As Sydney edges its way into winter, we look back at April – the country’s shoulder month. It’s kinda cold, kinda sunny and generally unpredictable. It’s also home to more than its fair share of public holidays. But all this hasn’t slowed us down much!

While we flutter between jumpers and jackets, and shorts and T-shirts, Christina and I have been checking out a couple of Sydney’s top restaurants, a staycation hotel and its excellent executive lounge, we’ve had an interstate family visit and we’ve been on set for a TV show.

Plus there’s been the Easter and Anzac Day long weekends to fit in! I don’t know how we do it.

Hope you enjoy this Flavour Of The Month.

Cheers

Jim & Christina xx

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We kick off the month with a stay in the excellently located Sofitel Darling Harbour right in the middle of Sydney’s bustling entertainment district (and an easy ferry ride from our place).

We’ve wanted to give this hotel a go for a while, so we’re excited to have a couple of nights here to put it through its paces.

Our room on the 29th floor gives us access to the hotel’s executive level on the very top floor: Sofitel’s slick Club Millesime, which has breakfast, afternoon tea and supper included – not to mention killer water views out over Darling Harbour and the city.

You can read our full review of Sofitel Darling Harbour here.

We’ve also published a video review:

Also in Sofitel Darling Harbour is the two-Hatted French fine-dining restaurant Atelier. It’s our last night at the hotel and we celebrate with a meal that we won’t forget in a hurry.

The food is absolutely superb with entrees of easily one of the best steak tartares we’ve had and chargrilled octopus in a delicate saffron sabayon, mains of house-aged duck and thick-cut angus sirloin, and a rich, dark chocolate delice…

But I shouldn’t spoil too many surprises – you can find our full review of Atelier by Sofitel here!

Tonight, for a whole host of reasons (including the anniversary of not one but two of of our dear friends’ dads passing today) we thought we’d open a pretty special bottle of wine in recognition.

We’ve had this bottle of Peterson’s sparkling Semillon from the Hunter Valley for ages. I mean, it’s a 2007 vintage, but we’ve only had it for about six years. Thankfully the winery has done most of the ageing for us.

Semillon is a funny grape. It’s obviously a white wine, but the longer you leave it, it changes from being a zippy, high-acid youthful drop to a grumpy, textured old wine. A strange oakiness develops even though it’s never seen the inside of a barrel.

We looked at whether you can age white wine here, but this bottle confirms 1000% that you definitely can! What an extraordinary drink this is. And a great way to celebrate Jerry and Kumar’s life. Cheers lads.

The first long weekend of April is upon us – Easter in fact – and we’ve decided to go out for brunch with Christina’s fam.

For one reason or another, we’ve come out to Wahroonga to the Butcher’s Block (I approve of the name) for a bite to eat. Christina’s sister picked it – I wonder if she knows there’s another Butcher’s Block at Barangaroo – much closer to us. Just sayin’.

Anyway, the food here is great. Christina orders the Butcher’s Breakfast – a veritable platter of chorizo, bacon, hash brown, eggs, mushrooms, tomato and even a wagyu flank steak!

Her mum goes for the gnocchi and I have the burger. Oddly, I ask for the cheeseburger, which somehow baffles our young server taking my order. I mean, it’s a burger and it comes with – among other things – cheese, but there you go. Whatever you want to call it, I enjoy the food either way.

My brother-in-law and nephew, however, order the chicken burger, but aren’t impressed at all, so a bit of a mixed bag.

It’s lovely to catch up with everyone and have a meal together though.

Today, we’re at one of our locals the Royal Oak Hotel in Balmain, but not for what you might think.

We’re here as rent-a-crowd for a filming session with Channel 7’s Sydney Weekender. They’re here filming for a segment on the lauded Balmain Rozelle Heritage Pub Trail, which we’ve been working on (professionally and socially) for some time now.

In fact, check out our viral IG Reel here!

We’ve been in the background before with these guys when they were filming for the Inner West Distillery Trail – you can see that Sydney Weekender episode (and glimpses of us) here.

It’s good to be back in front of the camera – especially when all you have to do is look like you’re enjoying yourself, and eat and drink what’s put in front of you! The anchovy bruschetta, and figs and ricotta are sensational by the way.

So keep your eye out for us on your TV soon.

This evening, we’re in Paddington for a very special (and substantial) dinner at the ridiculously good Izy.Aki.

This is an omakase restaurant – a Japanese style of dining where the kitchen brings what it wants to you rather than you ordering. It’s growing in popularity in Australia and I can see why.

But this is omakase with a difference.

Owner Darren Templeman and his amazing head chef Bonnie Yu create an ever-changing menu of delicacies that they bring to your seat at the bar, but where this restaurant differs from most omakase is that the majority of the dishes – they do either a 6-course or 10-course sitting – are not sushi or sashimi based.

Rather, they utilise the the charcoal-fired yakiniku grill to create more protein-focused dishes and delicate, international masterpieces.

Darren [right] comes from a history of outstanding Sydney kitchens including O Dining and his own restaurant Atelier (different to the one in Sofitel that we mentioned earlier). From Atelier, Darren has brought is signature dish The Egg.

This sensation created quite the stir in the foodie world.

Within the perfectly scalped hen’s egg, as well as the yolk itself, is a wonderfully light yet rich combination of foie gras, smoked eel and golden salmon roe. It’s do tasty.

The food keeps coming as we try not to detonate under the artillery of umami. Every single dish seems to be determined to out-do its predecessor. Thankfully, the service is not only incredibly friendly and fun, but also considerate of our struggle.

Timed perfectly to our digestion, we leave feeling sated, happy and with a new-found respect for the art of omakase.

Check out our full review of Izy-Aki here – you can also find our video short on the experience here on YouTube (like and subscribe!).

It’s always fun to go inside places that are usually closed, but every time the Rozelle Power Station, which has been locked and derelict until recently, opens up, it feels like Wonka himself has come out of hiding.

Thankfully, this being the Sydney Biennale, you don’t need a golden ticket to go in. In fact, it’s all free.

There are some brilliant pieces of art installed in the Power Station this year, so make sure you get down to check it out. There’s a free bus – one of the old heritage ones – that goes from the QVB every weekend, but otherwise the 441 and 442 takes you almost to the door.

And while you’re at the Biennale, why not pop round the corner for a quick shandy at Sydney Brewery’s Rozelle venue.

Not only are their beers all solid, they’re really coming along with changing things for the better in this enormous space.

Latest addition is the massive screen they’ve just installed. This could be (we haven’t had this confirmed yet) the biggest indoor pub or brewery screen in the country.

Sydney Brewery will be showing the big sports games here, but also they’re looking at movie nights and things like that, so keep your eye out for that.

Also, how about this brilliant offer that’s going under the radar a bit:

Sydney Brewery has a special takeaway deal where, for $50, you get two pizzas, a box of the most delicious chips and a four-pack of beer!

As we head into the Anzac Day weekend, Christina and I are excited to have some special visitors coming to town.

My two gorgeous nieces, who live up in Brisbane, are down for a holiday. They were supposed to be bringing my brother with them, but he didn’t want to because he hates me. I hope he reads this! 

Although it would’ve been lovely to see my brother, it’s great to hang out with the girls for some of the weekend. We head to Ester Spirits, one of our favourite distilleries, for their jazz night.

The music is as amazing as the drinks are, and the happy hour adds an even brighter spark to the evening: for $25 you get a choice of drinks (martinis, gimlets and the like) and a burger from the van outside.

What could be better. Well, probably sitting a bit further from the band to be honest. The boyfriend of one of the girls, who’s down for the weekend too, is sitting a bit too close to the saxophonist!

Today is Anzac Day proper, and Christina and I are up for the Dawn Service in Balmain. It’s an impressively well-attended service and beautifully executed. 

Since our Dawn Service experience at Thailand’s Hellfire Pass last year, we’ve decided to make a concerted effort to play a more active role in this important remembrance day.

The day is finally here! Our lovely friend Jane Lawson’s book Secret Japan is out and alive! 

She kindly sent us a digital preview last month, but having the real thing in our hands is quite something. Beautifully written, exceptionally illustrated with full-colour photos and structured in a way that’s not only informative and helpful, but entertaining and enthralling as well, this is a must-read for anyone interested, passionate and curious about Japan’s lesser-known features.

Each prefecture is dealt with by Jane, who has lived, visited, worked and played in Japan for most of her life. Her knowledge of this often arcane and esoteric nation is both profound and profoundly useful to anyone wanting to exist within its culture. The way that she has dealt with potential friction points is deft and delicate, while not pulling any punches at the same time.

Pick up your copy of Secret Japan – an insider’s guide to deeper travel in the world’s most fascinating country here.

Congratulations, Jane. This is a great book.

It also gives me an excuse to break out a drop of awamori, a rice spirit (like sake but distilled rather than brewed) that I brought back from Okinawa. You can read about this mysterious, delectable drink here.

This morning, Christina is speaking at a small-business workshop as a new member of the Balmain Rozelle Chamber of Commerce. 

They’re meeting at the Teras Cafe on Darling Street, where she’s telling them all about the virtues of EDM funnels and social media – and how she’s a gun for hire to help set up systems that make what is often an unsurmountable marketing mountain more than do-able. 

The rest of the morning is a networking session, getting to know other local businesses and chatting with everyone. The Chamber an excellent resource that more small companies in the Balmain, Rozelle, Birchgrove and Lilyfield area should sign up for.

We hope you’ve enjoyed the wrap up of this month’s goings on. It’s been a fun 30 days for us, that’s for sure!

Christina & Jim xx

The post French Hotels, Japanese Dinners and We’re On TV… Again! appeared first on Mr and Mrs Romance.

With so many incredible places around the world to visit, you might wonder why Christina and I love sticking so close to home.

The funny thing is, when we’ve been overseas and have made our way home, we’re always impressed with just how good Sydney and NSW stands up against the most beautiful destinations around the world.

And while we’re always on the lookout for our next far-flung adventure (and the opportunity to get some use out of the world’s most expensive passport!), exploring our own backyard never gets boring.

But don’t worry, we’ve still got plenty of stories on some our favourite places like Lake Como.

