preparations for a one-night-only exhibition, including trying to carve out the hours needed to finish her clay pieces amid her job, the bird, advocating for a liveable home, professional envy and concerns for her alienated brother (John Magaro, Past Lives). The care and detail that goes into Lizzy's figurines is mirrored in Reichardt's own efforts, in another thoughtful and resonant masterpiece that does what all of the filmmaker's masterpieces do: says everything even when nothing is being uttered, proves a wonder of observation, boasts a pitch-perfect cast and isn't easily forgotten. Showing Up streams via Netflix. Need a few more streaming recommendations? Check out our picks from January, February and March this year, and also from January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November and December 2023. You can also check out our running list of standout must-stream shows from last year as well — and our best 15 new shows of 2023, 15 newcomers you might've missed, top 15 returning shows of the year, 15 best films, 15 top movies you likely didn't see, 15 best straight-to-streaming flicks and 30 movies worth catching up on over the summer.
The Powerhouse Museum's first exhibition of 2021 is an incredible retrospective of photographer and Turkish-Cypriot immigrant Bayram Ali (1920–95). When Ali was 15 years old he joined the British Army and fought in World War II, allowing him to come to Australia in 1949 (along with over two million post-war migrants that arrived in 1965). Ali worked for the Snowy Mountains Authority for over 20 years until the late 1970s, documenting his work with a camera. His photographs show what life and work was like during the time huge engineering feats were achieved at Lake Eucumbene, Talbingo Dam and Tooma Dam — all of which are considered to be some the greatest hydroelectric builds in the world. The unique prints on display are taken from 35 millimetre transparencies and are part of the amateur photography archives in the Powerhouse Collection. Image: Bayram Ali, Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme, Powerhouse Collection
Since forming back in 1981, the Beastie Boys have enjoyed quite the career. The New York hip hop outfit has sold more than 50 million records, caused a splash with its music videos and assumedly inspired plenty of folks to dance like robots in Tokyo train stations. In 2012, it also lost one of its three members — Adam "MCA" Yauch — to cancer, then officially disbanded in 2014. The above summary barely scratches the surface, of course; however Apple TV+'s new live documentary is here to fill in the gaps. Based on surviving Beasties Mike "Mike D" Diamond and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz's bestselling Beastie Boys Book, it takes audiences through the group's ups and downs — as guided by Mike D and Ad-Rock themselves. If you're wondering exactly what Beastie Boys Story will focus on, the band's 'Paul Revere' sums it up nicely. Clearly, here's a little story that Apple TV+ has to tell about three bad brothers you know so well. And yes, it started way back in history with Ad Rock, MCA and Mike D. As directed by Being John Malkovich and Her filmmaker Spike Jonze — who also helmed the Beasties' iconic 'Sabotage' music video, as well as clips for 'Time for Livin', 'Ricky's Theme', 'Sure Shot', 'Root Down' and 'Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win' — Beastie Boys Story is drawn not only from MCA and Mike D's book, but from the live performances that followed after it hit shelves. After publication, the duo took to the stage to talk fans through their career, in a show directed by Jonze as well. So mixing the performance with archival clips and turning it into a documentary was the clear next step, really. Originally due to premiere at this year's now-cancelled SXSW, Beastie Boys Story will hit Apple TV+ globally on Friday, April 24. As the just-dropped first trailer shows, it's a wild ride — and its filled with killer tunes. Ch-check out the trailer below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCyqR2RXoQU Beastie Boys Story hits Apple TV+ on Friday, April 24+.
It was a sad day when Gastro Park closed its doors, and an even sadder day when Grant King's next restaurant in the space, Antipodean, closed after less than a year in operation. After being vacant for over a year, the Potts Point digs have finally been snatched up by chef and hospitality veteran Opel Khan, who has just opened French restaurant Métisse in the Roslyn Street corner spot. In French, Métisse means "mixed race", a nod to the way the menu blends cuisines and cultures. Khan has Bangladeshi Australian background and was classically trained in France. And he's signed on a team of all-French chefs in the kitchen. These include head chef Benoit Lollichon (from the three-Michelin starred Guy Savoy restaurant) and Khan's 19-year-old daughter Lucinda Khan as sous chef. Khan is no newcomer to the restaurant industry either, having managed and owned 15 Australian restaurants, including the now-closed Surry Hills' French-Indian resto Guru and Beluga. At Métisse, diners can taste fine-dining French fare without the completely out-of-control prices. All entrées are priced at $18, all sides (including truffled mash) at $10 and mains at $28. Expect beef tartare crostini prepared tableside; foie gras parfait served with brioche and air-dried beetroot 'snow'; and butter and saffron poached salmon with asparagus. A house specialty is the duck a l'orange — layers of crispy duck confit, potato and caramelised orange sauce, paired with a pure gold-dusted quail egg. Try the lot with the five course degustation dinner, which includes paired wines for a pretty reasonable $100 (and also comes with a vego option). These set menus will be available every night, and exclusively on Fridays and Saturdays. Metisse is now open at 5–9 Roslyn Street, Potts Point. It's open from 5pm–midnight, Tuesday–Sunday.
Have you ever wondered what happens to beautiful, archaic train stations after the trains that run through them halt for good? Take a look at the some of the most gorgeous abandoned train stations from the around the globe to admire their classic beauty and discover some of the many secrets and stories hidden within their walls. Abkhazia The abandoned railway station in Abkhazia, Russia, is a historical relic of the former Soviet Union. A 185km railway line connected Russia’s North Caucasus Railway with Georgian Railways but was severed in 1992 following the war in Abkhazia. 54km of the railway was repaired in 2008, however, the operation was purely humanitarian and so this stunning structure remains untouched and hauntingly beautiful. Michigan Central Station Depot At the time of its construction in 1913, the Michigan Central Station Depot was the tallest rail station in the world. Located in the Corktown district of Detroit, this now abandoned station survived heavy military use during World War II and was almost closed for good in the '60s after maintenance costs became too high for the decreasing passenger volume. It was reopened in 1975 when Amtrak took over and initiated an enormous renovation program, however, the last train puffed past in 1988. Montzen Gare Montzen-Gare is located on the Eastern borders of Belgium and has become a hotspot for photographers wanting to capture the alluring beauty of its rusting trains, tracks and decaying rooms. The station was built by Russian prisoners of the First World War for the German Army but had to be rebuilt after a heavy bombing in 1944. The station also became available for passenger transport following the war, however it was abandoned for good in 1998. Mapocho Station Now used as an art gallery, the cavernous space of the Mapocho Station in Santiago, Chile was constructed between 1905 and 1912, and was once the heart and soul of Chile’s massive railway network. The grand building had its last train shudder to a stop in 1987, but it was restored to its former charm in the '90s. Today the station serves as the cultural nucleus of the nation with its spacious interior providing the perfect location for exhibitions, performances and many other cultural festivities. Manchester Mayfield Manchester's Mayfield station served as both a passenger and a goods station in its time and, since its demise in 2005, the abandoned space has been been slated for development into a city centre district, a National Express Coach Station or a super campus for civil servants. The space was originally constructed in August 1910 for suburban services and met its tragic end after the roadside building was guttered by a fire. Croix Rouge The unused station of Croix Rouge is an infamous Parisian phantom station, the only one which remains as it was when it was closed. Put into service as a terminus for line 10 in 1923, the station was amongst the non-essential stations closed in 1939 due to the mobilisation of Paris metro employees for the Second World War. The advertisements, seats and even station masters booth can still be seen on the platform. City Hall Subway Stop The City Hall Station in Manhattan was the original southern terminal of the first New York City Subway opened in 1904. The station lies beneath the public area in front of City Hall and was designed to be the showpiece of the new subway. The elegant architecture, coloured glass tiles and brass chandeliers meant that it was considered to be one of the most beautiful subway stations in the system. The passenger service came to a close in 1945. Buffalo Central Terminal A station designed to accommodate up to 3,200 passengers per hour (or 200 trains per day) is sure to be an impressive and eye-catching structure. And the Buffalo Central Terminal certainly doesn’t disappoint. The complex consists of a 17 storey office tower, four storey baggage building, a two storey mail building and the main concourse. It was opened to the public in 1929 and the terminal closed in 1979. Now in the hands of the Central Terminal Restoration Corporation, a huge campaign is being undertaken to preserve and restore the terminal to its former glory. Anhalter Bahnhof The oldest of the abandoned stations in the list is the Anhalter Bahnhof station in Berlin, born in 1841. Starting from humble beginnings, the station developed to become one of Berlin’s biggest and finest, with its trains departing to Prague and Vienna. The station is not without its history as the it was involved in the deportation of about a third of the city’s Jewish population between 1941 and 1945. [Via Flavorwire]
These days, you don't have to search too hard to find a bar that talks big about its low-waste ethos and sustainability focus. But the soon-to-open venture from Sydney hospitality stars Matt Whiley (Scout) and Maurice Terzini (Icebergs Dining Room & Bar, Ciccia Bella) will be taking the philosophy to a whole new level and very much putting its money where its mouth is. Making its home in a heritage-listed, late-19th century railway engineering workshops in the newly revamped South Eveleigh precinct from February, Re- is on track to become the first permanent no-waste bar on the planet. It's designed to be a truly world-class drinking destination, but with every single aspect built on an overriding commitment to sustainability — from the furniture, to the light fittings, to the glassware. Having already earned a reputation for his pioneering, planet-conscious methods at Scout, Whiley is keen for this new bar to become a world leader in the low-waste game, helping to shift perceptions and spur on some big changes for the entire hospitality industry. "This is not about preaching what should be done, it's about creating the platform to take the vital conversation around waste in hospitality forward," Whiley said in a statement. Re- is set to serve up a regular rotation of around eight-to-ten signature cocktails, driven by both a strong sense of innovation and that minimal-waste mentality. Expect reimagined classics, including plenty of creatively charged highballs and spritzes. There'll be a tidy food menu of flatbreads, toasties and other snacks to match, heroing reclaimed produce and sustainable ingredients. Whiley will be joined behind the bar by some big-name local talent with Evan Stroeve (Bulletin Place) and Jake Down (This Must Be The Place), who currently work at Four Pillars Laboratory, both set to join the team. [caption id="attachment_716905" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Matt Whiley's now-closed Sydney bar Scout.[/caption] Of course, with a visionary like Terzini at the helm, Re-'s space is set to be every bit as groundbreaking as its offering and ethos. Creative production company Alfred is transforming a section of the historic former Eveleigh Locomotive Workshop into a study in sustainable design. You'll find stairs made from recycled plastic bags, terrazzo-inspired tabletops crafted from recycled bottles and tupperware, and banquette seating finished with pineapple leaf fibre. Reclaimed materials star throughout an assortment of furniture by Philippe Starck and Odger, while mycelium has been used to create the light fittings and wine coolers. Last year, it was announced that the Mirvac's ambitious South Eveleigh project will also play host to a huge dining precinct, espresso bar and coffee research lab from The Grounds team, as well as a new modern Cantonese restaurant by acclaimed chef Kylie Kwong. Re- will open at 2 Locomotive Street, Eveleigh, from February 2021. We'll share further details as they drop. Top image: South Eveleigh Precinct by Mirvac
In a world of twitter-inspired books and movies, and everyone buzzing about Google+, the humble text message is often overlooked. The appropriately named British artist Tracey Moberley is doing her best to rectify that. Moberley has released an autobiography, Text-Me-Up!, drawn from the 55,000-plus texts she has ever received. She can even remember the very first one, received during lunch in Manchester in 1999. Many would cringe at the idea of revealing their text history to the public, others might wonder how many pages can be filled with "Where r u?" The book isn't Moberley's only text-message based art. In 2001 she released 2,000 helium balloons with her mobile number and a text attached, inviting responses from complete strangers. Her current project asks people who receive a text message from her to commemorate the event by sticking up a pink plaque, challenging the common view of the text as a purely utilitarian and disposable piece of communication.
