Three To Try: New Suburban Bars With Easy Snacks and Local Pours

There’s nothing like a good local bar – the kind of place where you can drop in for a quick drink, or linger depending on where the night takes you.

Here are three new venues – in Box Hill, Coburg and South Yarra – that were started with community in mind and bring something new to their respective neighbourhoods.

Bar Nearby, Box Hill

Box Hill was part of Melbourne’s “dry zone” for nearly a century. But when the laws changed in December 2021, it became easier for businesses in the area to apply for a liquor licence. At the end of 2024, husband-and-wife team Ella and James Bishop opened Bar Nearby in a former mechanics shop on Whitehorse Road, giving Box Hill locals a place to hang out with a drink in hand.

There’s a thoughtful mix of Australian and international spirits and wines, with premium pours available by the glass under Coravin. Cocktails include Pina Coladas and a clarified Milk Punch, and there are Heaps Normal non-alcoholic beers. There’s no kitchen, but a takeaway section stocks cheeses and deli goods, and patrons are encouraged to order in from any number of local restaurants, or even bring their own food.

Sweet Nectar Inn, Coburg

An American dive bar meets the Aussie corner store at Coburg’s new hangout in a former hair salon. Devon Hunter, originally from California, co-owns the bar with Sam O’Farrell, and they’ve custom-fitted the space with warm wooden furniture and ceramic light fittings and tiles made by O’Farrell.

The wine list and rotating tap beers are all Australian, and the bar hosts relaxed wine and beer tastings. Drink specials, such as the occasional spritz, are scrawled on the blackboard, and the bar has refillable one-litre flagons you can use to take home wine from producers including Fin Wines and Konpira Maru. Plates are provided for what Hunter calls a little “DIY picnic situation”, with snacks found in the curated pantry section. This may include City Larder pates, Acide pickles, hot salami and dill pickle potato chips.

Gracie’s Wine Room, South Yarra

This wine bar is the work of first-time venue owner Kelsie Gaffey. Gaffey documented the journey to opening on Tiktok – capturing everything from choosing glassware to paving bricks and taste-testing dishes – and clocked hundreds of thousands of views before the bar even opened.

The venue is as much about the experience as it is about the wine. A turntable spins tunes into the evening and, for a change of pace, the courtyard outside will soon host live acoustic sets. There are simple dishes designed to share such as buttery lobster rolls, house-baked focaccia and Sydney rock oysters. And pours include limoncello spritzes, mostly Australian wines and tap beers.

Additional reporting by Ciara Duffy-Quinn, Hannah Bambra and Luke McCarthy.