Everywhere else in the country looks to Melbourne as an example of what a great pub culture might be like. Brilliant places can be found around every bend and down every alley. And the flood of opportunities will continue unabatedly. However, with so many options, deciding where to go may require a beverage. One of Melbourne's top bars offers a wide variety of drinks, from the cutting edge to old favourites.
FAQs About Drinking In Melbourne
According to Google Reviews, Bar Liberty is the best bar in Melbourne, as it offers everything from wine to food and everything in between.
For a good night out, you can't go past Bodega Underground. The Mexican themed underground playground offers food and drinks that everyone will love.
- Kingpin Crown
- Archie Brothers Cirque Electriq Docklands
- Bartronica
- Whisky & Element
- Young and Jackson's Hotel
Coffee and tea, without added sweeteners, are healthy choices, too. Some beverages should be limited or consumed in moderation, including fruit juice, milk, and those made with low-calorie sweeteners, like diet drinks. Alcohol in moderation can be healthy for some people, but not everyone.
Follow the one-in-one rule— try to drink one drink per hour. Then, keep track of the number of drinks you've had and the amount of time between drinks. You can keep a tally on your phone or use an app. By keeping count, you'll know when you've reached your limit.
The Best Bars In Melbourne To Drink With Your Friends
We've compiled a list of our top picks for drinking establishments in Melbourne, Australia.
Madame Brussels
Want some cheesy, flippant merriment? It doesn't get much better than the bar atop Madame Brussels's building. The entrance is hidden, but once you reach the rooftop, you'll feel like you've entered the Mad Hatter's Green Party. The original Madame Brussels, whose name this drink bears, was known for her unconventional ways.
Miss Pearls, the current proprietor and an equally outlandish but affable character, has her employees dress in tennis attire and serve guests cocktails from jugs while they lounge at umbrella-covered tables set over faux grass. She refers to punch-style cocktails as "Drinky Poos," and have to agree that they sound like a lot of fun. Toasted sandwich, dips and bread, French cheese plates, and even cupcakes are among the many hearty treats on offer. There is also beautiful city views from the outside seating area, and heaters and blankets are given for those cool evenings.
Eau De Vie
Hidden for many years, this American prohibition-style saloon is now considered Melbourne's classic watering hole. With its meteoric rise to fame, it is now one of city's worst hidden secrets. However, we are happy to recommend this place to others because of its pleasant atmosphere, knowledgeable bartenders, and unique cocktails. Guests can relax in the Whisky Room while sipping any of the bar's unique and special whiskies. They also have a degustation table where you can enjoy a drink tasting menu in five courses.
The Art Deco–inspired Eau de Vie pub is tucked away down a nondescript door on Melbourne's Product placement alley, and its cocktail making is pure theatre. There's jazz playing, and behind a false bookcase lies a secret whisky lounge with an incredible whisky list. At the bar area, you can see the bartenders making cocktails with blow torches & liquid nitrogen, while at the tasting menu table bar, you may reserve a five-course bar menu for a larger group. An comprehensive selection of cheese and charcuterie, in addition to heartier dishes, are available for those who need a little something to eat to soak up all of those drinks and whiskies. A night out that is both classy and entertaining.
Ferdydurke
Through a discreet side entrance and up many flights of stairs, you'll reach this Polish-themed tavern, complete with exposed brick, beams, and a fireplace perfect for chilling out on wintry nights. Seating is tight, so if you want a good view of the action at the outdoor bar right next door, request a table near a window. The pub has an extensive selection of cocktails, beers, and spirits, as well as delicious Polish fare including the Little Lebowski (small plucked burgers), Piroshki (creme fraiche pastry parcels), & polish doughnut for dessert. Live music events are held often throughout the year, ensuring that you will never have a dull moment at Ferdydurke.
Cookie
It's safe to say that Cookie, a Melbourne staple, never lets you down. With so many new places popping up all the time in the city, it can be helpful to know where the energy will be highest and the beer will be flowing freely. The long-running establishment at Melbourne's historic Curtin House is a popular gathering spot for both locals and visitors. Certainly not a beer hall, not even a cocktail bar, but not exactly a Thai restaurant. Cookie combines them all ingeniously to create a lively, productive CBD environment.
This lively bar is popular among students due to its $4 pizza special & wide range of drink options. On the basement floor, you'll find kitschy furniture clustered together to encourage conversation, as well as a DJ rotation including funk, soul, and dance music. Then, head upstairs to the rooftop bar and dance floor, illuminated by lanterns and ready to welcome you this summer.
Naked In The Sky
Located on the roof of the trendy Naked For Satan tapas restaurant, this bar raises the bar, quite literally. If you're looking for a place in Fitzroy with spectacular views of the city, look no further than Naked In The Sky. With the option of indoor and outdoor seats, you won't have to worry about the Melbourne climate affecting your plans. The drinks menu features a wider variety of local, Spanish, and Basque alternatives, while the cuisine menu focuses solely on Basque flavours. You might have to wait in line, but the breathtaking panorama is well worth the effort.