The Odd Culture Group (The Old Fitz, The Duke of Enmore, The Oxford Tavern) is bringing its love for odd and interesting food and drink to its latest Inner West venue through a series of wine parties. The group's much-hyped King Street bar and restaurant Odd Culture — one of our 20 favourite bars in Sydney — is hosting an event series dedicated to tastes and culinary techniques from off the beaten track. Following the success of the first edition, Oddity is returning on Thursday, March, 23 with a showcase of progressive wines from Switzerland's first biodynamic wine estate Domaine de Beudon. While the first iteration included an extravagant set menu, this time around things are a bit more casual, allowing wine lovers of all budgets to come in and try these fine drops. Your guide for the night will be Paul Hervy of Brix Fine Wines, taking you through some of his favourite bottles from the Swins vineyard. Located at an altitude of 900 meters, Domaine de Beudon can only be reached by foot or cable car. The Granges family behind the grapes only produces a very modest amount of wine, making it highly sought after. Accompanying your wine-tasting journey will be a collection of snacky culinary delights. There will be potato rosti with smoked quail egg and sage, malakoff accompanied by fried gruyere and pickles, and pizzoccheri au for grass made using buckwheat noodles and foie gras butter — all available a la carte alongside the regular Odd Culture menu on the night. There are limited seats available for the night, so make sure to book your spot if you want to secure a place. There are more iterations of Oddity planned for the future, with Odd Culture promising no two events will be the same. [caption id="attachment_868444" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Nikki To[/caption]
Spike Lee. Denzel Washington. They're two of the biggest names in America cinema, and they're back in business together, teaming up for Highest 2 Lowest. Premiering at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, the latest Lee-directed joint not only sees two icons reunite, but also reimagines the work of another. With their new collaboration, the two Oscar-winners (Lee for BlacKkKLansman's screenplay, Washington for Glory and Training Day) are reinterpreting 1963 crime thriller High and Low from Akira Kurosawa. If you've forgotten where else Lee (American Utopia) and Washington (Gladiator II) have joined forces before, the just-dropped teaser trailer for Highest 2 Lowest offers a reminder, starting by running through their past flicks together: Mo' Better Blues, Malcolm X, He Got Game and Inside Man. "There's more to life than just making money," utters Washington as the film titles flash up on the screen. "There's integrity. There's what you stand for. There's what you actually believe in," he continues. In the New York City-set flick, Washington plays a music mogul who is about to navigate quite the chaos. "Can you handle the mayhem?" Highest 2 Lowest's star also asks in the movie's debut sneak peek, which is set to James Brown's 'The Big Payback'. His character is renowned for having the "best ears in the business", then is saddled with a ransom plot. "Can you handle the money? Can you handle the success? Can you handle the failure? Can you handle the lovers? Can you handle the memes? Can you handle everything that there is in-between?" he also queries. While this is Lee and Washington's fifth time working together in 35 years, it's their first collab in 19 years, since Inside Man released in 2006. It's also Lee's first film at all since 2020, when both feature Da 5 Bloods and concert movie American Utopia released. Washington's Highest 2 Lowest costars include Jeffrey Wright (The Last of Us), Ice Spice and A$AP Rocky (If I Had Legs I'd Kick You). After premiering at Cannes, the movie has a date with US cinemas from Friday, August 22, 2025, but details of a Down Under big-screen release haven't been revealed. Whether or not it hits picture palaces in Australia and New Zealand, viewers will be able to watch Highest 2 Lowest via Apple TV+ from Friday, September 5, 2025. Check out the first teaser trailer for Highest 2 Lowest below: Highest 2 Lowest opens in US cinemas from Friday, August 22, 2025 and doesn't yet have a Down Under big-screen release date, but screens via Apple TV+ from Friday, September 5, 2025.
When the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television anoints its picks for the best movies and TV shows of 2023, it'll do so in February 2024 on the Gold Coast. The country's night of nights is on the move to southeast Queensland, making its Sunshine State debut; however, a change of location isn't the only big offering. For the first time ever, the organisation is also hosting the AACTA Festival, a celebration of everything that the country puts on screens both silver and small. AACTA's gongs will be given out on two dates, starting with its Industry Awards on Thursday, February 8 and then hosting its usual glittering ceremony on Saturday, February 10. Around those occasions, running from Thursday, February 8–Sunday, February 11 at HOTA, Home of the Arts, AACTA Festival will be filled with talks, screenings and more featuring a swag of impressive names. If Talk to Me creeped its way onto your list of favourite Australian horror movies, directors Michael and Danny Philippou will be at AACTA Festival to dive into it. Warwick Thornton is also on the lineup to discuss The New Boy as part of the fest's 'meet the creators' events, as are the teams behind Limbo, Sweet As, Shayda and The Newsreader. Can't wait to see the Boy Swallows Universe TV series? It'll be out by February, so you'll have it fresh in your mind author Trent Dalton gets talking about it. And if you were a fan of The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart either on the page or screen, Holly Ringland will also be chatting. Indeed, writers are a big focus, including Nick Earls, Lystra Rose, Mathew Condon, Richard Jameson, Tristan Michael Savage and Ben Hobson. Giving the event one of its international highlights, Lessons in Chemistry's Bonnie Garmus is on the bill as well. Also each massive highlights: behind-the-scenes explorations of The Matrix, the stunts of Mad Max: Fury Road and, for some more overseas flavour, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse's animation. Or, enjoy a chat with Wellmania and The Way We Wore's Celeste Barber about her career, then find out more about the upcoming series High Country starting Leah Purcell (Wentworth), Aussie-made Robbie Williams biopic Better Man and the sequel to Mortal Kombat at their own dedicated talks. Before they get their own immersive experience in Brisbane, Bluey and Bingo will be doing a meet and greet — and, including a live-watch party for the AACTAs, a screening of 1906's The Story of the Kelly Gang, trivia, a Play School live event and a chat about music Baz Luhrmann's movies, there's plenty more joining them. In total, over 70 sessions form AACTA Festival, with most free to attend. AACTA nominees will also be taking part, although the details there can't be revealed until after exactly who is vying for a gong is announced on Saturday, December 9. "AACTA Festival is a must-attend event for anyone who lovesAustralian film, television, music, gaming, art and pop culture," said AACTA CEO Damian Trewhella, announcing the lineup. "We are excited to present more than 70 events over four days celebrating the excellence of our industry. From red carpet glamour to workshops and a special kids' lineup, it's an invitation for everyone to step into the magic of storytelling and creativity." AACTA Festival will run from Thursday, February 8–Sunday, February 11 at HOTA, Home of the Arts, 135 Bundall Road, Surfers Paradise Gold Coast. For further details, head to the fest's website. Boy Swallows Universe and Wellmania images courtesy of Netflix.
The dining room at Icebergs undeniably has one of the best views in Sydney. But the blissful Bondi views usually come at a pretty steep cost, considering that, for the best seats in the house, you have to fork out for a lavish feed in the two-hatted fine dining restaurant. But this summer, you can soak up that scenery without burning through too much of the budget (and with better views than at the bar) at a returning pop-up on the Icebergs Terrace. The bar — which is a collaboration with Ketel One Botanical — first took over the space last summer. Now that the season is officially upon us for another year, it's back. Once again, the Bondi venue's outdoor area has been transformed into a lush, flower-filled oasis that serves cocktails and snacks from the Icebergs bar. Like last year, the terrace is also sporting a verdant fit-out designed by local landscape architects and horticulturalists Secret Gardens. They've decked out the place with stacks of native Australian flora — in case you need something to look at other than those primo views of Bondi Beach. As the name suggests, the cocktail list is based around Ketel One Botanical, a low-alcohol vodka that's been distilled with botanicals and infused with fruit essences. It's available in three flavours — grapefruit and rose, peach and orange blossom, and a crisp cucumber and mint — and is being served with Santa Vittoria soda ($14 each). Or, you can opt for a mixed vodka cocktail, including an espresso variety ($18). Otherwise, there are a few wines, a couple of beers and two ready-to-drink cocktails on the menu, too. To match the botanically driven boozing, a selection of bites from the Icebergs menu will make their way outside. You can stay light with oysters ($6.50); opt for prosciutto, wasabi melon and cucumber ($28); or go all in with a toastie ($22) or the Icebergs burger ($22). Icebergs Terrace x Ketel One Botanical pop-up bar is open from 12–8pm Friday–Sunday all summer.
Picking up just seconds from where the last Muppets film left off, Muppets Most Wanted opens with a rousing song that explains: "Everybody knows a sequel is never quite as good". A few famous exceptions notwithstanding, the in-joke is right on the money, and even though it's definitely true of this film as well, thankfully the follow up to James Bobin's 2012 hit is only slightly poorer than its predecessor. This time round, the gang is talked into embarking upon a world tour by Ricky Gervais's smooth-talking yet unscrupulous talent manager, Mr Badguy ("Its...French. It's pronounced...Bad Geeee"). The tour is, however, just a front to enable Badguy and his boss Constantine (aka Evil Kermit) to conduct a series of high-end museum robberies and steal England's Crown Jewels. Key to the plan is Constantine's escape from a Siberian gulag and an ole switcheroo that sees him trade places with the real Kermit. "Eeets...dee Marrr-pet shaow" practices the heavily accented villain as he reviews file footage of Kermit in what's just one of dozens of charming imposter-Kermit based jokes. As always, the film is packed with self-referential humour (one Muppet complains that it's actually the seventh movie in the franchise), cameos (Usher plays an usher, Celine Dion takes the absolute piss out of herself and James McAvoy appears as a 'blink and you'll miss him delivery man', to name just a few), and — of course — musical numbers. None of the songs come close to matching The LEGO Movie's impossibly catchy 'Everything Is Awesome', but several of them are good enough to gets the toes tapping. Constantine's 'I'm Number One', for example, is amusing in its constant forcing of Gervais to reply 'I'm number two', and the disco-inspired 'I'll Get You What You Want' is just crying out for a Pharrell cover. The highlight of Muppets Most Wanted, however, is the subplot involving the partnership of Sam the Eagle and Interpol's Jean Pierre Napoleon (in an outrageously cliched swipe at the French by Ty Burrell). Their dogged pursuit of the thieves leads to some fantastic scenes involving muppet interrogations, crime scene analysis and police badge oneupmanship. Tina Fey also impresses as the gulag's warden Nadya, whose determination to put on the prison's annual revue sees Kermit end up directing a terrifically funny all-male A Chorus Line. I'm also told Ms Piggy's wedding dress (designed by Vivienne Westwood...no, seriously) is to die for. Based on the laughter of the kids attending the screening, kids will laugh at screenings of this movie, and so too will adults, though not in the same way or with the marked regularity of, say, a Pixar film. It's a little light on plot, and begins to feel a little repetitive by the end, yet the pacing is rarely in danger of lagging and the jokes come often enough to keep everyone entertained. Empire Strikes Back it 'aint, but it's not a bad sequel to what was always going to be a hard act to follow. https://youtube.com/watch?v=wXfLrt90CHM
Vivid already has a seriously stacked food program for its 2025 edition. On the menu, you'll find Nigella Lawson-curated dinners, a 1950s-style American plant-based diner complete with roller rink, as well as international guest chefs, fiery street eats and pop-ups by local faves as part of Vivid Fire Kitchen. And now, the Sydney Opera House is unveiling one more foodie destination to add to your Vivid trail, in the form of the all-new Forecourt Food Village. Setting up on the Opera House's harbourside forecourt from Friday, May 23 to Saturday, June 14, this vibrant new openair hub will serve up street-style snacks from two of Sydney's most exciting chefs. As a nod to her heritage, Opera House Events Culinary Director Danielle Alvarez is dishing up Cuban-inspired eats at bold new pop-up La Cubanita — think: fried fish sandwiches, pulled pork, Caribbean-style sweet potato fries and even a playful menu just for kids. Alongside it, Opera House Events Executive Chef Jimmy Ryu is plating up sizzling Seoul food at K-town Bites. Expect crowd-pleasers like crispy Korean fried chicken, gochujang cauliflower and sweet potato noodles, all with plenty of spice and crunch. To wash it all down, The Bar featuring Archie Rose will be shaking up mojitos, buttered rum and raisin cocktails, plus local wine, beer, and hot and cold non-alc sips. The Forecourt Food Village is open nightly from 5–10pm, and, like a heap other of events on Vivid's public program, entry is free. Hungry festival-goers will also find plenty to explore inside the Opera House. Enmore dive bar The Midnight Special returns to the Opera House for the fifth year with The Aurora — an immersive, light-soaked pop-up bar tucked into the Concert Hall Northern Foyer. Open from Friday, May 23 to Sunday, June 1, the space will glow with dreamlike projections and feature themed cocktails, elemental decor and DJs spinning into the night, all inspired by the dreamy shapes and colours of the Aurora Australis and Aurora Borealis. Entry is also free, with access via the western steps or through the Concert Hall for ticket-holders. Looking for something a little more luxe? Chef Peter Gilmore's two-hatted Bennelong has two Vivid-exclusive experiences on offer: a $65 snack-and-cocktail combo at the Bennelong Bar, or a premium $285 three-course dinner with champagne and bar snacks in the Dress Circle, all backdropped by the restaurant's sweeping harbour views. Other returning favourites include House Canteen's nostalgic candy floss and hot chocolate cart (which will also offer boozy options), and Opera Bar's warm espresso martinis and exclusive ice creams by Redfern fave Ciccone & Sons — all available daily throughout the festival. For something even more immersive, Dance of Dreams (Friday, June 13–Saturday, June 14) will see Alvarez pair a live dance performance and music with a three-course dinner in the Yallamundi Rooms, while Indigenous culinary legend Mark Olive will present Saltbush and Starlight, a new communal dining experience that runs every Friday and Saturday throughout the festival. The special event blends native ingredients, NSW wines and bespoke light projections, beginning with a behind-the-scenes tour of the Opera House. Vivid Sydney 2025 runs from Friday, May 23–Saturday, June 14 across Sydney. Head to the festival website for further information.
