Stories

Keeping active is so good for your mind, body and soul. While going to the gym or on a long run may be out of the question for now, we’ve discovered some cool companies that are bringing the fitness goods to your living room. Grassroots Yoga & Health are the home of inspired hatha yoga, taught with skilful alignment, awareness, intention and heart. They recently posted their first 40-minute session on their Facebook page (@GrassrootsYogaChristchurch) to help keep you moving. It’s a simple and sweet one – experienced yogis can expand on these poses, or if you’re new to the practice you can easily simplify the moves. Veronica, who is at the helm of this awesome business, is working on a virtual studio as we speak so stay tuned! grassrootsyoga.co.nz Les Mills On Demand brings you the best, authentic Les Mills workouts anywhere, anytime and on almost any device. The service...

Stay social and talk to your friends, play games with people from afar, and whare your work with office buddies who can’t currently look over your shoulder. As we all adjust to working from home, you will probably find yourself missing some of the little things about your place of work, such as chats over the watercooler or the benefits of your stand-up desk. At Cityscape we’re most sad about missing out on our morning tea and catch-ups, but we’ve adjusted and are using these cool apps to stay connected. Facebook Houseparty is the new kid on the block and can fit up to eight people on the screen at a time. It’s a great way to stay connected, especially if you have a medium-sized team, or just want to catch up with some friends – you can even play games together through the app. Zoom has become an essential tool...

The best home-made meals start with top-quality ingredients. These delis all offer something a bit different, and we love them for it. Cashmere CuisineThis award-winning boutique butchery specialises in top quality cuts. Every order is like a work of art. All meat is free-farmed and sourced locally. cashmerecuisine.co.nz Grater GoodsPlant-based butchery and deli. You can order the ingredients from the shop, or go straight to the deli menu for vegan soup, toasties, burgers and desserts. gratergoods.co.nz Cured NZIf you’re crazy about salami you’re going to love this Christchurch business with a range of tasty artisan salami to spice up your meals. cured.nz

In this series, we let you know some of our favourite places to pick up some food or get deliveries around Christchurch. Here are Cityscape’s recommendations for pizza, pasta, lamb and spicy Portuguese chicken. Pedro’s House of LambPedro’s does one thing, and does it right: whole lamb shoulder, slow baked with rosemary and garlic, and served with scalloped potatoes. pedros.co.nz SpagalimisThe oldest restaurant in Christchurch is carrying on strong making pizzas for click & collect and delivery. spagalimis.co.nz Base PizzaClassic and modern pizzas with great vegetarian and vegan options available. Limited delivery and pick up slots available, so get in fast! basepizza.co.nz Café ValentinoA Christchurch classic, serving up woodfired pizzas to go. A favourite spot among visiting celebrities – but for now they’ll have to get takeaways like everyone else. cafevalentino.co.nz Francesca’s Italian KitchenThis successful Wanaka restaurant has been operating a Christchurch branch for a few years now, serving top-notch authentic...

With Level 2 under way, we're getting used to having our real barista-made coffee fix back. There is a lot to choose from in Christchurch, so here are some of Cityscape’s favourites. MiroMiro is famous for its brunches and lunches, which thankfully are available to order online. Also check out the fresh juice menu! miro.nz Coffee Skills MobileThis operation feels like it was built to cater during a lockdown. Coffee Skills has three mobile coffee vans that bring daily orders direct to your workplace. coffeeskills.nz The Caffeine LaboratoryPlanning a romantic date at home? This very tasty café on the corner of New Regent Street is delivering meals for two. caffeinelab.co.nz Little Pom’sThe wildly popular café attached to the wildly popular Pomeroy’s Pub is serving up coffee and scones to take away. littlepoms.co.nz MomentMoment sources its fresh produce from local suppliers, supporting fellow small businesses. Eat local! momentcafe.co.nz Unknown ChapterThis roastery and...

You could join the queue of 50 cars for a quick and nasty drive-through burger fix, or you could make the smart call and order an awesome burger from one of these gourmet joints. BurgerFuel // The Bastard Ingredients: 100% pure grass-fed beef, melted cheddar, bacon, raw grated beetroot with chia seeds, mango, smashed avocado, salad, tomato relish and free-range aioli. One of the originals on the menu at the first BurgerFuel store. The Bastard is like a pizza with ‘the works’ and once people got over the polarising mango and beef combo, it quickly became one of the most popular burgers on the menu. burgerfuel.co.nz The Burger Joint // The Bomb Ingredients: 100% pure NZ beef, bacon, cheese, egg, beetroot relish, lettuce, onion and pickles. From a menu of sumptuous choices, including kimchi and a delicious grilled eggplant vegetarian option, The Bomb stands out. It’s been on the menu since...

