-Quality, fresh, clean cuts of meat and poultry at very reasonable prices…read more -Friendly butcher who will remember your order/preferences after the first visit! -Standouts are the breast chicken fillets (sometimes you can get great specials towards the end of the day, such as $5-$7 for 500 grams), the delicious chorizo sausages, and the huge sirloin steaks. - Great alternative to the IGA supermarket nearby, for those times when you're in a hurry, want to avoid the crowds, and the temptation of the confectionary aisle.

I know I'm going to sound like a girl when I say this, but...I love pretty little, shiny things!…read moreThat's why I can never stroll past Abode without a cheeky browse at whatever they have in there. It's hard to define what this store is about, it has home-wares but it also has plenty of awesome novelty gifts. I'll admit I am guilty of walking in there, buying a present for a friend and then falling so in love with it that I keep it. I'm a horrible person, I know, but you try it! You'll go bonkers for all the gorgeous, funny and random things in there. Whether you feel like adding something quirky to your home, buying a card for a loved one or getting a present for someone, you'll find it in Abode. Just make sure to give yourself at least half an hour in there, I guarantee you'll keep getting side tracked.

Abode is the home of pretty things! This is the sort of shop you could browse in for hours trying…read moreto decide on the right card or gift for someone. The wooden floors, non in-your-face staff and quirky Things make this a really welcoming place to hang out in. Much like a place called Abode should be really. I don't see the point of greetings cards that aren't tailored to the person being greeted, and Adobe has a great selection of fun/arty/beautiful cards on top of the wide array of unique gifts for another person (or yourself of course). If you're looking for the likes of a unicorn lamp to a Dali-esque "melting clock" or just have no idea what to get your funky friend for their birthday, Adobe is a damn good place to start.

As a kid, I would revel in the gigantic orange juicer that sat out the front of this shop; a robot…read moreof a machine that sucked the fruit up from an abundant barrel of the stuff, crushing the oranges in its transparent belly and squirting the juice out the other end into plastic litre bottles. Antico's has seen many an incarnation since then, but it's always remained a supplier of quality fruit and veg at prices a little on the high side (their housemade salad mix features edible marigolds and violas, if that's any indication of gastronomic clout). Most recently, they've expanded to include a full cured and fresh meat section complete with dangling salami and giant legs of ham waiting to be carved to order. Though produce is always fresh and they stock a range of harder-to-find items - like lamb's lettuce, shimeji mushrooms and Thai eggplants - the prices are just too high to do the bulk of my shopping here. In the deli section, a 200 gram pot of bircher muesli is $6, while a small bag of paella rice is a whopping $10. I will pop in here if I'm after a foodie gift at the last minute, as their range of pantry goods include the aesthetically pleasing Simon Johnson products with walnut oil and tarragon vinegar aplenty.

Antico's beautifully displays his fruit and has customers from flocking all over the Nortth Shore…read moreto buy his fresh fruit, vegetables and organic food. He has samples of almost every fruit available for customers to try- it's almost like a small morning or afternoon tea delight! We always buy our fruit here because everything always tastes amazing and is in really good condition! The staff are really friendly and upon check out they make a point to say "have a nice day" enthusiastically. The prices are higher than normal but the quality is exceptional.

Amazing staff and a beautifully curated store with high quality gourmet food and kitchenwares.read more

Foodies be warned - you will find it very difficult to leave this shop without buying anything. I'm…read morenot even a foodie and I walked out with three designer gift cards, two cute drinking cups and a packet of star shaped hundreds and thousand chocolates. The store also has an cooking school in the back room. I had a peak at a class in progress as it is open to browsing shoppers. Though you can use your card you must spend over $20 - I got stuck out and had to rummage through my purse to find the dimes. Price wise you can find some inexpensive yummy original gifts and you can pay a lot for quality pots, pans and knives. If gourmet food gifts, giant jars of strawberry jam and funky kitchen appliances are your things Accoutrement is your place.

