Chris Singh is an Editor-At-Large at the AU review, loves writing about travel and hospitality, and is partial to a perfectly textured octopus. You can reach him on Instagram: @chrisdsingh.
For its massive (and massively generous) New Year’s Resolution sale, gulf carrier Etihad Airways has just dropped a massive international flight for Australian travellers. Running from now until January 18th, the popular airline has slashed fares to mostly European hotspots like Athens, Dublin, London and Paris, as well as to Cairo in Egypt. This includes…
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Virgin Australia has started the year off with a nice little mega sale for those looking to fly both domestically and internationally in the coming months. Note that all sale fares, however, are based on Economy Lite and include return flights. The Virgin flight sale includes a return fare from Cairns and Tokyo (Haneda –…
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One of the wildest comedians of our time and a master of absurdity, Eric Andre, returns to Australia for The Eric Andre Show Live tour in February and March. Touring the major capitals (yes, including Perth), the funny man will be… well, it’s hard to say. He is so ridiculously unpredictable that we don’t actually…
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A silky smooth hook on GoldLink’s 2017 hit “Crew” was all it really took for Brent Faiyaz to become one of the brightest R&B stars of the past decade. The earnestness in his soft, vulnerable vocals can carry any message and deliver it with sweet, sharp and precise tones. Back that with deep, bass-driven beats…
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Hotel Indigo has always been a brand deeply rooted in the local community, and so the collection’s latest initiative shouldn’t come as a surprise. After holding their own research and finding that 71% of Australians think it’s important to feel connected to their neighbourhood, Hotel Indigo has decided to extend a helping hand these holidays…
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For the past few years, the fine folk behind QT Hotels have been posting up a bit of a Christmas day for families and friends who want to eat and drink very, very well. A taste of absolute decadence is packed into the group’s QT At Home boxes, gifting merry-makers a one-stop-shop of deliciousness so…
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In the past year or two, pizza ovens have eclipsed air fryers as the must-buy kitchen appliance. Where you might use an air fryer every day, a pizza oven is more specific and occasion based. You might break it out when you have mates over for a pizza party, or at the most use it…
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Despite having a deep love for hip hop and R&B, I hate most “urban music” festivals that come to Australia. The only one that has really won me in the past decade was Soulfest 2014, which was co-headlined by Maxwell and D’Angelo with the likes of Angie Stone, Anthony Hamilton, and Common in tow. It…
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The age-old art of room service is one of the last aspects to hotel living that hasn’t changed one bit. You open the menu and you’d reasonably expect to see dishes from all over the world, designed to cater to a great variety of guests with the usual burgers, pastas and curries just one call…
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The AU Review is back with its annual Christmas gift guide to help guide you to the gadgets, gifts and products that anyone would love to find under the Christmas tree. There’s no denying that everyone needs Christmas this year, or at least the family and friend aspect that comes out of the day. Of…
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In a year where big, paradigm-shifting concerts for megastars like Taylor Swift and Beyonce have made headlines, it’s hard to remember that there are other big names in the world of music. Although, I wouldn’t exactly say Post Malone has been overshadowed. The man’s latest tour has been selling out across the world, and Australia’s…
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You can find martinis everywhere in Sydney. The colder the better. And yet, this classic cocktail needed a bit of spicing up earlier this month for Australian Gin Week. Luckily, the locally grown Seven Seasons label stepped up to the plate. Earlier this month, the Australian gin brand teamed up with Barangaroo House’s music loving…
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Do your plans for summer ’23 involve pizza and a lot of it. Well, I’m afraid your conventional oven just ain’t going to cut it. To really dial in some satisfaction for your planned pizza parties, you’ll need to be flipping your fillings straight into a dedicated pizza oven. Why? Well, a pizza oven is…
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There isn’t much in the world of craft gin that Aussies haven’t seen before. Yet, Kangaroo Island Spirits has managed to one-up itself by releasing a First Harvest Juniper Gin. This is the world’s first gin made exclusively from Australian grown, single sourced common juniper harvested on Kangaroo Island. Taking 100% locally grown juniper, the…
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Portable blenders. Not really something I expected to become such a big category over the past few years, yet here we are. Ninja, which to date is best known for air fryers, has made a completely wireless blender that you can use for shakes, smoothies and juices. And you don’t have to plug it in….
