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Best Cocktail Bars in the CBD

Updated 4 months ago

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Sometimes, beer and wine just don't cut it. In those times, you need cocktails. Be it a well-made Negroni, or a complex, multi-layered sipper, Melbourne has a wealth of places to partake.

These are our favourites, ranging from casual spots, to table service venues where the staff wear waistcoats. But without fail, they all know their spirits.

  • 1806

    Bar

    1806: the year the word "cocktail" was first defined in print.

  • Berlin Bar

    Bar

    Opulence meets wartime misery at this bar with two faces.

  • Boilermaker House

    Bar

    600 whiskies and counting, with beers to match.

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  • Bomba

    Restaurant

    Most people come for the Spanish food. But you could just as easily come for the drinks alone.

  • Double Happiness

    Bar

    The sister bar to Lily Black's has a cheeky Chairman Mao theme, but sacrifices none of the skill.

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  • Eau De Vie

    Bar

    Before the EDV team opened Boilermaker House, this classy bar was the focal point for its whisky obsession.

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  • Gin Palace

    Bar

    The name says it all.

  • Heartbreaker

    Bar

    Bottled cocktails waiting by the jukebox in Chinatown.

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  • Lily Blacks

    Bar

    A connoisseur's dream.

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  • Lui Bar at Vue de Monde

    Bar

    What would you expect from a bar run by Vue de Monde?

  • Mesa Verde

    Restaurant

    Climb to the top of Curtin House, and you're in another tequila heaven.

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  • New Gold Mountain

    Bar

    Another skilful, Asian-themed member of the Lily Blacks family.

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  • Seamstress Cocktail Bar

    Bar

    The high-class counterpart of downstairs bar Sweatshop.

  • Siglo

    Bar

    The Melbourne Supper Club's casual rooftop counterpart.

  • Sweatshop

    Bar

    It's a themed bar, but the drinks are far from gimmicky.

  • The Melbourne Supper Club

    Bar

    Sink into a weathered Chesterfield and order with the incredibly knowledgable staff.

  • Union Electric Bar

    Bar

    More fresh fruit and veg than a green grocer.

  • Whisky and Alement

    Bar

    Melbourne's first great whisky bar.

  • Yarra Falls

    Bar

    Evoking a lost piece of Melbourne’s pre-colonial landscape, this tiny bar inside an ornate, heritage-listed space has a striking indoor waterfall that doubles as a back-bar. Come for vibrant cocktails and a seasonal menu of snacks celebrating native ingredients.

  • Jayda

    Bar

    Shane Delia’s cocktail bar, right next to his flagship Maha restaurant. Enter for classic cocktails turned on their head by a world-class bartender and a cracking bar menu of beefy borek buns, taramasalata tarts and a saucy lamb sanga.

  • One or Two

    Bar

    This tranquil bolthole amid the bustle of Chinatown is built on the motto “drink less, drink better”. It’s pouring small-batch whiskies and a tight list of cocktails. Why not stay for just one – or two?