Apollo Inn

Apollo Inn holds the ground floor of McDonald House at 165 Flinders Lane, a 1924 building at the Paris end of the lane, 300 meters from Flinders Street Station. Andrew McConnell and Jo McGann's Trader House opened it in June 2023, naming it for the 1844 pub that stood near the Russell Street corner where Gimlet sits today.

Time Out Melbourne gave it five stars and called it one of the great Melbourne cocktail bars. The Good Food Guide named it Bar of the Year 2025, a year after Bartender Magazine's Australian Bar Awards crowned it New Bar of the Year.

Thirty seats, velvet curtains, and a Martini list that does not blink. The scarcity is the experience.

Velvet curtains open onto warm timber paneling, paper topped lamps, and leather studded doors, all by Acme, the design firm behind Gimlet. Concrete Playground said the room sets your watch back to 1956; Broadsheet counted around 30 seats and called it another era.

Hosier Lane's graffiti flickers through the sheer curtains, the one reminder of the decade outside.

Four Martini styles anchor the list at 26 Australian dollars: Dry, Wet, Gibson, and Dirty. Time Out's reviewer praised a Gibson served so frosted the pickled onion only appeared halfway down the glass.

The French 75 swaps in Bollinger for 50 dollars, and Broadsheet notes guests can pull from Gimlet's 300 bottle cellar nearby. Eat from the ice: oysters, a prawn club sandwich, and a crème caramel Broadsheet rates a standout. Note the 10 percent Sunday surcharge.

Pre dinner couples and the after show crowd contest the 30 seats from 5pm; Time Out notes a strong and steady nightly stream for the room's coveted chairs. A dedicated nightcap menu holds the late hours until 1am.

What regulars say:

• Time Out Melbourne, five stars: it has cemented its status among the great Melbourne cocktail bars.
• Broadsheet flags it for notable service on its current Hot List and sends you in for the crème caramel.
• Concrete Playground: the detail is exact, from the studded doors to the paper topped table lamps.

Who it is for:

• A date that needs one perfect Martini, not five average ones
• Solo bar seats before a show at the Forum or Regent
• Avoid if you arrive six deep without a booking

Melbourne's benchmark Martini room. Arrive at 5pm sharp, or late enough for the nightcap list.

Getting there: 165 Flinders Lane, 300 meters from Flinders Street Station; Russell Street trams 35, 70, and 75 stop a block away.

Timing: Saturday to Thursday from 5pm, Friday from 3pm, until 1am nightly.

Cost: Martinis 26 AUD, the Bollinger French 75 at 50 AUD; 10 percent Sunday surcharge.

Make a night of it: Dinner at Gimlet around the corner, then Apollo Inn for the Gibson and the close.