Crybaby

Melbourne

Music Room has quickly become one of my favourite venues. The intimate, stylish setting and excellent sound system create an immersive music experience that stands out. Their carefully curated selection of DJs makes each visit feel fresh and unique. It's a refined space where like-minded music lovers gather and I always leave feeling inspired and satisfied. 

As someone who is half-Lebanese, finding authentic Middle Eastern food that feels like home is special to me and Tiba's Restaurant delivers. Their mini cheese pides are perfection that hits the spot every time. The casual, welcoming vibe makes it even better!

Old Palm Liquor is a fantastic spot for a low-lit, relaxing meal. Although it specialises in steaks, I highly recommend the kingfish. Their cocktails and drinks menu is also extremely good. The staff are friendly and make you feel right at home. Overall, it’s a great spot for a hearty experience or a casual night out with friends. 

If you’re looking for authentic Mexican in Melbourne, La Tortilleria is hard to beat. Their tortillas are made fresh daily, and it shows in every bite—the quality is consistently excellent. The menu is simple but well-executed, with standout dishes including the Al Pastor and Carne Asada tacos. Laid-back and seriously delicious. 


Earth Angels' chef Narit Kimsat constantly changes the menu, so every visit feels fresh. Whether it's a Thai-inspired dish or something completely unexpected, you can count on his creativity to surprise you. 10/10!

Kumo excels in Japanese soufflé pancakes, known for their exceptional fluffiness. The Biscoff pancakes are the best! It’s honestly a great spot for a quality dessert experience. 

Intimate Sound Systems and Fluffy Pancakes: Crybaby’s Guide to Naarm (Melbourne)

Sylvia Pérez

Madrid

This viewpoint is built on a 110-meter-high lighting tower, constructed in 1992. It’s metal and has a somewhat dystopian feel. You take a panoramic elevator to the top and see a stunning panoramic view of the city. My favourite time to visit is at sunset to witness Madrid’s famous pink skies. The entrance fee is very affordable at 3 euros, but take note that it closes early.

A photography studio in the Carabanchel neighbourhood, run by friends of mine, feels like my second home since I’ve done some of my latest work here in Madrid. It’s a perfect size, fully equipped with all the technical gear you might need, and even has natural light if you want to use it. As a bonus, you can head up to the terrace to grab a coffee or smoke a cigarette between shots. The interior is amazing. If you’re in Madrid for a project, check it out!

This is an underground house in the garden of a property built by late brutalist architect Fernando Higueras. It was originally his studio but later became his home. It is now the headquarters of the Fernando Higueras foundation. 

You can arrange private visits by reservation or visit during the Open House Architecture Festival. It’s one of my favourite spots in the city and one of Madrid’s hidden treasures.


This gallery, which houses large-scale contemporary art exhibitions, is part of the Reina Sofía Museum in a separate building in El Retiro park. The park itself is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the museum is near the lake and the Palacio de Cristal. The stroll through the park and the gallery makes it well worth a visit.

It’s currently temporarily closed for renovations until Dec 2025, but usually it is open every day and free to enter.

This is the best-curated vintage clothing store in Madrid, with a finely selected range of designer vintage and archive clothing and collectables. Run by two brothers, Charly and Nacho, it’s a key spot in the city to get a feel for Madrid’s youth culture. You’ll find an international atmosphere where you can mingle with the city’s young and creative crowd.

This is a great place for an aperitif, lunch, or dinner, offering traditional tapas and dishes with a modern twist. The venue is traditional yet renovated, run by a young team that aims to keep the authentic vibe. It’s best to reserve a table in advance for meals, but no reservation is needed if you’re just stopping by for a drink. I’m a regular here and often hang out with international friends or hold casual professional meetings at this spot. If you come, you might even find me here!

This restaurant blends flavours from Eastern Mediterranean Arab countries. It has a cozy atmosphere where chef and owner, Heba Kharouf, will gladly explain each dish to you. It’s a place I’d bring someone if I wanted to impress them. The ambience is laid-back and international, with a mix of younger, modern customers and locals from the neighbourhood. I recommend booking in advance.

There’s no bar like Cock in Madrid. It’s one of the city’s oldest cocktail bars, dating back to 1921. Located on a side street behind Gran Víia, it served as the back door and secret entrance to another famous cocktail bar on Gran Vía, called Chicote. History is palpable here. Luminaries such as Buñuel, Dalí, Audrey Hepburn, Ava Gardner, and Frank Sinatra have all passed through. The bar has an Old English-style decor, with dark carved wood walls and waiters serving you with white gloves. It’s still a meeting point for Madrid’s creative elite today and is open every day of the week.

In Madrid, the aperitif, or pre-meal “vermouth hour,” is deeply ingrained, and there’s been a revival of pairing it with “Gildas” —a traditional pintxo from northern Spain. 

La Gildería specialises in Gildas, adding a signature experimental twist. You’ll find a wide variety of Gilda combinations (I recommend the sun-dried tomato, cheese, and basil) and an extensive selection of vermouths. The place has a contemporary, casual atmosphere, and reservations are not required.

This small, historic movie theatre with modernist architecture is located in the Anton Martín area, near the market of the same name. It’s now the home of the Spanish Film Archive. 

Besides the beautiful facade, I highly recommend going inside to watch a film and see the stunning restored blue main hall. Even the café at the entrance is worth a visit alone. They screen films from different eras in their original language. Be sure to check the schedule in advance. 

It’s a great plan any time of the year, with tickets priced at just 3 euros.