Where to travel in New South Wales

Let’s follow the compass on our journey round NSW!

Go north

The Hunter Valley

Who guessed I’d start this guide with wine? No, I’m not surprised either! And the Hunter Valley certainly deserves as much credit as it always gets.

The oldest wine region in Australia, the Hunter has some incredible places to visit with astounding countryside and cellar doors to match.

If you don’t believe me, check out these tips on wineries recommended by long-time local and winemaster, Ian ‘Scarbie’ Scarborough of Scarborough Wines fame. These guys make the best Chardonnay you’ll ever taste by the way, and their cellar door experience is incredible.

We have a host of other reasons (not just wine… but mostly!) to visit the Hunter Valley. Check out our other reasons to visit this beautiful part of the state.

Port Stephens

Right next the Hunter Valley on the coast, Port Stephens is still (amazingly) a gem hiding in plain sight and not far from Sydney.

We’ve been coming to this pretty peninsula for years now and know the area well. Not only are there plenty of places to eat and drink, the beaches in Port Stephens are astounding. What better way to unwind after a long lockdown?

Here’s our essential guide to Port Stephens to give you a taste of what you’ll find here.

Maitland

Caught between the Hunter Valley to the south and Newcastle to the east, Maitland has long had the reputation as a ’30-minute town’ – in that it’s half an hour’s drive from both its bookend destinations.

But back in the mid-1800s, Maitland and its even smaller neighbour Morpeth were an epicentre of the colony.

There are still vestiges of those thriving times still to see now, but the real joy of this town isn’t its history; it’s the food.

There are so many remarkable places to eat here, we left after a weekend barely able to fit into our car, let alone our clothes!

Here’s where to eat in Maitland, plus our other stories on this fascinating part of NSW, whose history we’ve all but forgotten.

Byron Bay

Perhaps the biggest punctuation on the northern NSW coastline is Byron Bay. And justly so. Not just the town, but the whole area is brimming with beauty… and superb food.

You’ll find eating here very satisfying with so many venues offering local produce grown and crafted with love.

There’s a whole host of places to try here, as you’ll see from our compilation of where to eat in Byron, but there’s also so much to do here.

And of course, the whole area is so pretty – check out our Postcards story if you don’t believe me. 

Head south

Southern Highlands

Southwest of Wollongong, the Southern Highlands makes for a perfect escape from the city and a wonderful place to get away from the long lockdown.

Each little town in the highlands offers something different, as well as a burgeoning wine-making culture, though all are connected by one wonderful filament of gold: pies.

And every year, the Southern Highlands has Pie Time – a celebration of everything pastry.

Pie Time – a wonderful week in June of pie glory in the Southern ‘Pielands’ – is has this region at its best.

2020’s Pie Time is going virtual, with 1-7 June going for ‘Pie-solation’ celebrations, encouraging Aussies far and wide to pie up at home and share their pastry yarns online with #pietime and #piesolations. 

Berry

On the other side of the mountains to the highlands, this wealthy country town has been a popular stop for motorists for many years – though now the bypass misses Berry, it’s mercifully a lot quieter.

You’ll find pies to die for here too and Mt Hay Retreat up in the hills is a superb place to rest your head.

South Coast and Mollymook

The NSW South Coast has long been a popular haunt for Sydney holidaymakers, and rightly so. It’s absolutely stunning here. Pristine beaches, delightful food options, friendly locals… it’s hard not to like the South Coast.

One of the highlights of our time in the South Coast was when we stayed at Bannisters by the Sea at Mollymook. It’s a pretty little retreat in a quaint little seaside town with the other obvious asset of Rick Stein’s famed restaurant.

This iconic eatery aside, there are so many excellent food options in this part of the Shoalhaven to try. 

Other parts of southern NSW

Our last roadtrip before Covid-19 struck was down through the southern parts of NSW and into Victoria. We had decided to do our own Empty Esky in aid of the terrible bushfires that ravaged so much of the state.

That all seems so long ago now – even though it’s only a few months back as I write this.

It was, however, a blessing, as we were able to experience some amazing parts of the state that hopefully will still be the same the next time we visit.

Places like Batemans Bay and Moruya, Tumut and its wonderful brewery, the bakery at Howlong and Corowa’s distillery – you can find them all detailed here in our Empty Esky story… and you’ll find them all in person as you enjoy the beauty of New South Wales.

Enjoy the Central West

Travelling west of Sydney is such a different experience to going north or south along the coast. The landscape is so different, and the locals even more so.

Orange

One of the first places west of the Blue Mountains we ever visited, Orange is packed with truly superb food and wine. It’s a mountainous area, with a cool climate and high elevation, which makes the produce here even better.

Here’s our essential guide to Orange, NSW to get you started. 

Mudgee

Another wonderful western town that’s even friendlier than Orange and with perhaps even better wine and produce is Mudgee. There’s something about this place that really kept our hearts. We can’t wait to go back.

Here’s a hit list of where we’ll be eating when we go back plus our top tip for where to stay while you’re there. Honestly the most comfortable bed I’ve ever slept in… and I’m really picky!

The Blue Mountains

Arguably the most famous inland landmark of New South Wales are the Blue Mountains. This little section of the Great Dividing Range, which runs north to south some 3,500km, has so much history and beauty to it.

Here are seven ways to experience the grandeur of this landscape, which we highly recommend if you haven’t been here for a few years (it’s all been updated). And here’s where stay in the Blue Mountains too.

For more of our stories of the Blue Mountains, click here. 

The City

Of course, there’s no need to go too far if you don’t want to – or if you don’t have enough time. Sydney has so much to offer visitors and locals alike. We love a staycation here in the city, and we’ve written so much about our times here.

You’ll find everything from Sydney hotels and restaurants in the city to things to do and places to see.

But if you’re only in town for a short while, here’s what you can do in 24 hours.

And for more ideas for easy Sydney weekend getaways, check out this champion story!

If you’ve got more time on your hands and want to deep-dive into the research, here are more of our stories on places we’ve explored in New South Wales. 

Of course, we haven’t been everywhere in New South Wales… though we’re working on it. We’d love to go west and see what it’s like further inland. The farthest west we’ve been in NSW is Mendooran – a tiny town near Dubbo, where a particularly good whisky is made.

But every town between Sydney and Broken Hill has its story. And there’s time to hear them all.

Do you have a place of priority you want to visit as soon as travel restrictions lift? Tell us in the comments.

The post Where To Go In Australia’s First State – our NSW destination guide appeared first on Mr and Mrs Romance.

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Creating delicious works of edible genius from Izy.Aki’s diminutive kitchen, owner Darren Templeman and head chef Bonnie Yu have levelled up Sydney’s omakase scene.

This is omakase, but not as Australia’s seen before.

As we sit down at the counter that takes up most of the narrow restaurant — very much like the izakayas of backstreet Kyoto — Christina and I ponder how this instantly feels different to other omakase experiences we’ve had.

Far less formal and a more relaxed pace, Izy.Aki is more about enjoying the atmosphere, chatting to the staff and taking your time over a dish.

Not only is this more conducive to a romantic dinner, it also allows you to appreciate the sheer attention to detail. Here, the experience is all about you and your evening.

This is kappo yakiniku omakase.

What is kappo yakiniku omakase?

The Japanese trend of omakase dining has taken Australia by storm, pushing the popular degustation dinners of the 2010s out of the way with a sumo shove.

Born in the 1980s when businessmen had neither time nor inclination to choose their meals, Tokyo C-suiters would task the chef with omakase — ‘I leave it up to you’. The kitchen would then present what they had on hand to the busy diner.

Sydney has since adopted this style of eating with vigour, but Izy.Aki is taking things to the next step.

If you haven’t heard of kappo yakiniku omakase before, don’t worry; this is a first for Australia.

Kappo means ‘to cut and cook’ and yakiniku refers to the charcoal grill used in particular restaurants. So instead of being primarily sushi and sashimi focused, kappo yakiniku is also about grilled meats and personal service.

Our 10-Course Omakase at Izy.Aki

We slip into our seats at the long white marble bar that stretches out to the back of the room and squeezes everyone in at the elbow.

From here, we can see everything going on; every cocktail stirred and sake poured, and the parade of dishes prepped, plated and presented along the bar.

We love this kind of dining.

Beginning with a couple of superbly crafted house cocktails (Christina has an Izy-groni and I’ve gone for a Nip on Molasses), we settle in and watch the show.

It’s important to note that Darren and Bonnie change their menu all the time so expect different things than we’re detailing here. Regardless, you’re still guaranteed a spectacular dinner.

Dish 1: bluefin tuna tartare

Soon, our first dish — the first of 10 — arrives, and it’s clear that although the atmosphere and service is relaxed here, the menu takes itself pretty seriously.

There’s no such thing as scrimping or sub-standard ingredients. The food focuses on finest form and best quality, and in this there is no compromise.

The mound of jiggly red and orange cubes turns out to be bluefin tuna tartare and dashi jelly, and the snow on top is none other than shavings of pate de foie gras. Flavours are intense and almost peppery, with delicate textures of tuna that become even more tender when we get to the jelly.

Dish 2: The Egg

Izy.Aki’s signature dish and a real wow moment of the meal.

This is a free range hen’s egg that has been emptied then refilled with a wonderful array of flavours. Smoked eel, more foie gras and golden trout roe create a dish of incredible depth of flavour; rich, salty, packed with umami, yet light as air with the occasional pop and bite from the roe.

The shell has been perfectly scalped using a weighted cutter that head chef Bonnie enthusiastically shows off to us.

It’s little wonder why this dish has made such waves on the internet.

Dish 3: Sashimi time!

Plated with infinite delicacy, these three perfect tokens of wild kingfish from Ulladulla come with a salad of okame seaweed, edible flowers and red salmon roe. Dotted on each of them is an emulsion of house-fermented black garlic.

This isn’t as zesty or fresh as I was expecting after the opulence of The Egg. Instead, the silky richness and umami from the exquisite combination of flavours keeps the savoury ball rolling.

