Read: A Build-Your-Own Cake Bar Is Coming to Westfield Mt Gravatt on 28 March

It was first flagged to return in March, and now that it has arrived, early visitors say it is delivering on that promise, offering freshly assembled, fully personalised cakes in the time it takes to walk from the carpark.

“I ordered a red velvet cake with vanilla icing, caramel sauce and Oreo crumbs on top,” one early visitor said. “I just about melted when I tasted it, and finished the whole thing right there.”

The Idea Behind It

The Cake Bar is the brainchild of Brisbane entrepreneur Raman Singh, who drew direct inspiration from the frozen yoghurt model that made Yo-Chi a fixture in Australian food courts.

The concept applies the same logic to cake: pick your base, choose your frosting, load up your toppings, and watch it come together fresh in front of you. No pre-orders, no minimum numbers, no waiting until tomorrow.

Singh is not new to inventive food concepts. She also runs The Bake Drop, a bakery vending machine she launched last year that dispenses handcrafted treats including gluten-free, vegan and dairy-free options, and La Fleur Macaron, a home-based macaron business that preceded both ventures. The Cake Bar is her most ambitious format yet, and the first of its kind in Australia.

The inspiration from Yo-Chi is visible in how the counter works, but the product is a different proposition entirely. Where a froyo is built around cold, light, fast consumption, a cake from The Cake Bar is the whole occasion: a proper slice of something layered and assembled to your exact brief, made from premium ingredients that never sit pre-made in a display fridge.

What You Can Actually Order

The build starts with a cake base from a solid range of flavours. From there, customers move across frosting options and into the topping selection, where the range spans from crowd-pleasing classics through to full childhood nostalgia territory.

Raspberry jellies, sherbet, sour straps and M&Ms sit alongside marshmallows and more straightforward options for those who prefer a cleaner finish.

Gluten-free and vegan options are built into the menu, so dietary requirements do not mean missing out. The same counter can produce a clean, frosted red velvet for the purists or a tower of colour and crunch for whoever turns eight this weekend.

Three Months, Then It’s Gone

The Cake Bar is running as a pop-up, which means the window is genuinely limited. Opening on 28 March and running for approximately three months, it is on track to close around late June 2026. For Mt Gravatt, Macgregor, Wishart, Mansfield and Rochedale South families who have been meaning to go, that deadline is worth taking seriously.

Westfield Mt Gravatt is at Logan Road, Upper Mt Gravatt, approximately 12 kilometres south of the Brisbane CBD. The Cake Bar is inside the centre. For updates on hours and any extension to the pop-up run, follow The Cake Bar on Instagram and TikTok , or visit thecakebar.com.au.

Read: Haigh’s Chocolates to Open Its First Queensland Store at Westfield Mt Gravatt

Published 26-April-2026

The post Brisbane’s Build-Your-Own Cake Bar Is Drawing Crowds — But Only for a Limited Time appeared first on Mount Gravatt News.

Read: Mt Gravatt Fashion Market Closed After Trespassing Complaint Filed Against Organisers

Dawson Road Call Triggers Police Response

Police were called to Dawson Road at approximately 9:30 am on 21 April after receiving reports relating to a stolen vehicle in Upper Mount Gravatt. It will be alleged a man attempted to gain entry to multiple properties in the area before entering a residence along the street.

The man is alleged to have then entered the address while attempting to steal a white Mercedes-Benz.

Police Vehicle Allegedly Struck Before Arrest

Officers attended shortly after the report was made. During the response, it will be alleged the man reversed the vehicle into a police car positioned in front of the residence.

He then fled on foot and was located and taken into custody a short time later.

Second Man Charged During Response

During the initial police response in Upper Mount Gravatt, a second man was also taken into custody. He is alleged to have obstructed police while officers were managing the situation.

Charges Confirmed And Court Appearance Set

A 25-year-old man from Loganlea has been charged with one count each of enter dwelling with intent, robbery and unlawful use of a motor vehicle. A 28-year-old man from Acacia Ridge has been charged with one count of obstruct police.

Both men have been remanded in custody and were due to appear before the Brisbane Magistrates Court on 22 April.

