Matcha outsells coffee at this brunch spot with a secret drinks menu
Udon carbonara is an Asian fusion staple; this is a smart rendition, the chewy, cheese-scattered noodles served alongside soy-glazed thick-cut bacon, oozy egg yolk and a little dashi broth, which helps smooth the flavours and lighten the dish. Avocado toast is a cheery pile of lightly charred avo (smoky, but not warm or gross), spicy hummus and wasabi 'granola' (grains stirred with blitzed wasabi peas, which is a clever touch).
The same granola base, this time mixed with cocoa rather than peas, is scattered over an acai bowl which amps up the colour and flavours with tropical fruit and a fudgy square of brownie. As winter hits, look for hot waffles instead of chilly acai. Wagyu mince is turned into a spiced pattie, crumbed, fried and splodged with curry pickle mayo for the milk-loaf sandwich.
Tapping into trends and hype can feel cynical, but Sana is more about joy, fun and a sincere welcome. Yes, there's a not-so-secret menu, but the real secret to Sana's success is that Chrun and his team are still surprised and grateful that people are seeking out the place: if you whisk it, they will come.
Three more matcha specialists to try
Matcha Kobo
This new city spot stone-mills matcha then whisks it to order for specialty hot and cold drinks. There's table seating, but you can really channel Kyoto by sitting cross-legged on cushions in the faux temple area. Kobo is above DIY Japanese burger grill Nikuland, also worth a visit.
2/258 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne, instagram.com/matchakobo
Meet Forest
Too much cute is never enough at tiny Meet Forest. Desserts include multi-layered matcha crepe cakes, matcha mochi and matcha Basque cheesecakes. There's a miniature dressed-up dog called Sesame, and coffee is taken seriously too.
Naau
They're both green, earthy and nutty, so why wouldn't pistachio go with matcha? One-year-old Naau is a small city cafe that does matcha every which way, including a hot, frothy pistachio version, which could be my winter winner.
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The Advertiser
13 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Heightened risks for airlines in the Middle East
An organisation that monitors flight risks has warned of a heightened threat after US airstrikes on Iran, as airlines continued to avoid large parts of the Middle East due to ongoing missile exchanges. But following a barrage of early morning Iranian missiles, Israel reopened its airspace for six hours on Sunday to bring back those stranded abroad since the conflict with Iran began on June 13. Website Safe Airspace said the US attacks on Iran may increase risks to US operators in the region. "While there have been no specific threats made against civil aviation, Iran has previously warned it would retaliate by attacking US military interests in the Middle East - either directly or via proxies such as Hezbollah," Safe Airspace said. Meanwhile, flight tracking website FlightRadar24, said airlines maintained flight diversions around the region. Its website showed airlines were not flying in the airspace over Iran, Iraq, Syria and Israel. They have chosen other routes such as north via the Caspian Sea or south via Egypt and Saudi Arabia, even if these result in higher fuel and crew costs and longer flight times. Since Israel launched strikes on Iran on June 13, carriers have suspended flights to destinations in the affected countries, though there have been some evacuation flights from neighbouring nations and some bringing stranded Israelis home. Safe Airspace said it was possible airspace risks could now extend to countries including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. "We continue to advise a high degree of caution at this time," it said. A spokesperson for Israel's airports authority said the country's main airport, Ben Gurion near Tel Aviv, was expected to reopen for rescue flight landings on Sunday. Flag carrier airline El Al, along with Arkia, Air Haifa and Israir said they would operate at least 10 flights. Tens of thousands of Israelis are stuck abroad. At the same time, nearly 40,000 tourists in Israel are looking to leave the country, some of whom are going via Jordan's borders to Amman and Aqaba and others via Egypt and by boat to Cyprus. Japan's foreign ministry said on Sunday it had evacuated 21 people, including 16 Japanese nationals, from Iran overland to Azerbaijan. It said it was the second such evacuation since Thursday and that it would conduct further evacuations if necessary. New Zealand's government said on Sunday it would send a Hercules military transport plane to the Middle East on standby to evacuate New Zealanders from the region. An organisation that monitors flight risks has warned of a heightened threat after US airstrikes on Iran, as airlines continued to avoid large parts of the Middle East due to ongoing missile exchanges. But following a barrage of early morning Iranian missiles, Israel reopened its airspace for six hours on Sunday to bring back those stranded abroad since the conflict with Iran began on June 13. Website Safe Airspace said the US attacks on Iran may increase risks to US operators in the region. "While there have been no specific threats made against civil aviation, Iran has previously warned it would retaliate by attacking US military interests in the Middle East - either directly or via proxies such as Hezbollah," Safe Airspace said. Meanwhile, flight tracking website FlightRadar24, said airlines maintained flight diversions around the region. Its website showed airlines were not flying in the airspace over Iran, Iraq, Syria and Israel. They have chosen other routes such as north via the Caspian Sea or south via Egypt and Saudi Arabia, even if these result in higher fuel and crew costs and longer flight times. Since Israel launched strikes on Iran on June 13, carriers have suspended flights to destinations in the affected countries, though there have been some evacuation flights from neighbouring nations and some bringing stranded Israelis home. Safe Airspace said it was