Latest news with #catering
SBS Australia
8 hours ago
- Politics
- SBS Australia
‘I didn't sleep at all': One mother's terrifying wait for news from a war zone
Nayran Tabiei keeps busy in the kitchen making traditional Syrian dishes for her catering business in Melbourne. But this week, her thoughts were far away, worrying about her three sons in Iran's capital Tehran. "The mobile is cut, the line they cut - no news at all. My heart started to beat. I didn't sleep at all. I tried every night, every day I'm trying to message and you see 100 message in my mobile but no answer." As bombs rained down on the city, Ms Tabiei could only hope her boys - aged in their 20s – had survived. "I'm boiling from inside because the thing - when nothing in your hand and nothing you can do. You just, y'know you want to help. My heart start like where we go, what do we do? And I cannot give them any money. I cannot give them any support, even call." Ms Tabiei is married to an Iranian man and the couple fled Syria in 2012 with their young daughter, leaving three young sons with their grandmother in Tehran. "I make bad decision. I felt so bad. I cannot believe 14 years gone I didn't see them and it's hard for a mum to see them grown up without them beside me." Arriving in Australia as an asylum seeker, Ms Tabiei later opened a small café called Flavours of Syria, offering work and training to many, like herself, who were forcibly displaced. "Hundreds and hundreds of asylum seekers, I help them open their business and start up. It makes me proud. I'm so happy in Australia and sharing my food and culture." Finally, just days ago, Ms Tabiei had the phonecall she hoped for – from her sons who are alive and well, having fled Tehran. "My boy called me, my heart beating - yeah good! They stay in the mountain. They took a room with their friend and when they called I am like 'Oh thank God, they are alive!'" Ms Tabiei wants to reunite her family but says every effort to bring her sons here has so far failed. "From the day I heard that crisis in Iran I sent all the parliament that I need help. My hearts shaken and I need my children beside me. In this moment we need help. And 14 year I didn't see them." In a further loss, rising costs have also forced her to close her Syrian café in Melbourne's St Kilda. "It's hard to pay the rent and the cost so high. Before we had plenty of girls in the kitchen, but now I cannot afford to hire." Recent data from credit reporting agency CreditorWatch shows that 10 per cent of all Australian hospitality businesses closed down over the past year. CEO Patrick Coghlan explains: "They are being hit from all sides. Obviously, consumer discretionary spend is down, cost of labour, cost of goods, et cetera, all increasing." From next week, a raft of new costs will add to the pressures, according to Luke Achterstraat, CEO of the Council of Small Business Organisations, or COSBOA. "As of one July, the award rate goes up three and a half percent. The super guarantee increases by 0.5 per cent. So that's 4 per cent already on the wage stack. And don't forget, on top of that you have payroll tax." Mr Achterstraat says more help is needed. "It's the toughest operating environment in recent memory. For a small business with revenue of up to $20 million per year, we are calling for the corporate tax rate to be slashed from 25 per cent to 20 per cent." The most recent Consumer Price Index ,or CPI, shows inflation sitting at 2.1 per cent in the 12 months to May. Creditorwatch CEO Patrick Coghlan says the new figure offers fresh hope. "We've seen two rate cuts already. They're the biggest drivers of economic activity, of GDP, of spending both from consumer and commercial. And we're expecting a couple of more of those this year as well. So, the trend is certainly heading in the right direction." Any interest rate relief is too late for Ms Tabiei, who shut her café to focus on a lower-cost catering business. Keeping busy is a labour of love, she says, and cooking distracts from other worries. "Really I make it with my heart, my love. And when you taste it, you will see that the love in it. And it is all about giving the culture and sharing the love."
