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Melbourne Pubs With Fireplaces to Cosy Up to This Winter
Wine and dine your way through winter with crackling fires, hearty roasts and seasonal hot beverages at these charming Melbourne pubs with fireplaces.
During Melbourne’s cooler months, pubs come alive with roaring fireplaces, hearty roasts, and the comforting aroma of mulled wine. It’s the season to gather, unwind, and soak up that unmistakable warmth. Ready to snuggle up? Here are Melbourne’s best pubs with fireplaces — the ultimate cosy spots to curl up this winter.
Hotel Railway
Hotel Railway is Brunswick’s winter pub with a train-track soundtrack and a fireplace strategy that understands Melbourne. The revived Albert Street local has a fireplace-heated main bar, a red-brick beer garden and an outdoor hearth for anyone determined to drink outside while the sky changes its mind every seven minutes. Settle in for pub classics, a few rounds, footy on the screens and the cosy convenience of Brunswick Station waiting nearby for when you finally call it.
291 Albert Street, Brunswick
The Angel of Malvern
The Angel of Malvern has risen again, and this time it has a fireplace worth dressing for. The reborn Dandenong Road pub keeps its old corner-hotel bones, then sharpens the mood with a sleek central hearth, big-room buzz and enough winter drama to turn one drink into three. Come for a cold-weather catch-up in the Public Bar, stay for the heritage glow, late-night promise and that very specific pleasure of finding a newly reopened local already behaving like a classic.
641 Dandenong Road, Malvern
O’Connell’s Hotel
O’Connell’s has been warming South Melbourne for 150 years, but its latest chapter feels newly lit. Reworked by the team behind The Flying Duck Hotel and Rustica, the Coventry Street pub now centres on a red-gum Josper grill, native ingredients and a dining room anchored by a proper fireplace. Head Chef Michael Conlon’s menu runs from wood-fired prawns with smoked macadamia butter to saltbush lamb shoulder, veal schnitzel, steaks, Sunday roasts and Davidson plum doughnuts. Upstairs, three private dining rooms keep the old-world pub mood going, best booked when the weather turns rude.
407 Coventry Street, South Melbourne
Union Club Hotel
The Union Club Hotel knows exactly what Fitzroy wants when the temperature drops: a corner pub, an open fire and no great urgency to leave. Sitting on Gore and Webb Streets, this old local has the right winter ingredients: classic pub plates, a pint within reach, timber, low light and that excellent feeling of finding the warmest room in the suburb. Arrive for one, negotiate with yourself from there.
164 Gore Street, Fitzroy
Mount Erica Hotel
Mount Erica Hotel has the rare pub fireplace that feels less like a feature and more like a power move. Prahran’s old High Street stalwart is all stained timber, tartan, a large original hearth and a dining room with just enough Grand Budapest drama to make a cold night feel slightly overdressed. Oysters and fizz handle the golden-hour shift, Tuesday belongs to sirloin with chips and béarnaise, and Sunday roast by the fire is the sort of plan Melbourne weather was invented to justify. The cold can wait outside.
420 High Street, Prahran
Henry Sugar
Henry Sugar is not a pub, strictly speaking, but it absolutely belongs in the fireplace conversation. Inside the Rathdowne Village terrace, exposed brick, low light, booths and a fire turn the room into a neighbourhood dinner party with sharper wine. The drinks list leans natural, the cocktails know what they are doing and the food moves with the season rather than shouting for attention. Book in when you want fireplace warmth without the pint-glass pub script.
296-298 Rathdowne Street, Carlton North
The Courthouse
The Courthouse Hotel makes a strong case for getting off Errol Street and out of circulation. In the back bar, leather banquettes curve around Art Deco lines and an open fireplace, turning a cold night into something far more civilised. The Naughtons crew revived this North Melbourne stalwart with hand-pumped English-style ales, a record bar and a parilla grill, so the winter order can move from bitter to steak without losing its nerve. Sit near the fire and watch your demeanour defrost as a record turns.