Neptune Bar
Two stories of Mediterranean cuisine and wine are brought to Windsor's High Street by this ambitious bar. Top-shelf tuna in a can is available here, and it goes great with some chips and pickles and a glass of dry white wine or vermouth. Thanks to the dim lighting and intimate booths, it's ideal for a first date arranged through Tinder.
Siglo
Find this upscale rooftop bar by making your way up many flights of stairs from the unassuming entrance of Melbourne's Supper Club. Siglo is a little bit of Europe right in the middle of Melbourne, with a vista over Parliament Buildings and a cuisine that includes caviar, foie foie pate, and Jamon ham. Expect to spend more than usual on a night at this sophisticated restaurant, but hey, it beats the cost of flying!
Bar Liberty
Bar Liberty's mission is to provide you with a top-notch libation by collaborating with a few of Australia's finest producers of wine, beer, spirits, and coffee. The wine is the main attraction, but if that's not your thing, they have you covered there, too. What more could you want for than genuine hospitality and a tasty meal?
An evening spent imbibing the finest of alcoholic beverages can be had at Liberty. Each bottle is just required to be a stellar representation of its genre. Everything on the extensive list, from wine and cider to cocktails, whisky, vermouth, and even homemade soda, has been handpicked for its diversity and quality. If we ate here, things would go more smoothly. Crisps of dry polenta & sweet caramelised onion are served over a silky mixture of raw beef, capers, and Dijon.
Romeo Lane
All the cocktails are served in exquisite cut glassware, Tom Waits plays softly in the background, and on chilly nights, the open fireplace is lit to crank up the hospitability factor to eleven. And that's without even mentioning the extensive and carefully curated bar menu. Like any good hostess, they have a recipe archive stashed away from past menus and the annals of traditional cuisine, so all you have to do is give them a few clues and they'll conjure up something amazing.
The Everleigh
Who could have predicted that the Everleigh's zenith wouldn't be reached until the year 2020? Having been in business for nine years and winning numerous awards, as well as expanding into bottling, books, and even hand-cut ice, makes this gorgeous cocktail bar the epitome of Melbourne's "best drink forwards" mentality, and a drink here is the epitome of placing your best drink forwards.
Old Palm Liquor
Pub is how co-owners Almay Jordaan & Simon Denman characterise their offshoot of an East Jersey wine bar called Old Palm Liquor. We've never gone to a bar that offered such a wide variety of low-intervention and biodynamic wines, as well as 12 draught beers and a sleek meal prepared over coals with a South African twist, but we were impressed. Except for a small selection, the wines on the list are entirely low-intervention, meaning they either underwent extended skin contact, were matured in amphora, had minimal or no sulphite added to a bottle, or all of the above. Confused? Not at all. Wines are labelled with information about the vineyard and winemaking methods used so that you can enjoy your drink without constantly calling for more.
The Shady Lady
The Shady Lady has renovated the former Houndstooth in Johnston Street into the a glam-shabby dive bar that welcomes vegans, dog owners, and members of the LGBTI community. In contrast to Fitzroy's austere blond wood and prohibition-style pubs, the orange tassel-covered lampshades, peacock blue brick, disco balls, and cabaret curtains are a welcome change. The Shady Lady embraces its uniqueness and provides ample opportunity for giddy good times.
Bar Margaux
Michael and Zara Madrusan, king and queen of Melbourne's bar scene, are experts at generating these microcosmic worlds, as seen by the Everleigh's golden age elegance and Heartbreaker's noisy, riotous, song-breaking atmosphere, respectively. We're finally descending into their Paris-via-New York gastropub Bar Margaux, where oysters have been shucked, Champagne is popped, and steaks are sizzled into the wee hours of the morning.
Above Board
Above Board's service is not only unique, but also tailored to each individual customer. Having a conversation with Lambert will not only help you decide between a classic and a signature cocktail (both $21), but you'll also get a taste of his personal history with each drink he serves at the bar, which serves as the nerve centre and command post of this cosy establishment. There are only a few chairs, and they're all facing Lambert at work behind the bar, restoring the art to artisanal beverages.
Black Pearl
Melburnians have always known that its Black Pearl is the place to get a nice cocktail, and the bar's recent string of major international honours has only helped to increase its popularity among tourists. In business for 16 years, Tash Conte's tavern is owned by his family and has become a local landmark. The list is never still, never resting on its laurels, shifting with the times and the seasons.
Bad Frankie
Use of local, seasonal ingredients is really trendy right now. The terms finger lime, muntry, quondong, and hashtag have all been overused to promote locally grown food. Bad Frankie's owner Seb Costello, meanwhile, had been riding the native train for years. His bar featured only Australian spirits. Authentic Australian fare, community sports trophies, and craft cocktails made with local ingredients can all be found side by side at Bad Frankie.
Gerald's Bar
With the perfect tunes playing and a young Micheal Caine poster looking over you, Gerald's has always been a welcoming and friendly bar full of character. The wine list may be a mammoth two hundred bottles long with a few dead ends, but still the staff is more than happy to assist you navigate it. Alongside the trendy, experimental wines made with skin contact that are all the rage with the millennial set these days are vintage bottles from all over the world.
