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The Age
3 days ago
- The Age
Melbourne might be known as a coffee city but here's where to find a properly brewed tea (and this cute snack)
If we're reading the leaves correctly, Melbourne's tea culture is entering its golden era. How do you take yours? Picked from the mountains of south-west China and steeped to a stopwatch? Sweet, spicy, and redolent of the bustling streets of Mumbai? Served with a scone and a finger sandwich? Which ever way, we've got you covered with Melbourne's best cafes for tea. This list is part of Good Food's Essential Melbourne Cafes and Bakeries of 2025. Presented by T2, this guide celebrates the people and places that shape our excellent cafe and bakery scenes and includes more than 100 venues reviewed anonymously across 10 categories, including icons, those best for food, coffee and matcha, and where to get the city's best sweets, sandwiches and baked goods. (These reviews also live on the Good Food app, and are discoverable on the map.) Here's the tea. Assembly In a coffee-obsessed city, finding anywhere that serves more than five types of tea is exciting. This little Carlton cafe quietly showcases more than three times that number, spanning white to amber tea, selected carefully from renowned regions such as Yunnan and Kagoshima. Herbal tisanes are blended in-house, and beautiful servingware makes each sip an act of self-care.
Finextra
5 days ago
- Business
- Finextra
WFE publishes guidance on migration to T+1
The World Federation of Exchanges (WFE), the global industry association for exchanges and central counterparties (CCPs), has published industry-wide guidance on the complex mix of operational, regulatory, and strategic considerations for shortening securities settlement cycles. 0 The paper draws on lessons learned from recent transitions in markets including India, the United States, Canada, and Latin America, and offers a roadmap for jurisdictions seeking to move safely and efficiently from T+2 to T+1 settlement. In publishing the guidance, the WFE emphasises the importance of thorough industry collaboration, operational readiness, and technological investment to ensure successful implementation and warns against premature moves beyond T+1 without clear justification and market preparedness. The guidance identifies seven key imperatives for a successful transition to T+1: Operational Preparedness: Firms that invest early in technology, automation, and testing face fewer disruptions during transition. Proactive preparation is essential. Collaboration: Close coordination between regulators and industry participants is vital. Standardised protocols and open communication help ensure consistent timelines and processes, while ongoing communication between stakeholders ensures rapid resolution of emerging issues. Technology & Automation: Straight-Through Processing and real-time data reconciliation are critical enablers of accelerated settlement, removing bottlenecks caused by manual interventions. Liquidity Management: T+1 impacts cash and securities availability. Enhanced cash forecasting and continuous monitoring are needed to avoid settlement failures. Regulatory Alignment: Clear guidance, realistic timelines, and regulatory flexibility combined with phased rollouts and pilot programs, have proven successful in allowing firms to adapt progressively, while clear protocols for handling exceptions and fails helps to minimise systemic risks during the transition period. Cost Considerations: Upgrading infrastructure carries significant costs, especially for smaller firms and CCPs. Careful planning is needed to ensure benefits outweigh expenses, and rushed transitions will be more expensive than methodical ones, as well as being less risky in terms of project completion. Global Implications: Misaligned settlement cycles and time zone differences create challenges for cross-border trades, related FX transactions, and instruments like ETFs. Richard Metcalfe, Head of Regulatory Affairs at the WFE, commented, 'We urge regulators and market participants to engage in structured, phased transitions supported by clear roadmaps, robust cost-benefit analysis, and inclusive governance structures.' Nandini Sukumar, CEO of the WFE, commented, 'It is vital to look at T+1 as a cost-benefit question. The powerful effect of multilateral netting, which can only be achieved through centralised market infrastructure, has clear advantages. So, while shortening the settlement cycle can reduce margin requirements, there is a balance to be struck and, as our paper makes clear, the costs of going further would include compromising market liquidity.'
