Daily News & Opinion

The Star Sydney and Gold Coast have both taken out multiple titles at the 2018 Good Food Guide Awards, including ‘three hats’ for Star Sydney’s flagship restaurant Momofuku Seiōbo. Momofuku’s executive chef Paul Carmichael, who creates dishes with nods to his Caribbean heritage, said the team was very happy and honoured. Other wins included the national Service Excellence Award for general manager of Momofuku Kylie Javier Ashton, one hat for Sydney’s Sokyo, and a chef’s hat for The Star Gold Coast’s Kiyomi.

More than 1200 delegates from over 230 airlines across the world will land in Brisbane next year for the 145th International Air Transport Association Slot Conference. Taking place between November 12 and 15 2019, the conference will focus on developing the best worldwide airline schedules for passengers in 2020, and allow Brisbane to showcase its event delivery capabilities. It is predicted the conference will pump more than $2.3 million into the Queensland economy.

Events across Queensland will receive a combined $799,000 in funding as part of the latest round of TEQ’s Queensland Destination Events Program (QDEP) supporting events and driving tourism throughout the state. Funding has been announced to support events which have strong potential audiences or participation numbers, and which positively profile host communities and deliver economic benefits. The next round is open for applications until October 10, 2018 for events held between May 2019 and May 2020.      

The Children’s Cancer Foundation held its Million Dollar Lunch earlier this month at Crown Melbourne, raising a record $2.5 million. The night involved over 600 celebrities flocking to the space, which was given an inter-galactic theme courtesy of Encore Event Technologies. Guests were treated to pre-function cocktails in a space emulating a rocket ship, before progressing through mist-shrouded tunnels to the Palladium Ballroom, a scene of starry lights on a draped ceiling and LED effects to reflect the windows of a spaceship.

Nikie Mok, a proven leader with a passion for mentoring and nurturing future talents, has just been appointed director of sales and marketing at W Kuala Lumpur. A hospitality veteran with over 18 years’ experience, Nikie has previously worked at Hotel Nikko Kuala Lumpur, Renaissance Kuala Lumpur Hotel and Le Meridien Kuala Lumpur Hotel in sales and marketing positions. In her new role, Nikie will be given the chance to capitalise on her talents for multitasking, building connections and discovering what’s new.

Air New Zealand has been listed as Australia’s most reputable company in the Reputation Institute’s annual Australia Corporate Reputation Index. For the second year in a row the airline trumped companies such as Toyota, Apple, Qantas and Nestle for the prestigious title. Air New Zealand General manager Australia Kathryn Robertson said the airline’s chat bot Oscar and $100 million lounge investment contributed to the win.

With its policy of not sending the media a full list of Meetings & Events Australia state award winners, winners promoting the event themselves continue to hit our inbox. That latest is from ExpoNet which is pleased as punch it won the MEA NSW State award in the Exhibition Services category. And another winner was the Sydney Olympic Park Authority business events team which secured the NSW award for Metropolitan Destination Marketing Organisation. Image courtesy of Oneill Photographics.

The W Brisbane, the first five-star hotel to open in Brisbane City in 20 years will mark the re-entry of the W brand into Australia when it opens in June. Located at 81 North Quay, the W Brisbane will offer 312 stylish guestrooms, including 29 suites and two Presidential Suites, all showcasing views of the Brisbane River. Meeting and event facilities cover approximately 1100 sqms and are fully equipped with world class audio-visual facilities.