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Owning an air fryer in 2023 doesn’t make you any more different than owning a toaster or a kettle. Ever since the appliance started trending massively during lockdown, air fryers have remained one of the smartest investments for the modern kitchen since the food processor was invented. And it’s not hard to see, or taste…
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If you’ve travelled in the past two years, you’d know that lost luggage is an all too real possibility. For many, the trauma of a lost bag has offered food for thought, so much so that we are witnessing a redirection towards a more ‘minimalist mindset’ – and a resurgence of the ‘carry-on only’ travel…
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Whether you’re embarking from Sydney or Brisbane, we think all Aussies can agree that very few holidays capture that quintessential tropical lifestyle like Carnival Cruise Line South Pacific expeditions. That long-awaited dream of island hopping across vast archipelagos and relaxing on an epic cruise in one itinerary is why many Aussies of all ages choose…
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Pop music is rarely interesting these days. White-washed R&B that would be nothing without a TikTok-friendly snippet and a made-for-radio hook qualifies for good music in 2023. Sure, people who use terms like “bop” and phrases like “vibes are immaculate” see little wrong with the worrying churn that’s turning the music industry into a goal-shifting…
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Niche hobby festivals are always worth checking out in Sydney, especially when you’re looking for something new to do as the silly season approaches. In early December, all eyes will be on Sneakerland, which arrives in town after a successful run in Perth and Melbourne. And you don’t really need a synopsis to know what…
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The fusion between French and Vietnamese is well-recognised but hardly represented as well as it should be in Sydney. There are exceptions. One of my favourite Vietnamese restaurants in Sydney, Hello Auntie, offers a masterclass in Vietnamese cuisine while paying homage to its French roots. And sister venue Hey Chu does it just as well….
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One of Sydney’s most upscale cafes, The Mayflower Darlinghurst, is paying tribute to the odd combination of whisky and peanut butter with a summer-ready pop-up bar exclusively dedicated to espresso martinis and ice cream. Yes, it may sound like a strange shot in any season, but Sheep Dog Peanut Butter Whiskey and Elato Ice Cream…
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I couldn’t imagine The Chicks ever receiving a poor reception, so the band’s recent performance at Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena, as part of a wider Australian tour, was as predictable as they come. And there’s nothing inherently wrong with that. 22 songs all delivered with seething wit and precision, nuanced by a tight band of…
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At its very fundamental level, interior design can be just as important to your well-being as meditation and a nice, long walk. While that may sound overly dramatic to some, we think it’s been well-documented just how much designing your own space impacts your level of comfort and even your confidence. Take the phrase “house…
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There are very few rappers – let alone musicians from any genre – that can claim no peak. That is, they will never reach it; they will never pass it. Relevance in rap has always been a contentious issue, so these rare emcees who can never sound dated or tired will always be fascinating to…
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Five songs into his spellbinding set, Irish singer-songwriter Damien Rice genuinely lets the crowd decide what he’s going to play next. There are screams. Many. And just about every single one of them are shouting out a different song title (the winner was “Woman Like A Man”) Such is how highly regarded Rice is amongst…
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After more than thirty years, you could be wondering whether Jane’s Addiction and The Smashing Pumpkins are past their prime. But judging by their performances as part of Billy Corgan’s global-scaling The World Is A Vampire Festival, they’re showing no signs of slowing down. This wasn’t a concert. Let’s get that out of the way…
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Ice Cube’s reputation as one of the signature artists of hip hop and an architect of the culture is not up for debate. The famously barbed and politically-charged emcee played a significant part in solidifying hip-hop as a vehicle for sweeping cultural commentary, change and documentation throughout the 90s. Hence, an Ice Cube concert is…
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Angel Olsen was made for the Sydney Opera House. As part of her All Mirrors tour of Australia, the 36-year-old singer-songwriter presented a beautiful performance that really iterated how formidable the Concert Hall has become for live music. And while this can be attributed to many factors, no less Angel Olsen’s ethereal and incisive tunes,…
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For the first time in just about a decade, Snoop Dogg has returned down under. The legendary Californian rapper has had a contentious relationship with the country over the years, but now that he’s back for his “I Wanna Thank Me” tour, Aussies are just clearly glad the doggfather has finally touched down. The last…
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