If you've ever wanted to get your hands on any of Frank Green's popular products, here's your chance to score some for free. To celebrate the recent launch of the brand's new three-in-one insulated iced coffee cup with a straw, Frank Green has teamed up with Melbourne coffee brand Industry Beans to sling some freebies. For one day only, Industry Beans will give away a limited amount of free Frank Green coffee cups with every iced coffee purchase. In Sydney, head into Industry Beans' York Street cafe on Friday, February 9 from 7am to grab your very own Frank Green iced coffee cup — which is available in a range of colours, from the pearly white cloud to pastels like mint gelato and lilac haze. But be sure to get in quick as stocks are limited. The reusable cup provides a sustainable alternative to single-use plastic cups, which a classic iced coffee usually comes in. And, it also offers up solutions to pesky problems that iced coffee fanatics know all too well. Frank Green's iced coffee cups contain a double-wall vacuum insulation feature to prevent condensation and guarantee that your drink will stay cool by maintaining the ice for up to 12 hours, as well as a splash-proof lid and a stainless steel straw. Plus, you can ensure that your barista never spells your name incorrectly, as the cups are monogrammable. In extra brownie points for versatility, too, it can double as a stubbie holder or cocktail glass.
Bring your family, your mates and your dogs — along with your sandy feet — to Mosman this weekend, as the harbourside sports club Mosman Rowers reopens on Friday, March 15. Now managed by Bird & Bear Group (The Sandy Bear, The Flying Bear & Foys), the century-old clubhouse boasts a brand new fit-out and an elevated pub offering across three levels. First up is Archie Bear cafe, a 100-seater slinging coffees, breakfast and long lunches, plus dinner on the weekends. Designed by Studio Etic (Barangaroo House), it has floor-to-ceiling windows that overlook an expansive outdoor deck and the bay views beyond. Inside, there are polished timber floors, brass and gold finishes and a fireplace for the cooler months ahead. Brekkie includes classic bacon and egg rolls alongside green breakfast bowls and maple-baked granola with stewed rhubarb and mint. Meanwhile, the lunch and dinner menus focus on share plates like Sydney rock oysters, baby squid with lemon and aioli and antipasti plates — think prosciutto, burrata, olives and flatbread. There's also a selection of salads and sandwiches, such as the soba noodle salad with poached chicken and soy-lime dressing, and the wagyu pastrami reuben with raclette, sweet and spicy pickles, coleslaw and smoky sauce. [caption id="attachment_711674" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Archie Bear[/caption] One level up is The Rowers Bar, which offers its own bar snacks and mains, as well as another 100 seats. For bar bites, there are wagyu sliders and rice paper rolls with daikon and water chestnuts. Larger dishes include the zucchini pasta with lemon, chilli and basil and grilled barramundi with butter bean puree and bean salad. Compared with the bright digs downstairs, the heritage interior upstairs boasts low-lighting, warm timber tones and nautical vibes. Expect more brass trimming here, too, alongside terrazzo table tops, navy leather banquettes and a marble bar with 11 beers on tap. The wider drinks list will be up for grabs in both venues, including R!ot Wine Co rosé on tap, seasonal cocktails — try the spicy margarita or melon fizz — and an extensive local and global wine list. Plus Pimm's, spritzes and white sangria jugs for sharing. There'll be heaps of weekly specials on too, including $6 beers and house wines during weekday happy hour, $12 spritzes from 3–6pm on Saturdays and $20 beer buckets and cocktail jugs on Sundays. While the venue will remain a registered club — with a private members space on the top level — non-members can access the lower two levels by signing up (free of charge) as a temporary member. The waterside digs will remain a community hub for activities such as rowing, paddling and kayaking, with a reinvigorated member events calendar in the works. Mosman Rowers will reopen on Friday, March 15 at 3 Centenary Drive, Mosman. Opening hours for Archie Bear are Monday through Wednesday from 7.30am–3.30pm and Thursday through Sunday from 7.30am until late. Opening hours for The Rowers Bar are Monday through Friday from 4pm until late and Saturday through Sunday from noon until late.
Cheap festival events are great. Free festival events? Even better. The Sydney Festival has done a lot in the last couple of years to up the free factor in its programming, which means you can breezily pad out your January with cardboard cities, free Flaming Lips concerts, whimsical fairgrounds, and other outings fun and fanciful. By the Concrete Playground team.
Maybe you're always on the hunt for new experiences. Perhaps you can't go past a meal with a view. You could be keen to indulge your adrenaline-junkie side any way that you can. Or, you just might want to see Brisbane from a different perspective. All of the above is on the menu at Vertigo, as is dinner. Sure, a great bite to eat should satisfy your tastebuds and your stomach; however, this one will also get your blood pumping and pulse racing. Initially announced in August and now serving sky-high diners Thursday–Sunday weekly, Vertigo is a brand-new addition to the River City's iconic Brisbane Powerhouse. The twist: it isn't just located on top of the riverside New Farm venue, but hangs off of the site's industrial facade. Forget just living on the edge — this is dining on the edge, and literally. Obviously, the views are spectacular. Given that patrons climb out to their seats while donning a safety harness, then eat four stories (and 17 metres) up, so are the thrills. An Australian-first vertical dining experience, Vertigo's levelled-up dinners welcome in tables of two to peer out over Brisbane. It comes with a big caveat, however, with the restaurant at the mercy of the weather. That'll certainly play a factor over Brissie's stormy summers, but the night's sitting will still go ahead if it's only lightly raining. Once you're seated, Brisbane Powerhouse's Bar Alto downstairs provides Vertigo's food across its eight tables — and each reservation's two-hour sitting — with the two-course menu featuring local ingredients to go with what's certain to become a local attraction. Unsurprisingly, a visit here doesn't come cheap, costing $250 per person. Another caveat: you can't head up if you've been drinking, with everyone breathalysed first and required to return a 0.00-percent blood alcohol reading. That said, while you need to be sober to climb over the edge, a matched glass of wine will be served with dinner. You'll also get a post-descent champagne, beer or soft drink. If you're not fond of heights, this won't be for you. But if you're fine with towering not just atop but over the side of an old power station-turned-arts precinct that dates back to the 1920s — whether you're a Brisbane local or a tourist — you'll be in for quite the unique experience. To make the evening even more dramatic, diners can also choose to come back to earth post-meal via dropline down the facade. Or, if that's too much adventure for you — especially after eating — you can just head back to the ground through the venue. If star chef Luke Mangan achieves his dream of setting up a restaurant on the Story Bridge, too, Brisbane might need to rename itself the Sky-High City. "Vertigo is unlike anything else in the world, it is an unexpected combination of adventure tourism and fine-dining on a heritage site," said Brisbane Powerhouse CEO/Artistic Director Kate Gould when the restaurant was first announced. "Stepping off the roof of Brisbane Powerhouse to take a seat suspended at your table, four stories above the ground, will be the ultimate thrill. Experience silver service dining — albeit one with unbreakable crockery and cutlery attached to the table!" "We are creating a uniquely Brisbane dining experience, at height. You will be on the edge of your seat in the open air before descending via an unforgettable exit," added Riverlife creator and co-founder John Sharpe, with the outdoor tour operator partnering with Powerhouse on the venture. "Vertigo will inspire fear but with the knowledge that safety is the priority of our experienced team of adventure tourism guides." Find Vertigo at Brisbane Powerhouse, 119 Lamington Street, New Farm, Brisbane, operating from 5pm Thursday–Sunday — head to the venue's website for further details and bookings. Images: Markus Ravik.
Treat yo'self to something sweet, help save one of Australia's most beloved animals: that's what's on the menu right now thanks to Lindt. The brand has just launched a limited-edition item that not only looks adorable, but also assists a great cause — with its new koala-shaped chocolates raising funds for the Australian Koala Foundation. Everyone knows Lindt's gold Easter bunnies, so consider this the suitably silver and thoroughly Aussie version, all to support the AKF's work to ensure the Aussie marsupial's survival. Beneath that shimmering foil and its cute red ribbon with a heart-shaped pendant, the 100-gram chocolate is shaped like a koala, obviously. It's hollow inside, but you'll taste notes of both caramel and honey within the milk chocolate itself. For each koala purchased — with the new choccies only available via Lindt's retail stores and its website — the brand is donating $1 to the AKF. And, for every dollar that Lindt donates, AKF is matching it. Those funds are specifically earmarked for the foundation's 'Koala Kiss Project', which is all about finding where the species' fragmented habitat comes close to joining up, then regenerating the landscape to create a koala conservation corridor — with the first stage of the project focusing on developing software and collaborating with scientists to plot out all those 'kiss points' over a 1.5-million-square-kilometres patch between Cairns and Melbourne. "The Lindt koala is more than just chocolate. We want our Lindt koala to raise awareness and educate the community of the important role the Australian Koala Foundation plays in the long-term survival of our beloved native animal," said Lindt Australia CEO Michael Schai. "If we achieve contiguous habitat across the entire stretch of the koala range, then all creatures great and small could traverse through the bush unthreatened. With over 30 years of research behind the Koala Habitat Map, AKF's next grand vision could redirect the fate of the koala," added Deborah Tabart OAM, Chair of Australian Koala Foundation. "Lindt's support will help kickstart those efforts, with an ultimate vision to save the koala with 'kisses' through chocolate." Lindt's chocolate koalas are available to purchase for $6.25 at Lindt stores and via the Lindt website for a limited time.
The historic space at 10 Neild Avenue has left a bit of a black mark on the Sydney restaurant scene, with both celebrity chef Robert Marchetti's Neild Avenue and Keystone Group's Rushcutters closing after just brief stints in the location. But, not to be deterred, chef Paola Toppi and co. have taken on the enormous Rushcutters Bay warehouse. About 30 years ago she and her mum opened Machiavelli Ristorante, a Sydney institution that championed Italian home cooking, and this newest venture is an extension of the Machiavelli brand. The focus here is on antipasto and homemade pasta, which is a pretty appealing combination. But is it the right fit for a grand venue with a pretty grand price point? I'm not sure. Even though simple Italian food is harder to achieve than many realise, paying a fair amount of money for it can feel extortionate — especially in an area like Sydney, where so many good options are readily available and expectations are always high. The huge warehouse space has been reimagined by a deft hand in design Jason Mowen, who's used lighting, acoustics and creative flair to turn the previously cavernous and austere room into something quite appealing. He's used dark bare timber tables and some well-placed tall lamps to create a warm glow in what could easily be an open, cold atmosphere, and a mural coupled with cinematic images projected onto the high bare brick walls creates a fun, unpretentious feel to it all. There's an energetic hum from the clientele, who are mostly the kind of folks who pop into Catalina for a bite to eat on a Tuesday. The service is mostly attentive and enthusiastic, particularly behind the bar; they're keen sellers of items from their signature cocktail list, which includes the fresh and sharp peach and whisky number the Impeachment, and a surprisingly good take on a Negroni. As for the food, it's a bit of a hit and miss affair. On one hand, Bar M has some of the best salumi in town; the prosciutto, for example, with burrata and figs ($28) is perfect. Also on the antipasto menu, you'll find kingfish tartare with fennel salad, fried king prawns with Japanese breadcrumbs and grilled cuttlefish with caramelised onions and chilli. The pasta, which is served in pretty big portions and is beautifully made, has moments of total loveliness; the scampi spaghetti in a light tomato, chilli and garlic sauce ($59), a simple spaghetti carbonara ($39) and a duck ragu fettuccini ($39) are all hits. However, you can give anything with a beurre blanc sauce, like pappardelle with crab meat ($49) a miss. For mains, expect classics. There's a wagyu scotch fillet with potato ($49), rack of lamb with sweet potato mash ($49) and john dory fish served with panfried broccolini ($49). The desserts are a bit heavy, resembling something out of an '80s cookbook, like the tiramisu, ricotta-filled cannoli and profiterole with ice cream. Overall, Bar M is buzzing with hype and patronage at the moment, but it'll be a test of time to see if it can live on in its newest palatial home.
