Rooftop Bar at

cinema · Casual The Rooftop Bar at Curtin House is the Swanston Street institution that introduced an entire generation of Melburnians to the format and remains the city's best summer-cinema-and-drink proposition. The terrace is large, the seating is bench-and-deckchair, and the cocktail menu is genuinely casual — a short classics list, a rotating tap of Victorian craft beer, a competent wine programme.

The summer outdoor-cinema schedule, run as Rooftop Cinema, is the single most-imitated programming idea on any rooftop in Australia. The view across the CBD rooflines is honest rather than dramatic, and the food programme is appropriate to the casual register. It ranks sixth because the cinema programme is genuinely culturally significant in the city, and the room delivers reliably at the friendliest price tier on this list.

For the full ranking, see our editorial round-up of the 10 best rooftop bars in Melbourne, the broader Melbourne rooftop bars guide, and our category index of rooftop bars worldwide.