The Green Door

On a Friday night the Lord Roberts Hotel on Stanley Street is pumping. People pack into the terrace, spill out onto the street and raise a glass (or several) to the week that was. But if you’re not in the carousing mood, head around the back to the mural-heavy bar. From outside, the glossy green door, Georgian windows and wall-mounted lamp make this place look like a tiny tavern. Inside, one wall sports the lurid, giant hands of Adam and God, while Holly Golightly gets her eyes clawed out by Cat in another corner. Another wall shows a life-size shot of a far scuzzier, graff-coated laneway than the one just outside the door. They’re not afraid to get inventive with the cocktails list, with salted Pina Coladas and coconut Vodka Espressos on offer. We opt for a Bloody Mary, which comes with serious chilli kickback. Bavaria’s Liebenweiss white ale or the Czech Cenovar Svetle pilsner are on tap, and local craft brews come in bottles. Feel like making it rain? They have all three of Tasmania’s Sullivans Cove whiskeys behind the bar. Drop twenty bucks for a taste of the French oak port cask dram, or warm the cockles with a peaty nip from Jura. There are worse ways to see out the night than with some crunchy polenta chips, a whisky in hand, and soul jams for company at a Darlinghurst laneway bar.