Need an extra sweet escape? To celebrate National Donut Day, held on Friday, June 6, Donut King has teamed up with luxury hotel brand Ovolo Hotels to create the 'Hot Cinni Hotel'. This collaboration is perhaps not what you'd normally expect for such an occasion. However, it quickly becomes obvious that this promotion hasn't cut any corners when it comes to fostering suite dreams. In an immersive hotel takeover, the heritage-listed Ovolo Woolloomooloo will see two of its elegant suites transformed into cinnamon doughnut-filled luxury stays. Decked out with shimmering pink accents, cinnamon-painted walls, colourful pop art and a Donut King-inspired bed adorned with plush fabrics, the 'Hot Cinni Suite' experience is like no other. Yet this doughnut-led experience goes beyond mere design. Guests will also see the suite filled with cinnamon doughnut-inspired scents and services, from aromatic diffusers and bathroom amenities to pink art-deco glassware and deluxe towels. Best of all, an exclusive room service offering means hot cinnamon doughnuts will arrive at your door with just the push of a button. That all sounds a little bonkers, but don't think the hotel is finished yet. Donut King and Ovolo Hotels have extended the fun to other areas of the hotel, with every guest invited to get amongst the celebration. In the lobby, pink and cinnamon lighting pay homage to the humble cinnamon doughnut, while the hotel's resident mixologist has created the Cinnitini — a spice-forward cocktail. Also in the bar, discover special nibbles like Donut King cinnamon doughnuts with dulce de leche; cauliflower bites with cinnamon-laced mayo; and chicken skewers with cinnamon barbecue sauce. As for other guests who happen to book a stay at Ovolo Woolloomooloo during this limited-time activation, they're welcome to order room service doughnuts for free. Just know, bookable stays for the Hot Cinni Hotel are only available from Friday, June 6–Sunday, June 9. "Partnering with Donut King to offer our guests an undeniably exhilarating and unexpected culinary experience during their stay is a sweet deal," says James Clark, General Manager at Ovolo Sydney. "We're constantly exploring new experiences for our guests to enhance their stay, and we believe they will absolutely crave and love this limited yet delightfully sweet addition." Bookings for the Hot Cinni Hotel open from Thursday, May 29 at 9am, with stays available from Friday, June 6–Sunday, June 9. Head to the website for more information.
Are you the kind of person who starts plotting your next meal before you've even finished the last? Love eating more than anything else? Well, you can get right to the guts of our global food obsession when culinary legend Nigella Lawson hits Aussie shores, joining social psychologist and author Hugh Mackay for two special conversation events this January. Hosted by The School of Life in Sydney on January 22 and Melbourne on January 24, Nigella Lawson On Why Food Matters will have audiences diving deep into the concepts surrounding food and its links to pleasure, creativity and belonging. The renowned celebrity chef will share insight into her philosophies on life and food while Mackay dishes up some of his own research finds, exploring rituals, our dependence on fast food, and the idea of food as a sort of therapy — whether that involves cooking up a storm, sharing a feed, or simply stuffing your face. Sink your teeth into some enlightening chat about social food trends and learn a little something about your own eating habits in the process. Those feeling inspired will also be able to grab a copy of Lawson's new book, At My Table. Catch Nigella Lawson On Why Food Matters at The School of Life Sydney on Monday, January 22, 118-132 Enmore Road, Newtown. It'll also take place on Wednesday, January 24, at The Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, Plenary 2, 1 Convention Centre Place, South Wharf. You can buy tickets at theschooloflife.com.au.
We don't need to tell you how downright glorious summer is in Sydney. The sun is shining, the nights are balmy and the beaches have never looked so inviting. As we near the last days of spring, there's no shortage of killer events happening around town, with plenty of ways to make the most of the season. With a little help from our friends at Sunglass Hut, we've put together five events that are perfect for when you want to get outside and embrace the day. Crank out the linen shirt, make sure your water bottle is full and the sparkling's on ice, and pop on some shades to face your summer.
It's happening again: Static Vision, the independent screening collective that loves putting on annual film festivals at Pink Flamingo Cinema in Marrickville, is doing exactly that once more. Static Vision also adores showing movies that Sydney's other fests mightn't, possessing a distinctive curatorial mindset that it can't wait to splash across the silver screen. When it's in charge of the viewing, you're in for an experience that you won't find elsewhere. In 2020, Hyperlinks was the Static Vision film festival to flock to. In 2021 came Dreamscapes, while 2022 gave rise to Metamorphoses. 2023's version is Goodbye, Pink Flamingo, because the collective is bidding farewell to its Sydney home, albeit hopefully only for now. On offer: a three-day single-screen program that focuses on queer, underground and punk countercultures — and that you can spend an entire weekend watching your way through from Friday, November 17–Sunday, November 19. The lineup highlights start with the newly restored Teenage Apocalypse Trilogy, aka Gregg Araki's 1993 film Totally F***ed Up, 1995 effort The Doom Generation and 1997 release Nowhere — which means that you're in for queer teens finding a sense of family together, a road movie unlike anything else you've seen and a college-set black comedy. You'll also spot everyone from Rose McGowan (The Sound) and Parker Posey (Beau Is Afraid) to Ryan Phillippe (I Love That for You) and Christina Applegate (Dead to Me). From there, Ken Russell's The Devils, Rainer Werner Fassbinder's Querelle and Tom Green's Freddy Got Fingered also sit on the supremely eclectic program, as do We Aim to Please, Shadow Panic and Vacant Possession from Sydney-based filmmaker Margot Nash. On a bill that spans 14 features and four shorts — plus a surprise screening that you'll need to attend to find out what's showing — the fest's recent flicks include T Blockers, as well as Fox Maxy's shorts Blood Materials and Maat, and also Tulapop Saenjaroen's shorts Squish! and Notes from the Periphery. Erotic cinema is also being thrust into the Goodbye, Pink Flamingo spotlight thanks to titles such as Ask Any Buddy, which has been spliced together from snippets of XXX gay cinema; a 4K restoration of Sextool; and The Exorcist-inspired queer horror Sex Demon.
Sunset Cinema is no stranger to St Ives Showground, screening flicks there late in 2021 and early in 2022. For its new season from Friday, December 9—Saturday, January 28, the openair cinema still boasts the same main attraction, too: watching movies under the stars. Whether you're planning a cosy date night or an easy group hang outdoors, there'll be something on the bill for you — kicking off with box-office behemoth Top Gun: Maverick, and spanning plenty of new and recent titles as well. If you haven't yet given Black Panther: Wakanda Forever a spin, or entered Strange World, or gotten twisty thrills from Don't Worry Darling, they're all on the lineup. Other highlights include Black Panther: Wakanda Forever; 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. 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.
As we learn more and more about the impacts the fast fashion industry has on the environment, more people are looking for sustainable alternatives. A stylish and simple way to shop is uncovering secondhand gems, and Revivre has been doing just this since 1986. The consignment store has racks of preloved designer fashion in mint condition and it only takes authentic pieces, so the quality is guaranteed. Whether it's some blood-red Dries Van Noten silk slacks, a black double-breasted Jean Paul Gaultier blazer or a timeless Chanel button-down cardigan, you'll be able to hunt down a designer piece at a nice price. Images: Arvin Prem Kumar
The Sydney CBD is set to welcome a highly lauded New York City import into its ranks as Employees Only launches on Barrack Street this Saturday, November 24. The US venue is an architect of the modern speakeasy movement in New York and will bring its late-night vibes and world-class cocktails with it Down Under. Follow the neon 'psychic' symbol through the curtain and into its heritage-listed basement haunt. Once through the curtains, you'll see the bar offering both signature EO drinks and Sydney-exclusive drops. Classics include the Amelia (Wyborowa vodka and elderflower liqueur shaken with fresh lemon and puréed blackberries) and the Ginger Smash (rum and Barbadian sweet syrup Falernum shaken with muddled ginger and ripe mango, then topped with maraschino cherries and fresh lime). Brand new drinks created by the Sydney team include The Down Payment — a complex combination of Barsol Pisco, Italian herbal liqueur and French bitters shaken with avocado, fresh lime and aquafaba (a replacement for egg white). This level of creativity is no surprise, considering the bar is lead by 12-year EO alumni Robert Krueger and award-winning head bartender Dula Lorenzohewa. Alongside the drinks is an all-night bar menu that is available until 2.30am. Think Berkshire pork cottaletta (Italian schnitzel) with Tuscan cabbage slaw, and a monterey jack cheeseburger with pancetta, jalapeño, bois boudran sauce and relish. On the high-end, there's a decadent, three-option caviar service, all served with chive crème fraîche, grated egg and buckwheat blinis. In the kitchen are French head chefs Aurelien Girault and Leo Garnier, who have created a bistro menu reminiscent of New York but using native Australian ingredients and locally sourced seafood. The full dinner menu is served from 5pm–11pm and includes heartier dishes like charred calamari risotto, whole fish for two and chargrilled ribeye with red wine, watercress and horseradish. Signature NYC EO menu items are also on offer, including hand-cut filet mignon tartare, bone marrow poppers in a pastry shell and house-made cavatelli with pork sausage, rocket and parmesan. As part of the brand's tradition, special staff meals will be on offer for patrons each day at a discounted price — meaning you eat what the staff eats. Think cacio e pepe with grilled sardines, or gnocchi with gorgonzola. Another brand tradition is the chicken soup meal, which comes from a 15-year-old family recipe and will be a complimentary offering at 3am each night as the bar closes up. Designed by Tim Leveson (The Sandwich Shop, Pane e Cipolla), the space takes notes from the New York original while embracing the Sydney heritage location — including the antique main doors, industrial chandelier and large-scale, hand-painted wall murals. The curved, brass-topped bar is the hero of the space and you can expect some serious mood lighting, too. Dark timber with brass finishes and green velvet banquette seating is found in the dining room, with a private room also on offer. Plus brass-embellished, vintage lockers allow customers to keep their belongings safe and come complete with interior charging stations. Sydney is only the latest EO launch, with outposts also opening in Los Angeles, Miami and Singapore since 2016. Though speakeasy-style bars have become common place across Australia, we're keen to see what this international heavy-hitter can bring to the table. Employees Only will open at 6pm on Saturday, November 24 at 9a Barrack Street, Sydney. Opening hours will be Monday through Saturday from 5pm to 3am and Sunday from 5pm to midnight.
