First Look: Hannah St Hotel Ushers In a New Chapter for Southbank

In 2025, it’s not enough for a hotel to simply offer a guest a place to sleep. As the benchmark for travel continues shifting from “tourist” to “temporary local”, many new openings are leaning into neighbourhood identity and local character.

Hannah St Hotel is the latest example. It’s a $150 million joint venture between developers Max Cap, Hickory and Time & Place (also behind the adjoining residential Queensbridge Building), Flack Studio (which designed Sydney’s Ace Hotel and Troye Sivan’s internet-famous home), and TFE Hotels (Quincy Hotel, Adina Hotel Pentridge, The Eve). The triangular site, which evokes New York’s Flatiron Building, is designed to feel rooted in Melbourne’s past while still meeting modern expectations.

“As we look ahead to 2026 and beyond, I believe ‘live like a local’ experiences will continue to shape the most interesting hotels,” says general manager Peter Minatsis. “For Hannah St, our deep connection to Melbourne and our place as a neighbourhood anchor in the evolving arts precinct will give us an edge.”

The hotel rises from the podium of the 65-storey Queensbridge Building, spanning 10 levels and 188 rooms. Guests have access to amenities within the building, including a 20-metre lap pool, steam room, sauna and gym, plus fully equipped co-working spaces with everything from private meeting rooms to a podcast studio. The Terrace Lounge – a rooftop bar and events space – rounds things out.

Works by local artists like Justene Williams and Jazz Money, and a hospitality program by Nathan Toleman’s Mulberry Group (Hazel, Lilac), underscore the hotel’s ambition to be a local hub rather than just a place to stay.

The Mulberry Group will oversee room service and event catering, and has developed five distinct venues within the building with Bernard Glaude, a hospitality veteran who previously owned Daylesford’s beloved Belvedere Social, overseeing the program. The main offering Coupette is a European corner bistro open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, expected to start service in January. It will be the kind of crowd-pleasing place where you can find everything from steak frites to pasta. 

Your day can start with morning lattes at Hannah St Coffee and end with late-night cocktails at Bar Hannah in the hotel lobby, or the connecting Carriage Lounge. On level 10 is Propeller Residency, which will operate with a residency program where a chef will pitch a concept and the group will help them to run it for four months before potentially launching it at a new site separate from the hotel.

Minatsis says tapping into the local industry was non-negotiable. “Melbourne’s culture – like [the] hotel – is layered, creative and full of energy. It’s shaped by history but driven by community, and that’s what makes both so special.”

Inside the rooms, custom-designed furnishings sit alongside Marshall speakers and Malin & Goetz amenities and minibars stocked with local producers. Like the public spaces, the interiors blend heritage details with bold modern accents.

With the arts precinct’s $1.7 billion revitalisation underway – which will include 18,000 square metres of new public gardens – the opening seems well-timed.

As Minatsis puts it, “Hannah St is bringing a new energy to the neighbourhood”, and he’s excited to be part of Southbank’s unfolding story.

Hannah St Hotel (19 Walker Street, Southbank) is slated to open in December.

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