What’s on around town

• The Bob Hawke Beer & Leisure Centre is turning it on for Mardi Gras with a twist on yum cha. Head in for Mardi Cha from 11am till 4pm before you head to the party, or the same time on Sunday as a recovery session (where there’ll be $12 Bloody Marys, too).

• CBD trattoria Tessuto is now open on Saturdays, bringing all-day Italian brekkie, spritzes and its pistachio espressos.

• Prefecture 48, the glitzy multi-venue Japanese precinct, just launched a happy hour. Find $9 cocktails at Whiskey Thief from 5pm till 7pm, Tuesday to Friday, and $5 yakitori skewers in the courtyard from 5pm till 9pm Thursday to Saturday.

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• Do you love a rom-com? Know the genre in and out? Head to Penny’s Hotel, the recently relaunched Potts Point pub, to show off at Wednesday-night rom-com movie trivia. Expect $15 cocktails and two-for-$30 pizzas from 7pm till 10pm, too.

• Head to The Depot tomorrow between 8am and 1pm to nab a blueberry matcha on the house. There’ll be Goodness Kitchen’s blueberry Choc Bites – which have just launched Down Under – too. First in, best dressed.

• The next PS40 Takeover Tuesday brings the flavours of Colombia’s Caribbean coastline to the CBD cocktail bar on February 25. Costenita chefs Alex Heery and Sergio Baron are bringing kingfish ceviche, yuca fritters and lamb arepas – and that’s just the start. $65 per person, bookings required. Gluten free and vegetarian or vegan options available on request.

• The last Sunday kitchen takeover at Cafe Freda’s is on Sunday March 23, with OG head chef Xinyi Lim (aka Megafauna) captaining the pans. It’s the last Sunday for the current iteration of Freda’s, with a dance-powered finale planned for Mardi Gras on Saturday March 1.

• February 22 means International Margarita Day – which means $15 Margs aplenty (think spicy mango or passionfruit) and $5 taco specials at Harry’s in Surry Hills. Get around it.

• The Chiswick team is celebrating the end of summer with two parties. On Sunday February 23 and Sunday March 2, expect cocktail specials, snacks and a “garnish-your-own” station with herbs from the kitchen garden. From 4pm, no bookings needed.

What we covered this week

• New Hire: Odd Culture is gearing up for a big 2025 with two industry heavyweights joining the team. Meet the new Michelin-awarded exec chef and new chief of operations – and find out which venues are their favourites (surely Bistro Grenier or The Old Fitz?).

• Harbourside Malaysian institution The Malaya is on the move (again), with the 62-year-old restaurant proving shiny and new doesn’t always win. Find out what’s new, and whether the 1963 laksa recipe needs any tweaking.

• At Bubooza, find gravity-defying scoops of Lebanese ice-cream – that’s stretchy, chewy and delicately floral – made by a dessert master from Tripoli.

• The man behind Chin Chin is going for round two in Sydney, opening Grill Americano later this year. Melbourne’s popular Venetian grill restaurant is hitting historic CBD digs, and the menu’s getting a Sydney edge.

• Local Knowledge: strap in for “super lamb soup” and skewers at Hurstville’s Shang Lamb Soup. The owner-couple don’t have a hospo background, but they’re giving their all to a tight menu based around northern Chinese noodles.

• Where Chefs Eat: when Christine Manfield’s in Sydney, she’s getting Afghan street food, sipping standout coffee and hitting one specific wine bar. Plus, she’s popping up at Cho Cho San next week.

• Three to try: new all-you-can-eat barbeque buffets (for when you just can’t get enough). Find a neon-lit Korean favourite, non-stop sushi and sashimi and a lively yakiniku house in Glebe.

• Now open: we need to talk about the ceiling at Bar Julius. In the morning there are pancakes and clarified Mimosas, then all-day classics till midnight. It all happens under a spectacular double-arched ceiling decked in a piece by Dinosaur Designs’ Louise Olsen.

You might’ve missed

• Broadsheet Sydney columnist Gemma Plunkett’s love letter to summer, “Sydney’s worst season”. She ditches the kitchen and finds solace in dining out.

• Now open: at Middle Eastern brekkie spot Iftar, classics join twists like shawarma tacos and kofta dumplings.

• Sad news, Sydney: Maido, Provider Store’s Darlinghurst coffee stop, is closing. There’s still time to drop by for matcha or an Artificer coffee, or to visit resident shiba inu Pocari.