Best Bars in Canberra: Cocktail Bars, Wine Bars, Craft Beer and the Braddon Bar Scene

Canberra's bar scene punches well above the city's size, with Bar Rochford appearing in the World's 50 Best Bars list and the Braddon and Kingston bar precincts providing a quality cocktail and wine bar culture that the city's well-travelled, well-educated population supports at a level comparable to much larger cities. The ACT's relatively progressive liquor licensing, the compact inner-city geography, and the dense professional and public service population create the conditions for a genuinely excellent bar scene.

Bar Rochford (11 London Circuit Canberra City) — Bar Rochford is Canberra's most nationally and internationally celebrated bar, with the exceptional cocktail program, the outstanding natural wine list, and the consistently high hospitality standards earning it a position in the World's 50 Best Bars. The rooftop terrace overlooking the Canberra CBD provides one of the city's finest outdoor drinking settings, and the Bar Rochford basement cocktail bar provides the more intimate indoor alternative. The bar team's creativity and the depth of the spirits and wine selection are exceptional.

The Highball Express (17 Garema Place Canberra CBD) — the Highball Express is Canberra's finest spirits bar, with the extraordinary collection of whisky, rum, and global spirits, the classic cocktail program, and the prohibition-era aesthetic creating a bar experience that Canberra's spirits community regards as among Australia's finest dedicated whisky and cocktail destinations.

Knightsbridge Penthouse (Giles Street Kingston) — the Knightsbridge Penthouse in Kingston provides one of Canberra's most theatrical and character-rich bar experiences, housed in a converted heritage Kingston building with an eclectic interior that reflects the Canberra arts community's preference for design with personality. The cocktail and wine programs are consistently excellent.

Braddon and Kingston bar precincts — the Lonsdale Street, Braddon and the Eyre Street and Giles Street, Kingston bar scenes provide Canberra's most active neighbourhood evening bar culture, with quality small bars, wine bars, and cocktail venues concentrated in the two inner-city precincts that anchor Canberra's after-work and late-evening social life.

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