Renowned flame-kissed establishment Burnt Ends is coming to Australia to host a two-day pop-up at Perth’s Indigo Oscar on 10 & 11 May. Burnt Ends Head Chef and Co-founder Dave Pynt will be on the pans at the Latin American-inspired restaurant in Cottesloe for three seatings across the two days. Guests will be able to book in for either a 10-course set dinner ($350pp) on the Friday and Saturday, or a 8-course lunch ($295) on the Saturday. It’ll be a homecoming for the Perth-born Pynt, who will curate a special menu for the event featuring Western Australian produce. “Western Australia has s ..read more

American Express has announced the expansion of its Backing International Small Restaurants grant program, with all foodservice venues in Melbourne now eligible, as well as those in Sydney. The program covers all food service venues, so pubs and bars with food service can apply for the grants as well as restaurants and cafés. Run in partnership with the International Downtown Association (IDA) Foundation and supported by Mainstreet Australia, small food service venue owners are invited to apply for one of 10 grants each valued at $21,500 to put towards expenses or improving their business. Rob ..read more

Cooking has always been more than an everyday task for South Australian chef Trinh Richards — it’s a way of expressing love. Richards grew up in Adelaide with Vietnamese parents which saw her childhood filled with share-style feasts that brought the family together. “With Vietnamese culture, food is the love language — we don’t use words of affirmation like, ‘I love you’ or hug — I’m not kidding!” laughs the chef. Today, Richards and her partner Mike are sharing food-led affection with locals and tourists at The Little Rickshaw in Adelaide’s south. Richards runs a collaborative kitchen, where ..read more

If any Sydneysiders are looking for a new Friday night drinks spot to hit up this week, you’re in luck. Merivale has confirmed it will open the doors to surprise venue JAM in the Ivy Precinct on the 19th. The bar has been a secret passion project for Merivale CEO Justin Hemmes and his sister Bettina, who named the venue after their parents John and Merivale, who launched a clothing shop, jeans line, and record all titled JAM. The pint-sized pink-hued space has taken its cues from Tokyo listening bars and is home to a 15,000-strong record collection which will be played on a custom vintage JBL ..read more

Perched on level 22 of the Vibe Hotel Melbourne building, Fleet bar has opened its doors serving up a large collection of rum. Paul Kelly Design (Black Star, Crown Casino) worked to transform the hotel’s former penthouse apartments into the 90-pax rooftop bar. Mixologist Grant Collins has curated the rum offering which features more than 70 tipples from local producers such as JimmyRum and Boatrocker Distillery alongside international examples. The rum menu also features a vintage and rare bottle collection with tipples dating back to the 1930s. Cocktail-wise, guests can expect Fleet’s own rif ..read more

Sydney’s Surry Hills is set to welcome the White Horse back to the neighbourhood this Wednesday. The venue we were all once familiar with has undergone a major transformation led by Craig Hemmings, with the space now covering a ground-floor restaurant, upstairs public bar and garden terrace, and function rooms. “We’ve approached the White Horse with a contemporary lens, elevating the offering without the price tag,” says Hemmings. Executive Chef Jed Gerrard has now finalised the menus for the restaurant and public bar, with the chef relying on locally sourced produce for inspiration. “My focus ..read more

After undergoing refurbishments, Starward Whisky have reopened their Port Melbourne distillery and have added a new food and drink offering. The Starward Distillery and Bar now hosts a food menu spearheaded by Head Chef Drew Traynor who comes from time at Melbourne’s Eau De Vie. The menu features small and large share plates which champion local producers from the area. Highlights include whisky negroni marinated olives; smoked trout, quinoa, and sweet potato croquette; antipasto grazing boards; and fried chicken with Two-Fold BBQ sauce and blue cheese ranch. Guests can also book in for the th ..read more

The former operators of three Din Tai Fung restaurants in Sydney and Melbourne have been penalised $4 million in court by Fair Work for underpaying workers and falsifying records. It’s the second-highest penalty ever secured by the Fair Work Ombudsman with Justice Anna Katzmann describing the case as serious and calculated. “[They] deliberately deprived the employees of their legislated entitlements and contrived to disguise their wrongdoing through the creation of a false set of records,” says Katzmann. “It goes without saying that the respondents’ conduct was extremely serious. This was not ..read more

As agave prices in Mexico continue to fall and demand for premium-and-above tequila moderates in the United States, alcohol market analysts IWSR says brand owners have an opportunity to improve product quality at lower price points. Agave prices in Mexico hit a record MXP32/kg 18 months ago, but by February 2024 they had plunged to MXP5/kg, and prices are set to keep falling thanks to the large number of plants that have gone into the ground in recent years. Planting increased by 10 per cent between 2021 and 2022 and the number of registered agave growers has more than quadrupled since 2018 as ..read more

Acclaimed chef Josh Niland has closed the doors of two Sydney stores. Charcoal Fish in Rose Bay and Fish Butchery’s Paddington location both ceased trading on 31 March. A spokesperson told Nine the reason for Charcoal Fish’s departure was due to “the variable seasonality of that location”, with the store’s Instagram bio reading “closed. For now”. Fish Butchery’s operations have been rolled into one location, with all processing to take place in the concept’s larger Waterloo shopfront, which will remain open to the public on the weekends. The store supplies all the seafood to Niland’s current p ..read more