Marshmallow cafe
For many of us, marshmallows are a relic of children’s birthday parties and campfire snacking. Perhaps in our advancing age we have forgotten the bliss of mushing a handful of pillowy marshmallows into our gobs, but when we came across XO Marshmallow all of our forgotten memories came flooding back. XO Marshmallow is a Chicago-based gourmet marshmallow and ‘mars-halos’ (that’s doughnut-shaped marshmallows) business that is currently in the midst of fitting out its very own marshmallow cafe. We hear talk an espresso bar, s’mores station, specialty marshmallow desserts and (taco s’mores and marshmallow cones, for example) and heaps of marshmallows to take home. This news is making us crave a hot chocolate and marshmallow more than ever.
Image: XO Marshmallow

Phoritto
We know what you’re thinking – yes, pho is a soup. No, this is not a soup-filled burrito. Los Angeles-based Asian-meets-Mexican restaurant Komodo made a big splash in the food fusion scene when it unveiled the phoritto in 2014. Originally intended as a joke, the Komodo team were taken by surprise when the special took off. Now, this combination of jalapenos, bean sprouts, rib eye beef, sriracha, hoisin and rice noodles wrapped in a tortilla is one of the venue’s most popular choices. Not only is the phoritto the grab-and-go lunch of our dreams, we want to visit Komodo for its entire menu, which also features banh mi chicken tacos, kimchi nachos and tater tots and steak topped with jalapeno aioli.

MUJI Hut
If you’ve had a gutful of work lately it’s only natural to want to break free. But sometimes the typical tourist holiday isn’t what we really need to reset and recharge – we need to escape, like, long term. MUJI is a Japanese brand that provides living solutions for those that want to get off the grid and live among nature without giving up all of their creature comforts. The MUJI Hut itself is a nine square-metre prefabricated hut that intended for building just about anywhere – next to a lake, in the mountains or even in your own back yard. The structure sits somewhere between a permanent residency and a holiday cabin, and while it might be a bit of a serious undertaking compared to a holiday, having a place to retreat to sounds like a dream come Friday. There is currently no scheduled date for sales of the MUJI Hut outside of Japan, but until there is we will keep dreaming of cosy forest cabins and spacious seaside lodges.
Image: MUJI

Virtual-reality cocktails
It’s hard to imagine what the bar of the future will look like, but if the standard set by One Aldwych in London is any indication then it will probably incorporate virtual reality. We’re not talking about digital drinks, here, but rather virtual reality being used to enhance the drinking experience. Patrons at One Aldwych’s Lobby Bar can order The Origin from the cocktail menu, whereupon a headset is given to them to watch a virtual tour of Dalmore whisky distillery, soar above vineyards and a quick float through Convent Garden. After the headset comes off, drinkers will find the cocktail ready in front of them. Although we can’t say we are game to don a headset every time we want a tipple, those curious about the origins and composition of their drink will surely get a kick out of this level of interactivity.
Image: One Aldwych

Nutella doughnut bouquets
Here’s a hot tip, people. If you want to give your significant other a bouquet to tell them how much they mean to you, ditch the roses in favour of Nutella doughnuts. That’s right – doughnuts. Sydney-based outfit Dessertboxes has been making a killing selling a range of outlandish dessert-based gifts including boxes of sweet treats (and booze), personalised coconuts and cronut towers, but the Nutella doughnut bouquet has taken it to another level. Other varieties include the likes of Krispy Kreme doughnuts instead of the Nutella-filled variety, but everyone knows the way to our heart is with choc-hazelnut cream.
Image: Dessertboxes