Iso is over, and it's time to hit the ground running (responsibly) with knowledge of the top bars you should visit in Melbourne this Summertime!
1) Tyranny of Distance
While home to countless bars, it’s the watering hole just off Chapel Street that takes up a spot on our prestigious list. Entering Tyranny of Distance, nestled in Union Street (super close to Windsor station), feels like you’ve just walked inside to be outside again.
The wall closest to Union is completely open during Summer months, filling the room with warmth and fresh air. Tyranny’s aesthetic is incredibly green, not only resulting from the many suspending plants (we are in Melbourne after all), but also from the stark green walls, making the whole bar feel like an indoor-outdoor jungle.
Its menu is 100% plant based (yum), and while local craft beer and wines are plentiful, the real stars of the Tyranny show are its cocktails (and we recommend you try the espresso martinis as soon as feasibly possible - total game changer).
Photo Credit: Tyranny of Distance Instagram
2) Miss Carlisles
Unassuming and charming, Miss Carlisles is a gem for small groups of friends seeking a spot of live music with their drink.
With dark wooden furniture and plenty of exposed brick, the relatively small bar is homely, and delights with cheap drink specials and a menu very much transgressing the run of the mill pub grub (think gourmet pizzas, pumpkin risotto and steamed local mussels). Live music makes an appearance too, pairing nicely with the local tapped beers and house wines.
3) Beneath Driver Lane
Down Driver Lane (just off Bourke Street), behind a velvet rope and down a steep staircase, lies a dark and cosy watering hole. Inside, the bar is polished and elegantly dim, all gleaming wood and brick.
Dark and smooth wooden chairs encircle small tables in the centre of the subterranean venue, while brick-lined booths toward the back provide the perfect setting for couples seeking a bit more privacy.
The drinks list is expansive here (and cocktails are a must), with countless liqueur bottles stacked impressively high behind the bar, reflecting the warm glow of the many candles in the room. Beneath Driver Lane is perfect for groups of friends (or couples) wanting a slower paced, cosier night out on the town, and often hosts a number of gigs for those seeking a show with their drink.
Photo Credit: Beneath Driver Lane Instagram
4) Heartattack and Vine
While serving up (arguably) the city’s best spicy chai lattes by day, Heartattack and Vine transitions into a quintessential wine bar at night. The watering hole is cosy and intimate, with patrons sipping on vino and chowing down on tapas (think olives, artichoke hearts and arancini balls) at small candle lit tables, along the bar, or on the large wooden communal table.
Street seating is available too (and a delight in warmer months), but you and the gang will need to get there early to secure a spot - the bar’s a hit with locals and business people alike, as well as students and staff from neighbouring Melbourne Uni looking for a tipple after class.
Photo Credit: Heartattack and Vine Instagram
5) Rooftop Bar
There’s no way we were going to write a list of Melbourne’s top bars without mentioning Rooftop Bar. While not as grungy or ‘secret’ as some of its CBD counterparts, Rooftop Bar’s cityscape views and close proximity to Chinatown help affirm its firm place as a local favourite.
Situated at the top of uber popular Curtin House, the bar is somewhat synonymous with a summer’s arvo in Melbourne; patrons can sprawl themselves on the large elevated wooden steps, or sip on pitchers of refreshing gin and tonics on quaint round tables, city skyscrapers looming in the backdrop.
Photo Credit: Rooftop Bar Instagram
6) Leonard’s House of Love
Known to locals simply as ‘Leonard’s’, this uber popular watering hole can be found nestled just off the hubbub of Chapel Street. If elegant and fancy is what you and the gang are searching for, make no mistake - Leonard’s is not for you.
The bar is as rustic as rustic gets, with wooden interior, dim lighting, a roaring open fireplace and a has-seen-better-days pool table. Outside seating can be found to the left of the bar (behind which exclusively men with beards and women with tattoos pour pint after pint of local lager) where groups crowd around wooden tables with tea lights. The food reflects the rustic vibe within, with a no frills (but delicious) menu boasting the likes of fried chicken, greasy burgers and spicy, cheesy loaded fries.
7) Section 8
If ever there were a bar to so closely represent its outside surroundings, Section 8 would be it. Positioned smack bang in the middle of the city in a converted shipping container, Section 8 (nestled within Tattersalls Lane) is unabashedly Melbourne.
Graffiti sprawled walls are there, as are hanging potted green plants and shabby outdoor heaters for colder months. Patrons sit on wooden shipping pallets because, well, Melbourne, and local DJs make appearances for those seeking a spot of music with their local brew or vino.
