EAT > Chiodo con Cucina, Ortiga Syracusa Italy (15/20)
In the middle of Summer, Sicily can get pretty hot. There is a point in the day when the charm and fascination of wandering the pretty streets of Ortigia are rapidly replaced with the need for hydration, nourishment and…
EAT > Ristorante Regina Lucia, Ortigia, Syracusa Italy (18/20)
Nestled in the heart of Ortigia’s iconic Piazza Duomo, Regina Lucia delivers refined Sicilian cuisine with contemporary flair in a historic baroque palace setting. This MICHELIN Guide-recommended spot earns consistent praise for its inventive dishes and polished service.Summary Intro goes…
EAT > Cortile Spirito Santo, Siracusa, Ortigia Italy (18/20)
Nestled in the historic heart of Ortigia, Syracuse's enchanting island, Cortile Spirito Santo delivers Michelin-starred Sicilian refinement in a 17th-century palazzo. This gem, part of Palazzo Salomone Luxury Suites, blends Baroque elegance with contemporary flair, earning its star in 2023…
EAT > Cape, Cape Schank (17/20)
Cape Restaurant at RACV Cape Schanck remains one of the Mornington Peninsula’s most compelling reasons to drive that extra stretch of highway after dark: dinner here still feels like an occasion, but an unusually relaxed and generous one.
AMBIENCE >…
EAT > Stallion, Mansfield Victoria (16/20)
Since the closing of Bounty in Bonnie Doon and BOS Taurus in Mansfield, the fine dining offerings in this alpine region have been very limited. Not to say you can’t get a good steak and there are gourmet pizza’s and Thai but nothing you would really say this is definitely worth visiting. But now STALLION is the kind of regional restaurant that makes a detour to Mansfield feel not only justified, but essential.
AMBIENCE >
Stallion sits in the old fire station on Highett Street, a handsome brick shell that now glows with inner-city energy: woodfire flicker, polished concrete, and a low-lit dining room that hums from the first sitting into late night. The room is pitched as a modern Euro‑Italian dining room “fueled by fire”, and that flame is the quiet centrepiece – from the open wood grill to the char-kissed edges of just about everything that…
EAT > Chiodo con Cucina, Ortiga Syracusa Italy (15/20)
In the middle of Summer, Sicily can get pretty hot. There is a point in the day when the charm and fascination of wandering the pretty streets of Ortigia are rapidly replaced with the need for hydration, nourishment and a cool spot out of the sun. It was exactly on one of these days that we wandered down a shady passage searching for a cool drink or a late snack lunch and we found Chiodo con Cucina.
AMBIENCE >
Hidden in a quiet courtyard just off Ortigia’s main shopping spine, Chiodo con Cucina feels like stumbling into a fashion editor’s after-hours clubhouse rather than a conventional Sicilian trattoria. Once a design showroom, the space still hums with that curated energy: racks of garments, objets and art pieces frame a long counter and a handful of tables, all lit in a way that flatters both fabric and…
CAFE > Barbetta, Paddington (16/20)
In the 1980s and 1990s Oxford Street Paddington was alive with the smartest cafe’s, it was where the hip people went to congregate. Then the rents went up and…
SKI > Maiko Ski Resort, Yuzawa Niigata Japan
Maiko Snow Resort is one of Snow Country’s most versatile all‑rounders: a big, three‑area hill with true ski‑in/ski‑out lodging, a purpose‑built day‑trip gondola base and easy Joetsu Shinkansen access that…
SKI > GALA Yuzawa, Niigata Japan
GALA Yuzawa is one of Japan’s most convenient snow resorts, a purpose-built hub where the Shinkansen literally delivers you into the ski centre before you ride straight up into three…
SKI > Yuzawa Kogen Ski Resort, Yuzawa Niigata Japan
Yuzawa Kogen Ski Resort is a compact, ropeway-accessed mountain that fuses classic Echigo-Yuzawa onsen-town charm with big-mountain views, easy access and family-friendly terrain just minutes from the Shinkansen. The main…
SKI > RESORTS
Maiko Snow Resort is one of Snow Country’s most versatile all‑rounders: a big, three‑area hill with true ski‑in/ski‑out lodging, a purpose‑built day‑trip gondola base and easy Joetsu Shinkansen access that makes it a natural follow‑up (or contrast) to GALA, Kagura and Ishiuchi. For ALMANAK readers, it feels like a hybrid between…
GALA Yuzawa is one of Japan’s most convenient snow resorts, a purpose-built hub where the Shinkansen literally delivers you into the ski centre before you ride straight up into three compact, well-planned ski areas. It feels more like a vertical snow terminal than a village, but for Tokyo-based day trippers…
