Stories

Hamilton's Rocket Coffee Roasters has been listed in the top 100 coffee shops around the world, ranking at 62nd on the list.

The Hamilton coffee shop is the only one in New Zealand to make the prestigious list.

The store has been around for 30 years and has been a key player in New Zealand's coffee culture through its crafted beverages, friendly atmosphere and strong community ties.

The list is complied by a panel of coffee experts, enthusiasts and industry leaders who rank a variety of factors including dedication to experience, bean sourcing and roasting.

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Wooden Spoon, 169 London St, Hamilton

It was a seven-year-old coeliac’s dream to open a cafe where she could eat everything.

Less than two decades later, Hannah Alley opened a 100% gluten-free cafe - Wooden Spoon, in Hamilton. Possibly the first of it’s kind in the Tron.

And since opening in November 2023, it has attracted coeliacs from across the country.

Why? Because it is a pretty big deal getting a full gluten-free menu, says Alley.

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A partnership between FMG Stadium Waikato and the One New Zealand Warriors has opened the way for the club to play three stand-alone NRLW matches in Hamilton this season.

The deal follows another landmark rugby league+ occasion at the stadium on Saturday when a crowd 23,344 – a record for a Warriors trial match – attended the club’s final Preseason Challenge clash against the Melbourne Storm.

In their return to the competition after a five-year absence the Warriors will make FMG Stadium Waikato their base for the last three of their five regular season home games.

The first is their round seven fixture against the Canberra Raiders on Saturday, August 16 followed a week later by their eighth-round contest against the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks on Sunday, August 24, and the round 10 encounter with the powerful Brisbane Broncos on Sunday, September 7.

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Come and enjoy art, culture, sport or a ‘weird’ mix of all three! Here are some Love the Centre highlight events.

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‍Circus in the Centre

‍Garden Place, until April 5, noon-2.30pm

Turn your summer afternoons into a circus extravaganza! Garden Place green space transforms into a lively circus zone where kids and whānau can explore juggling, hula hooping, spinning plates, and more. All equipment is provided, so just bring your enthusiasm and get ready for some free, family-friendly fun.

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Live Music

Garden Place, until March 28, 12.30-1.30pm

Enjoy an electrifying mix of DJs, singers, and saxophonists bringing vibrant tunes to the heart of the city.

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Stories in the Garden

Garden Place, until March 29, 10am-11am

Join us under the trees for a magical hour of storytelling and games with characters from Enchanted Entertainment. Dress up in the story theme and spend a delightful hour under the trees taking your mind to a faraway land.

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Chinese Lantern Festival

Garden Place, February 22, 6pm-9pm

Experience the magic of the Chinese Lantern Festival in the Year of the Snake with a Dragon & Lion Dance, a mesmerising magic show, live cultural performances, and delicious food stalls. The festivities start at 6pm but come early to enjoy the food from 4pm.

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Children’s Day

Garden Place and beyond, March 1-2, 10am-3pm

Let’s come together to celebrate our children and whānau. This event is packed with activities and fun for the whole family with entertainment across the central city public spaces.

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Festival of Weird

Garden Place, March 5-12 10am-5pm

Embrace the wacky and weird at the Festival of Weird. This week-long celebration is more cringe than fringe, with a lineup of bizarre and entertaining activities that will leave you laughing and amazed.

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Boon Street Art Festival

Central City, March 13-16

Watch the city come alive with stunning murals and cultural events during the Boon Street Art Festival. Enjoy four days of art, culture, and community with an incredible artist lineup and an interactive community mural.

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Love the Centre Walk Thru Balloon

Garden Place, March 15, 1pm-4pm & March 20, 4pm-7pm

Experience the thrill of walking inside a real hot air balloon. For a koha, you can enjoy this unique adventure along with fun, music, and entertainment to kick off the Balloons Over Waikato event week.

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Inside the Waikato Regional Theatre

The Waikato’s new regional theatre is about to become a theatre of mystery - or, to describe it a little more eloquently, a masterpiece mystery theatre.

The Waikato Times was this week granted a tour of the building’s interior - a guided visit that provides more than a few hints of the sheer magnitude of splendour the Waikato Regional Theatre - due to open later this year - will provide the people of Kirikiriroa.

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Resonate Health, New Zealand’s newest and most transparent hearing healthcare company, redefining healthy ageing with a holistic approach that goes far beyond traditional hearing aids.  Visit Angitha Nair/Aimee Kipara at the Resonate Health-Hamilton Central studio to learn more about your hearing health and Resonate Unlimited, New Zealand’s only hearing aid subscription service available for $90 per month.

CBD retailers have endured tough economic times but a senior business leader is seeing more optimistic signals, while shop owners have mixed views about 2025.

