Doughnut Time vs. The Doughnut Bar

My first visit to Doughnut Time was after dinner one night in the valley near the beginning of the year. Doughnut's had just come onto the scene as the hot new artisan food. I first heard of the Doughnut Craze when The Doughnut Bar was set to pop-up around Brisbane. 

Upon my first encounter with Doughnut Time, I ordered one Slim Shady, a vanilla glazed doughnut covered in m&m's, and a chocolate glazed doughnut with a peanut butter candy similar to Reece's cups on top - I can't remember the name of it. They were delicious, yet over-rated, but I was most impressed with the actually doughnut itself. It was light and incredibly tasty even without the toppings. 

I returned to Doughnut Time a few months ago and got the Veruca Salt doughnut which was sugar coated with a dollop of delicious salted caramel in the middle - definitely a favourite!. I also got the Tim-Tam doughnut which was chocolate glazed with Tim-Tam pieces on top. I enjoyed them just as much the second time.

I was passing by The Doughnut Bar van on Edward street and decided to give them a try. From the pictures I had seen on social media, it seemed as though their toppings were a lot more impressive than those on the doughnuts at Doughnut Time. On the day I went, they only had the Nutella doughnut and the Golden Gaytime doughnut available, so I grabbed one of each. 

They looked great! The Nutella one had a syringe of Nutella inserted into it's centre where a dollop of Nutella was. It also had a small amount of Nutella filling in it's doughnut centre. The Golden Gaytime doughnut tasted just like a Golden Gaytime (funny that) and had a whipped cream filling. They were both delicious but the actual doughnut was much heavier and similar to a cake texture. Therefore, it was a lot more filling and hard to get through both. 

Although the doughnuts at The Doughnut bar looked great and have wonderful toppings, personally, I prefer the quality of the doughnut itself from Doughnut Time. 

Josh Pyke @ Black Bear Lodge Review

Josh Pyke just completed a short run of 'fans first' shows finishing at Black Bear Lodge in Brisbane on Wednesday night (12 August).

Pyke started his solo show with not a single word and jumped straight into playing his 2007 hit ‘Memories And Dust’. Following up with ‘The Summer’, it became apparent that in this unaccompanied and intimate setting, with nothing but a loop pedal, stomp box and guitar to back him up, Pyke was in his element. 

He effortlessly engaged in banter and conversation with his obviously devoted audience who hung off his every word and sang every song lyric for lyric. Members of the crowd were only able to score a ticket for the show if they pre-ordered his new album, ‘But For All These Shrinking Hearts’, so it was no wonder they were all BIG fans. Pyke knew how to please them though, even taking song requests throughout the night.

In the audience was Bellingen musician Jack Carty, who Pyke invited up on stage for a last minute duet to perform ‘Make You Happy’. Fans lapped it up and welcomed Carty back into the crowd when he finished with hearty slaps on the back and murmurs of congratulations.

Josh and Jack

Pyke showed high attention to detail in adapting some of his songs for a more acoustic style and setting. It was clear he had spent a decent amount of time over the years perfecting his tracks for live performance. With very limited gear on stage, he was able to create multiple layers resulting in a large, warm sound that reached every corner of the room. His vocal performance was spot-on; he hit every note and it seemed so natural for him.

Showcasing a few tracks from his new album, including ‘Be Your Boy’, ‘Songlines’ and ‘Hollering Hearts’, it was evident that Pyke has developed some variety in his songwriting during his ten-year-long career.

With no signs of stopping any time soon, owing it all to his fans, I suspect Pyke has a few more kilometres left in the tank. His music spoke to his audience. It was a moving thing to watch; I thought I was a big Josh Pyke fan but there are clearly many more adoring and devoted fans out there than I. He told stories of his grandparent’s love and childhood memories that the audience enjoyed and connected with. He made a small mistake during his final song that only made the audience love him more for the way he dealt with it.

Pyke was a completely different person on stage Wednesday night to the man I saw play at The Tivoli in 2013. He rarely spoke between songs and seemed so focused back then.
Performing a solo set, compared to the full band set-up in 2013, Pyke was totally at ease and had the audience eating out of the palm of his hand.

To read this whole article, plus more photos from the show, head to Scenestr.