Dish 4: Chawanmushi

Chawanmushi is a kind of savoury egg custard and is traditional for kaiseki ryori (a multi-dish meal). However, Izy.Aki has pushed back against convention a little, serving theirs cool or at room temperature rather than piping hot, making this dish quite refreshing.

The dollop of real oscietra caviar on top is only just the start of the lavishness of this dish. Below, bathing in the silken custard and seafood dashi are pieces of pomelo, scallion and shredded Alaskan crab.

The ensemble brings sweetness, savoury notes and sharpness under the banner of the velvety custard.

Dish 5: Seafood Soup

With a base of seafood dashi — a great start to any aqueous dish — the luxury of abalone, octopus from Fremantle, Patagonian prawns and fresh lotus root make this so much more than a mere soup.

Dish 6: Lobster Tail

The extravagance keeps on coming as Darren brings us each a whole lobster tail from WA and Misty Valley mushrooms.

You’d expect the mushrooms to play second fiddle to the lobster, but not here. Having said that, the lobster is superb; tender, sweet, flavourful and perfectly cooked.

Keeping everything together though is the rich unctuous sauce made with house-fermented chilli butter. If this had been at home, I’d have licked my plate.

Dish 7: Beef Brisket

Somehow, Darren and Bonnie upstage the previous dish yet again with a monster of flavour: this 12-hours slow-cooked beef brisket that’s been finished on the yakiniku grill is so tender you can pull it apart with your fork.

The fat that rendered from the beef has been used to cook the delicate green cauliflower blossoms, and the rocher of mushroom miso butter creates such a range of profoundly deep flavours it’s almost overwhelming.

Dish 8: Wagyu Sirloin

Just when we think we’ve reached the deepest depth of flavour, Izy.Aki takes us to the Mariana Trench of umami with a beautifully grilled black opal wagyu sirloin (MB9+) from Victoria. The yakiniku grill has worked its magic again with this cut, creating the perfect Maillard crust on the outside while keeping the middle pink and tender.

With the steak comes a range of condiments — two types of freshly grated wasabi, a sour tamarind sauce and a fermented soy bean chilli, which I could just spoon up on its own. As a side (because we need more food!) is a bowl of house-fermented white kimchee and saffron fronds.

As Darren explains, this is a kind of choose-your-own-adventure thing, where you can pick how your steak tastes with each of the delectable condiments. This is a real wow dish.

Dish 9: Dessert #1

At first sight, we think this could be the one that kills us: a big scoop of rich dark chocolate cremeux, yoghurt sorbet and crunchy puffed rice.

However, this is a well-balanced dessert that’s surprisingly fresh and zesty. It somehow scratches the sweet itch after all these super savoury dishes, but is also far less filling than it looks.

Dish 10: Soufflé

The final dish is a real centrepiece. Rising high about its ornate pot, the Hokkaido matcha and raspberry cheesecake soufflé is really something to behold.

Freshly baked and puffy, the top hides a secret stash of gooey cheesecake and raspberries at the bottom, so it’s important to push your spoon all the way down.

This dish has changed my mind about matcha, which I never really held in high regard before. The creamy quenelle of mascarpone ice cream adds texture and a lovely hot-cold contrast to the soufflé.

Sake at Izy.Aki

I think it’s important to point out the bar here at Izy.Aki is not only packed with some outstanding spirits (there’s even a bottle of Sullivan’s Cove here), but its sake options are almost endless.

We finish with some junmai ginjo sake, which is earthy and funky, yet still fresh and clean. The sake is decanted into a silver vessel then poured into silver cups. The bottoms of the cups are smelted into the zodiac signs of the Lunar Calendar, which is a fun touch.

I must say, I do love the artistry and pageantry of omakase.

Along with the convivial service of a restaurant that leans halfway towards a Kyoto izakaya and halfway towards slick Paddo experiential dining, Izy.Aki’s omakase does all the thinking for you, bringing you a meal you never thought you needed.

The only problem now is all we can think about is going back for more!

We dined as media guests of Izy.Aki, but our opinions and experiences remain our own.

The post Romantic and Intimate — omakase dining at Izy.Aki, Paddington appeared first on Mr and Mrs Romance.

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Right on the shores of Sydney’s waterfront entertainment quarter, Sofitel Darling Harbour is perfectly positioned for a luxe Sydney getaway or – in our case – a romantic staycation.

Darling Harbour is packed with restaurants, bars and fun things to do — from bowling to one of the world’s biggest cinema screens, the aquarium and Wildlife World, not to mention an impressive weekly fireworks display over the water framed by the city and the historic Pyrmont Bridge.

Also within walking distance to the Sofitel Darling Harbour, you’ve got the ever-evolving dining scenes of Chinatown and Thai Town, King Street Wharf and Barangaroo.

But that’s if you even want to leave the comfort of your hotel room, a dilemma we certainly struggle with during our stay!

Where to Stay in Sydney — Sofitel Darling Harbour

Though it’s not the tallest hotel in Sydney (or even in the area for that matter), Sofitel Darling Harbour still has amazing views out over the city and way out to the west — a point that really stands up as the sun sets.

And it’s certainly worth booking a room as high as you can — above level 28 in particular — as this gives you access to Accor’s exclusive club service ‘Millesime’. But more about that later.

Inside our Superior Room

Compact but still very comfortable, especially for our two-night stay, our room is generously furnished and well designed. But it’s the extra features that elevate Sofitel’s rooms to the quality you expect from this internationally renowned hotel group.

The room has all the basics covered: bed, bathroom, table and chairs, but they’re all done with a bit of flex.

The bed is enormous and has a beautifully finished headboard and end-of-bed bench. The bedside furniture is generous and has multi-format power outlets as well as uncomplicated light switches. It might not sound like a big deal, but these last two points are actually so refreshing.

The bathroom not only has a high-powered shower with overhead and angled heads, it also has a beautiful deep-fill bath that looks through the sliding doors to the views of the city. My only gripe about the bathroom is the strongly opaque door to the toilet. More and more hotels seem to think that the greater the opportunity to see your partner on the throne, the more romantic/luxurious/modern the room. This needs to be addressed; any proximity to another human emptying themselves is none of these things!

One little treasure we discover in the bathroom that seems to have gone the way of the dodo in hotels is the amenity kit. Occasionally these days you might get the odd cotton bud or a shower cap, but not in the Sofitel Darling Harbour. Harking back to the good old days, this has to be one of the most comprehensive kits we’ve seen. Toothbrushes, combs, nail files, cotton pads and buds, and even a shaving kit — I’m impressed.

The table and chair in the room are comfortable and well-sized, and the second ‘chair’ is in fact a chase longue that you can recline on and enjoy the views through the entire wall of windows.

There are lots of other little details like the lovely lamps, the fabric textured wardrobe doors and the quaint vignette of old photos on the wall that add to the room’s style.

Mind you, the carpet pattern keeps making me think there’s an electrical cable laying across the floor.

As I’ve mentioned, the views here are outstanding, but there’s another bonus to being on floor 29: we get access to the Millesime club level.

Club Millesime Level, Sofitel Darling Harbour

Right up on the 35th level, Club Millesime — meaning ‘great vintage’ in French — takes up the whole top floor of the Sofitel and offers some of the best views of Sydney.

As well as a full reception (with its own secret stash of Champagne btw!), where you can check in and out without using the ground level concierge at all, there’s a dedicated kitchen here that opens three times a day starting with breakfast.

From 6.30am to 10.30am (11.00am on weekends and public holidays), the complimentary breakfast at Club Millesime offers a wonderful spread of pastries, croissants, in-house jams, fresh-from-the-comb honey and breakfast cereals.

There’s also a full spread of hot buffet options. The bacon is excellent here — a yardstick I mark all hotel breakfasts with. At your table, you can also order a small selection of a la carte items like eggs Benedict and avocado on toast.

Le Gouter and Apero Chic at Club Millesime

In the same way the Italians have aperitivo, le gouter is a traditional snack time in France, replicated in Club Millesime between 2.30pm and 4.30pm.

Sit and enjoy tasty sweets, sandwiches and snacks, as well as complimentary hot and soft drinks, while you sit back and take in the view.

As the afternoon leans into evening, Club Millesime offers Apera Chic, a kind of opener before dinner between 5.30pm and 7.30pm.

There’s a wide selection of hot morsels available, including garlic prawns, and wagyu and cheese jalapeno spring rolls, you can build your own salad, grab a bit of cake or hit the cheese board. You can also order complimentary beers, wines, spirits and cocktails too.

It’s the perfect opportunity to relax and take in the sunset views over Sydney.

Other Bars And Facilities at Sofitel Darling Harbour

On Level 4 is the infinity pool and sun deck, open to all hotel guests. If you’re not in the mood for a swim, there’s still Le Rivage, the poolside bar (open Thurs-Sun 11am-6pm). And if you fancy something more active or pampering, the hotel gym is here too, right next door to the day spa.

On the ground floor just by reception is the lobby bar Esprit Noir, perfect for a quick drink before dinner and a great rendezvous point if you’re meeting up with friends.

Level 3 is home to the famed Champagne Bar, an elegant late-night venue with superfluous views, cocktails and French-style snacks, and a refined Champagne menu.

Here you can also have your bottle of Champagne ‘sabraged’ — a very cool way of opening the bottle with a swift strike of a sword. It’s a tradition that originated with Napoleon, a way of him celebrating victory in battle.

Perhaps most impressively, Sofitel Darling Harbour is home to one of the exclusive, elusive and very impressive Les Clef d’Or – the Golden Keys Concierge.

Recognisable by their golden crossed keys pin, these guys aren’t like regular concierge people, they’re like X-Men. They know everything that’s going on in the city, they can get you into sold-out shows, they know every bar, restaurant and hidden spot in the area, and they have fingers on every pulse beating.

We met a Golden Keys in Paris and his knowledge was incredible. You can read about it here.

Fine-dining at Sofitel Darling Habour — Atelier by Sofitel

The real crowning glory of Sofitel Darling Harbour, two-Hatted Atelier is an icon in French fine dining in Sydney.

On Level 3 and conveniently close to the Champagne Bar, Atelier sets the scene for a most romantic dinner, and the food and wine make it an occasion to remember. In fact, it feels more like the hotel was built around the restaurant than the other way around.

