Robot Bar

Taking its theme of old tin toy robots with a pinch of Japanese nostalgia, Robot Bar brings a little slice of Tokyo to Melbourne. Lurking in the far corner of a tiny alleyway off Flinders Lane, the bright red bar makes for a comfortable meet-up place for casual city folk, with a chandelier of dangling toy robots and monsters, as well as installations of old toy boxes and old Japanese movie posters arranged neatly on the wall.

While the compact two-floor bar conforms more to Japanese pop culture than to an izakaya, the bar boasts a wide range of Japanese beer and sake. It figures – Robot was originally opened by sake aficionado Andre Bishop of Nihonshu (adjoining Izakaya Chuji), Golden Monkey and Kumo Izakaya.

For something to nibble with your drink, a simple selection of Japanese-inspired bar food includes edamame, takoyaki, or buta tsukune, a pork hambaagu (hamburger) with Japanese sweet barbeque sauce.

While it takes on quite a Friday night post-work crowd, Robot sticks to its guns by holding anime nights on Tuesdays. So if the idea of a curry pizza and a bottle of Yebisu at a little alley bar tickles your fancy, then Robot Bar is the place to sit and play.