2018 was a great year for cinema. If you've been thinking otherwise, then maybe you just haven't had time to watch enough flicks or you haven't ventured out of your viewing comfort zone. Indeed, the past 12 months have served up a feast of films that show why we all love catching a movie, whether we're heading to our local picture palace or getting cosy on the couch. The very best films aren't just an artful, entertaining combination of sound and vision — they're a reminder that, even though this medium is more than a century old, it's still full of surprises. Don't worry — we have examples. There's Black Panther with its engaging embrace of its vivid on-screen world, all while carving out a new space in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There's the combination of dance and horror that made both Suspiria and Climax two of this year's highlights, all while doing something completely different from each other. Widows boasted smart heist thrills, packaged with an all-star cast and a stunning statement, while A Simple Favour offered a delightfully twisty time at the cinema. There's also First Reformed's soulful and provocative contemplation of faith, The Favourite's wickedly funny royal hijinks and Can You Ever Forgive Me?'s involving account of literary forgery too. Each offered up something unexpected — and they're all unlucky to make our best-of list. Throughout 2018, Concrete Playground's film critics watched all of the above and more, and reviewed over 120 films. Now, they've whittled down their favourites to the below ten movies. Maybe you saw them. Maybe you didn't. But that's another great thing about cinema — you can always rewatch the flicks that you loved and seek out the ones that you missed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQyDaGWQ43w YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE In Lynne Ramsay's long-waited fourth feature, an ex-soldier and former FBI agent grapples with his own trauma while trying to save others from theirs. Joe rescues children abducted and abused by pedophile rings — and if that sounds like an astonishing story, just wait, because You Were Never Really Here isn't done yet. Indeed, it's hard to pick what's more stunning here: Ramsay's empathetic and expressive direction, which keeps making unexpected choices to immerse viewers in Joe's headspace, or Joaquin Phoenix's internalised performance as the movie's protagonist, which won him the best actor prize at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival. Call it a tie, and call this film an exceptional achievement that isn't easily forgotten after watching. — Sarah Ward Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSYHHLk12x8 COLD WAR After the Oscar-winning Ida, Polish filmmaker Pawel Pawlikowski plunges into a sweeping love story that's also a portrait of his post-war homeland. In fact, it's a personal tale inspired by his parents (and dedicated to them as well), with Wiktor (Tomasz Kot) and Zula (Joanna Kulig) their on-screen surrogates. As Poland adjusts to the titular period, the ups and downs of the intertwined duo's lives spill across the screen. A film of deep yearning as well as a clear-eyed understanding of the way that the world works, especially in times of conflict, every aspect of Cold War borders on flawless, from its intimate performances to its moving soundtrack to its Academy ratio, black-and-white images. — SW https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3__y-uPwbe8 HEREDITARY In a banner year for the horror genre, no film provided a more anxious or uncomfortable viewing experience than Hereditary. Director Ari Aster takes his time, immersing viewers in the unsettled life of the Graham family, which teeters on the brink of collapse long before demonic forces take hold. It's a smart move, one that makes the film's eventual descent into madness that much more disturbing. Toni Collette gives a career best performance as a mother consumed by grief, while the recurring dollhouse motif further emphasises the feeling that the characters — and the audience as well — are merely the playthings of a far more powerful force. — Tom Clift Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fp_i7cnOgbQ ROMA In a stellar year for excellent directors doing what they do best, Alfonso Cuarón sits at the top of the heap. And yes, Roma does showcase the Gravity filmmaker doing what he often does — that is, peering at someone who doesn't usually take pride of place on the screen. Taking inspiration from his own upbringing, the Mexican helmer tells the tale of housemaid Cleo (Yalitza Aparicio), splicing together slices of her life working for a well-off family in the early 70s. Whether watching Cleo clean up after the family dog or delving into her problems beyond her job, every moment proves both emotionally intricate and visually sumptuous. Roma earned Cuarón the Golden Lion at this year's Venice Film Festival, and he's only going to keep picking up more trophies. — SW Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYKBG1znk4A SWEET COUNTRY When Sweet Country emerged victorious at this year's AACTA awards, it was truly a case of the best film winning. Warwick Thornton's Australian western is a sight to behold, with the Samson and Delilah filmmaker seeing every inch of the Northern Territory's outback landscape. The film also makes a firm statement, as becomes clear when an Indigenous stockman (Hamilton Morris) kills a white station owner in self-defence. He's forced to flee with his wife Lizzie (Natassia Gorey-Furber), but a local posse is soon on their trail. As Sweet Country decisively confronts this all-too-real situation, it also confronts the country's history of racial prejudice. The movie might be set in the 1920s, but Thornton purposefully, convincingly and heartbreakingly holds a mirror up to Aussie attitudes today. — SW Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqy27Bk0Vw0 A QUIET PLACE The dreadful quiet before the scare has always been a crucial of horror moviemaking. But with A Quiet Place, actor-turned-director John Krasinski weaves the idea into the very DNA of his story. Silence is the key to survival in this gripping creature feature, which makes the most of its brilliant premise and benefits from standout (and largely dialogue-free) performances from Krasinski, Emily Blunt and young newcomer Millicent Simmonds. And while the film suffers somewhat from the Jaws effect in that the monsters are scarier before you see them, A Quiet Place is nevertheless a masterclass of tension. — TC Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8mJT7wEtkA CUSTODY A marriage crumbles. A woman leaves and takes her children with her. After a difficult ordeal in court, life should go on, except that Miriam's (Léa Drucker) husband Antoine (Denis Ménochet) won't accept the new status quo. In weekend visits, he resorts to bullying his pre-teen son Julien (Thomas Gioria), who is now forced to flit between his parents. Forget action blockbusters and spooky thrillers — the seemingly routine events of Custody provide this year's most suspenseful viewing experience. The extraordinary debut of French writer/director Xavier Legrand, this is a bleak, tough, raw, involving and unforgettable film from start to finish. — SW Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpxJIWz8MNQ BLACKKKLANSMAN Director Spike Lee fires on cylinders with this funny, compelling and uncomfortably timely story about a black cop's mission to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan. Lee has never been an especially subtle filmmaker, and his allusions to contemporary American politics — and one politician in particular — are impossible to miss. But the approach works perfectly in this stranger-than-fiction true story, which delights in hammering home the overwhelming stupidity that drives so much prejudice and hate. With a perfect mix of outrageous comedy and sobering drama, BlacKkKlansman truly is the perfect film for these troubled times. — TC Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVkX1qAyMrY LEAVE NO TRACE In another world, it wouldn't have taken Debra Granik eight years to direct another feature after Winter's Bone. That's not the world that we're living in — but, thankfully, we do now have this affecting and sensitive portrait of a father and daughter trying to live their own way. Making an Oregon forest their home, military veteran Will (Ben Foster) and teenager Tom (Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie) try to avoid attention so that they can continue to do as they please — but life has other plans. Watching them adjust, and watching the wise-beyond-her-years Tom realise that her own path might be different from her dad's, Leave No Trace steeps viewers in an empathetic exploration of America's increasingly fractured society. — SW Read our full review. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOOcpb48Oyo SHOPLIFTERS Few filmmakers are as adept at crafting intimate family dramas than Japan's Hirokazu Kore-eda. His latest effort, Shoplifters, won the prestigious Palme d'Or at this year's Cannes Film Festival, and its hard to imagine a worthier recipient. Charting the highs and lows of an unconventional family unit living on the margins in Tokyo, the film shines a light on a side of Japanese society that's rarely seen, while tugging deftly at the heartstrings. There's no sense of emotional manipulation in Kore-eda's work, but audiences will invariably be in tears by the time all is said and done. — TC Read our full review. These are our favourite films of 2018, but we've also put together a list of the best films hardly anyone saw this year — y'know, the ones that sort of went in and out of cinemas without much fanfare but definitely deserve a watch.
Having helped stimulate something of a Redfern renaissance, it's with a heavy heart that Damien Minton Gallery will soon close its doors. Although Sydney's creative scene is thriving, it's the ease and international scope of the online marketplace that has seen less buyers step inside commercial galleries. One of the last exhibitions to be shown at this space is a two-part show by Australian painter Peter Gardiner. Currently on display is a ten-year survey of his work, and opening on July 22 is a selection of new work, titled Prima Facie. Hailing from Newcastle, Gardiner digs into his local roots, producing dramatic oil paintings of this industrial city. However, there's not a hint of homeliness to these monochrome works. Full of shadowy streets and silhouetted buildings, they seem to obscure rather than reveal urban details. One of the most distinctive features of his painterly style is a kind of blurring effect. Blending angry clouds with rising smoke, his streaky brushwork creates an electric atmosphere. Switching dense and dark for something full of fine detail and white space, Gardiner’s Padoga series takes its cue from the traditional tiered towers commonly found in East Asia. He populates these structures with all sorts of symbols and characters. It feels like part travelogue and part folklore. There are wandering elephants and half butchered animals, grim reapers and gargoyles. Again, there’s a blurring of natural phenomena — a rain cloud dissolves into a treetop, and a smoking explosion becomes a cascading waterfall. Another interesting work is Parliament. This grid of floating heads looks like a collection of political forefathers. With protruding lumps and jagged teeth some are quite ghoulish, while others are barely discernible. Evidently, Gardiner has an affinity with the 18th- and 19th-century painters, skimming over modernism and post-modernism. These are Goya-style grotesqueries, while his moody landscapes look like something a contemporary William Blake might paint. His latest offering goes back a bit further, inspired by the 16th-century mannerist Arcimboldo. Cited as an early influence on the Surrealists, his whimsical portrait heads are loaded with colour and cheekiness. Gardiner's take is a curious fusion of object, fauna and flesh. Bursting with different elements and seasons, they form an incoherent sensuality. Throughout his practice, there's a fascination with the elements, particularly conflicting ones like fire and water. It’s not only Gardiner’s technical finesse that is quite compelling, but also the fluidity with which he manages to combine eclectic subject matter. It's as if he is standing with one foot in reality and another in mythology.
It's only taken a few short years for the British Film Festival to become a highlight of Australia's busy festival calendar, and their first titles for their fourth year demonstrate why. Fancy seeing this year's Cannes Palme d'Or winner? Or a host of high-profile titles direct from their premieres at the Venice and Toronto film festivals? Or a restored version of the David Bowie-starring sci-fi classic The Man Who Fell to Earth? Well, they're all on the bill. Ken Loach's I, Daniel Blake — which took top honours in Cannes back in May — takes a look at the British welfare system through the filmmaker's usual social realist lens, and ranks among the most highly anticipated of the bunch. It's joined by the high-profile likes of opening night's A United Kingdom and closing night's A Monster Calls. The former tells the true tale of a Botswana prince (Selma's David Oyelowo) who caused a scandal when he married a white Englishwoman (Gone Girl's Rosamund Pike), and is also slated to open the London Film Festival. Directed by The Impossible's Juan Antonio Bayona, A Monster Calls adapts a fantasy novel about a young boy coping with his mother's terminal illness, and features Liam Neeson as the voice of the titular creature. Audiences will also get the chance to see crime-drama Trespass Against Us, which not only stars Michael Fassbender and Brendan Gleeson, but marks the film debut of the Chemical Brothers' long-term visual collaborator Adam Smith. For cinephiles looking for something completely different, rom-com fans can get their fix watching Gemma Arterton and Sam Claflin in Their Finest, from An Education helmer Lone Scherfig. And because all good film fests don't just look forward to future hits but also peer back to the greats of years gone by, this year's British Film Festival has curated a ten-movie tribute to some of the country's enduring cinematic heroes. As well as Bowie proving his out-of-this-world acting abilities, catch Gary Oldman getting his punk on in Sid and Nancy and feast on the epic action adventure that is Highlander. The full program will be released in late September, so expect more ace titles to come. The BBC First British Film Festival tours the country from October 25, screening at Sydney's Palace Verona and Palace Norton Street from October 25 to November 16, Melbourne's Palace Cinema Como, Palace Balwyn, Palace Brighton Bay and The Astor from October 26 to November 16, and Brisbane's Palace Barracks from October 27 to November 16. For more information, visit the festival website.
Summer has returned to Chippendale's Old Clare Hotel. The luxury inner-city lodgings, which opened for business back in 2015, has a stylish interior and a lineup of food offerings so good they border on offensive. With A1 Canteen, Automata and Barzaari already in the building, we didn't really need another reason to want to pay it a visit. But then who are we to say no to a high altitude pool and bar? The Old Clare Rooftop Pool and Bar, located on the fourth floor of the boutique hotel, has just reopened to the public for the warmer months. Visitors can once again enjoy killer views of the city while lounging around on deckchairs in the sun, sipping refreshing cocktails and eating snacks prepared by Barzaari downstairs. Expect summer cocktails a plenty with the Pain-Killer ($21) — tequila, pineapple and maraschino, served in either a glass or an actual coconut — watermelon spritz ($19) and an extra-boozy rosé cocktail dubbed Rosey All Day ($18). All the classics will be available, too, as well as beers, spirits and G&Ts. Eastern Mediterranean-inspired snacks start with Sydney Rock oysters covered in colourful roe and harissa-spiked chicken wings served with pickled chilli, then move on to prawns with falafel and two pizza-style pita breads topped with the likes of chermoula, toum (a garlicky yoghurt), pickles and lountza (smoked pork). If you're famished, order the next-level bagel — filled with smoked brisket, pickles, iceberg and labneh — and a slice of sticky baklava served with a scoop of salted caramel ice cream. [caption id="attachment_706205" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Nikki To[/caption] The Old Clare will also use the rooftop space for group fitness sessions, which will be open to both hotel guests and the general public. The program has not yet been announced, but last time it included yoga, cardio boxing, circuit and personal training. We'll let you know as soon as it drops. The bad news for those wanting to take a sky-high dip is that you can only swim in the pool if you're a hotel guest. But maybe that means it's time to plan a staycation (or a night away for V-Day). The Old Clare Hotel can be found at 1 Kensington Street, Chippendale. The poolside bar is open from 3–9.30pm Wednesday and Thursday, and from midday–9.30pm Friday through Sunday. Images: Nikki To.
