Best Cocktail Bars in Brisbane

Best Cocktail Bars in Brisbane

Guide: Brisbane Cocktails Behind the Door

Burnett Lane booths, whisky-filled Valley rooms, Mary Street live bands and river terraces give Brisbane several kinds of cocktail night. The drinks and room shape the choice here, with a wine-led terrace included for its classic cocktails and smaller-plate setting.

• Death & TaxesDeath & Taxes pours classic and tailored cocktails beneath an extensive spirits wall in Burnett Lane. Dark booths make the room feel enclosed despite its central address, and the Friday and Saturday 14:00 opening leaves time for an afternoon drink.
• Savile RowSavile Row hides whisky and changing cocktails behind an orange door on Ann Street. The chandelier and densely stocked backbar give the room its identity; it opens in the evening and trades an hour later on Friday and Saturday.
• The GreshamThe Gresham serves whisky and classic cocktails inside the former Queensland National Bank building on Queen Street. The heritage room is walk-in rather than reservation-led, and Sunday is closed for ordinary public trade; private events operate separately.
• CobblerCobbler puts whisky tasting flights and cocktails at the centre of its Browning Street bar, with bookable masterclasses for a more deliberate tasting. Monday starts at 17:00, an hour later than the rest of the week.
• Dr GimletteDr Gimlette serves martinis and gimlets along a nine-metre marble bar, with leather booths and a martini trolley giving classic drinks a theatrical setting. The Edward Street heritage building holds the large room; afternoon opening makes an early drink possible.
• AnticoAntico serves classic cocktails in a small, split-level Burnett Lane bar from the Death & Taxes team. Backlit bottles, green booths and a dark marble bar concentrate the experience into a more intimate room than its larger sister venues.
• LOS BarLOS mixes Southeast Asian fruit and spice into cocktails above sAme sAme on James Street. The upstairs bar has its own trading schedule, with daytime openings on the weekend and no public service on Monday or Tuesday.
• Le RoyaleLe Royale pours cocktails above The French Exit on Mary Street, adding live bands on Thursday through Saturday evenings. The room changes with the programme: a daytime weekend drink and a late music night have different crowds and timing.
• Blackbird BarBlackbird serves cocktails from its Eagle Street bar and terrace with open views of the river and Story Bridge. The outlook gives a reason to sit outside, while the restaurant’s meal-service timetable is separate from the bar’s longer trading window.
• Bar MietteBar Miette pours wine, vermouth and classic cocktails with European small plates on a terrace at 443 Queen Street. The bar has a more compact purpose than neighbouring Supernormal; its current schedule opens Wednesday through Sunday and closes at 22:00.

Reviewed by RGuide Editorial · Venue details checked October 2026