Hidden bars to try in Melbourne and suburbia
You won’t have to look far to find hidden bars in Melbourne laneways. They’re tucked away in sandwich shops, under cobblestone walkways and some only accessible by doorbell (or the secret password).
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You won’t have to look far to find hidden bars in Melbourne laneways.
They’re tucked away in sandwich shops, under cobblestone walkways and some only accessible by doorbell (or the secret password).
Here are some of the city’s best kept secrets.
THE PRAHRAN BAR THAT’LL GET YOU TALKING
COINTREAU’S BIG AUSSIE CHALLENGE
SOUTH
JUNGLE BOY
Ever wondered why everyone queues outside Boston Sub on Chapel Street? It’s not only because the subs are tasty. The punters are waiting for their turn to yank open the refrigerator door and venture inside Windsor’s secret rum bar — Jungle Boy. Sip on tropical, rum based cocktails in Windsor’s worst kept secret.
96 Chapel St, Windsor
PAWN AND CO
It may look like a pawn shop, but that’s the idea behind this nifty Greville St bar. Pawn and Co is home to decorative brass instruments, copper pipes and neon signs. Knock back espresso martinis, ‘Chinese slippers’ and ‘happy endings’ cocktails at Mr Chan’s Fridays.
177 Greville St, Prahran
CBD: SOUTH
THE DEN
Some come for the fine seafood above, but others enjoy the depths of The Atlantic in The Den cocktail bar. Walk down the staircase to find the New York style bar with exposed brick work, leather couches and dimmed lights. Choose a sipper from the cocktail list or sit back with a scotch.
Crown Entertainment Complex, 8 Whiteman St, Southbank
www.theatlantic.com.au/the-den
CBD: NORTH EAST
THE CROFT INSTITUTE
It’s the Melbourne bar based on a science lab, complete with a stretcher, beakers, pipes and surgical equipment. Find this one hidden down a winding laneway in Chinatown. Don’t worry about sipping — they’ve provided oral syringes for you to administer your drink.
21 Croft Alley, Melbourne
NEW GOLD MOUNTAIN
There’s no signage out the front, just an open door along Liverpool St leading up a staircase. Travel up two levels to find the cosy New Gold Mountain. Enjoy the green or red level, depending on your mood. If you’re into whiskey cocktails, try bartender Nick Pope’s famed Hung Parliament.
L1 and L2/21 Liverpool St, Melbourne
BERLIN BAR
Get in early for one of Melbourne’s novel speakeasy experiences. Visitors to Berlin Bar must ring the doorbell. When someone answers, you’ll be given a choice of east or west. Fate will determine whether you end up in ‘The Salon’ or ‘The Bunker’— and if you’ll be separated from your mates.
2/16 Corrs Ln, Melbourne
CBD: SOUTH EAST
EAU DE VIE
Step back in time at this Melbourne favourite, tucked away in Malthouse Lane. Grab a booth if you can, to enjoy a range of impressive cocktails. The drinks’ list is broken into flavour profiles, so you don’t have to dissect the menu. And for the ultimate hidden bar experience, step behind the bookcase to find a hidden whiskey room. It’s a hidden bar in a hidden bar!
1 Malthouse Ln, Melbourne
TRINKET
This new cocktail bar in Melbourne’s famed Flinders Lane has taken a leaf out of Narnia. Step through the wardrobe and down a narrow staircase to a hidden cellar bar. There’s an extensive cocktail list — including five types of martinis.
87 Flinders Ln, Melbourne
1806
A discrete door on Exhibition Street leads into the lavish 1806 bar. Opt for a cosy corner upstairs or somewhere among the hustle and bustle downstairs — there’s plenty to choose from on the menu. Enjoy some quirky creations, the classics or a whiskey and cheese flight.
169 Exhibition St, Melbourne
CBD: NORTH
LOCH AND KEY
On the Queen Victoria Market side of the city you’ll find this hidden gem. Behind the bookcase in Captain Melville Bar, you’ll find Loch and Key. When Captain Melville closes, you’ll get access to the secret bar via a doorbell in the laneway.
34 Franklin St, Melbourne
CBD: EAST
THE BAR BEHIND PIZZA, PIZZA, PIZZA
This secret bar has no name, but does deliver on the speakeasy front.
