Berlin Bar

Berlin Bar hides on Level 2 of 16 Corrs Lane, an unmarked door off one of Melbourne's CBD laneways near the top of Chinatown. The concept splits the venue into two rooms, one styled as East Berlin and one as West, a Cold War conceit the bar has run for years. The Urban List and Only Melbourne both file it under the city's better kept secret bars.

This is a bar you go to for the room as much as the drink. The East side leans austere and the West side leans plush, and the contrast is the point. If you want a quick pint you will be in the wrong place. If you want a themed cocktail in a space that commits to its idea, it is one of the CBD's most distinctive.

Two connected upstairs rooms carry the divide. The East Berlin side is stripped back and stern while the West side is warmer and more decadent, and regulars tend to pick a side and stay. The whole venue is compact, which is why weekend nights fill quickly once the after work crowd arrives.

The list plays to the theme with Eastern European spirits and serves built around the divided city idea. Cocktails sit around the A$22 mark. The bartenders will guide you between the playful and the serious end of the menu if you tell them which room you are sitting in.

Because the rooms are small, table service matters here more than crowding the bar. Settle in, order in rounds, and let the staff talk you through the themed serves rather than defaulting to a standard classic.

A mixed CBD crowd of date night couples and small groups, busiest from 8pm on Friday and Saturday. The hidden entrance keeps the foot traffic deliberate, so the room rarely turns rowdy.

Building a CBD bar crawl? Read our best cocktail bars in Melbourne guide and our wider best bars in Melbourne list. Searching nearby? Start at the cocktail bars near me hub or the Melbourne cocktail bars page.