In this series, we let you know some of our favourite places to pick up some food or get deliveries around Christchurch. Here are our recommendations for Indian, Japanese and fusion restaurants. The Dish The Dish boasts so many Asian-flavoured delights that you may have to do some serious study before ordering. Or just take a stab at the menu, it’s hard to go wrong! thedish.co.nz Nom Nom Kitchen This South East Asian restaurant has a selection of super flavourful dishes with plenty of gluten-free, vegetarian and vegan-friendly options. nomnomkitchen.co.nz Coriander’s A Christchurch Indian institution, with three restaurants around Christchurch there’s bound to be one convenient to you. corianders.co.nz Mumbaiwala Styling itself as an Indian street kitchen, Mumbaiwala has all the classic dishes you’d expect, and some delicious unique twists. mumbaiwala.co.nz Tomi Japanese For fresh Japanese takeaway food, you can’t go past Tomi. We recommend getting a Bento Box for a...

Sometimes home baking just takes too long! Cityscape is here to help with some of our favourite places to pick up some fresh breads and pastries. Good Honest Products Good Honest supplies bread to some of Christchurch’s top eateries, and you can get your hands on it straight from the source. You can also pick up some baking supplies and fresh pizza dough. goodhonest.nz Grizzly Baked Goods Grizzly is famous for its sourdough bread, and its bakers pride themselves on taking the time to get things right. No shortcuts here! grizzlybakedgoods.com Bohemian Bakery Bohemian products are available at New World Redcliffs, or to collect directly from the bakery. You can also get a Saturday delivery if you order by Wednesday. bohemianbakery.co.nz Vic’s Bakehouse Pick up a bread box, bagels and coffee from Vic’s in Ferrymead, or get baked goods delivered to your home. vics.co.nz Bellbird Bakery An award-winning purveyor of breads...

If there’s one thing we love, it’s supporting small, unique and cool businesses around New Zealand. A new website called SOS Business has just launched to give people a way to keep buying from their favourite shops. SOS Business is a not-for-profit website set up during the Covid-19 lockdown to make buying vouchers easy. The idea is simple: why not take the few dollars you would normally spend on a daily coffee and buy a voucher from your local café? You can give vouchers to friends and family who are looking forward to a bit of freedom, or keep them yourself as a reminder that you’re going to need a treat when all this is over. The cash goes straight to the businesses now, so they can pay their staff and bills and be ready to rock when they reopen. Businesses you can support include hundreds of cafés and bars, barbers,...

This Asian fusion salad designed by The Dish is an Autumn treat with hot salmon and fresh fruit. Substitute in a green apple if you can’t get your hands on a mango. Serves 2. INGREDIENTS MEAT 150g Salmon, skinless and bonelessSea salt, to taste DRESSING 50g palm sugar (or white sugar)30ml fish sauce½ tsp chilli flakesJuice from ½ lemon SALAD 4 mandarin pieces150g grated mango (or green apple)1 pinch of coriander1 spring onion, sliced¼ red onion, sliced2 tbsp peanuts, crushed4 to 5 leaves baby spinach METHOD Grill one side of the salmon on medium heat. While it's cooking, sprinkle a pinch of sea salt on the uncooked side.Flip the salmon to grill the other side. Sprinkle a pinch of sea salt on the upper (cooked) side.Put palm sugar, fish sauce, chilli flakes and lemon juice in a mixing bowl. Mix until palm sugar dissolves into a liquid. (Hint: you can microwave...

Yes, that’s right. Things are on. This very weekend you can attend a West End musical, live Kiwi music concerts, go to the movies, or throw a cocktail party, all without leaving your bubble. Cityscape has your guide to making the most of this weekend’s entertainment offerings. THEATRE The Phantom of the Opera, Saturday April 18 to Sunday April 19 From Saturday 8am you can stream one of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s most famous musicals. Set up your own home theatre complete with a haunted Box 5 and dress up or down as you please - we’ll be trying out the bowtie and trackpants look to get in the mood. The Show Must Go On! is streaming a different Lloyd Webber musical each week along with behind-the scenes footage. It’s all free, but if you want to contribute something, the channel has links to some recommended charitable organisations. youtube.com/theshowsmustgoon LIVE MUSIC Better...

One of the cinematic hits of 2019 was Knives Out, a dark murder-mystery comedy in the vein of Agatha Christie. Now, perfectly timed for the lockdown, comes the film’s digital release. Knives Out has rapidly become a favourite with critics and punters alike. Typical of director Rian Johnson’s work (Brick, Looper, Star Wars: The Last Jedi), there’s many a knowing wink between director and audience as he simultaneously honours and subverts the conventions of an Agatha Christie-style ‘whodunit’. Even the location, a suitably gothic old mansion, has been compared to a Cluedo board, with lots of scope for eavesdropping and silent exits. The heavily plotted script is a ripper but it’s the quality of the all-star cast that brings it home. The ensemble includes Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Toni Collette and Christopher Plummer. There’s a fair bit of scenery-chewing at times...