To get to the restaurant, you go past the kitchen and what seems to be a lot of empty seats, but this area is in fact where breakfast is served for hotel guests without access to the Club Millesime level.

It feels a bit strange going through such a big empty space, but once in the warm, salubrious inner sanctum of the restaurant proper, with its discrete bar and the city lights twinkling through the window, we settle in for a meal to remember.

The kitchen here has a few special tricks up its sleeve. There’s a cabinet specifically for dry ageing duck to superb effect. They also use a charcoal-fired Mibrasa oven for the steaks here, which acts as a combination grill and oven. This specialised Spanish oven sears, cooks and smokes all at the same time.

Needless to say: I’m excited.

In fact, you can read our full review of Atelier here!

Getting to Sofitel Darling Harbour

Being right next to the ICC and in the midst of one of Sydney’s major tourism drawcards means that Sofitel Darling Harbour is really well connected.

Of course, a taxi will bring you to the door, but there are public transport options too.

From Central or the city, the light rail is an easy option and drops you right outside the hotel.

Alternatively, you could walk in from the city across the historic Pyrmont Bridge — the world’s oldest surviving electronic swing bridge — and see Darling Harbour from all sides.

But the nicest way to get there is to catch an F4 ferry to Pyrmont Bay. From there you have the option of walking through Darling Harbour or go one stop on the light rail from Star Casino.

After all, a romantic stay in a hotel of this quality deserves an enjoyable journey to arrive by.

We stayed as media guests of Sofitel Darling Habour, but our experiences and opinions remain our own.

The post Where to Wake Up In Sydney — Sofitel Darling Harbour appeared first on Mr and Mrs Romance.

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While the fine-dining scene has been working through some things, growing into its next life stage, Atelier in Sydney’s Darling Harbour has been ahead of that particular curve since it opened in 2017.

Atelier’s intimate, service-forward ethos brings out the feeling relaxed refinement and luxury that most other top-end restaurants are still wrestling into place.

It’s that fine balancing act of harnessing the traditional without being stuffy, the high-end without being snobby, the elegance without the side eye.

Read our full review of the Sofitel Darling Harbour here.

Dinner at Atelier in Darling Harbour

Being part of the Sofitel Darling Harbour, you expect Atelier to have that ‘just another hotel restaurant’ vibe, but that’s not the case here.

None of the usual hotel trappings that tend to leak out into the dining experience at Atelier. This is a self-contained in-its-own-right restaurant that attracts just as many people not staying in the hotel as actual guests, if not more.

Having said that — and this is my only reservation with Atelier — entering the restaurant is a bit… strange.

From the maitre d’ station at the entrance, you have to walk through a large room full of empty tables and chairs before you get to Atelier. This is where the hotel serves breakfast and it just feels a bit uncomfortable, a bit deserted.

The kitchens are also in the breakfast room, which is a shame. These are open kitchens and it would be nice to feel a bit more connected to them during dinner.

The food coming from the distant kitchens, however, is excellent and the atmosphere in Atelier proper is cosy and convivial.

Entrees

Choosing entrees at Atelier is actually quite challenging; but that’s what happens with a paradox of choice. You want everything, but because of that, you can’t pick one.

After lengthy negotiations, we settle on the charcoal-grilled octopus from the kitchen’s specialised Mibrasa grill, which acts as a combination grill and oven. This specialised Spanish oven sears, cooks and smokes all at the same time.

The octopus is butter tender and comes with a kind of ratatouille, though there’s a freshness and crunch in the capsicum and a light creaminess too. On top is a wonderfully velvety saffron sabayon that slowly collapses on itself adding richness and umami.

It’s a clever dish that can only come from a kitchen that knows its stuff.

We also order the O’Connor black angus beef tartare. Christina and I have made a pact that if there’s ever a tartare on the menu, we have to order it. Boy, are we glad we did this time.

Quite possibly the best we’ve had, this tartare is really something. Dressed to impress, the steak is plated with tiny geranium leaves, parsley and edible flowers. For the all-important acidity, the kitchen has gone with pickled onion petals as well as capers, and the egg has been confited until it’s slightly gelatinous.

Buried deep inside the tartare is a rich remoulade, a kind of gently spiced mayonnaise, that brings a voluptuous creaminess to the ensemble.

We each have a glass of La Comtesse Chardonnay from Mudgee-based winery De Beaurepaire that cuts through the richness of the entrees, but also has a lovely creamy body all of its own.

Mains

Because of the kitchen’s special Mibrasa oven, we feel duty-bound to order a steak (yes, it’s a tough life, isn’t it) and it turns out to be an excellent decision.

The black angus tenderloin (cooked rare) is a thick generous cut. The Mibrasa has given the outside a beautiful crusty char while the inside is red and rested.

In terms of sauce, I have opted for the confit garlic and herb butter — basically a luxed-up cafe de Paris — but to be honest the steak doesn’t need it; there’s so much flavour and juiciness here. However, it does go well with the duck fat roasted Andean sunrise potatoes.

One of the other unique things about Atelier is the kitchen dry ages its own ducks. You can see them hanging in the cabinet next to the Mibrasa.

Of course, this influences our other choice of main: the dry-aged corn-fed duck breast from Moorabool Valley near Geelong.

The duck breast is perfectly cooked: pink where it should be, bronzed like a Greek god everywhere else. While the meat is quite salty on its own, the glossy rocher of apple sauce is acidic enough that it balances everything out to the point of buoyancy.

With our main meals, we have a glass of De Beaurepaire’s Perceval Pinot Noir and a bold Grenache from the Other Wine Co in McLaren Vale.

Dessert

Somehow our server Gabriela convinces us to squeeze in dessert, specifically the Vietnamese dark chocolate, coconut, pandan and mint delice.

We’re apprehensive at first, but it turns out to be a lovely dessert. I’m not a fan of pandan, but its delicate floral flavour works well with the coconut and mint.

Gabriela also treats us to a glass of De Beaurepaire Botrytis, which blends so perfectly with the sharpness of the mint and the depth of flavour of the Vietnamese dark chocolate.

This is an outstanding dining experience, full of romance and wonderful food. Atelier is the perfect place for a romantic meal or to celebrate a special occasion.

We dined as media guests of Sofitel Darling Harbour, but our experiences and opinions remain our own.

The post French Fine-Dining in Sydney — Atelier by Sofitel appeared first on Mr and Mrs Romance.

March by name, march by nature! This month has definitely flashed by, hasn’t it? It’s a shame that March has gone by so quickly – this is usually the best time to be in Sydney; days still warm, evenings slightly cooler, crowds are smaller, everyone’s back to work and school.

And as is my MO for habitually complaining about how fast each month has gone by, I’m once again going to blame it on so much happening.

We have friends in town from interstate, we’re visiting friends in other states, weddings down on the NSW border and even our own wedding anniversary celebrations. We’ve got tours of ocean liners, whisky judging panels, wine tastings, Elvis biopic premiers, cocktails, St Patrick’s Day, curries, comedians and even a sneak preview of a friend’s magnificent new travel book.

And it’s all happened in these 31 short days!

Hope you’re sitting comfortably.

Jim & Christina xx

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We kick off the month with a bit of indie music! Our good friend Nick Beswick is playing a gig at the Gasoline Pony in Marrickville.

The band he’s in – Lost In The Woods – has been going since the mid-2000s and always puts down brilliant sets. You can find out more about the band and any upcoming gigs here on their site and their albums are all available on Spotify here.

It’s great to see Nick, especially when his parents are in town. His mum is the only other person I’ve met with the same birthday as me!

This afternoon, we get to play tour guide to our lovely friends Steve and Heather Collins in town from Perth. We met Steve in 2019 on a media trip to South Africa and we’ve stayed in contact ever since.

Steve has worn many hats in his life including a radio and podcast broadcaster, a writer, a photographer and a travel correspondent. He’s also a standup comedian, so there are always plenty of healthy one-liners on hand to keep everyone smiling.

We take them round to see some of the sights of Balmain and pop into our favourite pub The Bald Rock Hotel in Rozelle for a spot of lunch. It’s been so good to spend time with these lovely people.

All too soon, they have to head back to where they’re staying in Manly, so we pop them on a ferry and wave goodbye. Hope to see them both again soon.

We’ve had a long-running love affair with the wine, food and hospitality from Orange, NSW. This town on the Central Tablelands has worked its way deep into our hearts with its friendly nature and the outstanding quality of its produce.

But in particular, the wine coming from this town is crazy. Over 80 wineries exist in the small designation that’s limited by altitude. The beauty of this is that there are still so many wineries that we haven’t yet discovered.

Owners of Angullong Wines – the Crossing family – have been crafting outstanding wines since the late 1990s. We have the opportunity to try a couple of their wines from the latest release of Angullong’s Fossil Hill range.

This range shows Angullong’s commitment to expanding and challenging the varietals and flavours that Orange is known for.

Within this release of six varieties is a Sangiovese and a Tempranillo.

Angullong’s bright, lively Sangiovese is packed with those delightful cherry and spice aromas that open up even more on the palate, ending in a rounded, long savoury finish with plenty of fine acidity and structured tannins.

The Tempranillo is also right on the money with raspberry, cedar and spice notes running through it. Light sweetness also comes through as its fine texture leads you to a moreish finish.

Both these wines are medium-bodied reds, which suggests the Australian wine palate is progressing nicely towards a more refined, lighter style of wine.

All wines in this range, which also includes a Barbera, a Montepulciano, a Shiraz and a Chardonnay, are available from Angullong’s beautiful cellar door or online here – RRP$30.00 each.

Another wine discovery from Orange, check out our review of the full recently released range from Cooks Lot Wines here.

This evening, Christina is at Balmain and Rozelle’s home of beer: Sydney Brewery! And she’s here to be part of the Women In Business that the Balmain Rozelle Chamber of Commerce runs on a regular basis.

Christina reports that it’s great to meet so many strong women working in the community, creating incredible opportunities and shaping the way that business is conducted in and around Sydney.

Titled the ‘Cider, Sip & Connect’ event, tonight’s networking festivities are combined with a tasting session of Sydney Brewery’s cider range, which I have to say is excellent.