South China Morning Post
2 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong high-end supermarket chain City'super to shut its last food court
Luxury supermarket chain City'super is closing its last remaining food court in Hong Kong's Times Square shopping centre, as the city's sluggish economy continues to take a toll on the catering and food production sectors. Advertisement The Amazing Food Hall in the upscale mall and office complex in Causeway Bay will be closed from June 30, with the space returned to the landlord upon lease renewal, a spokeswoman said on Thursday. The closure means City'super will no longer operate any food courts after the company shut its 22-year-old CookedDeli food hall in Harbour City, a shopping complex in Tsim Sha Tsui, in February last year, following the expiration of its lease. A City'super spokeswoman said the decision to close the food court – which currently offers items such as sushi, grilled meat and noodle dishes, alongside a wine and sake cellar – was made in light of changing consumer patterns and the chain's long-term portfolio strategy. The food and drink section of the adjacent supermarket in Times Square would be renovated to include a new seating area and was expected to reopen by mid-September, she added. Advertisement But the company did not specify how many staff members would be affected by the closure or the terms of their severance packages. A worker at the food hall said dozens of staff were affected and that the company did not offer any help in relocating to other positions.
CTV News
3 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Watch out for this Espresso Bar in Ottawa this summer
Ottawa Watch This local coffee shop will come to you and help keep your guests caffeinated. We introduce you to a mobile espresso bar here in the capital.
Mail & Guardian
3 days ago
- Business
- Mail & Guardian
Genevieve, the ‘ambassador of local flavours' in diplomatic circles
The catering company brings South African flavours into international dishes on countries' national days. Photo: Supplied Genevieve Nel, of Norma & Co catering company, speaks about her life as a caterer, including for about 25 embassies in South Africa. What are some of your most memorable catering experiences? Many of my most memorable experiences stem from years back when my mom and aunts started Norma & Vilma Caterers. I was just a young girl and we had the honour to cater for and subsequently meet Pope John Paul II when he visited South Africa. Everyone in our families had the honour to meet him and it was the most incredible day. What is your philosophy on food and catering? You need to love what you do to provide food that tastes and looks good. We try to always create an environment at work with happy and fulfilled team members. A happy chef creates beautiful food What makes your catering business unique? We take great pride in basing our business on creating relationships with clients. This is the cornerstone in our business and has always been, even when the business started 30 years ago. How do you stay up-to-date with the latest trends in catering? Social media is a huge influence in my business. I am always getting new ideas online but we also work with a wonderful bunch of event planners and coordinators who push us out of our comfort zone often creating new and wonderful food and experiences. What is your culinary guilty pleasure? I am simple when it comes to food. I love a night out at a nice restaurant, not a fancy expensive one, the local family restaurant in the neighbourhood with my husband and children is just perfect for me. You are becoming known as an 'ambassador of local flavours' in diplomatic circles. What is the main thing you want to teach diplomats about South African food? I would not say we are gurus in local flavours but we love to bring South African flavours into international dishes. We are blessed enough to be entrusted with some wonderful National Days where we try new international cuisines which become popular to our other clients afterwards. South Africans have a wide exposure to international food; we grew up [having] been exposed to a variety of flavours. Who influenced you the most? There is no doubt that my mother, Norma, has been my biggest influencer in the catering business. She started and ran Norma & Vilma Caterers successfully for 25 years until Covid. Thereafter she and I started Norma & Co on our own in 2021 and although she has taken a step back from the business, she still works and runs the business in the background. She still has a big influence on the flavours and recipes we create and produce. Your work involves a great deal of creativity, where do you find your inspirations? A lot of our set ups and creations involve trial and error. We have wonderful suppliers such as florists and equipment decor companies. But also staying on top of trends in the catering business worldwide helps with inspiration. There are many caterers creating amazing things daily. Thank you to social media we can draw inspiration globally now. When did your business begin? Norma & Co started in 2021 during Covid, on the backbone of Norma & Vilma Caterers. Covid hit our industry hard and instead of closing our doors permanently we decided to restructure, move our premises, downsize substantially and start again. This was a huge leap of faith but we are so grateful that we were able to remain relevant to some of our clients, and have gained so many more along the way. Which was the first embassy you catered for? I was still a young girl but I remember my mom and aunts catering for the Embassy of Peru National day even before the business had a business premises. When the business was still being run from our kitchen in our family home. How many embassies do you now cater for? In diplomatic circles, there is always changeover of staff regularly so we are grateful for our South African contacts that carry us through the different missions. We work with a wonderful group of ambassadors, high commissioners, consul generals and others. I would estimate we probably work with approximately 25 embassies at the moment.
