New cocktail bar to open inside historic Queen St building

A new cocktail bar and private dining venue will open on Queen St next month, adding another hospitality offering to Melbourne’s historic Gothic Bank precinct.

Edition Hospitality Group has opened reservations for Bar Privé, a new cocktail-led destination opening on July 15 within the former Melbourne Safety Deposit building at 90 Queen St, beside Reine & La Rue.

The venue forms part of the broader Privé concept, which also includes dedicated private dining spaces designed for celebrations, corporate events and more intimate gatherings.

Created in response to growing demand for private dining and event experiences at Reine & La Rue, Privé is located just around the corner from the two-hatted restaurant within the same historic precinct.

Occupying the ground floor of the Melbourne Safety Deposit building, the venue shares many of the architectural qualities of Reine & La Rue’s Stock Exchange Cathedral Room, but on a more intimate scale.

Rebecca Yazbek (Edition Group Founder & CEO)

At the centre of the venue is Bar Privé, a moody public-facing cocktail bar inspired by the building’s concealed vault chambers and the private clubs associated with Melbourne’s late 19th century boom years.

The bar will be open to walk-in and reserved guests, while also being available for private functions and full venue takeovers.

Across the hallway sits The Dining Room, Privé’s principal private dining space, which can accommodate up to 32 guests. The room can also be divided into two smaller spaces, The Verdon Room and The Wardell Room.

Edition Hospitality Group founder and CEO Rebecca Yazbek said Privé had been designed to complement Reine & La Rue while offering a more intimate style of hospitality.

We’ve seen strong demand for private dining and event experiences at Reine & La Rue, but we also wanted to create a destination people could enjoy in a more flexible way, Ms Yazbek said.

“Bar Privé gives us the opportunity to create a cocktail experience that stands on its own while also sitting naturally alongside Reine.”

She said the building had strongly shaped the concept.

“There’s an intimacy and warmth to these rooms that naturally lends itself to cocktails, private dining and smaller gatherings, while still carrying the character and history of the precinct,” she said.

“We wanted guests to feel as though they had been invited to a private dinner party.”

The beverage program, led by group bar manager Felix Woods, will focus on classic cocktail culture, drawing on premium local and European producers, French brandies, fortified wines, Martinis, Champagne cocktails and Sazeracs.

The food offering from group culinary director Michael Greenlaw and Reine & La Rue executive chef Andy Roche has been designed to complement the drinks and private dining experience.

Bar snacks will include pork scratchings with French onion dip, duck liver and foie gras parfait, panisse with roasted garlic aioli and a French dip baguette, while private dining menus will feature selected Reine & La Rue signatures.

Privé will open Tuesday to Saturday from 5pm until late at 90 Queen St, Melbourne. •