The walk in only corner of Hardware Lane: European wines, steak frites, and the pig's head doughnut that earned its own regulars.
Kirk's Wine Bar holds the corner of Hardware Lane and Little Bourke Street at number 46, on the site of Kirk's Bazaar Hotel, one of the city's earliest pubs per Broadsheet. Chef Ian Curley opened it in 2014 with Con Christopoulos and Joshua Brisbane, the partnership behind The European and City Wine Shop.
Concrete Playground points out the tell: it is the only corner on Hardware Lane where nobody waves a menu at you, which is exactly why you should walk in.
Time Out credits Kirk's with kickstarting the lane's turn from tourist trap to food destination. No bookings, ever.
A curved timber bar, small round tables built for two, and 1950s charm inside a historic corner shell. Concrete Playground compares it to a Florentine wine bar, peeling paint included, while a Parisian style heated terrace works the lane outside.
A wine filled cellar room seats twelve, and Time Out singles out the saloon style bathrooms as a detour worth taking.
The list leans European with pet nats and small Australian growers alongside; glasses average around 16 Australian dollars. Order the pig's head doughnut with sauce gribiche at 8.50, the dish Time Out calls iconic and Concrete Playground calls the stuff of legends.
The steak frites with Café de Paris butter justifies the trip alone. Time Out claims the fries have never tasted better anywhere in Melbourne.