Yahoo
21-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Bride slams ‘disrespectful' family for poor wedding guest etiquette: ‘Very hurtful'
This blushing bride was beyond bothered after a guest snubbed her luxurious brunch spread for a bucket of fried chicken — and then rudely boasted about it on social media. Six weeks after the wedding, the newlywed took to Reddit to vent her frustration in the Subreddit r/weddingplanning, and gauge whether or not she was overreacting to the incident. She shared that she had spent eight months 'meticulously' planning the wedding with her husband and parents, and after much deliberation, they opted to celebrate the 'elegant morning ceremony' with a brunch-based reception at a venue well-known for the renowned chef's 'exquisite catering.' 'We hand-selected our menu items months in advance, including shrimp and grits, quiche, a biscuit bar with assorted jellies, sausage, and bacon, chicken and waffles, and much, much more,' wrote the bride in her post, and added that the spread cost the couple $98 per person. She also explained that early on in their relationship, she and her husband started a tradition of enjoying Saturday morning brunch together, so the reception marked their first brunch as a married couple, making it an extra sentimental occasion for the pair. As with just about any wedding, there were a few unpopular family members in attendance. 'My uncle and his wife are in the midst of a rocky separation, and his wife has a history of being rude to and taking advantage of the rest of the family. We were surprised to hear that he was bringing her with him to the wedding about 3 days prior, given the situation, but said nothing about it,' she explained. Apparently, while making the 15-minute drive from the church to the reception venue, the uncle and his wife were feeling peckish, so naturally, they stopped for a few buckets of fried chicken at a fast-food joint. The bride clarified that this wasn't the issue, and in fact, was completely fine with it — it was the wife's actions once she arrived at the venue that truly aggravated her. After entering the reception and evaluating the luxe brunch spread — which the bride clarified had plenty of options to choose from, and was even abundant enough to be sent home as leftovers with the newlyweds — her uncle's wife went back out to the parking lot, 'retrieved the leftover fast food, and then she re-entered the reception hall with it and ate it openly at one of our decorated round tables.' Still, this brazen move wasn't the boiling point for the bride. Apparently, the uncle and his wife took 'pictures of themselves eating the fast food at the table (with the brand packaging all out in the open)' and 'they have now posted those pictures on Facebook on two separate occasions,' leaving the bride and her mother, who played a large role in planning, hurt and offended. To add insult to injury, other family members commented on the chicken contrabandist's posts, writing, 'nothing classier than bringing fast food to a catered wedding!' 'I'm struggling with feeling like I was disrespected on a day that we put so much time, money, energy, and thought into planning, and every time they post about it just digs the knife in deeper,' the bride's Reddit post concluded. 'I don't want to comment on the post or anything because I'm afraid to be seen as overreacting or like a bridezilla, but it's very hurtful.' Though angry brides often take plenty of flak online — take it from this woman who demanded that her toddler flower girls all straighten their hair to match better in photos, or this ultra-specific dress code designated by a judgmental bride-to-be — the comments under this Reddit thread were staunchly on the side of the original poster. 'It's frying me that they ate fried chicken when you literally served fried chicken,' pointed out one punning commenter. 'This makes it obvious to me that she just wanted to make a scene.' 'I personally wouldn't let this one keep me up at night,' advised another. 'She embarrassed herself, not you, and the Facebook post where someone called her out is a perfect example of that. She may have laughed off their comment, but trust me when I say she is the only person who looks bad here.' A majority of the comments commiserated with the bride, and offered their own stories, ranging from a groom who wouldn't eat his own reception food and ordered McDonald's to the venue instead, to a huge group of family members who complained about the wedding menu in advance. 'It sounds like your other guests were judging them harshly too. I'd let other people stand up for you, like that family member, and you get to be the classy bride who rose above it all. Obviously, no one likes this woman, and there's no point in letting her ruin your day!' replied one wise Redditor.
