End of the dry: Melbourne's only alcohol-free zone now teems with licensed venues

Melbourne's only dry zone is two years short of its centenary, but locals say the area is dry in name only, as dozens of food venues are granted liquor licences and wine bars open for the first time.

There are no pubs or clubs, and alcohol purportedly cannot be sold in restaurants and cafes in the dry zone encompassing Ashburton, Glen Iris, Camberwell, Canterbury, Balwyn, North Balwyn, Mont Albert, Mont Albert North, Box Hill, Box Hill South and Box Hill North.

But, quietly, fully licensed premises have proliferated.

The Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation says there are 143 restaurants and cafes with liquor licences in the dry zone, compared with just 42 in 2010.

In the three years to December 2017, the regulator said 53 liquor licences were granted. A further five are under application.

Last year, a restaurant specialising in wine, The Hills, opened its doors in Surrey Hills, and Coles opened a bottle shop with long opening hours.

"There was a community group that argued strongly against that but I guess it's an issue that has always divided a community," said Sue Barnett, president of the Surrey Hills Historical Society.

The Hills Wine Bar's manager Angus Brettingham-Moore pours a legal drop in "dry zone" Surrey Hills.Credit: Eddie Jim

The Hills co-owner Renton Carlyle-Taylor said the venue had been inundated by locals enjoying its alcohol menu and city-style look.

"We have found that we've got the early family trade, and then mum and dad can come down and have a late meal and drink," he said.

The dry zone has delivered a "quiet life" for residents, said Jillian Quartel, who was part of the  Dry Areas Quality of Life lobby group.

But Ms Barnett said the dry zone was crumbling.

"BYO licences to restaurants have gradually crept in over the past 10 years and have been the thin end of the wedge," she said.

No suburb has been more divided by the dry zone than Camberwell, where the western side of Burke Road has licensed restaurants and cafes, as well as the suburb's only pub, The Palace, while the eastern side has run dry.

Kerry Daly, from the Camberwell Centre Association, said the dry zone had "stifled development opportunity for the area" but more eastern-side venues had started to sell alcohol – and this had benefited the whole strip.

"Compared to Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn or other pockets with nightclubs, it hasn't been the drunken yobbo nightclubby kids, but adults making mature decisions," she said.

Camberwell was one of Melbourne's most affluent suburbs when it voted to close its seven hotels in 1920, according to the Camberwell Historical Society. Under the influence of the temperance movement, the dry zone held until Box Hill Golf Club broke ranks in 1956. 

In days past, residents were required to attend a polling place to vote on a restaurant's bid for a liquor licence, and were fined for not doing so.

But laws have loosened over time, with restaurants slowly granted the right to a licence without a community vote. It was only in 2015 that Boroondara residents were no longer required to vote on restaurant liquor licence applications, although polls are still required for pub and club licence applications.

For restaurateurs, alcohol sales mean more income. Mary Shade is part of Hellenis Cafe in Surrey Hills, which will apply for a liquor licence this year.

Mary Shade, part owner of Hellenis Cafe, which has a BYO licence in Surrey Hills but plans to apply for a full liquor licence later this year, in Surrey Hills.Credit: Luis Enrique Ascui

"We're predominantly a cafe, so it's not a huge issue. At the moment it's fine because people actually like to BYO," she said. "But for lunchtime, it would be good to have a licence."

Jack Roach, a consultant to the Boroondara Residents’ Action Group, said the "old and now out-of-favour dry zone is now a non-issue as most residents do not object to the issuing of restaurant liquor licences".

"There is, however, one proviso and that is that any expansion of hotels is likely to receive a substantial number of objections."