Room 60 and Junk Bar - small but oh so perfectly formed.
Ashgrove and Kelvin Grove host the latest additions - Junk Bar and Room 60 to the small bar scene starting to emerge in Brisbane. Watch this space for our full reviews: coming soon!
Ashgrove and Kelvin Grove host the latest additions - Junk Bar and Room 60 to the small bar scene starting to emerge in Brisbane. Watch this space for our full reviews: coming soon!
Brisbane’s cocktail connoisseurs would have been rubbing their hands with glee when The Bowery opening in 2003.
Classy, but a place you could call your ‘local’. ‘Regulars’ saunter in and out, some sitting and reading the paper, while professional bartenders greet by name and, without a word, produce ‘the usual’. Early Saturday evering, however, produces a different crowd to later on in the night.
The Bowery, on Ann Street in Fortitude Valley, is modelled on a 1920’s style speakeasy. You will find Jazz bands during the week and DJs later on a Friday and Saturday night for a mainly corporate, media and art crowd.
The smell of fresh mint on the bar, jazz music, comfy leather booths, extra extra chilled glasses and bartenders who can tell you what you want before you speak it all make for a very fine evening (or afternoon). The mojitos were spectacular but this bar specialises in classic cocktails mixed up with gin, whisky or rum –averaging $16.
Is it ‘the best’ bar in Brisbane? Officially it is the best bar in Australia in 2008, according to Australian Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Guide Awards. You be the judge.
Fancy a French Martini in a roof top bar in NYC? The Limes Hotel would come close to granting that wish. The Limes roof top champagne and cocktail bar is edgy, sophisticated – very New York – and tucked away in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley.
Its surroundings on Constance Street are more industrial than high street and entry is via buzzer and the discretion of security (no under 21s or thongs) – giving it a private member’s bar feel.
Inside is a designer’s delight, ensuring its addition to the Berlin-based Design Hotels group – the only Australian hotel on the list. Once up top, take in the breathtaking city views or a film – The Limes is home to Brisbane’s only open air cinema.
Sipping signature cocktails (try a Princess Pamela or Lychee Margarita - $18), we watched a storm roll over Brisbane – spectacular - comfortably seated under a big tent. An industrial size fan inside the tent would have been welcome – it was a little sticky, being December, and in a tent with 30 others! The roof is split in two, with the main bar on one side, and comfortable seating and cinema on the other. The tent is obviously packed away in perfect weather conditions.
The Bar staff were understated and served drinks and food to your table. The bar food menu is a breath of fresh air, prices average about $15 a dish. The Murray River salted fries with lime alioli were scrumptious ($8.50).
The night came to end, we called a cab and were prepared to get drenched scrambling into the taxi but… a very thoughtful staff member (possibly the manager) grabbed an umbrella and ushered us to our taxi. Now that is service!
The Limes Roof Top Bar is open Monday to Thursday from 5pm to midnight; Friday to Saturday from 3pm to midnight. The Limes’ screen rooftop films every Monday and Tuesday night.
See this link for more information.