Don't shop anywhere else before checking the prices here. I've been shopping here for over twenty…read moreyears for that must have kitchen gadget to what to buy for Christmas, Wedding or any other special occasion. Because of the buying power of this store, all of the major brands are heavily discounted on single and box set items. Just a pity I have most kitchen ware now as boxed sets of Esteele Kitchenware Saucepans were $899 now only $350! What a bargain for the best saucepans made in Italy.

Awesome place for homewares, great prices, fantastic selection. I recently scored some sweet Jamie…read moreOliver stainless steel flatware. Regular price: $400, Victoria's Basement price: $119. That, ladies and gents, is what I'm talking about. And the quality is great, so my assumption is that this was last season's flatware. Does flatware even have a season? Well, whatever the reason, I don't care. I am very happy with my purchase.

I think it means that I watch too much Dexter but when I go into a Hardware Store and I'm buying…read moreplastic sheeting, rope and fishing line, I worry that the people in the shop will think that I'm a serial killer. I enter Hatimi Marketplace Hardware on the corner of Marion Street and Foster and check my phone to ensure I have the list and can start tracking down these necessary items ahead of Tuesdays music video shoot. All of a sudden, an older woman approaches me and asks what I need. I tell her, "Rope, Fishing Wire, Pegs and Sheeting." She leads me through the large hardware shop to the various items and I pick them up one at a time and add them to the stockpile growing in my arms. A young assistant, possibly her son, (the place feels very family owned) cuts me 15metres of rope and then I retrieve my sheeting. I get to the front counter and the lady has already put aside my pegs, which is nice. I pay for my goods, thank the shopkeepers and then head out into the blazing hot sun to hunt for victims.

Refreshingly different experience to Bunnings. Warm, welcoming and knowledgeable staff. No lines,…read morepersonally help you locate your shipping list vs spend hours locating things at Bunnings. A couple dollars more as can't compete on volume, but it's nice to support local businesses like this. They are lovely.

Every Bunnings is pretty awesome if you're hardware-inclined. I do admit to sometimes going into a…read moretrance thinking about all the DIY I could do with a Makita 1650W 305mm compound mitre saw. This one, my local, is as good as any. It's large (two levels), spacious, and has been able to supply me with everything I need. Staff are very helpful, parking is plentiful, and the sausage sizzles are reliably...sizzley.

Ok, so my dad and I ask this blonde guy with his ponytail to help and he doesn't bother looking at…read moreus just points past us and keeps talking about his weekend to the bearded guy and the tall blonde guy.

While Chef's Warehouse in Surry Hills is generally the more talked-about vendor of specialty and…read moreindustrial cookware, Kitchen Kapers is a well-kept secret that stocks a similar range of goods - and it's open to the public. This little corner shop houses all manner of tableware and cooking utensils at decent prices like Regas earthernware dishes and Italian Bialetti coffee macinettas, hard-wearing piping bags, conical strainers and tongs designed especially for fish fillets, through to large-scale rice cookers and cured meat slicers like those found at proper delis. For bona fide chefs, they also sell industry grade uniforms, including aprons, whites and toques, and offer trade discounts. Meanwhile, home cooks like me can simply revel in the awesome range of useful items and baking products - multicoloured cupcake patties and alphabet-shaped icing cutters, just to name a couple.

Kitchen Kapers is a place for small business café/restaurant owners or the foodie chef wannabes…read morelike my little sister... one more or... mum's who are creating their child's first birthday cake and haven't done much in the way of creative cooking before. I'm in the last category, you might have guessed. Before I came here I'd already bought my circus patterned cup cake holders (I figure it's the cutest easiest way to create a 1 shape - just place the cupcakes in a straight line right?!). But if I hadn't I might have bought the large 1 cake tin hanging in the wall. I didn't know they existed and didn't fancy cooking loads of cakes to cut and mold my own 1. What else do they have? A huge range of baking trays in all manner of shapes and sizes - square, loaf, circle, butterfly. Slate presentation plates - the kind you see in an upmarket cafe with their gourmet cakes displayed on. Uniforms Crockery, glasses, knives, teapots - all the things you'd find in a home kitchen but at restaurant quality. Large meat cutters Milkshake makers Large hot tea canisters Party gear, cake decorating icing and equipment Cook books Candles Mini colourful tongs Anything you'd want to cook anything with essentially