Gerardo “Gerry” Macip has spent years building tequila bars and Mexican restaurants across Sydney. Now he and his wife, Harriet, have brought that experience closer to home with Retro Cronulla. The 150-seat restaurant and bar brings together the best of Mexican food, Neapolitan-style pizza, and one of The Shire’s biggest tequila and mezcal selections. The Macips are locals, but Gerry’s connection to Mexican food and hospitality started much earlier. He grew up in Mexico City before moving to Australia in the 1990s and began his hospitality career behind the bar at Vivaz in The Rocks. Since then, he has built a portfolio of nine venues including Calaveras Mexican Cantina and Tequila Bar and, more recently, Run Dos Run on Enmore Road, which was named among Australia’s Top 10 Tequila Bars in 2025. Retro takes some of that agave knowledge south without simply recreating Run Dos Run. Tequila and mezcal are a major part of the bar, while the kitchen splits its attention between Mexican dishes and Neapolitan-style pizzas. “When opening Retro, our first concept was the bar. With extensive knowledge of agave spirits, we knew that having the biggest range of tequilas and mezcals in The Shire would be the centre focus of our venue,” said Macip. The Quesabirria Tacos come with slow-cooked beef folded into crisp, cheesy tortillas and birria consommé made with imported Mexican chillies and traditional spices. Elsewhere, the menu includes wood-fired bread, guacamole with lime and pico de gallo, corn ribs with chipotle mayo, parmesan and parsley and taquitos filled with pulled chicken and spices. Italian chef Alberto Facci helped develop the pizza menu, using 48-hour fermented Biga dough cooked in a custom red MAMforni rotating oven imported from Italy and assembled on site. The pizzas range from Margherita and Diavola to a Tequila BBQ Chicken. The drinks list is less restrained. The Spicy Mango mixes tequila, agave, lime, fresh mango, mango gelato and habanero, while the Messina Espresso Martini uses Messina dulce de leche. There is also an Apple Pie cocktail, a riff on an apple-tini with a Fireball finish. Retro stretches across an indoor dining room and two outdoor balconies, with room for 150 guests. The format shifts across the week, keeping things easy for family dinners and casual meals before turning louder on Fridays and weekends. “What I love about Retro is the way its personality evolves. It can be relaxed, welcoming and family-friendly, then as the weekend approaches, everything shifts. Friday and weekend lunches bring the fun with bottomless food and drinks, and by night the DJs are on, the cocktails are flowing and Retro really comes alive,” said Macip. A 90-minute bottomless lunch runs on weekends for $99 per person, while DJs take over later in the evening. Kids aged 12 and under dine free every Sunday. Retro can be found at 1 McDonald St, Cronulla NSW 2230. Source: Curated Agency Find more dining out updates on Crumb Wire.

Macca’s has turned the humble cardboard drinks tray into an actual handbag, complete with cup holders, gold hardware and enough room for keys, sunnies and headphones. The limited-edition McCafé Tray Bag takes the familiar cardboard drinks tray and turns it into a proper carry bag, finished in a rich fig colour with a chunky shoulder strap, zip pocket and dedicated drink holders. Only 100 will be available in the first drop, and they’ll be free. It is ridiculous in exactly the way a fast-food fashion collab should be, but the timing is not completely random. Macca’s has spent much of this year pushing further into drinks, including a national beverage expansion in July that added 10 new options across Refreshers, Energisers, Crafted Sodas and iced and cold coffee. “Earlier this year, Aussies showed us they’re more than willing to mix up their usual drink order, and we’ve continued to see that adventurous spirit grow,” said Tobi Fukushima, Marketing Director of Menu at McDonald’s Australia. “We’re always looking for new ways to bring exciting flavours to our customers, and these two new drinks are all about giving people fresh reasons to discover a new favourite sip. “At the same time, we know drinks have become more than just something to enjoy. They’re part of daily rituals, culture and self-expression, which is why we couldn’t stop at drinks alone. “The McCafé Tray Bag is a playful reimagining of one of our most iconic items, bringing together fashion, function and our love of the drinks run in a way only Macca’s can.” There are now three more additions to the drinks menu on the way, giving the Tray Bag something new to carry: Iced Tiramisu Latte with Cold Foam: McCafé espresso with tiramisu flavoured syrup and milk, served over ice and topped with cold foam and cocoa. Red Bull Strawberries & Cream Energiser: Red Bull with strawberry flavoured syrup, topped with cold foam and freeze-dried strawberries, served over ice. Affogato: A shot of McCafé espresso poured over vanilla soft serve. Fashion and lifestyle creator Riley Hemson fronts the Tray Bag campaign, which plays directly into the way coffee runs have become content in their own right. “I love anything that’s unexpected, and this is probably the most unexpected accessory I’ve ever owned,” said Hemson. “It’s instantly recognisable, a little bit playful but still looks chic. Whether I’m grabbing my go-to Brown Sugar Shaken Espresso or catching up with friends over a crisp Refresher, it’s my new drinks-run essential.” The first 100 McCafé Tray Bags will be available from 12 pm AEDT on Friday, October 9 through the dedicated Tray Bag website, with a second drop still to be announced. The Iced Tiramisu Latte with Cold Foam, Red Bull Strawberries & Cream Energiser and Affogato will join Macca’s menus nationwide from Wednesday, October 14. Source: Omnicom Find more food and drink news on Crumb Wire.