86-90 Errol Street, North Melbourne
Sporting Club Hotel
The Sporting Club Hotel knows pubs are won by good lighting, a full glass and a fireplace people start orbiting after dark. The Brunswick local has entered a sharper new era without losing its old pulse, with firelight, timber, pub plates and the easy buzz of a room built for enduring the cold. Claim a spot near the hearth, order something sturdy and let Sydney Road feel very far away for a while.
27 Weston Street, Brunswick
Royal Oak Hotel
The Royal Oak Hotel has been keeping Fitzroy North in good spirits since 1871, and its latest era is smart enough not to scrub out the soul. This Nicholson Street local still feels like a pub with history in the walls: beer, wine, a fire worth orbiting and a kitchen built for cold-night decisions. Settle in with schnitzel, fish and chips, steak or something from the specials board, then let one drink make its case for another.
442 Nicholson Street, Fitzroy North
North Fitzroy Arms
North Fitzroy Arms has settled into its new era nicely: still a proper Rae Street local, now with sharper food, a serious wine list and enough firelit comfort to make the chilly season feel less personally offensive. Claim a spot near the fireplace and work your way through pie floaters, cheeseburgers, steak night, or a Sunday roast. Footy pub bones, bistro ambition, red wine weather handled.
296 Rae Street, Fitzroy North
Bobbie Peels
Bobbie Peels understands the emotional power of a pub fireplace. This North Melbourne local has the kind of front-room fire that changes the terms of your evening: one drink becomes dinner, dinner becomes another round, and suddenly the weather outside is someone else’s problem. Settle in with a craft beer, a glass of local wine and something properly pubby from the kitchen.
351 Queensberry Street, North Melbourne
The Orrong Hotel
The Orrong Hotel knows winter is mostly an excuse to sit by a fire with red wine and a roast potato. Restored rather than overhauled, this 150-year-old Armadale pub keeps its art deco bones, original plasterwork, timber floors, snug corners and old-pub ease firmly intact. The holy grail is the open fireplace, best claimed on a Sunday with the weekly roast and all the trimmings. All that, plus a courtyard, pool room and classic pub menu.
709 High Street, Armadale
Ciao Cielo
Ciao Cielo is Port Melbourne’s courthouse-made case for winter dinner. Inside a restored heritage building on Bay Street, the Italian favourite has sandstone walls, timber rafters, candlelit tables and a working fireplace that does half the seduction before the pasta arrives. Book the main dining room when the cold sets in, order wine, something handmade and something wood-fired, then let the garden wait for sunnier days.
115 Bay Street, Port Melbourne
Old Palm Liquor
From the Neighbourhood Wine crew comes another northside winter room with serious staying power. Old Palm Liquor sits on Lygon Street in Brunswick East, all dark timber, vintage stools, slow fans and warm, lived-in ease, with the fireplace turning into prized territory the second the temperature drops. The wine list is the main event, stacked with lo-fi bottles from here and abroad, but the wood-fired kitchen holds its own. Order the flatbread. No further notes.
133B Lygon Street, Brunswick East
The Railway Hotel
The Railway Hotel has been holding court in Yarraville Village since 1938, which means it knows a thing or two about winter pub behaviour. Inside, the fireplace makes a strong case for staying put, especially with fish and chips, parma, pie, pasta or something fried within reach. Upstairs, the rooftop is protected from the elements, so you can still look out over the village when Melbourne refuses to behave. A westside classic with very sound cold-weather logic.
35 Anderson Street, Yarraville
The Grace Darling Hotel
The Grace Darling knows exactly what Smith Street needs when the temperature drops: candlelight, old bluestone bones and two fires doing the heavy lifting. Built in 1854, Melbourne’s second-oldest pub still has the right winter mood, with a front bar made for pints, an atrium restaurant out back and enough shadowy corners to warm you to your bones. Time your visit for Sunday roast, settle near the fire and let Collingwood take care of the weather.