Read: ANZAC Day Services in East Brisbane

Police have issued reference number QP2600769004 in relation to the Upper Mount Gravatt incident.

Published 23-Apr-2026

The post Two Charged Over Alleged Property and Vehicle Offences in Upper Mount Gravatt appeared first on Mount Gravatt News.

Read: Logan Road Transformation: Mount Gravatt High Street Faces Major Density Overhaul

Her Wardrobe Markets, a community-oriented fashion and lifestyle market that has called the showgrounds home, was shut down on 12 April after Queensland Police responded to a complaint lodged at 6:36 am, just as stallholders were setting up their stands. The incident has brought a dispute between the market organiser and the Mt Gravatt Showgrounds Trust into public view.

The showgrounds trust stated on a Facebook post that the area where the markets were held had become an active construction site, and that the organiser had made an unauthorised attempt to operate a market on the day. The trust said it had issued a notice to cease operations back in October, citing concerns about the organiser’s casual use of the site, and had since followed up with multiple communications confirming that no further approval existed to use the space.

For shoppers who turned up early, with the organiser noting crowds had arrived in significant numbers, the scene was an unexpected one. Earth-moving equipment sat on the pitch. Police were on site. Stalls that had already been set up were being packed away.

The organisers addressed the situation directly via Instagram later that day, describing it as a difficult and unexpected outcome. They noted that there was considerable activity on the ground before the decision to shut down was ultimately made, and that one of the attending constables acknowledged it appeared to be a civil matter best handled through the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal or the courts, a position the organiser said they shared.

In a candid post, Her Wardrobe Markets described the surreal experience of arriving to find earth-moving equipment on the pitch. Despite the difficulties of the morning, they drew comfort from the turnout. “It’s been a long and pretty gruelling 18 months. But today, seeing the community the way we did, that’s what I’m taking with me. The joy, the connection, the people showing up. It’s clear this market has a place here and serves a real need,” they wrote.

Her Wardrobe Markets confirmed via social media that a live dispute with the showgrounds is ongoing and is being worked through via the appropriate process. The organisers said their legal team would be involved in next steps, and that the day’s events would be treated as further information in what they described as a long and gruelling process.

Not everyone was sympathetic, however. Some community members and social media commenters were critical of the decision to proceed with the market while the dispute remained unresolved, particularly given that stallholders had already paid fees, arranged staff, and travelled to the site. 

Acknowledging the mixed reactions from the community, the organisers closed their post with a note of resilience. “To everyone who came up to me with kindness, thank you. It meant a lot. And to the person who yelled at me, I hear your frustration. We’re not there today, but this isn’t the end of the road for us,” Her Wardrobe Markets wrote.

For their part, the Mt Gravatt Showgrounds Trust has indicated that operations will continue under new management. Fab Finds Markets, described by the trust as an independent, approved operator, is set to take over the event from 10 May.

Read: Mt Gravatt Suburban Renewal Precinct to Boost Homes, Shops, and Transport

It remains to be seen what the next steps will look like for Her Wardrobe Markets and its stallholders and shoppers. Sunday’s events have clearly left stallholders and regular shoppers with questions about how the market arrived at this point, and where it goes from here.

Published 15-April-2026

The post Mt Gravatt Fashion Market Closed After Trespassing Complaint Filed Against Organisers appeared first on Mount Gravatt News.

Read: Hertford Street Transformation: 199 New Apartments Headed to Mt Gravatt

The hotel has arranged for a variety of interactive stations to keep younger residents busy throughout the working week. From Monday to Friday, children can visit specifically designed craft tables intended to encourage creativity while parents relax in the nearby dining areas. 

These daily sessions provide a structured way for families to enjoy the outdoors without leaving the suburb, making use of the venue’s open-air beer gardens and communal spaces.

As the holidays move into the weekend, the style of entertainment shifts toward live performance and interactive art. Professional face painters and balloon artists will be on-site to provide free entertainment for visiting families during the Saturday and Sunday sessions. 