Sydney Morning Herald
13-06-2025
- Lifestyle
- Sydney Morning Herald
10 Sydney spots to satisfy your sweet tooth (feat. this strawberry shortcake tour-de-force)
Eating out Essential cafes and bakeries Good Food's essential places for sweets and treats include a patisserie where the cakes resemble splendid brooches and a Middle Eastern bakery whose buttery biscuits are best eaten in, accompanied by a chat. As featured in Good Food's Essential Sydney Cafes and Bakeries of 2025, presented by T2. See all stories. Previous SlideNext Slide These are our some of our favourite places in Sydney specialising in sugary treats, whether they're bakeries best-known for banging chiffon cakes, or cafes with ma'amoul better than your mum's. Go on, you've earnt it. This list is part of Good Food's Essential Sydney Cafes and Bakeries of 2025. Presented by T2, the guide celebrates the people and places that shape our cafe and bakery scenes and includes more than 100 venues reviewed anonymously across 11 categories, including icons, those best for food, tea, coffee and matcha, and where to get the city's best sandwiches and baked goods. (These reviews also live on the Good Food app, and are discoverable on the map.) Dear Florence Dear Florence, a patisserie helmed by former Aria head pastry chef Aoife Noonan, is like a jewellery store where you can eat the merchandise. Each cake or tart resembles a splendid brooch or sculpture, carved, modelled, shaped and cooked somehow from eggs, flour, fruit, sugar and chocolate. Must order: The Dream, a cloud-like cake of vanilla sponge and mascarpone mousse, topped with flower petals and a droplet of rosewater gel. 230 Sussex Street, Sydney, Khanom House Self-taught Thai baker Yeen Veerasenee is a market stall success story. Buoyed by the popularity of his matcha Basque cheesecakes, Veerasenee opened a brick-and-mortar in a light-filled corner of Chippendale. His pastry cabinet is a sight to behold – a tour-de-force of strawberry shortcake, billowing with layers of vanilla frosting; pastel green pandan sponge, rolled around subtly sweet coconut cream; and golden-crumbed Ukrainian honeycake, a fluffy, perennial favourite. Good to know: There's barista-made coffee to pair with your cake. 15 Meagher Street, Chippendale, Kuki In a world of cookies sprinkled and stuffed to the nines, this sleek little shop is all about the simple joy of classic, freshly baked biscuit. Flavours range from caramelised brown butter and chocolate chip, to the salty-sweet combo of black sesame and white chocolate. Brought to you by popular Strathfield ice-cream chain Duo Duo, it also offers velvety soft serve on the side. Good to know: It's open late every Friday and Saturday, for those post-dinner cravings. 9/18 Steam Mill Lane, Haymarket, Moon Phase This all-white laneway cafe, a short walk from the Metro, has the classics covered with excellent croissants and kouign-amanns. But it's the visually striking specials, drawing on traditional Korean flavours, which make a visit worthwhile. Case in point, the Busan swirl: a viennoiserie version of street-food snack hotteok filled with gooey brown sugar. Good to know: Moon Phase roasts its own coffee beans, with rotating seasonal blends. Pantry Story Parramatta Road has livened up a little since cosy bakery-cafe Pantry Story opened last year. Most people come for the evolving menu of Asian-inspired sweet treats: a decadent tabletop procession of electric-green pandan mochi cookies, miso butterscotch croissants and wobbling chocolate panna cotta capybaras. Good to know: Dine-in seating is limited to a few stools and covered milk crates. 336 Parramatta Road, Stanmore, Shadow Baking A trio of Messina chefs have pivoted from gelato to pastry, bringing the same bold creativity to croissants, tarts and scrolls. Danishes are regularly on display: golden, flaky nests filled with confit tomatoes, fanned with caramelised fruits or topped up with a thai milk tea sabayon. Just like the Messina mothership, new specials are created weekly and the pastries sell out within hours. Best for: Croissant dough, done differently. Shortstop Coffee and Donuts It's been nearly 10 years since Shortstop opened its first Sydney outpost, and the Barangaroo store still occasionally sells out. So, what's the secret? It's the discerning approach to doughnuts in their forms. Flavours are seasonal (pumpkin spice, apple pie) and never too-sweet, with subtle nods to new trends (strawberry matcha, Thai milk tea) and a solid selection of classics (cinnamon sugar with cardamom, Mexican hot chocolate). Must order: The Australian honey and sea salt cruller has become a staple. Shop 3/23 Barangaroo Avenue, Barangaroo, Smeed Never tried ma'amoul before? Well, you're in for a lovely time. The dense buttery biscuits, filled with everything from dates to strawberry marshmallows, are the specialty at this family-run Lebanese cafe. You could get a six-pack to go, but it's better to settle in for a chat. The hospitality is warm, the coffee is strong, and the pistachio ma'maoul becomes magical when warmed up, served with spoonfuls of clotted cream. Best for: Modernised Middle Eastern treats. 