114 Smith Street, Collingwood
Marquis of Lorne
At the Marquis of Lorne, winter is less a season than a booking strategy. The 150-year-old Fitzroy pub spreads across three levels, but the clever move is the upstairs dining room, close to the fireplace, with a Sunday roast, potato cakes with aioli and a glass of red within reach. It has all the right cold-weather signals: old timber, low light, full plates, no rush and the excellent feeling that leaving would be a serious error of judgement.
411 George Street, Fitzroy
Standard Hotel
The Standard Hotel has been facilitating Fitzroy good times since 1865, and it still knows exactly what it is doing. Hidden off Brunswick Street, this character-rich local keeps the formula simple: cold beers, a quality wine list, proper pub food, a retro front bar and one of Melbourne’s great rambling beer gardens. In winter, the dining room earns its keep with fireplace warmth and the sort of menu built for settling in: eggplant parma, beer-battered flathead and chips, parma deluxe, burgers, steaks and a few rounds you did not technically plan.
293 Fitzroy Street, Fitzroy
The Local Taphouse
With two fireplaces — one indoors and another on the rooftop terrace — you’ll stay toasty no matter where you land at The Local Taphouse. Warm lighting and timber panelling evoke the charm of a vintage European tavern, while hearty, soul-warming meals — cider-steamed mussels, slow-cooked lamb shoulder — complete the scene.
184 Carlisle Street, St Kilda East
The Rochester Hotel
A neighbourhood pub with a rock ‘n’ roll attitude, The Rochester comes alive with live music on weekends, weathered pool tables, and a fireplace framed by bookshelves. In winter, warm up with their seasonal cocktail, The Soul Hugger — a toasty blend of mulled cloudy cider, brown sugar, ginger and spices, served hot. That, or a Guinness, pairs perfectly with a slow-cooked dish. Pure seasonal bliss.
202 Johnston Street, Fitzroy
Wesley Anne
Pull up a pew in this converted 19th-century church, where the candlelit interior and crackling fireplace create an irresistibly cosy atmosphere. Wesley Anne’s mulled wine is pure winter relief in a cup, or pair a glass of red with their pie of the day — usually something slow-braised and hearty. Finish with a crème brûlée and you’ll be warm right down to your toes.
250 High Street, Northcote
The Last Jar
A rustic little tavern that’ll upend your notion of a rowdy Irish pub. From a homey room at the back, The Last Jar serves traditional dishes like Irish poutine, black pudding on toast and potato cakes. On Wednesdays and Sundays, sidle up next to the parlour fireplace for a session of traditional Irish music.
616 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne
Napier Hotel
This down-to-earth parma-and-pint local oozes cosy neighbourhood charm, with walls lined in memorabilia and a corner fireplace that’s hard to beat. The menu sticks to pub classics, but with a thoughtful twist — organic fried chicken, smoked roo-topped parmas, and fish and chips served with a fresh fennel salad.
210 Napier Street, Fitzroy
Neighbourhood Wine
Neighbourhood Wine does winter with the confidence of a room that has nothing to prove. Upstairs on Reid Street, the Fitzroy North favourite wraps its fire room in dark timber, candlelight, tropical prints and slow-moving fans, then arms it with one of the northside’s great wine lists. The move is obvious: claim a table near the fireplace, order the $65 Sunday roast before it sells out, and let the afternoon become a very elegant disappearance act.
1 Reid Street, Fitzroy North
The Bridge Hotel
Bundle up the crew and head to The Bridge Hotel, a heritage-listed, Art Deco-style boozer in Werribee that’s been lovingly revived by the team behind Fitzroy’s Marquis of Lorne. Inside, it’s all crackling fireplaces (three, to be exact), cosy corners and hearty pub fare elevated just so. Think Thursday steak nights, a signature fisherman’s basket, classic cocktails, local vinos and 10 rotating beers on tap.
197 Watton Street, Werribee
Worked your way through Melbourne’s cosiest pubs with fireplaces and feeling peckish? Check out our roundup of the hottest new restaurants lighting up the city. Prefer to stay curled up on the couch? Your favourite eateries have you covered with top-notch takeaway and dessert delivery for the ultimate sofa-side feast.