possible airspace risks could now extend to countries including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. "We continue to advise a high degree of caution at this time," it said. A spokesperson for Israel's airports authority said the country's main airport, Ben Gurion near Tel Aviv, was expected to reopen for rescue flight landings on Sunday. Flag carrier airline El Al, along with Arkia, Air Haifa and Israir said they would operate at least 10 flights. Tens of thousands of Israelis are stuck abroad. At the same time, nearly 40,000 tourists in Israel are looking to leave the country, some of whom are going via Jordan's borders to Amman and Aqaba and others via Egypt and by boat to Cyprus. Japan's foreign ministry said on Sunday it had evacuated 21 people, including 16 Japanese nationals, from Iran overland to Azerbaijan. It said it was the second such evacuation since Thursday and that it would conduct further evacuations if necessary. New Zealand's government said on Sunday it would send a Hercules military transport plane to the Middle East on standby to evacuate New Zealanders from the region. An organisation that monitors flight risks has warned of a heightened threat after US airstrikes on Iran, as airlines continued to avoid large parts of the Middle East due to ongoing missile exchanges. But following a barrage of early morning Iranian missiles, Israel reopened its airspace for six hours on Sunday to bring back those stranded abroad since the conflict with Iran began on June 13. Website Safe Airspace said the US attacks on Iran may increase risks to US operators in the region. "While there have been no specific threats made against civil aviation, Iran has previously warned it would retaliate by attacking US military interests in the Middle East - either directly or via proxies such as Hezbollah," Safe Airspace said. Meanwhile, flight tracking website FlightRadar24, said airlines maintained flight diversions around the region. Its website showed airlines were not flying in the airspace over Iran, Iraq, Syria and Israel. They have chosen other routes such as north via the Caspian Sea or south via Egypt and Saudi Arabia, even if these result in higher fuel and crew costs and longer flight times. Since Israel launched strikes on Iran on June 13, carriers have suspended flights to destinations in the affected countries, though there have been some evacuation flights from neighbouring nations and some bringing stranded Israelis home. Safe Airspace said it was possible airspace risks could now extend to countries including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. "We continue to advise a high degree of caution at this time," it said. A spokesperson for Israel's airports authority said the country's main airport, Ben Gurion near Tel Aviv, was expected to reopen for rescue flight landings on Sunday. Flag carrier airline El Al, along with Arkia, Air Haifa and Israir said they would operate at least 10 flights. Tens of thousands of Israelis are stuck abroad. At the same time, nearly 40,000 tourists in Israel are looking to leave the country, some of whom are going via Jordan's borders to Amman and Aqaba and others via Egypt and by boat to Cyprus. Japan's foreign ministry said on Sunday it had evacuated 21 people, including 16 Japanese nationals, from Iran overland to Azerbaijan. It said it was the second such evacuation since Thursday and that it would conduct further evacuations if necessary. New Zealand's government said on Sunday it would send a Hercules military transport plane to the Middle East on standby to evacuate New Zealanders from the region. An organisation that monitors flight risks has warned of a heightened threat after US airstrikes on Iran, as airlines continued to avoid large parts of the Middle East due to ongoing missile exchanges. But following a barrage of early morning Iranian missiles, Israel reopened its airspace for six hours on Sunday to bring back those stranded abroad since the conflict with Iran began on June 13. Website Safe Airspace said the US attacks on Iran may increase risks to US operators in the region. "While there have been no specific threats made against civil aviation, Iran has previously warned it would retaliate by attacking US military interests in the Middle East - either directly or via proxies such as Hezbollah," Safe Airspace said. Meanwhile, flight tracking website FlightRadar24, said airlines maintained flight diversions around the region. Its website showed airlines were not flying in the airspace over Iran, Iraq, Syria and Israel. They have chosen other routes such as north via the Caspian Sea or south via Egypt and Saudi Arabia, even if these result in higher fuel and crew costs and longer flight times. Since Israel launched strikes on Iran on June 13, carriers have suspended flights to destinations in the affected countries, though there have been some evacuation flights from neighbouring nations and some bringing stranded Israelis home. Safe Airspace said it was possible airspace risks could now extend to countries including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. "We continue to advise a high degree of caution at this time," it said. A spokesperson for Israel's airports authority said the country's main airport, Ben Gurion near Tel Aviv, was expected to reopen for rescue flight landings on Sunday. Flag carrier airline El Al, along with Arkia, Air Haifa and Israir said they would operate at least 10 flights. Tens of thousands of Israelis are stuck abroad. At the same time, nearly 40,000 tourists in Israel are looking to leave the country, some of whom are going via Jordan's borders to Amman and Aqaba and others via Egypt and by boat to Cyprus. Japan's foreign ministry said on Sunday it had evacuated 21 people, including 16 Japanese nationals, from Iran overland to Azerbaijan. It said it was the second such evacuation since Thursday and that it would conduct further evacuations if necessary. New Zealand's government said on Sunday it would send a Hercules military transport plane to the Middle East on standby to evacuate New Zealanders from the region.