Saturday Fresh Markets

Last Saturday I took a trip to the Farmers Markets at Rocklea.
There is something about being surrounded by fresh fruit, vegetables, flowers and pastries that is food for the soul as well as, well, actual food.

I went in with only $40 in my purse. I had nothing in particular that I wanted but knew I needed a couple of pieces of fruit. I honestly thought I'd have to make a trip to the ATM at some stage during my time there because, knowing me, my eyes would be hungry for all the delicious fresh food around me. I did not, however, have to make that trip.

$40 got me what I needed and more. I started out buying broccoli, bananas and avocados. I later grabbed a loaf of fresh white bread and a fruit and nut loaf; two for $7.00! I found a delightful little deli and got a Mediterranean olive mix - I'm a huge fan of olives, semi dried tomatoes and Fetta cheese etc. I found some super cheap strawberries and got a container of Roma tomatoes (about 15 in the pack) for just $1.50.

At this stage I had a wee bit of money left over and decided to get myself some lunch. I got a pesto chicken crepe with spinach, ricotta and tomato filling. It was so much better than I was expecting!

I usually stop by the flowers on my way out and grab a bunch to take home but there was a freshly squeezed orange juice stand nearby that was tempting me in it's direction. So I used my last remaining change on an orange juice, and you know what? It was probably my best investment of the day. It was SO yummy.

Visiting the Fresh Food Markets for the first time in a long while was a wonderful start to my day which continued with me going to work for the afternoon/night. I hope I can make more of an effort to go more often.

The Grates @ The Triffid Review

Back at it in their hometown, The Grates played to a full house at The Triffid Friday night (7 August).

Opening the night were female duo Pleasure Symbols, with a dark, synth-heavy set. It was painfully beautiful as their monotone droning filled the room and captivated you. With little happening on stage, you still couldn’t look away, perhaps unsure as to whether you liked it or not. Following on from them in complete contrast were Sydney band Straight Arrows. Their set definitely woke you up with their garage-punk-dance music and super-fun high energy.

The Grates made their entrance shortly afterwards clad in all-black with capes and pentagon necklaces. All except lead-lady Patience Hodgson, who sported an orange faux-fur jacket with an eccentric floral collar over a silver jumpsuit finished with tinsel-toed, white ankle-length go-go boots – she definitely stood out.

Opening their set with ’19-20-20’ from their 2006 album, ‘Gravity Won’t Get You High’, had the audience dancing from the get go. They included hits from their newest album, ‘Dream Team’, such as ‘Wild One’ and ‘7-Eleven’, as well as other popular favourites including ‘Turn Me On’, ‘Burn Bridges’ and ‘Aw Yeah’ – all well-known tracks among the audience.

Many people in the crowd had obviously amped up their bizarre style for the night, in tribute to The Grates, sporting fur coats, wigs, fluffy scrunchies and earrings and platform shoes. Someone brought a beach ball that made its way around the room from hand to hand. There was also a blow-up kangaroo floating around here and there and glowsticks getting thrown and passed about as well. The sold-out show had a huge variety of people crammed into the room all singing each song word for word while dancing the night away.

Throughout the night all three bands experienced some feedback interfering with their sets, but it didn’t seem to bother The Grates as they just smashed out hit after hit. Their high energy seeped its way into the tempo causing many songs to be sped up. This was often insignificant and just added liveliness to their already dynamic songs, in some moments, however, you could hear Patience rushing over lyrics to keep up – she never missed a beat though.

Patience threw roses into the audience as she confessed her love for us all over and over again. Her vocal performance was impressive as she jumped around the stage dancing, and even crowd surfing, she was still able to reach every note and produce her strained, yet strong sound with just the right amount of grit. It was the moments between songs when she was talking with the crowd that became a bit grating (pun intended). It often felt a little forced and awkward; I just wanted to hear the next song and keep dancing!

There is no doubt Patience is one of the stronger lead ladies of our generation. Although a mother now, after her display at The Triffid, I don’t see her and The Grates stopping any time soon. They seem to love what they do way too much.

They performed a high energy, fun, enjoyable and quality set.

To see this whole article, plus more photos from the gig, head to Scenestr.