Sydney siders don’t need a boarding pass to take their tastebuds on a globe-trotting getaway this weekend. Instead, a short stroll to inner-city Surry Hills should satisfy both their sweet tooth and taste for travel. In an exciting collaboration that’s truly the icing on the (matcha) cake, ING will be serving up a slice of wanderlust with an exclusive pop-up featuring dessert queen Catherine Zhang.
The event owes its inspiration to fresh-out-of-the-oven findings from ING, who recently revealed that three in four Aussies who’ve travelled in the past year said that food was a major factor when picking their destination. Little surprise when one considers that local cuisine is a meal, a moment and a memory that lasts long after you return from a place you loved.
And, the good news for those feeling a little put off by exorbitant exchange rates and expired passports, is that this pop-up promises to satisfy your cravings for both sugar and adventure for whole lots less than an overpriced hotel room! In fact, you’ll want to set your calendars to sugar o’clock fast, because this foodie event – which runs from 11am to 3pm on Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 June at Ground/413 Bourke Street in Surry Hill – is absolutely free!
By way of background, Catherine Zhang, the pastry prodigy behind the event, is something of a national treasure in the baking world. She won Zumbo’s Just Desserts and dazzled dessert lovers across TikTok, Instagram (789K followers), and YouTube. And, now she’s gone global. More specifically, the USA, where Catherine’s LA-based shop, Tu Cha, is one of the hottest dessert spots in Koreatown. Today, she can be spotted plating up sculptural sweets that look like they belong in a museum rather than your mouth. (But oh, they belong in your mouth).
Her creations have taken Los Angeles by storm, with standout sweets like the My Man Go (a realistic mango filled with mango mousse and hazelnut praline), the Citron (a lemon-shaped chocolate shell housing passionfruit creme and lemon yuzu), and the Berry3 (a futuristic cube of strawberry coulis, pistachio praline and raspberry mousse that’s as Instagrammable as it is edible). For matcha lovers, the Dubai Matcha Dream Cake blends green tea sponge, pistachio knafeh, and mousse into a heart-shaped homage to both love and luxury. Similarly, Catherine’s signature drinks – everything from brown sugar boba to taro milk tea and refreshing fruit tonics with lychee, yuzu or pineapple – are proof that she’s just as good as sips as she is sweets.
Want in on the secret sweet treat? Expect an exclusive orange creation (only 1500 in total!) featuring mandarin curd, tropical pineapple mousse, white chocolate and feuillantine crunch all wrapped up in a mandarin white chocolate shell. And the icing on the cake? You can enjoy it all completely jet lag free!