he Cellar Bar, the newest addition to the Newmarket Hotel, revealed itself for the first time on Friday night. Newmarket owners, the Melbourne Pub Group – who also own The Prince, Albert Park and Middle Park Hotels among others – have gone all out to create a luxurious dining experience that includes live entertainment organised by promoter and producer Si Jay Gould and visual artist and burlesque performer Vesper White, with each performance being a mystery until the curtain opens.

In what is a complete about-face from the share-plates and no-bookings policies that have become so common around town, this dinner venue has a degustation-only menu and the only way into the brooding, textured, velvet-draped Cellar Bar is by booking a table or booth, or by buying a bottle of something deliciously expensive to sit by the stage.

The food, by group director and executive chef Paul Wilson, will be seasonal, starting with a Mexican menu (perfect for the coming summer months), inspired by his recent trip to Central America.

Cellar Bar, below the Newmarket Hotel
34 Inkerman Street, St Kilda
(03) 9534 1060

Hours
Daily 6pm–1am

newmarketstkilda.com.au