Read: Police Statistics Show 375 Stolen Vehicles in Upper Mount Gravatt

To accommodate the expected increase in local visitors, the venue has moved to an all-day dining schedule on these days, serving traditional pub meals from morning through to the evening. These additions are part of a broader effort to provide local parents with accessible options for holiday childcare and family bonding.

Published Date 01-April-2026

The post Newnham Hotel Becomes Holiday Hub for Upper Mt Gravatt Families appeared first on Mount Gravatt News.

Read: A Build-Your-Own Cake Bar Is Coming to Westfield Mt Gravatt on 28 March

Two further stores at Chermside and Carindale will follow later in the year, bringing Haigh’s total national footprint to 26 stores across Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra and Brisbane. The three-store rollout represents the brand’s most significant expansion since it entered the Sydney market, and for Brisbane chocolate lovers who have spent years relying on online orders or interstate trips to get their hands on Haigh’s product, the arrival of a local store feels genuinely overdue.

A Brand Built on Over a Century of Craft

Haigh’s Chocolates was founded on 1 May 1915 by Alfred E. Haigh in Adelaide, South Australia, making it Australia’s oldest family-owned chocolate maker. What began as a small confectionery shop at the Beehive Corner on King William Street has grown across four generations of family ownership into one of Australia’s most recognisable premium food brands, with a loyal following that stretches well beyond its South Australian home.

Haigh’s has maintained its primary manufacturing operations in Adelaide since its founding, where it produces its range of chocolates using a bean-to-bar approach, roasting its own cocoa beans to create its milk and dark chocolate blends from ethically sourced ingredients. That commitment to in-house production from bean to finished product distinguishes Haigh’s from most other chocolate retailers operating in Australia, where the majority of premium brands import finished chocolate rather than manufacturing it locally.

In September 2025, Haigh’s opened a new $120 million state-of-the-art facility in Salisbury South, spanning 18,000 square metres and incorporating advanced European-made equipment for production, warehousing and online fulfilment. The new facility increases Haigh’s production capacity from 1,100 tonnes to 2,000 tonnes of chocolate per year, providing the manufacturing headroom needed to support both the Brisbane expansion and the company’s broader national growth strategy.

Haigh’s Chocolates – Bean to Bar Process:

• Haigh’s Chocolates, established in 1915, is Australia’s oldest family-owned chocolate maker focused on premium, small-batch chocolate production.
• The process begins with sourcing high-quality, ethically produced cocoa beans from regions like Ghana and Peru, with most coming from Rainforest Alliance certified farms.
• The beans are cleaned using sieves, magnets, and airflow systems, then roasted at about 120°C for 30–90 minutes to enhance flavour and remove moisture.
• Roasted beans are crushed and winnowed to remove the outer shell, leaving cocoa nibs, which are ground into a bitter liquid cocoa liquor.
• The cocoa liquor is mixed with cocoa butter, sugar, vanilla, and sometimes milk powder, then refined through rollers to create a smooth texture.
• The chocolate undergoes conching, where it is heated, aerated, and mixed for several hours to develop its flavour and silky consistency.
• Tempering follows, where the chocolate is carefully cooled and reheated to achieve a glossy finish and stable structure.
• The tempered chocolate is moulded into shapes or hand-dipped to create products like truffles and other specialty chocolates.
• Small-batch production methods are used to maintain freshness and ensure high-quality output across a wide range of products.
• Finally, chocolates are hand-finished, carefully packaged, and continuously improved through new product development released during special occasions.

Why Brisbane, Why Now

The Brisbane move is driven by clear commercial evidence. Queensland customers currently represent 18 per cent of Haigh’s total online sales, making the state a significant and demonstrable market despite having no physical retail presence to date. For a brand that sells exclusively through its own stores and website, that level of online demand from a market with no bricks-and-mortar outlet signals a substantial untapped opportunity.

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Chief Executive Peter Millard confirmed that the combination of strong Queensland online demand and the newly expanded production capacity at Salisbury South made 2026 the right moment to enter the Brisbane market. The three-store strategy reflects confidence in the city’s appetite for premium chocolate, with Westfield Mt Gravatt anchoring the initial launch before Chermside and Carindale extend the brand’s reach across the northern and eastern suburbs later in the year.

