A new crop of idiosyncratic center-city lounges is burnishing Melbourne's reputation as Australia's nightlife capital. At the Toff in Town (Curtin House, 252 Swanston St., level 2; 011-61-3-9639-8770), guests kick back in booths modeled on 1930s train cars while listening to live music and ordering cocktails from staff they summon with silver call buttons.
Blue Diamond (123 Queen St., 15th floor; 011-61-3-8601-2720) pays homage to private clubs of yore with uniformed doormen and a clubhouse-inspired design (its $500 annual fee is not required for entry).
A louche late-night crowd gravitates to the Carlton Hotel (193 Bourke St.; 011-61-3-9663-3246), whose look falls somewhere between a taxidermist's shop and a 1920s cabaret. Display cases of stuffed creatures, flocked wallpaper and an abundance of pink velvet lend a surreal atmosphere. It's the ideal note on which to end a rollicking evening out.
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