Effervescent, spirited and fun-forward, Gin Palace is a cocktail bar that’s anything but tiresome. Keep an eye on its event calendar for bottomless gin punch brunches, masterclasses and more.

Amble down Malthouse Lane and discover a bar where the 1920s is still very much alive. At Eau De Vie, the speciality beverage is whisky – and it’s a spirit this locale knows well. Stay for the bar’s delicious food provisions to pair with your whisky of choice.

So Frenchy, and very much chic, Beneath Driver Lane serves up an exciting cocktail menu – try the ‘Cornflake Flip’ –alongside French-bistro-inspired dishes. Better yet, its late-night menu is available until 3am.

Settled in a carpack off Tattersalls Lane, this shipping-container-turned-bar proves to be so much more than meets the eye. Section 8’s cocktails are as lively as its party tunes and bustling clientele.

Sleek, moody and secluded, Union Electric Bar is where the locals go to play. Make yourself at home and sample your way through the eclectic cocktail menu – we recommend the zingy Hotline Sling.

Serving up charm, old-world cocktails and a European-influenced snacking menu, Romeo Lane is a firm favourite among Melbourne’s laneway frequenters. The cocktails, like the food offerings, are artfully presented in the handsomely yet simply adorned space.

A favoured establishment among Melbourne cocktail enthusiasts, this award-winning bar is bound to impress even the most discerning drinkers. Here, only the finest, tried-and-tested classic cocktails are served – think negroni and old-fashioned swills.

A bar that’s as focussed on its music as it is on its drinks, Cherry Bar is a (sort of) secret live music venue. Self-proclaimed ‘best rock n’ roll bar in the world’, this not the kind of venue you take a first date for a quiet conversation.