This is the place you want to know from inside out. It just…read morelooks like any other shops in the neighborhood until you walk in and discover the hidden backyard garden. That's the wow moment when you don't want to sit outside neither are fond of the dim-light inside space. They offer good selections of wine and beer. Backyard offers the atmosphere for a fresh and delightful conversation with your friends meanwhile it he inside space provides a bit of magic for romance. It's a good place to drop-by without being too ambitious.

A much needed wine bar in Hawthorn - more please! With three spaces including a small but homely…read moreoutdoor space it appeals to a slightly more mature clientele than the local uni hotels. A rotating selection of wines by the glass and considerably more by the bottle, the team is more than happy for you to take a sip before you buy and pass on their recommendations. I haven't ventured further that the paprika spiced fries when it comes to food but they have a share plate concept with loads of seasonal tastes. Open Tuesday and Sunday and they welcome functions any day of the week!

Deco is one of the coolest looking wine bars in the north side of the city. Located on St George's…read moreroad next to Red Olive restaurant, Deco has an extensive selection of beers and wines and excellent service from Steve and sometimes Abby. The décor is dark and sophisticated and the ambience and vibe very chilled. In summer the back beer garden is a great spot to hang out in. The clientele are usually very talkative and Deco is a good spot to meet a number of interesting people. You can also get a feed here with a number of small share plates on offer and you can even order in the wood-fired pizzas from Red Olive next door. On Sunday evenings there is usually live music on and good relaxing times to be had.

Look better in the dark? Well Deco is the perfect place to bring a prospective partner for a bit of…read morewining and (limited) dining supplied by the neighbouring food stores. The mood lighting in here is so dark you could process film while enjoying a good vino (younger punters probably won't know what processing film is - I can hear them now 'does he mean upload?') The cheese platter was really tasty and of course goes well with wine, I don't know about wine and pizza mixing - maybe that's what girls do on one of those 'girls night in' things - but for me pizza should be eaten with a beer, which is lucky because Deco also have a really extensive beer, cider and spirits menu. Try the Leffe, it's a light-coloured and strong Belgian beer, absolutely sensational. For the tight-arses there's a few good selections of cheaper wine available by the glass and bottle. The Margaret River SBS is a winner. Great place, comfy chairs, affordable, brilliant atmosphere that makes you feel a lot drunker than you are (hence a cheaper night).

If you're hunting for a classic Melbourne vibe on a Saturday, Murmur Piano Bar in Warburton Lane is…read morea top-tier choice. It's tucked away upstairs and feels like a genuine escape from the CBD chaos, even when it's packed. The atmosphere is built around the live piano sets--expect a high-energy, sing-along crowd that's social but more mature than your standard nightclub. Because they don't serve food, the focus remains entirely on the performance and the drinks; the bartenders are efficient even during the Saturday rush, turning out excellent classic cocktails and a solid selection of spirits. The key to a good night here is timing and preparation. Since it's a no-food venue, grab dinner at one of the nearby spots on Elizabeth or Little Collins Street first. On a Saturday, it hits capacity quickly, so arrive before 9:00 PM if you want any hope of snagging a stool near the piano; otherwise, be prepared for a lively, standing-room-only experience. It's the perfect spot if you want a night defined by dim lighting, velvet interiors, and live music rather than a generic DJ set.

A amazing place, Hidden Gem , I've been many times and it's a great experience, The hole place goes…read moreoff regularly with signing, Very crowd interactive, Bar staff and manager are amazing and friendly, Great when celebrating a birthday or anything, You won't be disappointed "party on"

It's always good to visit a bar that I haven't visited before, and with Melbourne there are…read morecertainly quite a lot of bars in which this can be done, since they do tend to be literally popping up all over the place. Well, this one is certainly no exceptions, and while it isn't one of the best rooftop bars that I have visit, it is still pretty good. Yeah, in a way there certainly does seem to be pretty nice atmosphere up here, and the staff are pretty cool as well. Oh, and I probably should mention that they have some rather nice beers as well. Yeah, this place certainly is pretty cool.

What a wonderful day to sit outside for lunch on a rooftop cafe. Warm but a bit breezy and…read moreeventually rain chased us off the roof. The food is Fancy Hank's BBQ from downstairs but it was the open fresh air that did it for me.

A chic, small, yet vibrant modern restaurant located in the heart of Fitzroy! Once again, we…read morebrought our team member to dine here with us as a thank you gesture, and we were honestly proud of our choice. The food is undeniably good and their service is top notch! The friendly staff have impressive skills with carrying the dishes. We ordered quite a lot of food and they did not disappoint! Marion is a great little bar to visit during the day that you can nibble through as you enjoy your wine sipping session. Their wine collection is absolutely CRAZY - come visit and find out yourself!

