Bars

Melbourne is a bar culture hub and The Blackman's location allows for easy access to many of city's hot spots. Be it shore side in St Kilda or down a laneway in the CBD, our Guest Experience team have created a  diminutive selection from which to choose from.

The Botanical
169 Domain Rd, South Yarra
After wandering the Botanical Gardens, it’s practically compulsory to stop at The Botanical for a drink and a nibble, and after re-opening in 2010, the Botanical has been refreshed without losing its atmosphere of old Melbourne elegance - or its famed ‘wine wall’. A fifteen-minute stroll from the Blackman, The new Botanical is divided into several sections, including a formal dining area, a bar and lounge and ‘The Archer Room’, a courtyard-inspired setting, complete with planted walls, for casual dining. With an emphasis on local and boutique wines and a knowledgeable staff, The Botanical is a Melbourne institution.

MoVida Terraza
Level 1, 500 Bourke Street, Melbourne
Sun-drenched cousin of the famous MoVida tapas restaurant, MoVida Terraza is the latest in a growing empire and shares a terrace with the larger MoVida Aqui. Monday to Friday you can find crowds gathered above Bourke Street near the outdoor bar’s yellow awnings, all here to soak in some sun and sangria.At the kiosk, Chef Frank Camorra serves seasonal tasting plates of the quality expected from MoVida.  Dishes vary each day depending on the ingredients du jour.

Pony Fish Island
Yarra Pedestrian Footbridge, Melbourne
Floating in the middle of the Yarra River, Pony Fish Island (accessible from the pedestrian bridge) is the quirky-cool pop-up bar that has become Melbourne’s latest sensation. Owners Jerome Borazio, Grant Smillie and Andrew Mackinnon said they wanted to create something completely original after suffering laneway and ‘rooftop fatigue’. They succeeded with their bar/cafe/restaurant, serving up drinks, coffee and simple meals. Unfortunately, Pony Fish Island promises to disappear off the map as quickly as it came. Blink and you’ll miss it!

1000 £ Bend
361 Little Lonsdale Street, Melbourne
Started by Jerome Borazio (of St. Jerome’s and Pony Fish Island fame), cafe-meets-warehouse 1000 £ Bend is the holy grail of hipster hang outs. Comfy vintage couches and a wide selection of local and imported beers encourage visitors to stay beyond one drink. Even more impressive is the warehouse space surrounding the bar/cafe, which is used to host art exhibitions, fashion parades, instillations, and includes a cinema for film festivals and documentary screenings.

Bar Americano
20 Presgrave Place, Melbourne
Hidden, like so many of Melbourne’s best bars, in a graffiti-covered alley, Bar Americano is bringing a taste of Italy to the city with their offerings of coffee, cocktails and aperitifs (both traditional and encompassing more modern flavours.) The dark interior is said to be inspired by the ‘American bars’ of the prohibition, and the drinks menu is also prone to nostalgia, reviving drinks that have been ‘lost to the sands of time’. The food selection is short but sweet; including fresh bruschetta and soups of the day.

Cookie
First Floor, Curtin House, 252 Swanston Street, Melbourne
Mouth-watering cocktails, 350 wines on offer and an equally extensive beer list, what’s not to love about Cookie? One of the city’s most popular bars which features a luxe-yet-offbeat interior, a bar menu to appease the most discerning foodie and a wide selection of Thai treats divided into small, medium and large dishes, Cookie has something for everyone.

Madame Brussels
Level 3, 59-63 Bourke St, Melbourne, Victoria
Staff dressed in terry towelling shorts and Lacoste polos circle the plastic lawn, complete with fifties lawn furniture, at Bourke St’s rooftop bar Madame Brussels.  Named after Melbourne’s first female brothel owner, Madame Brussels is known for its eye-catching interior, lushly-flavoured and generous cocktail jugs, punches, and of course, an obsession with Pimms. Come to Madame Brussel’s garden party- its camp, its kitsch, it’s fabulous.