You have it now, Cityscapers, the rarest of the rare – a round tuit. In fact you have weeks of them, and you can use them to get around to doing all manner of things. But what? Here’s our list: 1 / Declutter Marie Kondo created a sensation last year with her Netflix series Tidying Up with Marie Kondo but who actually got around to doing anything? Here’s your chance to clear out the clutter and choose joy. Remember though that one person’s trash is another’s treasure, so be sure to fully consult with your bubble buddies before biffing anything. konmari.com 2 / Deep clean your car Bring back that new-car smell with the mother of all cleans. Get out an old toothbrush and some cotton buds and go deep into every crevice and fold. Go hard with the glass cleaner as well – you’ll be amazed at the difference it...

There are so many podcasts that it can be overwhelming at times to even know where to start. Here at Cityscape we are focusing on our 5 Ways to Wellbeing and have uncovered some primo podcasts to have you well on your way to smashing these goals. Check out our top 20 picks. 1 / Happier Author and host Gretchen Rubin relentlessly explores human nature to understand how each of us can make our lives better. She discusses daily habits and the role they play, giving simple tips along the way to help you be happier. Some of the topics she covers include keeping a stress diary, the effect music can have and the joys of movement. 2 / StartUp A look into entrepreneurial life, this series follows the starting of various businesses and was turned into a TV series. The first season is all about the start-up of Gimlet Media,...

We’ve pulled together our top picks of films and bingeworthy shows to keep you entertained. We’ve include what’s hot right now, some golden oldies and others that will inspire you to be active and expand your mind. Check out our top 20 picks. 1 / Babies This six-part series explores how infants discover life during their first year. From nature to nurture and everything in between, learn about the biology of bonding, the transitional phase of crawling, the breakdown of linguistics, the importance of sleep and the ways that walking change a baby’s world. 2 / Formula 1 Drive to Survive This series pulls back the chequered flag and shows the life in the fast lane of the drivers, managers and team owners of Formula 1. Each season of racing is cut-throat, and there’s many hands involved in getting the cars on the track – see what happens on and off...

The Royal New Zealand Ballet knows how keenly its loyal followers are missing their dose of pirouettes and pas de deux so starting on Friday April 3, it will offer free broadcasts of recent performances via Facebook Premiere. The move follows the decision by RNZ Ballet to postpone its May – July season of Venus Rising to August – September 2020 and to cancel its season of Dangerous Liaisons to accommodate this. If you have tickets for either ballet, you will be contacted after April 20 to discuss options for re-booking, exchanges, donations and refunds. If you do not yet have tickets to Venus Rising, RNZB asks you to check in with them after April 20 for an update on the rescheduled performances. In the meantime, gather up the ballet fans in your bubble and tune in to Facebook Premiere over the weekend. The first ballet for broadcast is Christmas 2019’s...

Here’s a great idea from our friends at Juno Gin – join them at Easter for the first pour of their 2020 Autumn Seasonal Gin. The venue? Your place, of course! How does it work? The clue is in the name. Juno has called it a ‘Virtual Release Event: The First Pour’ – the team at the distillery invite you to celebrate the release of their 2020 Autumn Seasonal Gin with a delicious cocktail pack and recipes delivered to your door in time for Easter Weekend. On top of a 200ml bottle of Autumn 2020 Gin and another of Juno Gin Extra Fine, you will receive a cocktail tutorial to make both a cold and hot autumn cocktail, two bottles of Fever Tree tonic and insight from the makers as to what makes this Autumn Gin so spectacular. (Spoiler alert: expect your taste-buds to sing with Taranaki oranges, mountain horopito and...

Start planning your post-lockdown escape with our guide to New Zealand’s ultimate ‘staycation’ venues. We have tracked down the South Island’s finest, where you can enjoy the lifestyle of the rich and famous and soak up some of our most iconic scenery. ANNANDALE, BANKS PENINSULA You’re spoiled for choice at this super lux 4,000-acre sheep and cattle farm escape on the coast, with four award-winning world-class villas up for grabs. It’s steeped in history (it’s one of the South Island’s earliest and most regarded farms), and spans 10-kilometres of wild rugged coastline along Banks Peninsula’s Pigeon Bay. Accommodation options include the property’s lovingly-restored centrepiece, the five-bedroom 1880s Annandale Homestead, complete with infinity and spa pools; the charming rustic lux of the historic Shepherd’s Cottage for two, boasting uninterrupted views of the sea, Scrubby Bay’s cedar-clad bucolic beach house in a private bay setting for larger groups, and the jaw-on-the-floor inducing, glass...