The Imperial Has a New Rooftop Beer Garden

Melbourne, you’ve voted with your feet and the city has heard you. You want rooftop bars. You want to drink beer resplendent and relaxed in the open air, to gaze down at the city like you’re Batman himself and ‘gram the glorious sunset #nofilter. Well, the Imperial has answered your demands with a massive reno. The jewel in the crown? Melbourne’s third biggest rooftop beer garden.

Yep, brush off your ~kewlest~ hats and prepare to get your day drink on. The Imperial, if you can’t quite place it, is a sports bar on the corner of Bourke and Spring, just across the road from Parliament House. The garden will feature 20 beers on tap including Little Creatures IPA, James Squire Pear and Apple Cider, Stellar Artois, Guinness and Hoegaarden. With capacity for 270 punters and a 360-degree view, this soon-to-be-packed spot has arrived just in time for summer.

The beer garden will also feature a menu designed by executive chef Justin Wise, that’s two parts hearty pub fare and one part foodie flair. Jalapenos poppers with cream cheese… and a raspberry sauce. Chicken ribs… marinated in XO sauce, ginger and garlic. See what we mean? It kind of sums up the whole two-part vibe — a rooftop beer garden atop a sports bar — and makes it definitely worth checking out this summer.

Oh, and good news for all you non-smokers — the rooftop bar is set to become 100 percent smoke-free.

Find The Imperial Hotel at 2-8 Bourke Street (cnr Spring Street), Melbourne CBD.