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Photo courtesy Blue Harbour Entertainment

Photo courtesy Our City Tonight

OUR CITY Tonight: SPOTLIGHT OFFERS A FILM FROM “DOWN UNDER” AND DELICIOUS COCKTAILS

By Richmond Sentinel

Published 4:04 PDT, Wed June 17, 2026

Our City Tonight

THE SIP #1
Basilico Pesca Spritz

We continue our spotlight on cocktails for the summer season that you can enjoy while dining out or at home. In this edition, we turn to a couple of our “cocktail experts”, Tolga Acar, the bar manager, and Michael Wienmeyer, the bartender, at Italian Kitchen. Up first for us to try is the Basilico Pesca Spritz. As we sample this delicious cocktail, Tolga offers his thoughts: “This cocktail is really nice for the summertime because it's more fruit-forward and has a less bitter sweetness, and when you taste it, it's still nice and herbaceous, like a classic Italian Aperol Spritz.” Michael agrees, he sees that Aperol appeals to customers trying this cocktail. “We've infused the Aperol with Thai basil specifically,” he tells us, “which gives it nice basil notes and just a little bit more elevated flavour profile to the drink, making it great for sipping on a patio: bright, fresh, effervescent, with nice notes of basil, orange, and apple.” If you’re making this at home, additional ingredients include peach schnapps, prosecco, and soda: www.globalgroup.com

THE SIP #2
Tiramisu Martini

For our second cocktail, Michael and Tolga offer something that, at first glance, might seem like an odd choice for summertime, but trust us, the Tiramisu Martini – when offered at the right time – is a perfect choice and a creative take on a classic. “The Tiramisu Martini is a perfect after-dinner cocktail at the end of the evening,” Mike tells us. He and Tolga know that customers are familiar with a lot of after-dinner drinks, the pick-me-ups, but this cocktail is at another level and one you can also serve your guests at home. The ingredients: Dhillon's Vodka, Kahlua, Zacapa Dark Rum, Frangelico (the hazelnut liqueur), egg yolk, espresso, mascarpone cheese, and a little bit of demerara syrup (that's a brown sugar syrup). “The mascarpone and the egg yolk used in it give it just a little bit of texture; it's a little light and fluffy,” Tolga tells us, “but you get those dark rum coffee flavours for sure.” As we finish this wonderful cocktail, Mike tells us one of the key selling points to this cocktail: “Tolga has done a fantastic job of basically recreating a tiramisu cake in a glass.” www.globalgroup.com

THE VIEW
Kangaroo Island

One of the things we enjoy doing in this column and on Our City Tonight is introducing our readers and viewers to film and TV from other parts of the world. In this case, our spotlight turns to a superb film from Australia called Kangaroo Island. It’s the story of Lou, a young, once promising actress in Hollywood who has fallen on hard times. Broke and out of options, she reluctantly accepts a plane ticket from her father to return home to Australia and the family base on Kangaroo Island. Further from the Hollywood life you could not get. Lou knows what awaits her: guilt, embarrassment over her failing career, and unresolved issues with her sister as well as her brother-in-law. This comedy-drama is intriguing, as well as entertaining, and it analyzes that age-old question about going home again, and that the struggles from home often dig the deepest into who we are. Rebecca Breeds is wonderful as Lou, and she is surrounded by a solid cast including Erik Thomson as the father and Adelaide Clemens as Lou’s sister. Freya. As for the island setting, it acts as one of the characters and only enhances the film. This breakout Australian hit film is available for home viewing. www.blueharbourentertainment.com