Westfield Mt Gravatt draws shoppers from across a wide catchment spanning the southern and south-eastern suburbs, and the arrival of a Haigh’s store adds a genuinely distinctive retail experience to a centre that already serves as a significant southside anchor.

Haigh’s Chocolates will open at Westfield Mt Gravatt in August 2026, with Chermside and Carindale to follow later in the year. Further information about Haigh’s products and the Brisbane openings is available at haighschocolates.com.au.

Read: Upper Mt Gravatt Centre Precinct Plan Opens for Community Consultation

Published 27-March-2026.

The post Haigh’s Chocolates to Open Its First Queensland Store at Westfield Mt Gravatt appeared first on Mount Gravatt News.

Read: High-Density Zones Approved for Upper Mount Gravatt Shopping Centre Precinct

Brisbane has launched the Upper Mt Gravatt Centre Suburban Renewal Precinct Plan, and locals have until Sunday, 12 April 2026 to have their say. Whether you live nearby, run a business in the area, or simply use the centre regularly, your input will help shape what the suburb looks like for years to come.

Why Upper Mt Gravatt?

Upper Mt Gravatt is one of Brisbane’s major centres, servicing southern Brisbane and beyond with shopping, entertainment and employment opportunities. It is well connected to Brisbane’s city centre and the broader region via road, public transport and active travel networks. The Upper Mt Gravatt Busway and the V1 Veloway, which runs along the Pacific Motorway, are key parts of the area’s transport and active travel network.

The area is also home to the Upper Mt Gravatt Library, sporting fields and the nearby Mt Gravatt Outlook Reserve. 

What the Plan Aims to Do

The plan aims to increase housing choice close to services, employment and business, while maximising connections between residences and businesses along the busway and veloway corridors.

New buildings would be encouraged to embrace the area’s outdoor lifestyle and subtropical character by incorporating landscaping, shade and climate-appropriate design. On the economic side, the plan seeks to expand local opportunities by identifying an appropriate mix of business, retail, personal and community services and facilities.

A Long-Term Process, Starting Now

This is not a rushed process. Brisbane is using technical investigations, community feedback and Queensland’s input to develop the plan, with the draft expected to go to public consultation in mid-to-late 2026, and final approval anticipated around mid-2027 before being adopted into Brisbane City Plan.

That means the feedback gathered now will directly inform what goes into the draft plan. This is one of the earliest opportunities for the community to influence the plan’s direction, before a draft is prepared.

Read: 2026 College Captains Named At Upper Mount Gravatt School

How to Get Involved

Residents can complete an online survey or add comments directly to an interactive map at Brisbane’s Have Your Say portal.

For those who prefer to engage by phone or in writing, Brisbane can be reached on 07 3403 8888 or by post to Neighbourhood Planning, Brisbane City Council, GPO Box 1434, Brisbane QLD 4001.

Consultation closes Sunday, 12 April 2026. If you’ve got thoughts about where Upper Mt Gravatt is headed, now is the time to speak up.

Published 27-March-2026

The post Your Suburb, Your Say: Help Shape the Future of Upper Mt Gravatt appeared first on Mount Gravatt News.

Local Schools Leading the Way

While the local area is a focal point for this cultural mix, the broader Brisbane Catholic Education system supports nearly 80,000 students across 146 schools. St Augustine’s College in Augustine Heights currently holds the title for the most linguistically diverse school in the system, with 56 languages spoken. During Harmony Week, held from 16 to 22 March 2026, these schools are focusing on how different backgrounds help students learn. 

At St Thomas More College in Sunnybank, which is the third most diverse school in the group, leaders noted that having many different perspectives in a classroom actually helps children improve their grades and learning growth.

New Career Paths for Refugees

A major part of the local effort involves the Work and Welcome programme, which helps people who have moved to Australia find steady jobs. At the college in Upper Mt Gravatt, a refugee from the Republic of Burundi named Douce began working in the school canteen this year. This programme allows migrants to practice their skills in a supportive environment. 