For over a decade, London's Serpentine Gallery has staged a series of unusual and wonderful summer pavilions. Each is put up, left out and pulled down over the course of a few months and designed by some of the biggest talents in architecture from around the world. Sydney's Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation has taken a leaf out of the Serpentine's book to stage its own series of strange architectural creations, starting with last year's beautiful Crescent House and following on with this year's double feature: Trifolium, put together by AR-MA, and Tomahawk // Archer Breakspear's contribution, Poly Trifolium sits outside the gallery proper in SCAF's 'Zen garden'. And there's definitely a calm sensation under its six-toed frame. The distant bamboo and half-quiet of busy Paddington buzzes away in the background. From the outside, the structure looks somewhere between Utzon's Opera House and the awnings of a football stadium. Its skin is sleek and white, like a spaceship, the arch repeating three times with a dip slumping in the roof. Inside is organic. The inner roof is black, actually a mesh of 152 laser-cut, stainless steel panels. They look slightly bulbous, layered and grape-like, curved plate over plate. Beneath the inner roof, darkly iridescent like a bug's wing, each arch captures different angles of the sun at an oblique angle. The day I visited, one side was somewhere between liquorice black and purple, another shifted between purple and rock brown, while the last caught the afternoon brilliance. Black, slate and gravel colours mixing with slabs of sunlight. It's an impressive structure, a bit like a cathedral shrunk down to the scale of its own model. Inside the gallery proper is Poly. It's a parliament of moveable aluminium seating pods. Each about 2 metres tall, plushly lined inside, stark metal polish and sharp angles without. Visitors are meant to sit inside or move them around. Shifting and seated among them, their sharp, silver lines become more obvious and the things really loom: silent, sharp-edged and impersonal. They do feel ripe to be rearranged, but are so large they seem to drag the balance in the room around with them when you pull the chairs around yourself. Trifolium and Poly are pretty low key. These aren't begging for a momentous cross-city expedition. Rather, a quiet visit on a jaunt through Paddington in their own small moment of zen. SCAF is open Wednesdays to Saturdays, 12-5. Photo: Jacob Ring
Throw those GoPros, bubble bottles and novelty gumboots in your rucksack, Splendour in the Grass is returning to North Byron Parklands for another year of festival merriment. With the epic likes of Blur, Mark Ronson, Florence and The Machine, Death Cab For Cutie, The Wombats, Tame Impala and Of Monsters And Men, Pond, Royal Blood and the Dandy Warhols on the bill, 2015's fest has one heck of a huge lineup. Odd Future's Earl Sweatshirt is back, Australia's own dancefloor kings Flight Facilities are landing back home, Azealia Banks makes her Australian festival return and Spiritualised will play their only Australian show. Ryan Adams is comin' on over, Best Coast is bringing the beachery back to Splendour, while recent Coachella-smash Jenny Lewis is another of the bigwigs we can all get squealy about. SXSW buzz artists like Gengahr and Elliphant are coming, UK producer Shlomo will take things down a notch (and King Khan will do exactly the opposite), while Canadian duo Purity Ring should be one packed-out, all-the-emotions must-see. Australian artists really dominate the lineup this year, including Client Liaison, Elizabeth Rose, Hayden James, Megan Washington, Thundamentals, Meg Mac, Japanese Wallpaper, Dune Rats and more. Plus, there's going to be four stages this year, with the new Tiny Dancer stage joining the Amphitheatre, Mix Up, GW McLennan stages to host Splendour's DJ lineup. Splendour will return to North Byron Parklands on Friday 24, Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 July. Onsite camping is once again available from Wednesday 22 July. Splendour In The Grass 2015 lineup Blur Florence + The Machine Mark Ronson Of Monsters & Men The Wombats Tame Impala Peking Duk Ryan Adams Flight Facilities Royal Blood (only Aus show) Death Cab For Cutie Earl Sweatshirt Boy & Bear Porter Robinson (Live) The Dandy Warhols (only Aus show) Xavier Rudd & The United Nations Azealia Banks The Rubens Jamie T Pond Spiritualized (only Aus show) Alison Wonderland Thundamentals Best Coast Everything Everything San Cisco MS MR Jarryd James Purity Ring Allday Carmada The Grates The Smith Street Band Tkay Maidza Johnny Marr Last Dinosaurs Megan Washington The Vaccines #1 Dads The Church Kitty, Daisy & Lewis The King Khan & The BBQ Show Alpine Catfish and the Bottlemen Paul Mac Dustin Tebbutt MØ Years & Years Jenny Lewis C.W. Stoneking Seekae George Maple Elliphant Client Liaison Palma Violets SAFIA Hayden James Dune Rats Wolf Alice Meg Mac Cosmo's Midnight Marmozets Oh Mercy Mansionair The Districts Shlohmo Elizabeth Rose The Delta Riggs Circa Waves Nancy Whang Eves The Behaviour Urban Cone Art of Sleeping Japanese Wallpaper Gengahr Bad//Dreems Ecca Vandal Holy Holy Vallis Alps UV Boi The Babe Rainbow Harts Generik Young Franco Mickey Kojak GL Benson Harvey Sutherland Total Giovanni DJs Dugong Jr I'lls Akouo Noise In My Head triple j Unearthed Winners Plus ... Joyride Post Percy Ara Koufax CC:Disco! Adi Toohey Set Mo Edd Fisher Mike Who Shantan Wantan Ichiban For more info, check out the official Splendour In The Grass site.
Sydney Harbour's New Year's Eve fireworks are rarely a dull affair. But they're set to pack an extra punch this year, as the City of Sydney delivers a colourful celebration of both marriage equality and the 40th anniversary of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. As announced yesterday, 2018 will kick off in a blaze of glory, as a rainbow waterfall of fireworks tumbles from Sydney Harbour Bridge, capping off a momentous year for the local LGBTIQ+ community. As well as honouring those who marched for gay rights for the first Mardi Gras, Lord Mayor Clover Moore says the display is "a fabulous way to see out 2017 – the year that four out of five Sydneysiders said a resounding 'Yes' to marriage equality." The display will be the first of its kind for Sydney Harbour Bridge, sporting cascading fireworks in red, yellow, green, blue, purple and silver. The night's entire display, featuring over 100,000 individual pyrotechnic effects, will take the team from Foti Fireworks International a solid 5,000 hours to create.
Located in Double Bay in Sydney's east, Karpati Medispa has been winning over locals with its private, luxury spa experiences for more than 30 years. Beyond the full catalogue of soothing body treatments, spa massages and reshaping therapies, Karpati's signature services run to a range of restorative and clinical rituals that are both environmentally friendly and free from nasty chemicals. A classic stress-relieving, 30-minute back, neck and shoulder massage comes in at $95, while the hour-long therapeutic medical massage with personalised consultation will melt away your tension for $200. Or, you might fancy whiling away a few hours with one of the treatment combos, which start at $155.
Get ready to savour the flavours of Japanese dining as Concrete Playground and Haku Vodka are offering you the chance to win a salmon masterclass for three at luxe omakase restaurant Toko — with a $600 tab. Step into the kitchen and test out your knife skills as Toko Head Chef Sunil Shrestha shows you and two guests how to fillet and portion a whole salmon. You'll then get to try your hand at preparing it in three different ways, making salmon sashimi, seared salmon maki and miso salmon. [caption id="attachment_877635" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Credit: Steven Woodburn[/caption] Afterwards, you will enjoy the spoils of your labour along with edamame and oysters. You can also spend your $600 restaurant tab on some delish Haku Vodka martinis, as well as any additional food you want to order to round out your meal. Toko reopened its sleekly appointed new digs on George Street after closing the doors to its Surry Hills location in 2022. Menu favourites from the original venue remain — like the miso eggplant, delicate ponzu kingfish and incredibly moreish broccolini — alongside the sashimi omakase, starring a daily selection of the freshest raw seafood. [caption id="attachment_974084" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jude Cohen[/caption] To be in with a chance to win this delectable experience, fill out the form below. [competition]977589[/competition] Image Credit: Steven Woodburn
Sydney might be world-renowned for its harbour, bridge and Opera House, and Melbourne's food and live music scenes might've won it plenty of fame and acclaim, but neither Australian city is one of the world's greatest places of 2023. Each year, TIME magazine singles out 50 locations around the globe that it considers extraordinary — and that travellers should make it a priority to visit — with just two Aussie destinations making the latest cut. Kangaroo Island keeps earning praise in 2023; already, The New York Times has named it one of the best places to head to this year in its version of the same type of list, and the South Australian spot's Stokes Bay topped Tourism Australia's best ten beaches for 2023, too. So, its place among TIME's picks is hardly surprising. But the publication also chose one Australian state capital: Brisbane. Move over Sydney and Melbourne — the rivalry that the New South Wales and Victorian capitals have is pointless, with the Sunshine State just sweeping in and nabbing the glory. In three words, TIME shouted out Brissie's "sports and sun", but it had more to say. And, while the hosting the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games obviously got a mention, that's also just the beginning. "The capital of Queensland is already gearing up with ambitious infrastructural advancements, which visitors can enjoy before the crowds pour in," TIME notes. It then shouts out United Airlines' new direct flights between San Francisco and Brisbane; the soon-to-open Queen's Wharf with its bars, restaurants, four luxury hotels and sky-high observation deck; and co-hosting the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup. "Beyond the central business district, the James Street Precinct is a welcome testament to how urban development can champion local businesses and artisans rather than supplanting them. The semi-industrial area leverages Brisbane's perennial sunshine to showcase an outdoor promenade anchored by artsy boutiques and cafes, all under the canopy of Moreton Bay fig trees," TIME also advises. "The surrounding neighbourhood, Fortitude Valley, has recently evolved into a culinary epicentre with new places like sAme sAme showcasing inventive international fare within a laid-back, uniquely Australian atmosphere; a growing assortment of global flavours befitting a now-worldwide audience." sAme sAme has been around for a few years now, but otherwise TIME's praise tells Brisbanites what they already know: that the River City is ace. Fresh from noting that the city's Myer Centre shopping centre would lose Myer, Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said "while this is a fantastic accolade for our city, it's also about time!". "It's no accident that Brisbane is the fastest growing capital city in the country with people from southern states recognising that our city's incredible climate, lifestyle and liveability is second to none. We're investing in fantastic projects like Victoria Park, Brisbane Metro and our green bridges to help make Brisbane even better," the Lord Mayor continued. "Precincts like South Bank and Howard Smith Wharves are world-class destinations while our suburbs are great places to live, work and relax." Chosen by soliciting "nominations of places from our international network of correspondents and contributors, with an eye toward those offering new and exciting experiences," TIME explains, Brisbane sits on the world's greatest places of 2023 list alongside the likes of Barcelona, Kyota and Nagoya (home of the new Studio Ghibli Park) in Japan, St Moritz in Switzerland and Dijon in France. Also getting some love: Mexico City, South Korea's Jeju Island, Vienna, the pyramids of Giza, and the prime northern lights spot of Churchill, Manitoba in Canada. For TIME's full World's Greatest Places of 2023 list, head to the publication's website.
With catastrophic weather conditions saturating Queensland and New South Wales over the past week, good news has been in very short supply. Enter the team at Sikh Volunteers Australia, which has put in an enormous effort to help folks affected by flooding in northern New South Wales. Their actions can only be described as heartwarming, feel-good, wholesome and just all-round ace. Any other synonym for great, nice, lovely and generous that you can think, it'd fit as well. The charity, which has a mission to provide people in need with free food, is based in Melbourne. But after seeing that its services could be used further north as the devastating weather hit, its members hit the road. Cue a 34-hour drive to serve free, freshly cooked vegetarian meals to flood-affected communities in Lismore — which has been doing it tough after the wet conditions moved through the regional town earlier in the week. Team is serving free meals to flood affected communities in Lismore NSW pic.twitter.com/BsO1HjEaJw — Sikh Volunteers Australia (@AustraliaSikh) March 3, 2022 Originally, the plan was to head to Queensland — so that drive would've been even longer — but, based on community response, the Sikh Volunteers decided that there was more need for their services in Lismore. They arrived yesterday, Wednesday, March 2, and have been dishing up free meals since. Sikh Volunteers Australia's efforts in Lismore follow the organisation's ongoing work in Melbourne, including delivering meals to COVID-19 cases during the recent Omicron wave — and, before that, via 320 dedicated volunteer drivers who did the same during the city's 2021 lockdown from August onwards. That's a huge effort, and the charity aims to expand its work to other parts of the country in the future, too. In Lismore now, Sikh Volunteers Australia has set up at 60 Ross Street, Goonellabah, and is providing free meals to anyone who needs them. For more information about Sikh Volunteers Australia, or to support their work via a donation, head to the organisation's website.
Across from the Seymour Centre and hidden just out of view from the hustle of Cleveland Street is a real quacker of a pub. Yeah, you'd be a goose not to duck into The Duck Inn Pub & Kitchen — and everyone would be crying fowl if these avian puns continued, so here is where they'll end. Situated on Rose Street in Chippendale, The Duck Inn's a pub with a distinctly un-pub-like feel. You'll find no pokie machines, no punters fixated on the dogs on TV. Instead, it looks and feels more like going to a friend's place that you're a little bit jealous of, with cosy couches and reading lamps, a cardboard deer head on the wall and a bunch of well-worn books and board games (Uno tournaments every quarter, trivia every Monday). Despite its shiny new interior, The Duck's still a pub where being a pub matters the most — the pub grub. The Classic Oz Beef Burger with shoestring fries ($18) is an updated classic that was our highlight of the menu. The fish pie topped with mashed potato (also $18) ties in well with winter nights. If you're still feeling chilly after eating, the buttered rum ($10 mug) goes down a warm, buttery, cinnamon-y treat. It's hard to deny the warmth and homely comfort of The Duck. Between the whitewashed walls and leafy beer garden, it's the perfect watering hole for friends, family or first dates. The perfect Duck sitting? Sunday afternoon drinks that turn into dinner with a side of Jenga.
Undeniably Sydney's most beautiful theatre, the Enmore maintains an antique, old-world feel inside a contemporary venue. Built in 1908, this art deco theatre has gradually been transformed into the kind of luxury that is pure rock 'n' roll: band posters are plastered beneath luxurious chandeliers, drinks are purchased from a bar in the foyer, and the seats in the stalls are, depending on the occasion, removed to make way for standing room audiences. If the ambiance alone isn't enough to entice you, never fear: the Enmore plays host to some of the biggest acts to visit our shores. We're talking The Rolling Stones, Sonic Youth, Wu Tang Clan, The Pretenders, Grace Jones... The list goes on. And while the size and prestige of this place is strong enough to attract the big acts, the performance space remains cosy and intimate. The combination of the theatre's traditional acoustics and an immense front of house system also results in exceptional sound, making the Enmore one of Sydney's premier live venues. Image: Destination NSW
For the past seven years, juniper spirits have been flowing everywhere from London and Hamburg to Melbourne thanks to big gin festival Junipalooza. But if you're a Sydneysider with a fondness for the tipple in question, you've probably been more than a little envious — and wondering when the fest might make the trip to this part of the globe. Now, those requests have finally been answered. Actually, those dreams were supposed to come true in 2020, but then the pandemic happened. Come Saturday, August 28 and Sunday, August 29, however, Junipalooza will arrive on Sydney's shores for the first time. Set to take over Carriageworks for two wintry days, the juniper-filled festival is run by the founders of the UK's Gin Foundry, Olivier and Emile Ward — so you know you're in good gin-pouring hands. The renowned brothers live, breathe and drink gin, compiling all their knowledge onto their comprehensive online gin directory. They've also been running the OG London version of Junipalooza since way back in 2013. The Sydney event will feature sampling stations, cocktails and gin masterclasses with some of the world's best distillers. Thirty distillers from around the globe will be sharing their gins, with around 200 different types set to feature. The full lineup is yet to be announced, but we still see a lot of gin drinking in your future. If you're eager to sip your way through the fest, you can choose between three sessions, with tickets on sale now. On the Saturday, you can start the day with drinks from 11am–3pm, or spend your evening sampling gin between 4–8pm. On Sunday, an 11am–5pm session is on the cards. Junipalooza will take place in Sydney on Saturday, August 28 and Sunday, August 29 at Carriageworks. Tickets are on sale now — and for more information, head the the festival's website.