The original apple cider, the Bat Currant and the Agave Ginger are delicious, but I must say the Lemon Twist is a winner. Dangerously easy to drink and very refreshing.

We’re so excited about this one!

Our wonderful friend Jane Lawson is almost ready to launch her latest (and possibly greatest) travel book Secret Japan!

Jane has worked, lived and travelled in Japan for over 40 years, and her incredible depth of knowledge is all out in the pages of this beautifully crafted book – and we’ve been given a bit of an advanced viewing of it!

I’m loath to call it a travel guide, because it’s so much more than that. Yes, it has some excellent travel advice, it guides you through all the different islands, regions and prefectures of Japan, and covers all the things you want to know about the country – from food to onsen etiquette.

But the way Jane has written this is more an insight into what Japan is, how and why it’s structured the way it is and what it feels like to experience this unique, fascinating destination.

We can’t wait for this book to come out in late April, and we’ll be able to share more information with you on it then too. But until then, you can get this on pre-order here.

This afternoon, I’m in our old stomping ground in Surry Hills to be part of a tasting panel for pioneering hospitality magazine National Liquor News.

Today’s target spirit is whisky – specifically Irish whiskey and Scotch. And with 70 different whiskies from over 30 distilleries across Ireland and Scotland, the group’s more than got our work cut out for us.

The setting is perfect though. We’re in the whisky room of the Clock Hotel on Crown Street, the most appropriate place to be tasting some of the best scotch and Irish whiskey on the market.

We’re on the road again!

This time, Christina and I are driving down to the borderlands for a wedding in Albury. But first, we get in a quick stopover with our awesome friends Carly and Ben who live in beautiful historic Beechworth.

It’s so much fun to hand out with them and to see their two rapidly growing kids. We wish we had more time to spend here, but all too soon we’re in the car again heading back across the river into NSW.

But it’s certainly worth it.

We’re at our friends’ Emily and Adam’s wedding in the impressive Murray Art Museum Albury (affectionately ‘MAMA‘). With over 2,400 pieces of photographic, sculptural and indigenous art, MAMA makes an amazing, unique venue for a wedding.

Christina and I are proud to have been given formal roles for the wedding: we’re the MCs for the night! Fortunately, the celebrant does most of the heavy lifting – even telling guests where the bathrooms are and not to touch any of the artworks. So we really don’t have to do that much.

The vast entrance is full of grand exhibits, but it’s also the main arena for celebrations – not to mention the bar and dance floor when all the formalities and food are over.

The party goes on long into the night – there might even be a spot of karaoke in one of the nearby night spots, but that’s for us to know…

Congratulations, Em and Adam. We hope you have most wonderful life together.

It’s our last day in Albury and also our wedding anniversary*! After hanging out with the newlyweds this afternoon, we head out for dinner at what everyone here considers to be the best place to eat in town.

We’re in Norma’s, a lovely little neighbourhood restaurant. We manage to score a table without a booking, which is a feat in itself, and work our way through the menu.

The menu, by the way, is an interesting thing. You mark off what you want to eat, take it up to the bar and hand it in. You’re almost placing your order with the open kitchen yourself. It’s at this point that you pay as well. It’s a fun way to do things, but I do worry the excellent staff and chefs here are doing themselves out of tips.

We order the calamari and ‘nduja, the pork cotoletta, tonnato sauce and crispy capers, smoked beef, kipfler potatoes and the most amazing caper crema, and the rich rigatoni with slow-cooked beef ragu, all washed down with an excellent Riesling from Darling Estate in King Valley.

Outstanding service, food and drink, and of course the very best company. Happy anniversary, Christina.

*By the way, special shout-out to my mum and dad, who’ll be celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary in a few days!

It’s time for us to leave Albury, but we’ll definitely be back – and not just because our lovely friends live here. This is a great little town with plenty to offer.

Before we head north, we drive up to the high point of the town for what everyone says are the best views of the area. They’re right – from the impressive Anzac War Memorial, you look out right across the town down to the distant hills.

This evening, Christina and I are at the cinema. Our friends from Memphis Tourism has invited us to a screening of Epic, the new Elvis biopic by Baz Luhrmann at the Gold Class screen at Event Cinema George Street.

We meet everyone at the bar – lots of friendly faces from the travel media industry here tonight – and head to our luxurious recliner seats for the show. Chris Ingham from Memphis Tourism talks us through the screening before the lights go down and the King takes the stage.

We weren’t sure what to expect from Epic. This is a kind of compilation of a whole load of b-roll and backstage video that was recently unearthed of Elvis’ seven-year residency in Las Vegas.

Luhrmann has created a kind of docu-concert with this, and although there’s no narration, no plot and it’s not even in any kind of chronological order, Epic is so compelling and so interesting. Seeing Elvis in rehearsals and on stage, hearing his voice and watching him in this never-before-seen footage is somehow so watchable.

We leave with a new appreciation for Presley. If nothing else, his work ethic was unimpeachable. In athe peak three-year period in Vegas, he ran other 1,100 shows, sometimes three concerts a day. And every time he went on stage, he said he’d perform like it was the first night of a tour. Impressive stuff.

After the film, Christina and I take advantage of being in the city and head to a bar we haven’t been to before. We find the hidden entry to The Press.

This is a Merivale venue and, as it turns out, where fine-dining restaurant EST. once stood. It’s a beautiful bar, vaulted ceilings, grand pillars and a long bar that sits to one side. It has a kind of speakeasy feel mixed with a Budapest ruin bar.

Cocktails are superb, made with outstanding skill and served by well-trained staff. We sit up at the bar and end up chatting to Kristy, who turns out is from a little town called Great Dunmow not far from where I grew up in the UK. Such a small world.

This afternoon, Christina is aboard the world’s last ocean liner: the magnificent Queen Mary II is berthed at Circular Quay as part of her 2026 World Voyage.

The tour of the QM2 starts with champagne on the poop deck (don’t laugh) with iconic photos of the Cunard sign and the Harbour Bridge in the background. Then the group delves into the elegant interior of one of the biggest and most luxurious cruise ships.

She admires the grandeur of twin-balustrade atria, the artworks lining walls and many dining options throughout the ship.

The tour leads to the old English pub and its homely welcoming feel, then to the elegant bistro with its wide windows looking out over the water. There’s even a full theatre on board with a stage big enough for concerts and seating for over 1,100 patrons.

There’s also a cinema, 15 restaurants, 14 bars and lounges, a library with over 6,000 books and audio books, a fully equipped casino, spas, gyms and wellness centres, four pools, spaces for quoits, basketball, tennis, and even golf, shops, boutiques and galleries, and the 1,260 square foot Queens Room – the biggest ballroom at sea. It’s like a floating city.

This evening, we’re back at the State Theatre (we were here last month to see a celebrity chef) this time to see comedian Laura Ramoso. Christina first spotted her on TikTok with her hilarious impressions of her Italian father and German mum. Another character Laura developed, which has since gone viral, is the Italian airline clerk. You should check her out.

The show is very funny, though there’s far too much audience participation for my liking and it makes me feel unsettled throughout the whole show. We’re sitting far enough back that we probably won’t be picked, but even the thought of being dragged up there turns my blood to pork rind.

Slainte! Today is St Patrick’s Day so the lads and I are out for a Guinness or two. We’re at the Merton in Rozelle ostensibly for their excellent goat curry, but also to join in the Irish festivities.

There’s a band playing Irish folk songs, plenty of beer and even a raffle for some Irish goodies. We win a couple of them actually, taking home plenty of packets of Taytos and some less Irish things like mayonnaise and Minstrels. But it’s a worthy little hamper I’ll not be saying no to!

This evening, we’re out with our mates Jo, Paul and Anton. It’s been quite a while since we all hung out, so we know this one’s going to be a biggy.

We kick off with a couple of beers at the Red Lion in Rozelle, mostly because it’s close to dinner, which is – that’s right – back at the Merton! Twice in a week. People will start to talk. But the goat curry, in fact all the food here, is so good I’d be happy to come back five nights in a row.

After dinner, we hop in a taxi to check out the newly opened Nacara Bar in Balmain. This was once Wilhelmina’s, but closed down and has been empty for ages.

Only open a week, Nacara feels like it’s always been here. The cocktails are off the charts, and the knowledge and creativity of the bar staff here is well worth a seat at the bar to enjoy. Just ask them about their in-house fat wash spirits.

Christina and I have been invited to a lovely party this afternoon. Local law firm Morgan and English, some of whom we met at a Christmas party for the Balmain Rozelle Chamber of Commerce recently, are having a bit of a shindig at their offices at the Waterfront Workshops.

These brightly coloured buildings right on the harbour and the little marina are a real landmark of the peninsula and aren’t usually accessible to the public. It’s great to hang out with friends and colleagues from the area, but also pretty cool to see these iconic buildings up close.

It’s an excellent party with plenty of great conversations and laughs, and we also have the pleasure of meeting Will, the office greyhound.

We hope you’ve enjoyed this (really quite massive) March edition of Flavour of the Month. See you again in a few weeks!

Jim & Christina xx

The post A Southern Wedding, A Queen In Sydney and The King Returns appeared first on Mr and Mrs Romance.

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The neatly plated, bite-size city of Parma is home to some iconic Italian dishes and foods. Reggiano parmigiano and Parma di Prosciutto (world-famous parmesan cheese and Parma ham) both come from here.

And if you pull the camera back a little, the broader Emilia-Romagna region is where things like bolognese, balsamic vinegar, tagliatelle, tortellini, ragu and even mortadella all come from.

So it’s little wonder that Parma is full of bars and restaurants serving just the most delicious dishes.

Locals here know what good food and good produce means, and the high standards are set, met and respected everywhere you go in this gracious yet down-to-earth river city.

If you want to know exactly what to eat while you’re here, check out our story on 7 Things You Must Eat in Parma.

For the best activities and tours in the region, click here!

Find the best rates on accommodation in Parma here.

Our Top Picks on Where to Eat and Drink in Parma

Only a short train ride major travel hubs like Milan and Bologna, we’re surprised to find Parma quite unused to tourism. Locals are friendly enough, though they seem surprised to see visitors.