Douce is using this experience to learn how to run a hospitality business, with the goal of eventually owning a café in Australia. During the recent celebrations, students also participated in a project where they marked their birthplaces on a massive world map to show how many parts of the globe are represented in one suburb.

Strengthening First Nations Connections

The focus on identity extends to First Nations students through a series of dance workshops and cultural days held between 24 and 26 March. These events are led by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Team and take place across the Sunshine Coast and Fraser Coast. A new session is also planned for the South Burnett region on 1 June. 

These workshops are designed to be safe spaces where over 200 students can connect through traditional storytelling and music. The initiative is part of a larger plan for 2026 and 2027 that focuses on wellbeing and helping young Indigenous people become leaders in their communities.

Read: Upper Mt Gravatt Centre Precinct Plan Opens for Community Consultation

Training for Staff and Future Growth

To ensure teachers and staff understand these diverse backgrounds, many participate in learning days at the Ngutana-Lui Cultural Studies Centre. These sessions cover topics like spiritual traditions, weaving, and the history of different cultures. This training helps staff follow the system’s Reconciliation Action Plan and brings more cultural awareness into daily lessons. As these school communities continue to grow, new buildings like the Giramee Hall are being finished to make sure there is enough space for everyone to gather and share their stories.

Published Date 26-March-2026

The post How 51 Languages are Shaping the Future of Upper Mt Gravatt Students appeared first on Mount Gravatt News.

Read: A Build-Your-Own Cake Bar Is Coming to Westfield Mt Gravatt on 28 March

The Suburban Renewal Precinct Plan for Upper Mt Gravatt covers the stretch of the suburb anchored by Westfield Mt Gravatt and extending through Mt Gravatt-Capalaba Road to Newnham Road, taking in the mix of retail, commercial and residential land that makes up one of southern Brisbane’s busiest suburban centres. What gets built there, how tall, and what kind of neighbourhood it becomes are exactly the questions the plan is designed to settle, and right now, before any draft is written, is the moment when community input carries the most weight.

Feedback gathered during this initial phase goes directly to planners as they prepare the draft plan, which will come back to the community for a second round of input before anything is finalised. Planners expect to put the draft plan back to the community for review in late 2026 or early 2027, with the final version likely to be etched into the city plan by mid-2027.

A Centre Under Growing Pressure

Upper Mt Gravatt already carries a lot of weight for southern Brisbane. It draws shoppers, workers and service-seekers from well beyond its own suburb boundaries, and the infrastructure surrounding the centre, including the Upper Mt Gravatt library, nearby sporting fields, Mt Gravatt Outlook Reserve and Brisbane Metro turn-up-and-go services along the corridor, gives it a foundation that many suburban centres elsewhere in the city simply do not have.

Under current planning settings, landmark sites within the precinct can already reach up to 15 storeys. The precinct plan will work through whether zoning across a wider range of sites should be updated to allow more housing and mixed-use development in the locations best placed to handle it, while protecting the residential streets that surround the commercial core from inappropriate intensification.

Upper Mt Gravatt sits within a broader programme of suburban renewal plans across Brisbane that has already delivered adopted plans at Stones Corner, with work underway at Wynnum, Alderley, Mt Gravatt and Chermside. The approach across all of them centres on finding the best use of underutilised land within established, well-connected centres rather than pushing growth outward into areas that lack the same infrastructure base.

What Residents Are Being Asked

The ideas phase is deliberately open. Residents, business owners and anyone who uses the Upper Mt Gravatt centre can share what matters to them about the area as it stands, what they feel is missing, and what they want the precinct to look and feel like in the future. There are no set options to choose from at this stage. The aim is to hear from the people who actually live and work in and around the centre before planners sit down to draft anything formal.

That covers everything from the types of housing and services the community wants to see near the centre, to the quality of streets and public spaces, to how the plan can protect the character of the established neighbourhoods that border the precinct.

Why This Matters to the Community

Brisbane is growing fast, with around 600 people arriving in the city each week and a projected need for more than 210,000 new homes by 2046. Well-serviced centres like Upper Mt Gravatt, with their transport connections, community facilities and existing employment base, are exactly where that growth is likely to be directed. The precinct plan is not about whether change happens. It is about whether the community shapes it or watches it happen around them.