Howler
Howler is tucked away inside a renovated warehouse. An artistic centre with a variety of different uses, including a bar. The indoor-outdoor beer garden is outfitted with sculptural bike racks, massive oak chairs, and tree-filled black metal planter boxes. The bar boasts one of the most extensive selections of craft beers in the city, including offerings like the Japanese Hitachino Nest. Even if it isn't enough to appease your inner hipster, the bar has a stage in the back where local and foreign Indie bands perform.
The Wolf & I
This pub and cocktail lounge, decorated in an industrial design, is Windsor's go-to spot for a night out. The atmosphere is warm and welcoming, just as it would be in any traditional bar. There is a vast selection of drinks available, as well as six big screens for watching sports. The Wolf & I is more than a bar because of its unique decor and specialised cocktail menu. Because of the spacious hall, waiting in line is no longer an issue in Windsor.
Gin Palace
The entry to this underground lair is a secret door labelled "GP" in gold lettering. The decor is sumptuously luxurious, with leather sofas, gold chaises, animal skin wraps, low lighting, and soothing music. The gin menu features gins from all around the world, and the bar even hosts gin-themed events often. You can also order martinis, cocktails, and wines, all of which will be brought at your table by our pleasant, uniformed wait staff and presented to you in enormous balloon glasses.
This trendy rooftop bar serves tapas in the style of a traditional Spanish bomba, but with a view over Melbourne that is hard to beat. The downstairs restaurant serves delicious meals, but reservations are required (the bar, however, welcomes walk-ins). Many of the wines on the wine list are made by small, artisanal Spanish producers that are making their debut in the Australian market. Cocktails, sherry, and vermouth are all on offer.
Gogo Bar
Both the street and the top-notch Thai restaurant, Chin Chin, offer easy access to this cosy basement hangout. GoGo is dimly lit and intimate, with numerous secluded areas and a sizable bar area where patrons can relax. On the weekends, DJs play all the latest tunes, creating a lively and exciting environment. The creative four-seasons menu can be found in GoGo's Little Black Book, where you can also find a modest variety of Asian-themed beers and outstanding cocktails with a Thai influence that may be ordered by the carafe. Chin Chin serves a variety of bar snacks.
The Lui Bar
The beautiful Rialto Building is home to this breathtaking event space on its top floor. Amazing views of up tp 60 kilometres (37 miles) may be seen from this vantage point, which is around 230 metres (755 feet) above ground. Lui Bar is a more relaxed option than the restaurant, but it still requires approval from the door personnel on the ground floor.
Order a Lola Montez Spider Dance Fizz (called after the famed 19th-century erotic dancer and created with French Prosecco and seasonal fruits) and take a look as it is mixed at the pop-up menu presenting elaborate cocktails inspired by Australia. For those with refined palates, we also offer Beluga caviar as part of our modest bar snack menu. Visit on a Sunday to relax to laid-back live music and enjoy a drink with friends while taking in the breathtaking view from the genuinely amazing observation deck.
Conclusion
Around 45.1% of adults in Australia drink wine at least once every four weeks. White wine accounts for a staggering 69.3 percent of all wine consumed, making it the most popular variety of vino among female drinkers. Red wine accounts for 56.3% of all wine consumed, followed by sparkling wine (42%), and fortified wine (11.4%). Beer is consumed at about twice the rate of wine, despite the fact that wine is more popular among adults. The balance of the typical quantity of alcohol consumption consists of spirits, champagne, and cider. The over 65 crowd still prefers wine, while the 18-24 set still drinks beer in large quantities. Women tend to consume more alcoholic beverages overall, excluding beer.
Content Summary
- Australian food is a fascinating mash-up of ingredients and methods from all around the world's most popular cuisines.
- It's no secret that Aussies love their wine, but there are plenty of other drinks to sample while you're Down Under.
- Australian wine has been gaining international acclaim since the 1970s, when it surpassed beer as the country's most popular alcoholic drink.
- It's been established beyond a reasonable doubt that Aussies have an unquenchable craving for vino.
- In the United States, new research shows that women make up the wine drinking population's vast majority.
- Over the course of 2015, Australian women drank wine at a rate four times higher than men did.
- White wine accounts for a staggering 69.3 percent of all wine consumed, making it the most popular variety of vino among female drinkers.
- While more persons report a preference for wine, recent surveys suggest that beer consumption is nearly double that of wine.
- Wine is the most popular alcoholic beverage since more women are wine drinkers.
- The balance of the typical quantity of alcohol consumption consists of spirits, champagne, and cider.
- Adults 65 and over continue to favour wine, while young adults (18-24) favour beer.
- Though more adults opt for wine, studies reveal that beer drinkers might be heavy-handed with their consumption.
- Different amounts of alcohol are consumed by males and women.
- Women tend to consume more alcoholic beverages overall, excluding beer.
- The Roy Morgan Booze Currency Report found that 47.5% of Australians aged 18+ use alcohol weekly.
- Men make up a disproportionate share of the drinking population regardless of other demographic variables.
- The average man drinks alcohol once every four weeks, while the average woman does so only once every two months.