The Great Graze is returning to Barangaroo, bringing 25 food stalls, native ingredients, and a long communal table to the waterfront for the weekend. A new partnership with Aboriginal-owned hospitality business Indigiearth gives this year’s festival a stronger First Nations focus. Founder Sharon Winsor will curate a Native Food Market at Pier Pavilion, where Indigenous food businesses will sell ready-to-eat dishes and take-home products made with native ingredients. Director of retail and place at Lendlease, Monique de Cseuz, said, “Barangaroo continues to be a must-visit hospitality, arts and culture precinct, with an innovative and diverse program of activity throughout the year. “The Great Graze is a wonderful example of this, giving Sydneysiders and visitors alike the chance to explore our waterfront in a new way – through food and community. Events like this are central to what makes Barangaroo such a vibrant place to spend time.” Winsor’s own menu includes a crocodile roll with slow-cooked crocodile tail and finger lime, kangaroo and bush tomato mince served with guacamole, cheese, Kakadu plum and sea succulent corn chips, plus a bush tomato and vegetable dish with Kakadu plum salad and finger lime balsamic dressing. Native ingredients will also show up across the wider festival. Restaurants along Wulugul Walk have been asked to include at least one in their pop-up menus, with Belles Hot Chicken serving a sandwich with Kakadu plum glaze and waffles with native fruit syrup. Anason, Belles Hot Chicken, Gina, Lotus, Muum Maam and Zushi will all be trading along the foreshore, while a long communal picnic table will run through Wulugul Walk for anyone planning to make a meal of the circuit rather than stop at just one stall. Over at Waterman’s Cove, the line-up includes Anita Gelato, Annamese, Banksia Bakehouse, Bottega Coco, Devon Cafe, Mr Panino, Sweet Belem and Tea Republic. So far, the menu includes Annamese’s grilled chicken lemongrass skewer with hoisin, peanut and nuoc cham, Anita Gelato’s wattleseed crème brûlée ice cream and a strawberry cream cheese doughnut from Devon Cafe. There is also a sweet trail running through the precinct, with seven dessert retailers serving festival-only specials. Banksia Bakehouse is putting out a wattleseed and chocolate chip cookie and a crème brûlée Danish, while BROOKI, Rivareno Gelato, Yo-Chi, Bourke Street Bakery and Enze are also taking part. Pier Pavilion will double as the First Nations Hub, with products from Aboriginal businesses including Native Botanical Brewery, Ziggy’s Wild Foods, Southcoast Seaweed, Baagi Milaygin, Unexpected Guest, Lore Australia and Ngumpie Weaving. Barangaroo House will become the Barangaroo House Festival Bar for the weekend, adding an extended licensed area to the food markets, live music and family-friendly entertainment spread across the precinct. The Great Graze is free to enter and runs across Barangaroo on Saturday, October 17 and Sunday, October 18. The precinct is accessible by ferry and Metro, or around a five-minute walk from Wynyard Station. Source: The Cru Find more food and drink news on Crumb Wire.

Australians do not need much convincing when it comes to mango season. Around 95% of the country’s mango crop is eaten locally and Peters Frosty Fruits is betting there is still room for one more version of summer’s favourite fruit. The new Frosty Fruits Mango Sorbet stick takes that familiar flavour into supermarket freezers, combining mango sorbet made with real mango puree with a passionfruit sorbet swirl made using real passionfruit juice. It also looks the part. The stick comes in a mango-shaped mould with a soft sorbet texture, no artificial colours or flavours and 56 calories per serve, which the brand says is fewer calories than a whole mango. “Mango is such an iconic part of the Australian summer, so it felt like the perfect flavour to bring to Frosty Fruits in a fresh and playful way. The launch is an exciting step forward for Frosty Fruits, extending our successful sorbet platform with a fresh new offering for consumers,” said Andrea Hamori, Head of Marketing at Peters Ice Cream. While mango season only comes around once a year, Aussie brands have made sure the flavour can be enjoyed without interruption. Biscuits, cakes, drinks – the king of summer fruit is everywhere, all year round. “We know Australians love Frosty Fruits for its refreshing, fruity flavours, and our new Mango Sorbet takes that experience somewhere new. Whether it’s cooling down after a day at the beach or reaching for a fruity treat on a warm summer evening, we think this will quickly become a new freezer favourite,” Hamori added. For Frosty Fruits, the mango stick extends its existing sorbet range rather than straying too far from what people already know the brand for: cold, fruity freezer snacks made for hot weather. Frosty Fruits Mango Sorbet will start rolling out nationally from mid-September. Six-packs will be available at grocery stores for RRP $9, while single serves will be sold through petrol and convenience stores for RRP $3.50. The new flavour joins Frosty Fruits Fruit Stack, Tropical 50% Less Sugar, Tropical and Watermelon Slice. Source: WiredCo. Find more food retail updates on Crumb Wire.