422 Burwood Road Belmore, Sweet Beirut A chandelier-lit jewel of southern Sydney, displaying Lebanese treats like edible art. Rows of glistening baklava. Sugar-dusted ma'amoul. Golden knafeh encased in glass. Among them, harder-to-find desserts like mafroukeh (crisp caramelised semolina layered beneath and ashta clotted cream) and halawet el jibn (sweet cheese rolls with rose petal jam). The quality bests many of its inner city-based rivals and for a fraction of the cost. Good to know: Open until midnight on weekends. Yin Viennoiserie Now, here's an inviting corner of Glebe, with perfect eclairs, individual Saint Honores and decadent pastries topped with the ripest of ripe figs when in season. The raspberry matcha tart receives the most social media love with its dense centre asking to be pulled apart and filmed, but the croissants deserves your attention too. Some pastries are so shiny and smooth you can almost see your reflection. This is high precision stuff. Good to know: There's limited seating if you want to chill with a coffee. 13/131-145 Glebe Point Road, Glebe, Good Food's Essential Sydney Cafes and Bakeries of 2025, presented by T2, celebrates the people and places that shape our excellent cafe and bakery scenes and includes more than 100 venues reviewed anonymously across 11 categories, including icons, those best for food, tea, coffee and matcha, and where to get the city's best sweets, sandwiches and baked goods. Download the Good Food app from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store to discover what's near you.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Volkswagen to restore minibus seen in iconic photo of LA wildfires
Volkswagen has stepped in to save and restore a blue and white VW camper minibus that miraculously survived the deadly Palisade fires near Los Angeles in January of this year. The T2 bus was left intact on a street in Malibu amid homes destroyed by the flames although its paintwork was badly scorched. At least 30 people were killed in the blazes and many made homeless. The German manufacturer said the van had become a beacon of hope as residents picked up the pieces of their lives as the flames subsided. An AP photo of the lone van in a desolate landscape was circulated widely on TV and social media at the time. "Like the rest of the world, we couldn't believe our eyes," said Mark Gillies, the company's PR head in the US. "But regardless of how good it looked in photos, we knew it was in dire need of a check-up." Volkswagen contacted the vehicle's owner, Megan Krystle Weinraub, who refers to her bus as Azul, about assessing the damage and determining whether it was still in road-worthy condition. If not, VW offered to restore Azul to pre-fires form if deemed possible. "Getting that call was such a relief," Weinraub said. "I knew Azul was becoming a symbol of hope and that people wanted to see more of her, but I had so much to work through at the time that I wasn't sure how to approach it." Once the area was accessible again, Azul was loaded onto a transport bound for Volkswagen's nearby Oxnard Campus, which houses and maintains VW's US collection of historic vehicles. Volkswagen team members said that while Azul's "good side" was impressive, the bus would require extensive mechanical fixes and bodywork to be fully operable. Work on the restoration has now begun and is expected to be completed later this year.
The Age
09-06-2025
- General
- The Age
14 Melbourne bakeries serving excellent baked goods (including this top-tier pie)
Melbourne has long enjoyed an international reputation as a great place to eat. Historically, it's been as much about the diversity of the offering as the sheer excellence of the cooking, but in 2025, the care and detail that put it on the map is coursing through its bakeries, and the world is watching with hungry eyes. These business have caught our attention and the list that follows is part of Good Food's Essential Melbourne Cafes and Bakeries of 2025. Presented by T2, this guide celebrates the people and places that shape our excellent cafe and bakery scenes and includes more than 100 venues reviewed anonymously across 10 categories, including icons, those best for food, tea, coffee and matcha, and where to get the city's best sweets, sandwiches and baked goods. (These reviews also live on the Good Food app, and are discoverable on the map.) Bakemono The often lengthy queue snaking down Drewery Lane – a cobblestoned laneway just off Little Lonsdale Street – is worth joining for the pastries at this tiny Japanese-inspired bakery. Shoji-style timber panelling is found throughout, including framing a large window that allows eager customers to peep into the pastry kitchen before entering. Specialty treats might include manju, a sweet bun hailing from Japan, while various croissants, Danishes and loaves of fluffy milk bread make regular appearances.