Walk inside the small pizza shop, take a left through the plastic curtain and you’ll end up inside the unassuming watering hole. Sink some beers in an relaxed environment.
16 Meyers Place, Melbourne
CBD: CENTRAL
UNION ELECTRIC BAR
Out for a drink, but want to get your daily fruit and veg hit? Union Electric Bar prides itself on using fresh fruit and veg in its cocktails. Start with a freshly pressed apple juice and add gin, rum, or whiskey. There’s even a BYO food option, where Union Electric will provide plates, napkins and cutlery. Enter via Heffernan Lane.
13 Heffernan Ln, Melbourne
HOUSE OF CORRECTION
If you’ve been out along Swanston St in the CBD, you’ll be familiar with the likes of Cookie and Lounge Bar. But a few doors up is House of Correction, nestled on the fourth floor of the heritage Denyer’s building. Think fuss-free cocktails, beer and a well-chosen wine list.
4/264 Swanston St, Melbourne
BENEATH DRIVER LANE
This bar is not only hidden but Beneath Driver Lane is found in one of Melbourne’s original buildings — the GPO. (The bar is the old underground Money Order Office for the GPO.) The 2018 cocktail list is inspired by blues music through the ages. Also try the bottled cocktails for two, whiskey flights and from a range of beer and wine.
Basement, 3 Driver Ln, Melbourne
MANCHURIA BAR
It’s one of Melbourne’s best kept secrets and after 13 years, you’d think more people knew where Manchuria Bar was (it’s tucked away down Waratah Place). Pop in for one of their signature cocktails — the Mary of Manchuria, or stay for the live music every Thursday from 7pm.
5/7 Waratah Pl, Melbourne
BAR AMERICANO
This bar is tiny and offers standing room only. The menu changes weekly, sometimes based on seasonal ingredients, other times just because. There’s more classic cocktails on this menu — including negronis and the namesake drink Americano (Italian bitters, house vermouths, citrus and soda).
20 Presgrave Pl, Melbourne
WEST
LAY LOW
What appears to be a clothing store Brixton Pound, is actually hidden Law Low Bar in Seddon. Enter via the door to the side of the shop, find another door with the brass handle at the end of the corridor and push the button. Once inside, opt for a cocktail from it’s clever spring menu. Try a herbaceous Dill With It or a fruity Pearant Trap, although they’re not lying when they say Umami Issues Bloody Mary is the best in Seddon.
93 Buckley Street, Seddon
BACK ALLEY SALLY’S
It’s the abandoned multi-level warehouse turned watering hole. Walk down a side street, along a strip of parked cars, before stumbling across ‘Slice Girls West’. They do pizza, well, but head upstairs to find Back Alley Sallys where you can enjoy a beer, or two.
4 Yewers St, Footscray
EAST
EAST OF EVERYTHING
For eastsiders BarNone was the place to go in Camberwell. Head upstairs to find East of Everything. There’s rotating beers on tap, including local brewers from the Mornington Peninsula, Boatrocker, Hop Nation, Sailors Grave, Modus Operandi and Stomping Ground.
Hungry? Enjoy quesadillas, burgers and share plates.
72 Auburn Parade, Camberwell
NORTH
THE ATTIC
Fitzroy bar Black Pearl is considered one of the world’s best bars. But after having a couple of drinks, head up the narrow staircase to The Attic for a different feel. There’s a limited drinks list, which will help those overwhelmed by choice downstairs.
304 Brunswick St, Fitzroy
ABOVE BOARD
This is a tricky bar to find, if you’re not a Collingwood local. There’s an entry via BeerMash (if it’s open). If not, enter via the rear down Chopper Lane (Off Perry Street). This new bar is not recommended for large groups. There’s no bookings available and seating for about a dozen people. There’s also no standing room.
Level 1/306 Smith Street, via Chopper Lane
THE EVERLEIGH
This one is hidden within an American diner. Follow the hallway out the back, up some stairs and you’ll end up in the classy Everleigh. In 2013 and 2014 it was one of the World’s 50 Best Bars.
150-156 Gertrude St, Fitzroy
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