Once we’ve fulfilled our primary goal of visiting a parmesan factory and a prosciutto farm a little out of town (you have to do this tour by the way, it’s fascinating), we settle down to exploring the food offerings of the city.

Trattoria del Tribunale — authentic Parma-centric dishes in an old-school setting

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Just off the main food street of Luigi Carlo Farini, this immense, Tardis-like old-school restaurant is packed with the charm of proper Italian hospitality.

The menu is full of Parma classics served with relish and pride. I came to Parma with a list of things I wanted to eat here; I tick most of them off in here!

Everything we order here is superb, and the service and atmosphere are impeccable. Get here early though as queues for tables build up fast.

Trattoria Corrieri — where the locals go for atmosphere and great food

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A recommendation from another restaurant, Trattoria Corrieri snatched the crown from our favourite — Trattoria del Tribunale — on our very last night in Parma.

Down the side of the University of Parma, this wonderfully homely little trattoria is full of warmth and life. We walk into a dining room packed with laughter and happy voices, staff move with purpose and good manners, and the food is simply splendid.

Add to that the exposed brick, the gingham tablecloths, the waistcoated waiters and the ‘meat cellar’ full of prosciutto legs and all kinds of other salumi, and there’s nothing Corrieri doesn’t have.

Osteria Virgilio — a bright friendly lunch spot

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On the western side of the Parma River, in amongst the alleys and once working class neighbourhoods of the Oltretorrente, the little Osteria Virgilio serves well-made Parma classics with a sense of flare that matches its wine lists.

We stopped in here for a spot of lunch and were impressed. They also had one of the dishes I was seeking: the caval pist — horse tartare. But this is so finely minced that it has almost a pesto smoothness.

We’re so comfortable in this little osteria that we find it hard to leave, especially with so many tempting bottles of wine around us.

Tabaccheria Caffetteria Giulia — drinks and snacks for aperitivo hour

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On one of the main streets of the passeggiata through Parma, Giulia is a lively little cafe with street-side seating, a quick-serving bar and plenty of tempting snacks in the cabinet.

We stopped here for a couple of glasses of wine at aperitivo hour, where you can grab bites to eat with your drink at a nominal fee.

The service is friendly, the drinks are well-priced and the snacks are very tasty. Tick all those boxes!

Enoteca Tabarro — fantastic people-watching and pretty good wine too

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Close to where we were staying in Parma, this funny little wine bar likes to take itself a bit seriously, but if you can overlook the man-splaining, you can score some excellent people-watching.

Order quickly so the guy who works here can’t get settled and grab an outdoor seat at one of the giant wine barrel tables. The wine, which is great by the way, will taste all the better.

Honorable Mentions

We didn’t get round to eating in these last few places, but they’re worth checking out. We’ll definitely try them the next time we’re here.

Osteria dei Servi — for meat grilled over coals and handmade pasta

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At the edge of the markets by the river, this place was completely full when we were here (in winter), but they did recommend we go to Trattoria Corierri, so that deserves credit.

Focused on authentic, homely dishes from the region, this place specialises in house-made pasta and grilled meat that they cook on a huge round charcoal grill.

Da Pepen — for top-level panini

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There’s nothing quite like a freshly made panino from a deli in Italy, and these guys are well-known for theirs. They do things like fresh fig, prosciutto and gorgonzola panini, but also horse meatballs in a sandwich if you’re game.

Ciacco Gelateria — for Parma’s best gelato

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This is a big call — especially without having tried it — but this is apparently the best gelato in a town that knows good food. The website looks slick and the flavours on offer sound quite avant guard, but owner and food scientist Stefano Guizzetti seems to know what he’s doing. We’ll be back, Sefano.

The post Where to Eat and Drink in Parma, Italy appeared first on Mr and Mrs Romance.

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Orange, NSW has more than earned its reputation as a wine town. Its 80+ wineries have won countless awards, the 30-odd cellar doors in its realm are some of the finest, and festivals and events draw thirsty thousands here every year.

This little chunk of the Central Tablelands certainly punches above its wine weight class.

We’ve been lucky enough to visit Orange many times and we love visiting new cellar doors, trying new wines we haven’t heard of before.

And we’re always finding new ones.

This happened recently when we were introduced to Cooks Lot Winery, owned by winemaker and ex-chef Duncan Cook.

We were surprised to find out that Duncan has been here since 2002. We wonder how our paths haven’t crossed before.

Establishing himself high on the slopes of the iconic Mount Canobolas (Gaanha-Bula), Duncan intended to make Cooks Lot an estate winery — that is growing the grapes and making the wine in one place — but quickly changed his mind.

He realised that there were lots of other growers across the region with superior grapes, and that he would be able to focus on the wine-making if he didn’t have to worry about viticulture and harvests.

Looking for accommodation in Orange? Check out our review of the Oriana Motel here!

If you want a quick tour, here’s our Essential Guide to Orange, NSW.

And if you want more ideas and great rates on where to stay in Orange, click here.

Cooks Lot Winery — six new wines from the mountain

Duncan has used his close connections with growers well, sourcing premium fruit from across the elevations. Shiraz and Cabernet grapes are from the lower foothills of the mountain, while Pinot, Riesling and Sauvignon come from the higher reaches.

The result is a range of cool-climate high-altitude wine with the full, broad vocabulary of the Orange region and at a very competitive price point.

Shop these wines directly from Cooks Lot here – all $25.00 RRP.

Cooks Lot ‘Allotment 666’ Pinot Gris 2025

This wine comes with quite the blush. I’ve seen rosés lighter than this.

Light on the nose, but surprisingly full-flavoured on the palate, especially for a Pinot Gris. Firm white peach/nectarine notes and a lovely creamy texture that turns crisp and dry at the end.

As the wine warms up, ripe pear flavours develop and that creamy body sits nicely with these rounder flavours.

Cooks Lot ‘Allotment 689’ Sauvignon Blanc 2025

This feels like it’s what Marlborough NZ Sauvignon Blancs were once famous for. Less typical tropical fruit on the nose, more strawberry lollies and pencil shavings, but still with a bit of passionfruit underlining it all.

Good structure, sweet, but not overly so, balanced and a clean refreshing dry finish. This is an Sauvignon Blanc that SB drinkers will love.

Cooks Lot ‘Allotment 333’ Riesling 2025

This is an incredibly pale Riesling — no colour to it at all.

Light citrus and crisp pear on the nose, and more lemon and tartness on the palate drive to a fine minerally finish. This is an endlessly drinkable Riesling that would match perfectly with light fish dishes and sushi.

Cooks Lot ‘Allotment 1111’ Pinot Noir 2025

A glowing ruby red colour with light berry aromas, I was expecting a light-medium Pinot.

But on the palate, this is quite big for a Pinot, especially from high-altitude Orange. A bold, rich texture with hints of dark choc at end — unlike most Pinots we’ve tried.

Cooks Lot ‘Allotment 1010’ Shiraz 2025

Lovely deep dark red colour with dark cherry aromas and a bright structure with somewhat grippy tannins.

This is a lighter bodied, easy-drinking Shiraz and a good expression of cool-climate altitude Shiraz from Orange. Especially at this price point, this is an excellent wine.

Cooks Lot ‘Allotment 8888’ Cabernet Sauvignon 2025

Soft, elegant and lighter-bodied than conventional big, brash SA cabs.

This wine is still full of the pepperiness, dark berries and rich plum you want in a Cabernet, but has more sophistication than many of the bolshy iterations to be found on the market.

We were gifted these wines as media, but our opinions and experiences remain our own.

The post Best-Kept Secrets of Orange, NSW — Cooks Lot Winery appeared first on Mr and Mrs Romance.

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Christina and I wake to the buzz of our alarm and push through the flap of our tent at Hintok River Camp into the already steamy pre-dawn air.

It’s too early for the birds, but too late for the night noises. Everything is silent and still.

Before long, we’re clambering down flights of steel steps by torchlight to the floor of a deep gully known as Konyu Cutting — better named Hellfire Pass.

We’re in western Thailand in Kanchanaburi Province, which pushes against the border of Myanmar.

Known for its thick verdant rainforests, sprawling thunderous waterfalls and broad, wild rivers, Kanchanaburi is also famous for the Thai-Burma Railway (better known as the Death Railway) and its deadly role in World War II.

Anzac Day at Hellfire Pass, Thailand

Today is 25th April — Anzac Day — and Hellfire Pass is one of the most venerable sites in the world for the Anzac Day Dawn Service. It commemorates all who have been lost to military endeavour, but in particular those who fell here as prisoners of war in the 1940s.

Hellfire Pass got its name from the appalling conditions the POWs had to endure, but also from how it looked from the top of the cutting.

In the 1940s, paraffin lamps lit the way for POWs forced to toil throughout the night. From above, the flames in the ravine looked like the very mouth of hell itself.

This morning, the path is lit with similar lamps, giving the cutting an eerie air. Shadows move and jump across the rock walls, and silent figures in full military dress march next to us and before us.

Looking back, we see the high, narrow walls of Hellfire Pass pinching in above our heads, the sky beyond still full of the night’s dying darkness.

The path is wide (it had to be wide enough to fit a train down) and brings us to the end of the cutting, where it opens out into a broad shallow bowl. On one side is grandstand seating, on the other, giant rock steps act as more tiered seating, and both are filling up fast.

More and more people pour in from the pass until there is almost nowhere to stand, but only a low murmur of voices comes from this great gathering.

In the centre of it all is the cenotaph, the black angular marble memorial to those that war has taken.

Dawn Service in Kanchanaburi

Soon, the first crisp navy shadows of dawn show through the blackness in the sky and the service begins.

The Catafalque Party — a ceremonial guard of four armed service personnel — marches down the steps of the cutting and stand watch at the compass points of the cenotaph, their heads bowed, their weapons inverted. The soldiers maintain such incredible stillness, which adds to the solemnity of the moment.

From the opening prayers to the haunting Last Post and the two minutes’ silence, and the final dismount and retire of the four soldiers in the Catafalque Party, the service is one of those things that stay inside you.