All hail the King of Hospo!…read more Andrew McConnel, or A-Mac as I like to call him (as if to imply we are best buddies, which we totally aren't) has done it again with Marion. Serving up an ever changing menu of seasonal tasty plates and a wine list that makes me excited to be alive, Marion is the kind of place I wish was my local. Fitzroy is fast becoming THE wine bar suburb of Melbourne with Bar Clarine, Bar Liberty, Hell of the North and the ever lovable and reliable Enoteca all serving up terrific wine by the glass and bottle along with solid food offerings. If you wanted to you could jump around multiple venues in a night having a glass and a bite at each, a kind of progressive dinner. But back to Marion... it's lovely. The food and wine is top notch but what I really want to tell you about is the service. It's friendly, knowledgable and efficient. Each guest is made to feel special but not fawned over and the pace of the experience is perfectly suited to what you're in the mood for. Up for some wine nerd chat? You've got it! Want to be left alone so you can stare in to your eyes of your beloved? No worries! Want to be told what to order and drink so you can be delighted and surprised? Easy. Waiters who can read what you need, and give it to you, are as rare as hens teeth, but A-Mac attracts some of the best staff in this city and it's always a pleasure to dine in any of his establishments because of this. 5 stars.

Dear Penny Black,…read more Thank you. Thank you for providing us with a place to catch up in the sunshine, to drinks beers and eat food and be merry. Thank you for your ever so reasonable pizza prices of $8.50, covered with the right amount of toppings and cooked to the right amount of crisp. Thank you for your crinkle cut fries that accompany your burgers. I should mention the chicken burger, surrounded by crumbs; crunchy and tender. Thank you for your cider, from Colonial Brewing, because without you, I would never have known about this crisp, light drop. Thank you for your photo booth and pool table, your movie nights and your staff. But most of all, thank you for your beer garden. Filled with sunshine, benches, high tables and places where you let me smoke. A rarity you are, and for that I thank you. Will I be back, I hear you ask? Of course. For you loaded fries, deep fried cheese sticks and smiling staff. Yours, always Alice

I'm not quite sure whether this is called 'The Amelia Shaw' or not, but it seems that all of the…read moremarkers on the various mapping and other apps suggest that it is the Penny Black. Still, one does wonder what is in a name, and the thing is quite a lot. However, that is beside the point because this is one of those great Bruswick pubs that you find scattered along Sydney Road. Like many of the other pubs, you can expect craft beers, live music, and an awesome beer garden (which also supports live music acts). The only problem is that with all the good pubs and bars, it can be hard to select one that would be a favourite.

If you're a Brunswick East local (which I am) you should consider yourself lucky (which I do) to…read morelive so close to such an exceptional bar. Mr Wilkinson ticks all the essential boxes. + A warm and welcoming but trendy and hip vibe + A bartender who does The Sunday Age quiz with his patrons every week + Boozy cocktails, wines and local craft beers + A different food truck parked directly outside every night of the week + A charcuterie board so good you will weep No other venue will give you that "I've found something special" vibe, while also making you feel like you're right at home.

This is one of this bars that I discovered simply by walking past, so being the curious person that…read moreI am I decided to step inside and grab a drink. I was immediately impressed, and based on the other reviews I must have a reasonably good taste when it comes to bars. It's a fairly narrow affair, but it actually holds a lot more people than it immediately seems, and there is an outdoor area down the side, and one out the back (though the one out the back is much better than the one down the side). The staff were okay, but it was the atmosphere that really grabbed me. They also had some decent beers available. I wish I had more time to go and visit places like this.

This is one of those really cool Northcote bars that I seem to completely forget about until…read moresomething happens to remind me that it exists. Anyway, when I remembered it again I decided to go back and check it out and I must admit that like the first time I came here it was still a pretty cool experience. Basically it is what you would expect from your typical lounge bar - lounges, craft beers on tap as well as a good selection of spirits, and cool, soothing music. As an added bonus this place also has a pretty decent sized beer garden out the back, though I've noticed that I lot of people end up out there than actually in the bar itself (which is a shame considering that it is inside the bar that is actually the cool part of it). Oh, there are also some really cool seats just inside the entrance that look out onto the street.

My go-to place for decadent cocktails, smooth tunes, comfy lounges, low lighting, and crazy cats on…read morethe dance floor. The bar staff are awesome, and Thursday nights currently feature the amazing Vinyl Vixens DJ collective.