To say that Secret Garden Festival is improving with age is a deadset understatement. Next month marks the flamboyant forest party's tenth turn around the sun and it's celebrating with a music program and lineup of fun as good as any it's dished up before. Taking over its usual lush green home of NSW's Brownlow Hill Farm on February 23 and 24, the grassroots festival promises a weekend of dress-ups, dance floor antics and forest adventures to remember. Those lucky enough to snaffle one of this year's tickets (which are sold out, sorry) will find themselves in utter aural heaven, the bill sprinkled with exciting acts like Queensland dance-punk duo DZ Deathrays, powerhouse Melbourne artist Ecca Vandal, acclaimed indie rockers Holy Holy and soul-pop four-piece The Harpoons. Even more music goodness will be served up by hard-hitting hip hop artist Miss Blanks, Sydney singer-songwriter Alex The Astronaut, and Triple J's Unearthed Artist of The Year, Stella Donnelly. Of course, the live tunes and the 14 dance floors are just one part of this jam-packed weekend. Also helping Secret Garden ring in its first decade will be the Annual Feast, hosted by The Great Fatsby, appearances aplenty from the Camp Queen drag queens, the debut of the Shout Something Nice Bar, a kissing booth and a seated theatre flowing with a whole lotta Champagne. Last year a couple got married among the madness, so who knows what will happen this time round. As always, a festival-wide fancy dress theme will help kick everything off in style on opening night. This year, in homage to Secret Garden's tenth birthday, it's a throwback to your year ten formal — don your wildest old-school party duds and relive those teenage wonder years, with a little help from 11-piece Blink 182 cover band, Bris 182.
Sydney's annual Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is more than just the parade. In fact, the festival features over two weeks of events — both official and not. One such place that's getting the party going early is The Winery. This year, the Surry Hills' garden oasis is hosting the perfect warm-up shindig with four fun-filled nights of good tunes, tasty food, great booze and, of course, drag queens. Go along between Tuesday, February 26 and Friday, March 1 with your dancing feet and vocal cords ready as the queens from Sydney Drag Royalty engage in an old-fashioned drag battle. Each night there'll be three heats where the queens perform to classic pop hits — we're talking tracks from Elton John, Tina Turner, Dolly Parton, Madonna and George Michael — to the whim of the crowd, who'll vote to decide who'll make it through to the grand final 'battle royale' on Friday, March 1. The nightly show will set you back $20, which includes an Absolut cocktail on arrival. Plus, $5 from that goes straight to the Black Dog Institute (a mental health research facility). While you're watching these fabulous renditions, you can snack on tasty treats including prawn skewers, chicken wings and wagyu beef sliders. A carb-free option comes in the form of a dress-your-own-lettuce-cup station with meats from the barbecue on offer — vegetarian options will be available, too. Food is not included in ticket price. And if you want to be close to the action, but not so close that you're actually stuck in the crowds of people, The Winery will be screening the Mardi Gras parade on Saturday, March 2 on the big screen for free. The Mardi Gras Laneway Tribute Nights will run nightly from 5pm, Tuesday, February 26 to Friday, March 1. To purchase tickets, visit The Winery's website.
Sydney's Japanese festival, Japanaroo, struggled to get off the ground this year after a lengthy lockdown. But there's one big, delicious silver lining — organisers have rallied to launch Japanaroo+, an extension of the original program, running across Friday, December 3 to Sunday, December 19. It's a two-week, wall-to-wall celebration of everything Japanese — and everything Sydney. Here's the best bit: As part of Japanaroo+, the Fukuoka tourism board are teaming up with some of the city's best Japanese restaurants and hottest chefs to offer a limited-edition Tonkotsu ramen tasting trail as part of Flavours of Fukuoka. It kicks off on Saturday, December 4, with four restaurants set to serve up traditional Fukuoka dishes and a double helping of omotenashi (a term for Japanese hospitality). Tonkotsu-style ramen, a thick noodle soup usually starring a pork bone broth that's been simmered for hours, actually comes from Fukuoka city, on the southern island of Kyushu. If you haven't had it before, you're in for a treat (and some spicy meat sweats). The four restaurants participating in Flavours of Fukuoka will be GOGYO in Surrey Hills, Sekka Dining in St Leonards, Ramen Zundo in World Square and Chatswood, and Sakana-Ya in Crow's Nest, each doing a slightly different spin on the classic dish. Gogyo and Sekka will both serve up a traditional Tonkotsu ramen — order it with gyoza or a grilled M7 wagyu skewer from respective restaurants, and you'll also score a free Japanese bevvy. Ramen Zundo has created a Tonkotsu Ramen Fukuoka Special at both World Square and Chatswood locations, while Sakana-Ya will offer its range of hot and cold udon as well as a Fukuoka chicken teriyaki special. The special Fukuoka menus will run from Saturday, December 4 until Sunday, December 12 and will be available for dine-in and takeaway. Dine-in guests will also get a free glass of wine or sake with their tonkotsu. Flavours of Fukuoka will run from Saturday, December 4 until Sunday, December 12. You can check out the full run-down here.
Sydney cinephiles, the moment you've been waiting for is here. From June 6 to 17, the Sydney Film Festival will fill the city's cinemas with more than 334 movies. Race-relations comedies straight from Cannes, true crime documentaries about famous cases, behind-the-scenes looks at iconic fashion designers — they're just some of the flicks on offer in what's shaping up to be SFF's mighty busy 65th year. In fact, if you wanted to see BlacKkKlansman, Cold Blooded: The Clutter Family Murders or McQueen, we have bad news — they've already sold out. We told you that the fest will be busy. Thankfully, there's plenty more where those popular titles came from, which is where we come in. Fancy watching one of the absolute best films of the year? A compilation of clips excised from other films by the Australian censors? Gorgeous Japanese animation? A documentary about loving boy bands? Of course you do, and they're all on our must-see list. We've selected ten movies to keep you busy over SFF's 12-day run, so prepare to spend a lot of time inside a cinema. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHbUrdCXa4g YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE After screening at Cannes in 2017 — and deservedly winning Joaquin Phoenix the festival's best actor award for his gut-wrenching performance — it has taken some time for You Were Never Really Here to make it to our shores. Don't worry, this exceptional film is completely worth the wait. It's also one of the best movies of this or any other year. The highly anticipated latest feature from We Need to Talk About Kevin's Lynne Ramsay, the dark effort follows Phoenix's Joe, an ex-soldier and FBI agent turned hitman who rescues children from sex trafficking rings. Unsurprisingly, it's a tense, bleak dive through the mindset of a man coping with several layers of trauma; however neither Ramsay or Phoenix put a foot wrong in a feature that dials up its intense revenge thrills to astounding levels. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6o5WPcCgT0 FOXTROT Back in 2010, Israeli writer-director Samuel Maoz made a movie that was almost entirely set in a tank. Lebanon became one of the year's and the decade's most talked-about films — and while his next feature, Foxtrot, isn't confined to one setting, it is just as inventive, immersive and absorbing. The military drama kicks into gear with a knock at the door, as a couple are told by officials that their son has been killed in the line of duty. What happens from that point onwards is best discovered by watching, in a feature that astutely explores bureaucracy, grief and the many difficulties of living in a state of perpetual conflict. From playing with the narrative's timeline to inserting both dance sequences and animation into the mix, Maoz never fails to find the most fitting, astonishing and surprising ways to get to the heart of his story. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mtojt31IlQs [CENSORED] Ever wondered just what ends up on the cutting room floor — not during the normal editing process, but when the censors are deciding if a film is fit for public consumption? Or perhaps you fall into the other category, and you've never really thought about whether the version of a movie you're seeing is the same as the one submitted by the filmmakers for classification. Either way, Sari Braithwaite's [CENSORED] is bound to open your eyes, with the documentary made from clips excised from flicks by Australian censors between 1951 and 1978. Expect to be challenged and entertained, and to explore the role of censorship, as you step through a movie compiled from parts of other movies that you really weren't meant to see. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mp6IcekfEpo MIRAI Outside of Studio Ghibli, Mamoru Hosoda is one of the most important names in Japanese animation — and if you've seen Summer Wars, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time or Wolf Children, you'll know why. The writer-director possesses quite the knack for matching eye-catching visuals with emotionally resonant stories, which could be why his latest, Mirai, became the first Japanese animated film to hold its world premiere at Cannes. Story-wise, it tells of a toddler unhappy about getting a baby sister called Mirai, which all sounds rather routine. If there's one thing that Hosoda's movies have taught audiences, however, it's that there's no such thing as a routine tale. Here, the unhappy four-year-old protagonist not only comes face-to-face with a teenager with the same name as his new sibling, but they're soon stumbling through a magical portal in search of adventure. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgKLCqJc_oI NUMBER 37 One of the greatest films ever made gets a completely different twist in Number 37. This mightn't be the first time someone has been inspired to toy with Alfred Hitchcock's iconic Rear Window — the Shia LaBeouf-starring Disturbia did it (and ended up in court as a result), and so did one of the standout shorts at this year's Berlinale — but this South African feature uses the classic flick as a starting point, then finds its own riff. Written and directed by first-timer Nosipho Dumisa, the feature spends its time with a small-time crook who comes up with a new scam just by looking out of his window. He's stuck peering through his binoculars because he was paralysed in a drug deal gone wrong, and that's just one of the factors complicating this suspenseful narrative. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrB0Xbx1YCg THE RIDER In rodeo drama The Rider, real-life cowboy Brady Jandreau plays a version of himself. If you're wondering why writer-director Chloe Zhao opted to stick so close to reality, it's because her subject-turned-actor boasts quite the story. A member of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe, Jandreau was a rising star when the two first met, inspiring Zhao to make a movie about him. Then a tragic riding accident changed his future forever, placing him at a crossroads. Part specific character study, part universal tale of chasing and losing a dream, then trying to come out of the other side, The Rider wouldn't be the same without its star — who acts alongside his real-life family members. Since premiering at Cannes last year, the movie has also been earning Zhao considerable praise for her empathetic modern-day take on the western genre. JULIET, NAKED The latest film adapted from a Nick Hornby book, Juliet, Naked sounds more than a little familiar — even if you haven't read the novel. To the surprise of no one acquainted with the author's work, it features a music-obsessed man who isn't too successful with romance, as well as a musician who earns the same description. High Fidelity 2, this isn't, however. Stuck between the two hapless male figures (played by Chris O'Dowd and Ethan Hawke) is the woman who's actually the protagonist of this story, Annie (Rose Byrne). A rom-com about people learning what's really important in life, the end result takes Hornby's usual insights (and his usual love of music, naturally) in a slightly different direction, and pairs them with an excellent cast. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtVPjv9xLKw JIRGA The only Australian film competing for this year's Sydney Film Festival prize, Jirga was actually shot in Afghanistan. In fact, author, paramedic and filmmaker Benjamin Gilmour not only wrote and directed the feature, but shot the entire thing himself. That was the only way he could get his tale made after his initial funding fell through, with Gilmour forging ahead in incredibly difficult circumstances. Relaying the story of an Australian soldier who returns to Afghanistan to find the family of a man killed during a raid three years earlier, it's a movie that only explores the impact of war in its narrative, but bears its scars in every frame. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yodiBkuL00Y RAFIKI A lesbian romance set in Nairobi, Rafiki blazes several trails. In fact, the response to this Kenyan rarity has been varied to say the least. The film became the nation's first feature to screen at Cannes, which is an incredible feat. Back home, however, the movie's subject matter saw it banned by the Kenyan classification board. Focusing on two young women trying to cast aside society's conservative ideas about their futures, Rafiki follows Kena and Ziki as they fall in love, break free from their families' expectations, fight widespread prejudice and forge their own identities. Along the way, as she tells their fictional tale writer-director Wanuri Kahiu also embraces the vibrancy of Nairobi at street level. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pp_YEf1olR0 I USED TO BE NORMAL: A BOYBAND FANGIRL STORY Calling all boy band fans — and pop culture fans in general. Since The Beatles caused hordes of teenage girls to scream in city streets all over the world all those decades ago, boy bands and pop culture really have gone hand in hand. If you're wondering why, or what inspires avid obsessives to devote their time and attention to their favourite group, then Melbourne-based filmmakers Jessica Leski and Rita Walsh might just have the answers courtesy of their documentary I Used to be Normal: A Boyband Fangirl Story. Exploring the stories of four women across three generations, the film also promises an insight into fandom and its joys, thrills and excesses in general. Want more recommendations? Given the hefty size of SFF's 2018 program, we have a few other picks. From our list of Australian titles to look out for, catch biker thriller 1% — and from our Sundance rundown, Kusama: Infinity, Leave No Trace, The Miseducation of Cameron Post, The Guilty and Searching all made the bill. There's more from our Berlinale selections, such as Aga, Daughter of Mine, Transit and An Elephant Sitting Still, while our Cannes standouts include Burning, Climax and Shoplifters.
