Birthday Party Venues in Melbourne CBD

Choosing the Right Birthday Party Venue

Whisky by candlelight for a 40th, a disco-ball rooftop for a 30th, a private pub floor for a 21st – a city birthday can take many forms. Several of the choices line Bourke Street, from Good Heavens up near Exhibition Street to The Rooftop @ Imperial Hotel opposite Parliament House, Riverland Bar is down on the water at Federation Wharf, and Young & Jackson faces Flinders Street Station from its Swanston Street corner. A quick way to match the celebration to the place:

Under open sky: Good Heavens, State of Grace's rooftop at 27 King Street and Menta @ Bomba above Lonsdale Street all host rooftop groups, with covers or retractable roofs for cooler nights; Young & Jackson's mural-lined rooftop bar has its own bar and bathroom for 80.
Cake from home: no cakeage is charged for a birthday cake brought to The Rooftop @ Imperial Hotel, where rooftop sections take up to 50.
A 21st with its own bartender: the middle floor at The Elephant & Wheelbarrow holds 250 for cocktails, with private bathrooms and plug-ins for a DJ or band. Further along at 629 Bourke Street, the Royal Melbourne Hotel's Heritage Room takes 50 to 250 with a bar, a dance floor and an entrance straight off the street.
Running late: Beneath Driver Lane is licensed until 3am with live blues, and Alto Event Space can finish at 1am any night.
On the riverbank: Riverland Bar in the Federation Wharf vaults scales from Bluestone, a 30-guest corner, to the whole venue for 900.

Most of these places price by the head – Menta @ Bomba from $35 per person for tapas grazing, Saint & Rogue from $36 per person for canapés, Good Heavens from $37 per person for canapés, The Waterside Hotel from $88 per person for banquets with no hire fee. The Elephant & Wheelbarrow works on a spend instead, from $2,000 minimum spend for its top floor between Monday and Thursday.

Morris House, on Exhibition and Little Collins Streets, can book its rooftop outright for 180 or in sections of 40 to 80, and the team can bring comedians up from the basement comedy club for a 40th with a difference.
The Waterside Hotel at 508 Flinders Street stacks seven spaces over six levels; up on Level 3, a disco ball hangs over the rooftop's dance floor, with a DJ set-up for parties of 260 standing.
Up in the GPO building, Alto Event Space seats 150 for dinner and speeches, then turns the same room into a dance floor – handy for a 50th or 60th with family and friends together. Pricing starts from $121 per person, plus venue hire.
Beneath Driver Lane gives half its candlelit room to groups of up to 60, or all of it to 120, and adds a Champagne tower or a whisky masterclass on request.

Food, drinks and the toast

Canapés start from $40 per person at Rooftop @ State of Grace, at Morris House and at the Garden State Hotel, and The Rooftop @ Imperial Hotel starts from $31 per person, with grazing tables for groups of 50 or more.
Menta @ Bomba books both rooftop terraces for up to 110 and lets you bring your own music or entertainment, but it is not available after 4pm on Fridays and Saturdays.
Good Heavens divides its rooftop into bookable zones – The Nook for 30 to 40, the two Fireplace areas and The Terrace for 40 to 60 – and one planner quotes the whole party upfront; note the rooftop is reached by stairs only.
Bar tabs and cash bars are both on offer at the Imperial, Morris House and State of Grace, so the birthday host can cover the first round and let guests carry on.

Common Questions About Venues for Birthday Parties

Which city venues let us bring our own birthday cake?

The Rooftop @ Imperial Hotel says so outright: bring a cake and no cakeage is charged. For the other venues, raise it with the functions team when you book, since their listings don't mention cake policies.

Where can a 40th in the CBD have a proper dance floor?

Up on The Waterside Hotel's Level 3 rooftop there's a disco ball, a DJ set-up and a floor to dance on, Alto Event Space clears its dining room for dancing after the meal, and The Elephant & Wheelbarrow's middle floor has plug-ins for a DJ or band. The Garden State Hotel's Observatory and its basement Rose Garden bar both have dance floors, and the Royal Melbourne Hotel's Atrium comes with DJ gear and party lighting.

What works for a birthday dinner of about 20?

Riverland Bar runs two- or three-course feed-me menus in The Vaults for 20 to 30 guests, and The Elephant & Wheelbarrow offers an alternate-drop menu for groups of 20 or more. Beneath Driver Lane takes functions from as few as 10.

Are any of these venues easy for older relatives to reach?

The Imperial has a lift to all three levels, Riverland Bar has a lift down from Federation Square, and State of Grace is wheelchair accessible apart from its dining mezzanine. Good Heavens and the upper floors of Morris House are stairs only.