22 of the best rooftop bars in Melbourne

Pinchy’s Lobster & Champagne Bar

200 Bourke Street, Melbourne

If you want to elevate your next lunch date or ladies’ night out, Pinchy’s Lobster & Champagne Bar hits all the high notes. Channelling San Sebastian beach vibes, and with a tapas-style food and wine menu to match, this Spanish-inspired balcony bar blends coastal charm with city swank. On the sustainably focused seafood menu are affordably-priced options including $6 rock oysters, king crab tacos ($9), snapper croquettes ($9) and lobster rolls ($20), with a refreshing selection of crisp champagnes, bubbles and white wines available by the glass.

The Stolen Gem

388 Bourke St, Melbourne

It might be called The Stolen Gem, but this Bourke Street bar is also a hidden one. With exceptional city views, sunset DJ sets and a drinks list that celebrates Australian growers and distillers, this upscale cocktail venue has a global mood and a local flavour. They’re so committed to showcasing Aussie tastemakers that you can even ask the bartenders to sub the imported spirit for a local one in any of their signature cocktails. 

Goldilocks Bar

264 Swanston Street, Melbourne

If you’re looking for your happily ever after, you might find it at Goldilocks Bar. The cosy fifth-floor sip spot, located above a Chinese restaurant atop Swanston Street’s heritage-listed Denyer’s Building, is a fairytale both by name and by nature. On the imaginative cocktail menu, you’ll find concoctions that are Too Cold and Just Right, as well as unique tipples including a Sparkling Orange Blossom Honey Mead from the Barossa Valley and an extensive selection of sour beers. A share-style Chinese-influenced menu includes sip sidekicks like spinach and mushroom bao, pork soup dumplings and deep-fried chicken ribs.

Top Yard Rooftop 

Geddes Lane, Melbourne

For a bar that feels more like a backyard barbecue, head straight to Top Yard Rooftop. With fake turf, picnic tables, hanging plants and wine-barrel bars, the laid-back venue offers an escape from stuffy sip clubs and haute cuisine. Head up to the roof on Friday nights and grab a beer, a BBQ sausage and a stack of Jenga blocks, and unwind with some yacht rock, a $10 ‘rocktail’ or a $30 six pack. 

Transit Rooftop

Federation Square

With sweeping views of the Yarra River, Southbank Precinct, and some of Melbourne’s most iconic landmarks, you’ll want to linger a little longer at Transit Rooftop. The late-night cocktail lounge and live music bar, located opposite Flinders Street Station at the edge of Federation Square, has an unrivalled ambience, with the expansive riverside watering hole dishing up expertly crafted cocktails, Australian beers and delectable bites from downstairs Taxi Kitchen. 

Her

Level 5 270 Lonsdale St, Melbourne

For a Mediterranean-inspired sip session, make a beeline for Her Rooftop. Housed in the heritage-listed headquarters of former cigar and cigarette manufacturer Sniders & Abrahams, the multi-level bar is bringing serious Euro vibes to the CBD. The venue is split across five levels, culminating in a sun-bathed rooftop terrace where Italian mosaic tiles are layered with a playful palette of apricot, peach, sage and indigo hues to set a laidback summer scene. As well as signature cocktails (hello, Sex on the Rooftop), there’s also a southeast Asian-inspired menu that is perfect for sharing.

Union Electric

13 Heffernan Ln, Melbourne

What’s better than a rooftop bar? Drinking gin on a rooftop gin garden. And that’s exactly the kind of laid-back gin-anigans you can expect at Union Electric. Housed above a relaxed cocktail bar in an unassuming laneway off Melbourne’s buzzing Chinatown precinct, and marked only by a neon lightning bolt, this unpretentious rooftop bar is slinging delicious cocktails without the sass. 

Duke of Wellington

146 Flinders St, Melbourne 

If you fancy yourself a bit of a pub expert, then enjoying a pot and parma on the rooftop of one of Melbourne’s oldest should be on your to-do list. The Duke of Wellington has been standing proudly on the corner of Flinders and Russell streets since 1850, with the taps turned on in 1853. An extensive refurbishment has seen the much-loved public house sporting a refined new look, while still retaining its old-world charm. Head upstairs to the sprawling rooftop bar and terrace, where you can sit back with a beer and a burger overlooking the city’s river end. 

Imperial Hotel

2-8 Bourke St, Melbourne

For a sun-soaked city spot that offers both great views and a big screen for sport, look no further than the Imperial Hotel. From its elevated vantage point on the corner of Bourke and Spring streets, you can take in sweeping views over Parliament House and its surrounding gardens, while kicking back under an umbrella with an ice-cold frothy in one hand, a fried halloumi stick in the other and all the sports action in the background.