Yuzawa Kogen Ski Resort is a compact, ropeway-accessed mountain that fuses classic Echigo-Yuzawa onsen-town charm with big-mountain views, easy access and family-friendly terrain just minutes from the Shinkansen. The main ropeway — is one of the world’s largest, carrying up to 166 passengers—climbing about 500 vertical metres in a 7‑minute…
Ishiuchi Maruyama is one of Niigata’s classic big-hill resorts: long, rolling fall-line runs, serious night skiing and a slick new lift and terrace scene that make it feel more polished than its old-school roots suggest. It is also one of the easiest major mountains to reach from Tokyo, which means…
STAY >
DRINK > BARS
DRINK > Death & Co, Melbourne (18/20)
Slip behind the velvet curtain on Flinders Lane and Melbourne falls away, replaced by a low-lit room that feels like an edit of the world’s great cocktail bars: a little East Village swagger, a lot of CBD polish, and a level of detail that rewards staying late. This is Death…
DRINK > Great Dane Brewing, Akiu, Sendai (15/20)
Set against Akiu’s pine-lined hills and onsen steam, Great Dane Brewing brings Midwestern brewpub heart to one of Tohoku’s most storied hot spring valleys—a Wisconsin-born, Sendai-brewed outpost where craft beer, wide-open views and a low-key road-trip energy converge. It feels less like a side-trip from the city and more like…
DRINK > Conte, Sydney (17/20)
Conte in Sydney’s CBD is grand, an unapologetically Italian, ode to the Negroni. Part bar, part ristorante, and all about drama, detail and la dolce vita energy. With more than 30 (and climbing toward 40) Negroni riffs, serious Italian wines and a full dining menu, it feels less like a…
DRINK > Gracie Melbourne, Hardware Lane (15/20)
Hardware Lane is a place that many Melburnians stay away from (largely given a bad reputation by the touts that stand outside the largely formulaic but popular tourist restaurants that fill most of the laneway). Gracie Melbourne is a stylish little venue in a part of the city…
DRINK > Brettos, Athens (17/20)
The oldest distillery in Athens, in the middle of the Plaka, selling cold drinks and snacks. What’s not to like? .
AMBIENCE >
Operating since 1909, Brettos has had time to produce and collect lots of bottles. Two walls are lined with coloured glass bottles, a kaleidoscope of colour and alcohol…
DRINK > Caves de l’Abbaye, Beaune, Burgundy (18/20)
Step from Beaune’s winding, cobbled heart into Caves de l’Abbaye, and you’re greeted by the cool hush of a centuries-old cellar—a true Burgundy hideaway shaped from vaulted stone. Beneath low arches, the glow is candle-soft, shadows flicker against wine-streaked walls, and every table feels like a private alcove ready for…
DRINK > WINEWine & Spirit Reviews
WINE > Corofin, Pinot Noir, Marlborough (17/20)
Marlborough is a region much better known for Sauvignon Blanc than for Pinot Noir but Corofin make a wine in Marlborough that surprises as it rises above the quaffable and into the respected tiers of premium wines; competing with wines with great accolades from Central Otago in New Zealand's South…
WINE > Elanto Pinot Noir, Balnaring (18/20)
Mornington Peninsula is home to many fine Pinot Noir wines but it has been quite a few years since the industry got quite so excited about a new vineyard. Elanto has only released two vintages of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir to date and they are already receiving outstanding reviews from…
WINE > Clarence House Estate Pinot Noir, 2024 (17/20)
Clarence House Estate Reserve Pinot Noir 2024 is a poised, cool-climate Tasmanian Pinot that trades in perfume, fine-boned structure and quiet confidence rather than sheer volume, rewarding both contemplation now and patient cellaring later.
APPEARANCE >
Pale to medium garnet in the glass, with a translucent core that hints at…
WINE > S.C Pannell Sunrise 99, 2022 (18/20)
There are Grenaches that charm, and then there are Grenaches that draw a line in the sand. S.C. Pannell’s Sunrise 99, from a century-old McLaren Vale vineyard, feels like the latter: a debut that arrives fully formed, pitched at the serious, ageworthy end of the spectrum while still humming with…
WINE > Domaine de Bellene Nuit Saint Georges, Vielles Vignes, 2022 (17/20)
There are wines that whisper history, and then there are bottles that speak in confident, measured tones—Domaine de Bellene’s Nuits Saint Georges Vieilles Vignes 2022 is unmistakably the latter. From the first pour, its deep ruby hue glimmers with an old-vine intensity, setting the stage for a wine that embodies…