An indelible memory.

After the Dawn Service

The walk back through Hellfire Pass is no less significant or symbolic, but there seems to be less tension in the already hot morning air.

Groups of military stop along the cutting to get photos together, and the chatter of the crowd is lighter and louder than before. But messages and motifs lodged in the rock of loved ones and comrades lost to the war effort cast a grim light darker than the shadows from the looming walls.

At the top of the cutting and in front of the excellent Hellfire Pass Interpretive Centre, we find breakfast is in full flow.

Stalls are turning out sausage sizzles, meat pies and Anzac biscuits, but also some outstanding local fair. We tuck into a pot of rich spicy green curry as the crowd relaxes and the happier side of this important day takes form.

Soon, Two-Up rings form and the British Club Bangkok Pipe Band – a marching band of pipers in full kilt regalia full the air with music.

As we finish up breakfast, we’re aware that back home, Australia’s Anzac Day celebrations would be in full flow and lunch would just be about to begin.

We travelled to Kanchanaburi as media guests of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, but our experiences and opinions remain our own.

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So much for February being the short month of the year. It feels like these past 28 days have gone on forever. But now they’ve gone, I kinda miss them!

We certainly packed in a lot this month and even managed to squeeze in a little R&R trip up north for a few days.

As well as that, we worked out the cheeky ferry hack to the much-anticipated new Sydney Fish Markets, reviewed the brand new (and first in over 15 years) hotel in the Central Coast, learned how to make dumplings, discovered what could be the best martini (and burger) we’ve had and mixed it up in Australia’s biggest annual travel conference.

I wondered why March has crept up me so quickly!

Hope you enjoy this Flavour of the Month of Feb.

Cheers – Jim & Christina xx

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Love it or hate it – and I’ve met quite a few people with mixed opinions on this – the new Sydney Fish Markets opened for business in late January.

Many times the size of the old Fish Markets, which look quite sad and dilapidated across the bay, this $836m development is quite something. But one thing it’s lacking – and this is simply down to poor planning – is a direct ferry link and won’t be getting one for another couple of years.

But that’s not quite true.

There is a ferry to the Fish Markets that’s closer than either of the light rail stops and better than risking the site’s diminutive car park.

From Barangaroo, there’s a cute little hopper ferry, which does a loop via Pirrama Park in Pyrmont then under the Anzac Bridge to Blackwattle Bay. The trick is, don’t tap on at Barangaroo; tell the guard you’re going to Blackwattle Bay on the F10 ferry and they’ll let you through.

You pay on the boat using a credit card, then it’s a 17-minute cruise to Blackwattle Bay and it’s about a pleasant 10-minute walk round the cove to seafood heaven!

How about this for mindful travel?!

The iconic travel company Lonely Planet has released their first ever set of travel Tarot – 78 cards based on the classic Rider-Waite-Smith deck that emerged over 115 years ago, but with an eye on the horizon.

This beautifully illustrated 78-card deck blends the art of divination with the spirit of exploration, enlightening you on what to expect and how to react to a new destination, and even hints on where to go next.

Each of the cards in the deck connects to a different destination around the globe, from natural wonders and sacred sites to bustling cities and dramatic coastlines, so you can even draw a card if you’re just looking for travel inspiration.

The deck also comes with a handy 96-page booklet on how to read the Tarot set.

We love this idea. It adds a different dimension (pun intended!) to travel planning and how you see the world when you’re out there amongst it.

You can find this Travel Tarot set here at Lonely Planet or any good book shop – RRP AU$42.99.

Today, we’re heading an hour north up to the Central Coast to have a look at something pretty special.

The region’s first new major hotel in 15 years, the voco Gosford by IHG is the first stone in an avalanche of change in this much over-looked waterfront city, so we’re excited to see how it matches up to the hype.

Our room – a beautiful suite – has some lovely details and features that you can learn more about here in our full review, but it’s the bars and restaurants of this double-tower 28-floor edifice that really make the difference.

Until the voco opened in late 2025, the couple of pubs in the area – and the enormous 24-hour Leagues Club – weren’t up to the task of service the local community, let alone bringing in visitors. Having said that, the lunch we have at the airy atrium of the Hotel Gosford was actually lovely.

But with no fewer than six venues spread around its floors, the voco covers all basis.

From casual pub and pizza vibes to steaks to elevated (literally) Japanese fair at the rooftop bar, there’s plenty to choose from here.

Check out our review of the voco Gosford here and also our video walkthrough of the hotel and its venues here.

After our lovely night’s stay at the voco Gosford, we grab a lunch stop at Terrigal to catch up with our excellent friends Jess and Ben Groundwater, and their two hilarious sons.

Then it’s a couple of hours further north to our final destination: Port Stephens. We’re here for a spot of relaxation and recuperation at Christina’s sister’s little holiday house in Corlette.

Unlike anywhere else we go, we’ve been to Port Stephens so many times, we don’t feel the pressure that we usually do when we’re away from home to record and publish every single thing we get up to.

Having said that, you can see our Essential Guide to Port Stephens here, but other than that…

It’s not all beach time while we’re in Port Stephens though. We find a couple of lovely coastal walks at Lemon Tree Passage and Mallabula that not only hug the shoreline, but also snake through mangroves, woodland and parks.

The first one – the Koala Reserve and Mangrove Boardwalk – follows a 500m stretch of eucalypts that lean out over the still waters of the bay.

Birdlife along this trail is excellent and the little lizard that pops its head up as we pass is unquestionably adorable.

The second little walk is in nearby Mallabula – the Tanilba Bay Boardwalk – and is a little more rugged. From the shoreline, it soon doubles back through dense bush and trees, and leads you to the Tilligerry Habitat.

Full of all kinds of wildlife and beautiful plants, there’s also a high chance of spotting koalas in the area.

This little break really is what the doctor orders. We’re both feeling so relaxed even though we both brought our computers with us. There’s something about doing a bit of work when you’re away but under no obligation to be anywhere that doesn’t make it feel as much like work!

One of our favourite things to do in the evening is have a little drink and play some backgammon, so we’ve brought our set from home and I batched up a bottle of negronis for just this opportunity!

The sun sets on our last night here in Port Stephens and one of the resident kookaburras poses for an iconic silhouette.

It’s been a lovely few days away. Now it’s back to Sydney and whatever the rest of the month may bring.

It’s hard to believe it, but the iconic installation at Uluru – the Field of Light – turns 15 years old this year! This beautiful artwork was only supposed to be a one-year deal, but it was so popular, it became a permanent fixture.

In a nod to the wildflowers that bloom here when conditions are right, light artist Bruce Munro set up 50,000 solar-powered stems across a space covering seven football fields in front of Uluru. The nightly display has attracted over three-quarters of a million visitors over the years.

To mark this important milestone, there are a number of activations in celebration of the installation’s 15th birthday.

There’s a mural of the Field of Light in Melbourne by Anangu artist Valerie Brumby (Corner Swan and Carroll St, Richmond), VIP evenings and free Q&A sessions with Bruce Munro at Uluru and Ayres Rock Resort throughout March, and new menus for Field of Light evening events.

Realising that the Field of Light has been going so long has reminded us that the incredible drone show Wintjiri Wiru, which rises from the desert floor in front of Uluru, has also been going for three years now.

It seems like last week that we were there watching this remarkable spectacle – the largest permanent drone show in the world.

This show happens twice-nightly (three times a night during certain periods) and is one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen.

Check out our full story of Wintjiri Wiru here.

It’s dumpling time at our place!

Christina’s jujitsu friend Rex has brought some of his buddies and all of his teaching skills to ours to show us how to make dumplings in preparation for Chinese New Year!

Creating these tasty little bundles of flavour is both simple and difficult at the same time – especially as the glasses of wine add up. By the end of the evening there are more than enough dumplings for us to eat (something I never thought I’d ever say) and everyone gets a pack to take home with them.

Great success! And new skill unlocked!

Okay, we need to be serious for a moment.

Christina and I are out in the city tonight, but more on that later. For now, we’ve taken this rare opportunity (we don’t come into the CBD that much anymore for some reason) to check out the Gidley.

Christina has wanted to bring me to this place for ages and I wish we’d come here sooner.

First of all, the doorway is tucked in down a basement level staircase, and you have to ring the bell and wait to be buzzed in. But once inside, this place opens out into exactly what I imagine a filmset speakeasy would be like – better in fact.

Martinis here are served on silver platters and have a make-your-own-adventure feel. On the tray is a glass with a ready-poured martini which you can add whatever garnish you like: the bar has circles of orange, lemon and grapefruit peel for you to try, enormous briny olives and sweet pickled onions, so you can even create your own gibson.

There’s also a blue glass pipette full of house-made brine mixed with Talisker scotch to make just about the best dirty martini known to man.

But best of all, in an ice-filled bowl sits a little carafe with another serve of martini ready for you to have another go! This is such a great experience, you’ve got to try it.

On top of that, we order the burgers here.

Even the staff say these are the best burgers in the world. I don’t know about that, but I should probably edit my top ten burgers list to include these guys. Double patty, plenty of cheese, soft fluffy buns and so much flavour – not bad considering this isn’t the reason we’re out tonight!

For the main event, we’re at the State Theatre to see An Evening With Yotam Ottolenghi – a very thoughtful Christmas gift from Christina’s mum.

The show’s interesting enough, with Ottolenghi telling us stories about how he came to cooking, mistakes he’s made, successes he’s cherished and also plenty of recipes. He cooks a few dishes on stage too, showing us some tricks he’s developed.

And he sells his books pretty hard!

At the end of the evening, he also gives us a QR code with all the recipes he’s talked about tonight, which is a generous touch. We’ll give them a crack at some point – especially his roast chicken and potatoes, and how he makes aromatic feta.

The venue itself is the real winner though. What a beautiful place the State Theatre is. I can’t believe I haven’t been in here before. Talk about old-world charm.

This evening, Christina and I are enjoying the excellent hospitality of our wonderful friends Peter Hook and his wife Fiona Smith. These guys are such great hosts, and they even break out one of Peter’s favourite recent discoveries: English Champagne* by Balfour Winery!

