Here are 6 Melbourne bars where Lady Whistledown and her cohort might find themselves passing the wee hours. This article is brought to you by Netflix, in celebration of the new original series, Bridgerton – a romantic, scandalous, and quick-witted look at the timelessness of enduring friendships, families finding their way, and the search for true love.

Beneath Driver Lane

There’s something about drinking in an old bank vault that takes the risqué vibes to the next level. Welcome to Beneath Driver Lane, where revellers can be found huddled in exposed brick booths whilst molten wax drips from the candles, creating shadowy spectaculars on the arched ceilings above. The cocktails, just quietly, are just as good as they look.

Basement, Shop 3, Driver Lane, CBD, driverlanebar.com

Loch and Key

Peek behind one of the bookcases at the CBD’s historic Captain Melville (Melbourne’s oldest pub, as it happens) and you might find yourself on a staircase, wondering where the heck you are. Up here at Loch and Key, there are excellent cocktails, a touch of taxidermy and a seriously expansive balcony space in which to while away the hours. Plus – and Lady Whistledown will want to hear this – some very private booths: just the thing for when conversation turns scandalous.

34 Franklin Street, CBD, lochandkey.com.au

Clooney Kitchen and Bar

If the barely-there lighting doesn’t get you, then the purple velvet and deep, dark, ornate wallpaper will: this is a bar in which to linger and savour the art of conversation, and we can just imagine Queen Charlotte, Bridgerton’s all-seeing matriarch, presiding over conversations here. Somewhere this chic feels  out of place in such a suburban locale – but then, that’s what makes it such a devastatingly special surprise.

171 Bay Street, Port Melbourne, clooneykitchenandbar.com

Bar Margaux

Open until 5am, Bar Margaux is the sort of setting where wicked plans can be plotted until late, unbeknownst to the revellers all around. It’s the type of venue that roguish Anthony Bridgerton would be a regular at. Up at the bar one can be on show, but when it’s time to make things more private, the booths serve that purpose just impeccably. They even do mini and light cocktails: ideal for when you want to look like you’re drinking as much as your companion, but are actually at full concentration.

Basement, 111 Lonsdale Street, CBD, barmargaux.com.au

Eau de Vie

Sure, it’s Melbourne’s most famous secret bar, but there’s no way the likes of young, fancy-free Daphne Bridgerton could come to town and not have a drink in one of Eau de Vie’s low-lit tables: the cocktails are just too good, and the celebrity sightings too commonplace. But Eau de Vie holds a secret. Hidden behind a bookcase is the Whisky Room – an out-of-the-way space perfect for private parties when booked, but still offering a little extra privacy when not. 

1 Malthouse Lane, CBD, eaudevie.com.au/Melbourne

GoGo Bar at Chin Chin 

Chin Chin attracts celebrities like honey to a blowfly – Jerry Hall, Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Pink have all spent time here while in Australia. GoGo Bar sits just below the restaurant – both on the radar and geographically – in its basement. Here, you can eat the Chin Chin menu while drinking Southeast Asian-inspired cocktails, hidden away from the hustle upstairs. 

125 Flinders Lane, CBD, chinchin.melbourne

This article is brought to you by Netflix, in celebration of the new original series, Bridgerton – a romantic, scandalous, and quick-witted look at the timelessness of enduring friendships, families finding their way, and the search for true love.