West Australian
a day ago
- West Australian
A hotel room in Bali that's bigger than the average Aussie home
In the 1980s, two different forms of luxury accommodation surfaced in Bali: internationally branded five-star resorts; and villas — private walled homes with tropical gardens, private pools and in-house staff. About 20 years ago, investors began combining the two in super-luxury estates where every guest stays in a private villa while also having at their fingertips all the amenities of a five-star resort. Well-known examples include the Four Seasons on the beachfront at Jimbaran Bay and Aman Nusa, now called Aman Villas, which overlooks an 18-hole golf course in Nusa Dua. However, relatively few know of Umana Bali on the Bukit Peninsula on Bali's south coast. Originally a Banyan Tree Hotel, the Umana was acquired and renovated in 2023 by LXR Hotels & Resorts, a 'soft brand' of the Hilton group. In hotel speak, this refers to a brand that does not conform to specific decor or operations and is independent in form, function and spirit. Set on a 70m high clifftop overlooking the Pacific Ocean and a white-sand beach, Umana Bali, a villa-only resort, ticks all the boxes that make LXR properties unique. Plus, it has one of the largest standard hotel room sizes in the world. Umana Bali has 72 one, two and three-bedroom villas. The smallest, which I stayed in, is set on a 403sqm walled plot. Most hotel villas only have plunge pools, but here you get a 41sqm ocean-facing infinity-edge pool big enough to do laps in. There is also a jet pool adjoining the day pavilion with an outdoor sofa, reflective ponds and tropical plants. The indoor space measures 288sqm — 13 per cent more floor space than the national average for new detached houses in Australia. T he bathroom is bigger than most hotel rooms; a vast marble chamber with a two-person bathtub set in a glass enclosure edged by a rock garden with a bas-relief on the wall. The main bedroom has sliding glass doors that open directly into the pool. Waking up in the morning and drawing the curtains to Pacific Ocean views is a rock-star experience. But what I appreciated most was the combined living and dining room with an L-shaped sofa, coffee table, matching armchairs and a big, beautiful rug. In 25 years of travel writing, I have never seen a full-size living room in the standard room category of a hotel. Still, it pales in comparison to what awaits guests at the 1200sqm three-bedroom Umana Pool Villa. The living room is so big they had to put in a baby grand piano to consume some negative space. All five-star hotels in Bali put on breakfast buffets fit for kings, and Commune, Umana's breakfast venue, is no exception. Set inside a traditional Balinese building with floor-to-ceiling windows that bring in 180-degree ocean views, it is an Asian-themed restaurant, and the menu reflects that, with ramen, bakso (an Indonesian soup) and sushi stations. But it also has all your standard Western or American breakfast staples and a few extravagant options, like baby lobster on sourdough toast with caviar. The French toast is thick, layered in maple syrup, and comes with two scoops of mascarpone cream on the side. Commune is one of five F&B venues in the hotel. The signature is Olivera, a fine-dining Mediterranean restaurant. You can sit inside, in a big white modern space, or grab a table on the balcony. I had the set four-course meal but they served me seven courses, including four different kinds of amuse bouches, a world-class lobster bisque, a perfectly grilled striploin steak with red wine jus, finished with a slice of baked cream cheesecake. Normally, when I try a set menu at hotel restaurants in Bali, it's hit-and-miss. Most dishes are good but there are always one or two I don't eat. Not here. Everything was spot on. Kudos to the chef. + Ian Neubauer was a guest of LXR Hotels & Resorts. They have not influenced this story, or read it before publication. + Umana Bali is on the clifftops of the Bukit Peninsula, overlooking Melasti Beach on Bali's south coast, a 35-minute drive from the international airport. At the time of writing in May, rates at hotel booking sites for a one-bedroom villa with breakfast started at $1140 per night and climbed to $6600 for the three-bedroom villa. Discounts are offered if you book directly with the hotel. + The most current Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show that in 2021-22, the average floor area of new houses in Australia was 232.3sqm.
Sky News AU
a day ago
- Sky News AU
Prime Minister plans more overseas trips for 2025
Sky News Political Editor Andrew Clennell discusses an increase in Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's overseas trips for the remainder of 2025. "Sky News can reveal this morning that the prime minister is planning to attend more than half a dozen overseas trips or summits by the end of the year," Mr Clennell said. "The PM sees all of these trips as in Australia's national interest - at a time when there is so much upheaval in the world, with a war in the Middle East and one in Ukraine. For example, the G7 was an opportunity to talk about purchasing frigates from both the German and Japanese leaders."