We play this sparkling from Kent against a bottle of Veuve Clicquot and I’ve must say, there wasn’t much in it. If anything, the French stuff was a little sweet. But you can see for yourself – Balfour’s 1503 Classic Cuvee is in Dan Murphy’s.

The rest of the evening is well-fuelled with more of Peter’s top picks from his cellar, impeccably matched with the trio of classics he and Fiona dish up for us: a deconstructed prawn cocktail, a sumptuous chicken cacciatore, and an apple and rhubarb crumble.

We also have the pleasure of making new friends over dinner. Nicole and Stuart Ford – who are also deeply connected with the travel industry (Nicole works for Spicers Retreats and Stuart’s grandfather started P&O!) and the six of us talk well into the wee hours.

In fact, I should make that number seven; Archie, Peter and Fiona’s adorable Brittany Spaniel keeps us all safe in exchange for pats.

*I know you’re not allowed to call it that, but who doesn’t love a bit of a wind-up. 

All the attention has exhausted Archie, so while we finish up the last drops of wine, he takes a nap on the couch. Above him you might notice one of Fiona’s extraordinary paintings. She has a passion for Australian native birdlife and manages to bring them to life in her wonderful paintings.

You can see more of Fiona’s work here.

This afternoon, we’re back in the city to have lunch with our friend and colleague Susie Westwood, and to meet Roxy Esagunde the PR and Marketing Executive for Walk Japan. The first to market in what is now a well-established travel product, Walk Japan has been offering guided and self-guided walking-focused tours of Japan for 35 years.

We’re extremely excited about the prospect of working with Roxy and Walk Japan, so watch this space for what I’m sure will be some of the most exciting travel stories from our time in the Land of the Rising Sun.

Susie has chosen the perfect spot for lunch too. We’re at King Clarence – a restaurant eponymous by location on the corner of King and Clarence Streets.

Food here is superb. A modern Asian menu that pairs well with our conversations about Japan, we enjoy dishes like wood-fired edamame with salt and vinegar togarashi, yellowfin tuna sashimi with shiso vinegar, smoked oyster cream and sesame leaf and 14-day aged duck with such a fine, crisp glaze that it crackles as you bite into it.

But the stand-out dish is surprising; the teriyaki sea perch with grilled sweetcorn, woodear mushroom and nori jam is delicate and rich at the same time, and the sauce is so good you want a jug of it to drink!

Tonight, Christina’s out with the girls! Dinner and drinks at Corner Bar in Rozelle.

This cute little bar does excellent cocktails and has a replete wine list, but its food is often overlooked. With a focus on Tex-Mex favourites, there’s a range of smashable tacos on the menu, including the all-important pulled beef birria tacos that comes with a side of beef jus dipping sauce. Well worth checking out – just make sure you go there hungry!

And so it begins; IMM by TravMedia – the biggest travel conference in Australia.

This two-day travel extravaganza starts with the Summit, the more conventional element of the conference. We’re here at the Sofitel Sydney Wentworth Ballroom filled with over 400 media and PRs to hear from a mesmerising range of industry elite.

To kick things off, Katrina Ell, Senior Economist from Mastercard somehow makes a speech on economics in travel highly entertaining. Her illustration of the Misery Index, which shows how unhappy the population is based on the combined efforts of unemployment rates and inflation, isn’t funny, but her delivery is excellent. And the good news is it doesn’t look like Australia is particularly ‘miserable’ at the moment, though there seems to be a bit of an uptick.

Having said that, according to Mastercard’s statistics, 14% of Australians are planning on spending at least one month travelling in 2026, while destinations are still trending towards the usual suspects: the USA, Europe, Japan and New Zealand. Going the other way, around 17% of visitors to Australia are coming from NZ!

There has been a slight downturn in Aussies visiting the US and UK (17% and 11% respectively) due to currency strength.

And no matter what, consumers will still prioritise travel quite heavily.

Here are some other highlights from this year’s Summit programme. We hear from a panel on the progress of wellness travel as a trend, the future of AI in travel journalism, a presentation on the State of the Industry, and TV personality and footballer Claudio Fabiano talking about British Columbia.

• Wellness Travel isn’t so much about retreats and spas anymore; it’s about what you get out of the destination.
• Wellness no longer a niche travel prospect with more people than ever looking for wellness to be a baseline when they travel. It’s gone from a luxury travel concept to more of a lifestyle category.
• A high percentage of travellers are looking for ways to restore and repair, though also acknowledging that travel shouldn’t be more of a recovery session than a holiday.

AI in tourism is still a developing prospect, though it’s growing fast. Keynote speaker Nick Abrahams (AI Pioneer and Business Futurist) makes the interesting point that “the Industrial Revolution had a 20% increase in productivity. GenAI gives 30-40%”. He also explains that while “Google is a tool, ChatGPT is a colleague” and that we should treat it as such.

I’m not so comfortable with that.

As for the State of the Industry review from TravMedia’s own Julie Ott, we learn about travel trends and where people are (and more importantly aren’t) happy to go at the moment. The top reasons for hesitation are: political environment (63%), crime rates (42%), expense (32%), health risks (30%) and bad experience – whatever that means (30%).

We also hear some very interesting data in terms of how digital is still growing, but also that print isn’t dead quite yet. There are challenges of course, but people haven’t stopped consuming traditional media.

And that publishers are greedy, writers are poor and editors have no time or patience.

After lunch, we have household name Cameron Daddo interviewing Adam Schwab, Co-Founder & CEO, Luxury Escapes. We’re not sure what the point of this one is, but it’s actually fascinating.

Luxury Escapes is enormous, currently turning over $1.4 billion per annum!

It’s a company that doesn’t just book your holiday for you, but looks for ways to help facilitate the whole experience. And these holidays aren’t just super-high end trips for the 1%, there are affordable options too.

There are bricks and mortar shops around too, and Schwab wants to create a kind of Apple Store experience. It seems to be working, with the flagship store in Chadstone VIC making $100m pa (other top travel agents do about $10m) and the Bondi store making headlines too.

Soon, Luxury Escapes are planning to bring out their credit cards, eSIMs and a full-time direct charter flight between Melbourne and the Maldives, making it an 11-hour flight.

The last session of the day is a lot of fun: it’s a panel on freelance writers with content creator Sarah Maree Cameron, our mate Ben Groundwater and his editor for The Age and SMH Anthony Dennis. It’s a bonding moment between the trio as they share their displeasure in the questions put to them by moderator and co-founder of Powerhouse Comms Chris Waite.

It’s not a complete tear-down though, and the messages are interesting, insightful and – importantly for this last moment of the conference when everyone’s hanging for a wine – entertaining.

The formalities of the conference over, we make our way to the Sofitel Wentworth’s rooftop bar for a drink. It’s absolutely pissing down, so the rooftop bar’s sadly a little redundant. We make the most of it – especially the rum daiquiri fountain – and enjoy a bit of social time with friends we haven’t seen in ages.

It’s always hard to get travel journos together; we’re famously on the move a lot.

Talking of which, getting home proves difficult. The almost 8cm of rain has caused chaos and it takes our taxi over 45 minutes and almost $80 to make the 7km drive home.

Welcome to IMM Sydney 2026. This is the important part of the conference where we get to meet travel providers and make plans for the rest of the year. Filling this vast room of the ICC are 177 tables each representing a different destination, experience, brand or RTO.

We get 15 minutes to talk to 22 of them. It’s a hectic day, but so productive.

There are all sorts of activations both with each provider (I have a crack at the VR goggles at the Travel Nevada desk) and with break-out areas.

Destination NSW has brought some tasty treats from IndigiEarth. Founded by Ngemba Weilwan woman Sharon Windsor, who has a lovely cafe in Mudgee, IndigiEarth focuses on using foraged Indigenous products in Western dishes to fuse the knowledge gap between the two. 

Her jams are so good – and you should see the food we had when we were in Mudgee – but these green ant lemon meringue tarts are sensational.

All too soon, the final meeting comes to an end and we make haste to get to the coaches; we’re going from the ICC all the way to Paddington for drinks at the all new 25Hours Hotel The Olympia.

On the site of an old movie theatre, this beautiful building has been fully restored with plenty of nods to its cinematic past, including a film library of VCRs you can borrow and play in your room!

We’re excited to see this place as our very first meeting of the day was with the lovely Comms manager for this hotel, so watch this space for a review of the Olympia.

How’s this for a before-and-after! We’re on the first coach to arrive (of course we are!) and the bar is blissfully quiet. But by the time some 350 thirsty travellers have descended, the bar is a crush and the balcony at gridlock.

It’s all a lot of fun though, and we’re all very grateful of the generous bar tab that washes away the fatigue of the day’s speed-meetings.

As far as after-after-parties go, this is pretty good. After the IMM drinks, Christina and I high-tail it to our friend’s house who is having drinks with his mates. It turns out he and his mates have very sophisticated wine cellars.

Check out the vino.

The 2013 Tulloch Chardonnay is ridiculously good and our old family friend Riccardo, who was from Tuscany, always talked about the wonders of a Brunello di Moltacino. Here’s one from 2012.

Thank you, Nim, for letting us gatecrash your party and drink all your wine!

We’ve decided to finish this strangely long February (it feels like these 28 days have gone on forever this year) with a tasty snack and wine at Cicci’s Food and Wine in Balmain.

Christina came here a little while ago with the WAGs, but this is my first time.

We score our favourite types seats: right up at the bar right in front of where the kitchen is cooking and plating, and enjoy a couple of dishes from a hugely tempting menu.

One of the specials is stracchino cheese, which is a marvellous creation. It’s a soft cheese – a bit like mozzarella – when it’s cold, but as it warms up, this stuff settles and spreads. This dish comes with pesto oil, crisp kale, caramelised onions and a few other bits.

We also spot mozzarella in carozza (basically a crispy crumbed deep-fried cheese sandwich with mortadella) on the menu. This is a little-known Italian snack that, if you ever see it on a menu, don’t miss the opportunity of ordering.

It’s the best toastie you’ll ever eat!

We hope you’ve enjoyed our highlights from February. Chat to you again soon.

Cheers – Jim & Christina xx

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