Walking along the Manzanares River always takes me to another time. It’s not a gushing river, but more of a biosphere reserve, with little water flow and lots of vegetation for birds and other species to nest. You can spot herons, ducks, and other birds. 

The views from Segovia Bridge are sick, offering a vista of the Royal Palace, Almudena Cathedral, and North Station, all surrounded by greenery and pink skies at sunset.

When you need a break, you can rest in the open space below the bridge or at the terrace kiosk nearby.

It is one of the best bookstores in Madrid with the widest selection of artist and photography books. Founded by Elena Ochoa Foster, it also functions as an exhibition space, editorial, and contemporary art consultancy. Though it’s not in the city centre, a visit is well worth the trip to get there. 

The new lab in Madrid to develop and print your analog images. They’ve just opened and are located right in the city center—perfect if you’re looking for convenience and personalized service. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you’re in town and need to get something printed!

Hidden Homes and Tapas With a Twist: Sylvia Pérez’s Guide to Madrid, Spain

Acha

Bali

PNNY Bites makes my favourite bloody mary, it is xxxtra spicy!

My home. Cocktails and karaoke, DAISY's is always a good time with the homies.

This bar has an intimate vibe with high-quality drinks.

Head to this spot for the best margaritas and tacos!

Purpl is the new kid on the block: great for sake and yakitori!

It's not a bar but it's the best 24/7 alcohol delivery service in Bali 

Where The Locals Drink: Acha's Guide on Bali's Best Bars

Milan

Great crowd, good drinks and delicious small plates. It's a cozy bar and a perfect meeting point to have some good chill time.

Amazing place to eat the best burger at Chuck's or a great katsu at Katsusanderia and take a wine from Enoteca/Naturale. It's a collective of incredible spaces lined up side by side on a sidewalk. I highly recommend it.

Very tasty small plates, a judiciously experimental menu selection, easy/chill mode, nice people and an isolated place, away from other places where can exist on its own.

The overall experience of the place and the pizzas are very good, the gastronomic best version of traditional pizza and a very good wine selection, the interior design is really cool as well.

Traditional food with a modern twist, a great experimental restaurant in zone Navigli. 

Great fusion tapas, cozy atmosphere, good wine, easy mood. It's perfect because it's in Nolo and after Silvano you can go to any bar around and meet nice people. Especially in fashion week it's full of creatives.

Great aperitivo, tasty and unique plates, good drink!

Milan's best paninoteca and it's also the first one ever.

One of the best bars to socialize and have a drink during fashion week, it's an old school Milanese bar with its famous negroni sbagliato.

Good place to go in fashion week, with very tasty wines and especially delicious plates.

One of the most preferred bars on Saturday nights. A good melting pot and meeting point for locals and guests.

Great small bites, traditional patisserie, cute backyard, a great spot for having small and quick meetings.

Where to Eat and Drink During Milan Fashion Week, with Zion Lacroix 

Made Dhanu

Come and visit our restaurant FED. It’s a welcoming space where you can visit with your mates or on a date. You should definitely try the Chickpea fritter with smoked fish. We embed sustainable values into our cooking, no trimmings or bones go into the bin, we utilise them by adding to other dishes and enhancing the flavours of our favourite snacks. It is one of our ways to tackle food waste and try to be as conscious of our environment as we can. 

Have a drink at our bar and some snacks before starting dinner. Come and visit Friday or Saturday night if you’re into music.

The thing about this restaurant that always amuses people dining in is their welcome snacks, which changes frequently depending on the season of certain
produce. The welcome snacks consisted of 9-10 different dishes. There were two things on that snacks course that blew my mind, which was the gulai of young banana (indonesian curry) and this sour green leaf with tamarind, it's just something that i’ve never tasted before. I would recommend people to come to Nusantara with a group of friends that love tasty spicy food, as the restaurant concept is sharing style and you have to order a lot.

This is a humble spot by Indra Sanjaya, a good friend of mine, located in his house in Batukaru,Tabanan. The food at Standar Lokal is very simple yet it can be addicting. Indra continues his grandmother’s traditional smoked pork sausage and it is served with seasonal veggies like fern tips or cassava leaves, smoked chicken with sambal matah, and rice. People around Bali would drive up to standar lokal to enjoy this delicacy, as it's located close to the mount of Batukaru and it can be a journey to get there. You can go here with a date or group of friends.

American BBQ style smoked brisket run by young local Balinese located in the heart of Denpasar. Komang Tryananda or can be called Nance, a good friend of mine as well. Nance learned American bbq smoking technique from the Internet, built his DIY smoker machine and ran a couple of pop ups until decided to open up his own joint at his home in Denpasar. Everything from the menu is tasty, so better come with groups of friends and order and share everything on the menu. They are taking bookings only, as they have a very limited space.

Another humble warung located in Ubud, serving chicken rice dish. The place is a house courtyard, turned into an eatery with a view of rice fields and now “villas”. The first time I came to this warung was 6-8 years ago with my friend Nikolas, I got hooked ever since then and always took some friends to eat here when visiting ubud.

If you're visiting Bali, Babi Guling is a must on the food list. Babi Guling is a traditional Balinese suckling pig. Spit roasted whole pig served with condiments and rice. Balinese people would normally eat babi guling for breakfast or lunch, back then Babi Guling Selingsing started open at 2am as they only served limited portions. A lot of people go there after a night out in Canggu. As time goes by, the demand increases and they become commercial and open at normal times.

Explore

All 12 Results

Filtered Results