This Las Vegas-inspired cocktail bar is the first drinks-focused venture from pizza specialists, Maybe Frank. Creative director and former Bartender of the Year Andrea Gualdi leads up a team of award-winning bartending talent, which includes movers and shakers like Martin Hudak and Balazs Molnar. The menu is made up of eight signature cocktails, modern remakes of classic favs, each one inspired by the Rat Pack’s favourite haunts. Tipples are far from the typical, with many presented alongside magic tricks and sensory performances. There will also be a small tasting menu of cocktail minis available for just $10 a pop.

A visit to Continental Deli, Bar and Bistro, might change your mind about eating food from a tin. The bar is famous for its collection of cans, which range from Espinaler cockles to Cambados mussels, alongside a number of unique canned concoctions, including a Mar-tinny, Can-hattan and Cosmopoli-tin, all sealed on site. And because this place is the ultimate package, there’s also a Mediterranean bistro menu, inspired by the deli goods. 167 Phillip Street, Sydney. continentaldelicatessen.com.au.

Taking out the title of Best International Bar at the International Restaurant and Bar Design Awards, this industrial-chic gin bar is conveniently attached to the Archie Rose Distillery and all the delightful aromatics that come along with it. Pull up a stool and taste your way through the Archie Rose range, with each drink accompanied by a lesson as to what went into it. There’s also cheese and charcuterie platters to make sure you get boozy but not woozy. 85 Dunning Avenue, Rosebery. archierose.com.au.

There are three types of Bloody Mary on the menu at this Irish-themed cocktail bar, which tells you exactly the kind of place it is. The first is an elegant, tomato-infused number, the second a classic but the third is where the party really gets started. Dubbed the Kilpatrick Bloody Mary, it’s made from vodka laced with bacon and it’s a must-try. All of the cocktails on the menu at this cosy drinking spot follow that same formula of taking a classic and giving it a fun, tongue-in-cheek spin. You won’t forget a night spent drinking here. 75 Campbell Street, Surry Hills, thewildrover.com.au

Paddington’s Oxford Street strip is not the most auspicious of venues for a cocktail bar. The problem is all those pubs, really, the suburb has more of a familial beer-drinking atmosphere than a slow, cocktail-sipping one. But Merivale’s Charlie Parker’s — otherwise known as the bar at the front of Fred’s — is trying to change that. Like the restaurant it’s married to, the bar is elegant and refined, with chic banquette seating and mirrored accents everywhere. And like Fred’s, the cocktails take a leaf, pun very much intended, from a farm-to-table mentality, grouped loosely together under headings like ‘leaf, ‘root’ and ‘stem’. Without a doubt, the best tipple on the menu is the Salted grapefruit, a mix of sherry, lemon myrtle verjus and tequila. Bottom’s up. 380 Oxford Street, Paddington, merivale.com/venues/charlieparkers

It’s all Japanese everything, all the time, at this small bar tacked onto the back of Commonwealth Street in the business end of Surry Hills. The hidden location is a good thing though, it means that the bar is never overcrowded, leaving you space to enjoy your eggplant miso skewers and chicken karaage in peace. But the sizzling yakitori isn’t even the main reason you should seek this bar out, it’s the curated cocktail list of perennial favourites (a tangy yuzu spritz goes down a treat) and seasonal specials. Just don’t pass up the chance to try a Japanese negroni, fashioned from Jinzu gin, that bitter hit of Campari and a dash of umeshu, or sweet plum wine. Commonwealth Street and Belmore Lane, Surry Hills, tokyobirdcom.au

If you didn’t know it was there, the only thing that might give the location of Earl’s Juke Joint away is the bouncer standing discreetly by the door. Outside, the original facade — a Newtown butcher — has been retained, but once you step through those doors it’s all New Orleans drinking hole, dark and smoky, with a sprawling wooden bar where you can place your order. The cocktails here are deadly, from a Hobo Julep made from bourbon and mint bitters to a delightfully tropical, Pina Colada.