For residents of Upper Mt Gravatt, Mt Gravatt, Mansfield, Rochedale South and Eight Mile Plains, getting involved now, at the ideas stage rather than the objection stage, gives the best chance of seeing local priorities reflected in whatever is ultimately adopted. Once a precinct plan becomes part of the city plan, it sets the rules for development for years to come.

Residents can share their ideas by clicking this link or by writing to Neighbourhood Planning, Upper Mt Gravatt Centre Suburban Renewal Precinct, Brisbane City Council, GPO Box 1434, Brisbane QLD 4001.

Read: Route 171 Through Mount Gravatt Sees Passengers More Than Double in Brisbane Bus Shake-Up

Published 17-March-2026.

The post Upper Mt Gravatt Centre Precinct Plan Opens for Community Consultation appeared first on Mount Gravatt News.

Read: High-Density Zones Approved for Upper Mount Gravatt Shopping Centre Precinct

The concept fills a gap that sits between the impulse dessert market — think Yo-Chi, which already operates at Garden City — and the traditional custom cake bakery, where lead times and minimum orders put the experience out of reach for a spontaneous weeknight craving or a last-minute birthday. The Cake Bar plants itself squarely in between: a fresh cake, assembled to order, available in the time it takes to walk from the carpark to the food court.

A Custom Dessert Experience

Customers kick things off by picking a cake base from a solid lineup of flavours. From there, the build branches out across premium fillings, frostings, and toppings, with a menu ranging from decadent chocolate to childhood throwbacks like raspberry jellies, sherbet, and sour straps. Crucially, the range is built for everyone, offering gluten-free and vegan options to ensure those with dietary requirements don’t miss out on the sugar hit. The model is deliberately open-ended—the same counter can whip up a clean, frosted red velvet for the traditionalists or a stacked, sprinkle-covered creation for the kids.

The kitchen assembles the order fresh, on the spot, from premium ingredients. Nothing sits pre-made in a display fridge. That distinction matters operationally: it means the quality of a custom-ordered cake without the custom-order wait.

A Sweet Addition to the Food Scene

Westfield Mt Gravatt is one of Brisbane’s largest shopping centres, located approximately 12 kilometres south of the CBD, with more than 400 retailers, three supermarkets, Event Cinemas, and a food and dining offer that spans two indoor food courts, an outdoor dining precinct and an Asian street food strip called 8 Street. The centre draws shoppers from Mt Gravatt, Macgregor, Wishart, Mansfield, Rochedale South and across Brisbane’s southside.

The dessert category at the centre already includes Yo-Chi, alongside a broader entertainment and dining precinct that includes Timezone, Holey Moley, Cloud 8 Karaoke and Hijinx Hotel. The Cake Bar adds a format that none of the existing operators cover: a made-to-order, whole-cake dessert experience priced and positioned for everyday shoppers rather than special-occasion pre-orders.

For families doing the weekly shop, the model is simple enough to be a spontaneous stop rather than a planned event. For parents with kids in tow — and Garden City’s family-heavy southside catchment means there are plenty of them on any given Saturday — the interactive build-your-own format offers more engagement than a standard dessert counter.

Good News for Sweet Tooths

Brisbane’s dessert and specialty food market has expanded significantly over the past five years, with concepts built around the build-your-own model proving durable in both food courts and high-street locations. The Cake Bar represents the format applied to one of the few categories — fresh cake — that had not yet made the transition from pre-order to impulse. This adds a locally accessible version of an experience that previously required either a custom order from a bakery or a trip into the CBD.

The Cake Bar is at Westfield Mt Gravatt, Logan Road, Upper Mt Gravatt. More information is available here ahead of the 28 March opening.

Read: Route 171 Through Mount Gravatt Sees Passengers More Than Double in Brisbane Bus Shake-Up

Published 12-March-2026.

The post A Build-Your-Own Cake Bar Is Coming to Westfield Mt Gravatt on 28 March appeared first on Mount Gravatt News.