Siglo 

2/161 Spring Street Melbourne

When it comes to rooftop champagne, cocktail and cigar bars, Siglo is arguably one of the city’s best. Pull up a French café chair on the Parisienne-inspired terrace, where waiters will serve you classic cocktails, Cuban cigars, premium Cognac and fine wines at white-clothed tables. Relax with an aperitif and a bar snack while overlooking the columned façade of Parliament and the domed roof of the Princess Theatre.

Dom’s Social

301 Swanston St, Melbourne

There are rooftop bars, and then there’s Dom’s Social. Set over three levels, the suave space is a haven for lovers of all things delicious, boasting a pizzeria, pool rooms and, of course, an expansive rooftop bar. The timber-decked terrace features terrazzo tables, a white-tiled bar and plenty of cushioned bench seating, with towering ferns and twinkling lights adding the ambience. Sit back with a rooftop aperitivo before heading downstairs for some of the city’s most experimental – in a good way – woodfired pizzas. 

Pomelo

Level 3/169 Melbourne Pl, Melbourne

With its retro, cotton candy aesthetic, house-crafted and canned cocktail seltzers, and a thirst-quenching selection of spiked slushies, Pomelo rooftop is the ultimate sky-high summer playground. Tucked away down a quiet alley, and with sparkling sunset city views, this cosy neon rooftop is the place to go for good vibes, a home-grown spritz and giant games of Connect Four.

State of Grace

27 King St, Melbourne

If it’s a casual yet classy affair you’re after, State of Grace rooftop has you covered. After moving from its original home on Collins Street, the expansive rooftop, restaurant and cellar bar is bringing old-world European charm to its new King Street premises. With elegant herringbone floors, exposed brick piers and a cocktail menu that embodies the venue’s curiosity and charm, the State of Grace rooftop is the ideal spot for laid-back sips with a side of sophistication. Don’t miss the Pink Illusion cocktail, a refreshing shake up of Hendricks gin, Campari, elderflower, lime and cucumber.

Campari House

23-25 Hardware Ln

There are few things Melburnians love more than a laneway rooftop bar, and Campari House is no excection. The Hardware Lane drink-sitution was established in 1967 and has become one of the city’s most treasured towering terraces. Creative cocktails are the name of the game at this fifth-floor walk-up, including something called the ‘What a Karen Would Drink’ (bourbon, butterscotch schnapps, grapefruit and bitters).
 

Fable

186 Lonsdale St, Melbourne 

When it comes to soaring swilleries, you’ll find Melbourne’s highest rooftop bar 13 flights up atop the Greek Community Building on Lonsdale Street. Taking its cues from the Mediterranean, this stylish terrace tippler is the place to go if you want to impress. Hanging foliage, rich walnut timbers and an ornately tiled bar set a sophisticated scene, which is backed up by a superb, Mediterranean menu designed by Michelin-starred Chef Alex Xinis. Sink into a velour open-air booth and take in panoramic views that extend all the way to the Arts Centre, Marvel Stadium and the Bolte Bridge, while sipping on sustainable cocktails made by finance-guru-turned-mixologist Alessandro Nardini.

Good Heavens

79 Bourke St, Melbourne

With strong retro vibes and a rooftop garden feel, Good Heavens is one of the city’s best-kept second-floor secrets. Head to sister restaurant Fancy Hanks American BBQ for lunch then climb the stairway to (rooftop) heaven for a laid-back spritz surrounded by lush foliage. Pull up a pastel bar stool, grab a Melbourne Made (a pineapple-led whisky sour cocktail) and sit under a blue shade umbrella drinking in the cosmopolitan atmosphere. If you’re feeling peckish, the upstairs menu features some finger-licking snacks, including BBQ corn ribs, mac ‘n’ cheese croquettes and slow-cooked sandwich platters.

The Rooftop at QT 

133 Russell St, Melbourne

Enjoy something expertly shaken or stirred on The Rooftop at QT. Housed on the top floor of Russell Street’s uber-chic QT hotel, the laid-back seventh-storey lounge bar offers chilled vibes and breathtaking panoramic views over the city’s sparkling skyline. Sit under cosy awnings in winter or starry skies in summer and while away the afternoon over a bowl of coconut popcorn prawns or crispy pork belly bites and a signature cocktail, glass of rose or a crisp lager.  

Palmz Deck and Rooftop, The Carlton

193 Bourke St, Melbourne 

Climb the stairs to The Palmz Rooftop and you’ll find yourself in a tropical oasis fringed with lush foliage, overgrown bougainvillea and sheltered by some 20 palm trees. With a thatched bar and bamboo-clad planter boxes, the secluded, tiki-style terrace feels worlds away from the hustle and bustle of Bourke Street. 

The Rooftop at Curtin House

252 Swanston St, Melbourne

Perfectly positioned seven storeys above Swanston Street’s eclectic shopping precinct, you’ll find Melbourne’s beloved Rooftop Bar (and starry summer cinema). Taking over the top floor of historic Curtin House – the former Tattersalls Club building, which was constructed in 1923 – this popular star-studded spot is the go-to for summer sips and sunset movie sessions.