Concerns include the impact on shopper numbers of having just one hour free parking in the CBD, introduced last year. Customers have reported being resistant to paying for more time.

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Hamilton Central Business Association general manager Vanessa Williams said on Wednesday that she’d been chatting to about half a dozen retailers this year about how things were going over January.

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Jeremy Mayall almost got a proper job once. Fresh out of school, he figured doing law at university would be the way to go.

The application included writing a page about why he wanted to be a lawyer.

As easy as that sounds - hey, just lie if you have to - he couldn’t do it. A fateful decision was made, he changed to a BA, majoring in music, screen studies and theatre.

These days the flamboyantly bearded Mayall is chief executive of Creative Waikato, a musician and composer, and a consummate proponent for the arts.

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Dumplings are one of the most common dishes ordered from a Chinese restaurant on any given day.

They’re not hard to make from scratch, as anyone from northern China will tell you. Growing up, dumpling making was the ultimate family activity - there’s no such thing as “too many cooks in the kitchen”.

With Lunar New Year approaching, why not give this dish a go? Trust me, as someone who is a terrible cook, it’s not as hard as it looks.

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Renting with SB owner Storm Benson started the business out of her university flat and now has a shop in central Hamilton.

When Storm Benson was a struggling student and couldn’t afford a different dress every week despite her desire to look good, the idea for a business was born.

Seven years later, she’s rented clothing to others more than 16,000 times, moved her side hustle from a Hamilton flat to a CBD shop and sends out 80-100 people into the world in a new dress each week.

The 27-year-old came up with the idea while at Waikato University.

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Try riding with Flex for only $2 per ride!

The New Zealand-built buses are smaller and have comfortable seats that are fitted with seatbelts and can carry 13 passengers, or 10 people and a wheelchair user.

Bookings can be made up to a week in advance of travel, or just 15 minutes before you’re ready to go. The buses are GPS tracked in real time, so you can track your ride in the Flex app.

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“For people wanting to get to and from the CBD, we’re really excited to be able to provide an affordable option for people wanting a corner-to-corner service rather than only stopping at bus stops,” said Regional Connections Committee Chair and Waikato regional councillor Angela Strange.

“The service will take people with a mobility impairment driveway-to-driveway – all you have to do is let us know when registering on the Flex app.

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Book now in three easy steps:

Download the FREE Flex app

Set up your rider profile with your preferred payment method

Select your preferred location, time and the best pick up and drop off points for your journey into the city - and return!

Easy! Group bookings are available (up to 13 seats) and Flex vehicles are wheelchair friendly too!

Flex operates every Friday and Saturday from 6pm-4am.

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Prepare for an exciting four days of art, culture, and community.

Boon Street Art Festival to Transform Hamilton with Stunning Murals and Cultural Experiences – March 13th-16th, 2025

Kirikiriroa, Hamilton, prepare for an exciting four days of art, culture, and community as the Boon Street Art Festival returns to Hamilton from March 13th to 16th, 2025. This exciting festival will feature an incredible artist lineup, an interactive community mural, and a variety of events designed to celebrate the city's creative spirit.

The talented artists set to showcase their work include international artist Alison Mooney, Alice Alva (Hamilton), Kophie Su’a Hulsbosch (Christchurch), Flox & Sweats (Auckland), Theo Arraj (Raglan), and Te Marunui Hotene (Whakatane).

One of the festival’s key highlights will be the sale of vibrant, one-of-a-kind murals. For just $3,500, each mural is accompanied by a plaque featuring the artist's name, a brief description of the artwork, and the buyer's logo. This initiative offers an exceptional opportunity to engage with and invest in the local creative world, allowing individuals and businesses to purchase artwork that truly lives on the street, enriching the public space.

We’re looking for passionate, team-oriented individuals who are eager to volunteer their time and energy to making this Street Art Festival come to life. This is a fantastic opportunity to gain experience, meet new people, and have some fun with like-minded individuals. To sign up or learn more, please email Megan at volunteers@boonarts.co.nz

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Matthew Cooper of Sport Waikato and Dr Jeremy Mayall of Creative Waikato met to experience Te Ara Toi o Te Taniwha.

Active and creative activities have long been recognised as pillars of community wellbeing, fostering physical health, mental resilience and social cohesion.

The uniting features of these activities are found in newin-app experience, Te Ara Toi o Te Taniwha, an interactive animated guided arts experience developed by Creative Waikato in partnership with PickPath.

This unique creative experience takes participants through the city’s CBD, exploring local street art and cultural stories in a game-like mixed media format.

Walking from the river to the highest point of Kirikiriroa Hamilton CBD, it creates a fun way to incorporate active movement through a creative experience.

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