A beloved Redfern Street hideout for half a decade, Ron's Upstairs turned its fairy lights off for the last time back in May. Ron's called the space home for five years. When one door closes, however, another opens, and in place of Ron's is Fontana, a new Italian diner above Itacate. The vibrant new venue arrived just two months after the closure of Ron's, bringing the warm hospitality of its predecessors. Gone are the playful plastic vines and colourful wallpaper, while the red carpet and parquetry flooring from Ron's remains. New leather-clad booths are complimented by warm mahogany tones and just the right level of mood lighting. And, most importantly, the charm and homeliness of the space's previous occupant are still here in spades. Fontana is the latest opening from Daniel Johnston, Harry Levy and Ivery Wawn, who have all worked together across Don Peppino's, Wilmer and Alfios. In the two years since Don Peppino's has closed, the trio has been busy. Johnston and Wawn have been honing their craft at Alberto's and Cafe Paci respectively. Levy opened Porcine above P&V Paddington with Nick Hill and Matt Fitzgerald. Johnston is in charge of the kitchen, creating an Italian-focused menu full of recognisable and nostalgic flavours. While Fontana's menu is ever-changing, expect to choose from a selection of share plates, a few choice pasta dishes and a couple of mains. Possible highlights include warm crunchy bread rolls with a layer of baked balsamic vinegar (it's best ordered with the ricotta della casa); or the creamy fettuccini verde. The panne frito is another standout — fried bread complimented with a schmear of tomato paste and an anchovy. An array of specials also pop up each day, and as is tradition, gnocchi is added to the menu on Thursdays. Accompanying Johnston's food is the drinks menu that has been led by Wawn. There are a handful of classic cocktails and a range of interesting and eclectic wines showcasing organic and biodynamic farming principles. Fontana is located at 133a Redfern Street, Redfern. It's open from 5.30pm Wednesday–Friday and from midday Saturday.
It might be the season for shopping and trying to find unique gifts; however sourcing design-focused fashion is a year-round affair. With that in mind, add Barangaroo's latest addition to your next outfit-buying trip. Run by the folks who gave Surry Hills the retail haven that is Somedays, The Waiting Room is a Sydney-based offshoot of the stylish Melbourne store of the same name. Curation is key at the fresh space on the corner of Shipwright Walk and Scotch Row on Barangaroo Avenue, with The Waiting Room as selective about what they sell as you should be about what you wear. Expect a careful balance of clothing and accessories from Scandinavian, European, American and local designers, including Aussie labels such as Backstage, Chloe Gard Pottery and Salty Beach Life, New Zealand favourite Kowtow, and the global likes of Céline, Samsøe & Samsøe, Eton and Royal Republiq. If that sounds like a hefty list to navigate — and there's plenty more where they came from, too — The Waiting Room's staff are on hand to give you an old-school shopping experience, boasting their own passion for design and helping the store hark back to a seemingly bygone era where being served by someone who had an artisan knowledge of their product was the norm. And as far as matching the products and vibe to the surroundings is concerned, architects Burley Katon Halliday have decked out the space with a marble mosaic floor, timber, brass and leather aplenty, and even a custom ottoman upholstered in Tibetan goats' wool. Find The Waiting Room on the corner of Shipwright Walk and Scotch Row, 200 Barangaroo Avenue, Barangaroo. Visit their website for more information.
Many an Aussie kid has spent a Saturday night hyped up on lime cordial spinning around their lounge room to Kylie Minogue. So, prep the cordial, and get ready to party like it's 2000 'cause the Aussie pop icon is heading back to home turf. While your inner child might be more familiar with her hits 'Spinning Around', 'Can't Get You Out of My Head' and that duo with Robbie Williams 'Kids', next year, Minogue is returning to Australia to perform songs off her just-released album Golden. Minogue was last here four years ago, in 2014, for her Kiss Me Once Tour, and now she's back, taking her Golden Tour for a spin around the country in March, 2019. As well as performing headline shows in Sydney, Adelaide and Melbourne, she'll also be performing at A Day on the Green in Perth, the Hunter Valley and Mount Cotton, Queensland. She'll be singing hits off her latest — and fourteenth — album Golden, which debuted at number one on the ARIA charts just this year. Featuring hits like 'Dancing' and 'Stop Me from Falling', the album has more of a country music-feel than her others, which is fitting, seeing it was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee. On stage, Minogue will be joined by former Scissor Sisters frontman (now solo artist) Jake Sears at all shows and Brisbane artist Hatchie at A Day on the Green. Another special guest is expected to be announced soon, too. KYLIE MINOGUE 2019 'GOLDEN' TOUR DATES Sydney — ICC, March 5 Perth — A Day on the Green, Sir James Mitchell Park, March 9 Melbourne — Sidney Myer Music Bowl, March 13 Hunter Valley — A Day on the Green, Bimbadgen, March 16 Mount Cotton — A Day on the Green, Sirromet Wines, March 17 Tickets for capital city shows are available through Frontier Touring and A Day on the Green tickets are available through its website. Both go on sale at midday on Monday, November 19.
The Italians. Good food, good wine, good catchphrases, and good looks. The Italians make the finest cheese, the sweetest pastries, and the heartiest of family feasts. The culture of eating and drinking Italian style is such an adored facet of Sydney's diverse dining scene that Concrete Playground has decided to showcase some of the best all in one place. Let us present to you our guide to Italian Sydney. 1. Best for group festas: Popolo Here's where punters can find some of the best Southern Italian cuisine in Sydney. Both owners are ex-Fratelli Paradiso staffers and retain from their previous employment the adage 'first in, best dressed'. Only half the restaurant's tables are bookable so we recommend you get in quick. Suited for a group celebration over a southern Italian feast or a solo excursion, Popolo is an insider tip for one of Sydney's best Italians. 50 McLachlan Avenue, Rushcutters Bay; 02 9361 6641; www.popolo.com.au 2. Best for Lovers: 121BC 121BC is the bar attached to the eponymously named boutique bottle shop in the wilds of Surry Hills. With a focus on regional Italian flavours, 121BC's wine list changes monthly, and is complemented by the menu of fresh, seasonal food which is uniformly delicious. The folks behind 121BC are also particularly concerned with 'bio-dynamic', natural wines, the kind that are preservative-free and linger on the tongue. One of Sydney's most exciting and authentically Italian wine bars. Do it. 4/50 Holt St (enter via Gladstone St), Surry Hills; 02 9699 1582; www.121bc.com.au 3. Best for gelato: Gelato Messina Gelato Messina is old school; it's been around since 2002 and they aim to make ice cream the way it was done a hundred years ago. More than 40 flavours are made daily on the premises and come at you via paper cup or waffle cone. "For traditionalists, Gelato Messina has all the staples of the classic gelato repertoire. There's vanilla bean, chocolate and all manner of fruit sorbets. But for the daring, the real specialty is Messina's conceptual ice cream flavours," says Gelato Messina's co-owner Declan Lee. 389 Crown Street, Surry Hills; www.gelatomessina.com 4. Best for pizza: Vacanza in the Hills Let us introduce you to the god of traditional southern Italian pizza. Vacanza in the Hills is the ticket. Emphasising the southern Italian connection, the kitchen staff are from the home country and slide out thin-based pizzas of the more traditional variety. The Vacanza is sprinkled with truffle oil and grated pecorino, Il Sacaceno peppered with prosciutto and parmesan, and Il Capitano laced with fennel sausage, goat's cheese, and roasted mushroom. 414 Bourke Street, Surry HIills; 02 8964 6414; www.vacanzainthehills.com.au 5. Best in the North: The Italian What a treat the north shore has been served. No longer must local Mediterranean enthusiasts trek to the inner west for fabulous Italian fare. Italian feels like the village trattoria you have in your Italy-inspired dreams. The pastas are named after their region of origin, the wine list extensive, and atmosphere aplenty. A food-focused team make this suburban gem zing, and the result is an authentic Italian experience with a distinctly local focus. 191 High Street, Willoughby; 02 9967 5468; www.theitalianwilloughby.com.au 6. Best for a Beautiful Life: Cafe Sopra Cafe Sopra, literally 'above' the original Frat Fresh in Waterloo, is another level of deliciously fresh delights. Sopra's policy is menu items that emphasise the best that Fratelli has to offer, focusing on fresh produce. The resulting dishes are light, fresh and exciting: a mix that is perhaps at its best in the morning hours. 7 Danks Street, Waterloo; 02 9699 3550; www.fratellifresh.com.au 7. Best for salumi & antipasti: Parma On a prime real estate corner on Crown Street sits Parma. Named after the north Italian town famed for parmigiano reggiano, prosciutto, and Barilla pasta, Parma has imported these flavours and a relaxed cafe/bar interior to Surry Hills. The menu is a large and diverse Italian spread offering entrees, mains, and desserts. Our go to? The Nutella panzerotto for an indulgent finish. 285A Crown Street, Surry Hills; 02 9332 4974; www.parmacucina.com.au 8. Best for Mama's cooking: Baccomatto Osteria You're unlikely to get authentic home-cooked Italian food unless your mama or papa is from the homeland, but hey you're in luck. Baccomatto, meaning "mad mouth" in Italian, isn't trying to be fancy pants fine dining, but a relaxed place to socialise. In doing so, with authentic regional dishes and sauces, it succeeds where other stuffier places fail, in good-natured service and a lack of omnipresent Buddha Bar ambient beats in the background. 212 Riley Street, Surry Hills; 02 9215 5104; www.baccomattoosteria.com.au 9. Best for long summer nights: North Bondi Italian This is a beachside trattoria. There are plenty of people who will get dressed up to be seen here. Yet, you don't have to. The placemats double as paper menus. You'll be fishing your cutlery out of a box on the table. The floorstaff are gadding about in denim aprons. The menu is split into formaggio, antipasti, salumi, insalate, verdure, pasta, panini, carpaccio, fruitti di mare, offal, carne, dolci, and 'roast of the day'. Italian Sydney, eat your heart out. 118-120 Ramsgate Avenue, North Bondi; 02 9300 4400; www.eqpg.com.au/ 10. Best for drama: Buffalo Dining Club The Buffalo Dining Club itself is quite laidback, but when they serve you your spaghetti from a giant wheel of cheese, you are guaranteed to gasp. It is a little piece of Campania dropped into the backstreets of Sydney's inner city. This time, it happens to be in trendy Darlinghurst. As you can probably guess, buffalo mozzarella and burata are the main attractions here. For $17, you order one of the cheeses and two vegetable sides — and with options like balsamic carrots, Portobello mushrooms, chargrilled broccolini, and marinated fennel, it's a hard choice. 116 Surrey Street, Darlinghurst; 02 9332 4052; www.facebook.com/BuffaloDiningClub By the Concrete Playground Sydney team.
If it's been a while between Chardonnays with you and Orange, or if you've never actually ventured to the regional foodie hub of New South Wales, now's your time to make amends. On Thursday, September 22 and Friday, September 23, Sydneysiders can take in the best of Orange's food and wine right in the heart of the CBD, at the annual Taste Orange @ Sydney festival in Martin Place. Taste your way through NSW's 'food basket' with 19 of the regions best wineries offering tastings, including Phillip Shaw, Dindima, Logan, Ross Hill, Tamburlaine and more. Seriously, if you haven't tasted a Phillip Shaw Chardonnay, get amongst it. The festival will run from 11.30am till 2.30pm with food, wine tastings, entertainment and talks, while after-work drinks are made for the After Dark Pop-Up Wine Bar, open 5pm to 8pm both nights. But you're going to want some high quality, Orange-grown nibbles with that vino. Taste's lunch and dinner offerings include food from the incredibly Orange-proud teams at Agrestic Grocer, Chateau de Chocolate, The Second Mouse Cheese Factory and Franklin Road Kitchen. The Stinking Bishops crew will also be plating up cheese and charcuterie boards made exclusively with product from the region. Entry to the festival is free, but you'll have to purchase all food and wine once you're in. It's $5 for a wine glass and and then you can choose between $8 per full glass of wine (120 ml) or $4 per half glass of wine (60 ml) for the tastings. If you don't want to wait in line, you can purchase a $40 tasting pack online before you head in, which gets you ten tokens for either five glasses or ten half glasses.
