In the city’s ‘Little Lon’ district lives Caretakers Cottage – one of the world’s best bars.
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Three years ago, Caretakers Cottage opened its brick-arched doors on Melbourne’s Little Lonsdale Street as part of a revitalisation of the Wesley Church district. The tiny pub is housed in the former cottage of the Church caretaker, serves 1000 litres of Guinness some weeks, and won the best bar in Australasia in 2024 [According to The World’s Best Bars listing]*. It combines the old and the new, the worn and the slick, the charm and the cutting-edge in a way only Melbourne can.
“Honestly, it’s been an odyssey getting this project over the line,” says owner and bartender Rob Libecans. “A 105-year-old cottage in the centre of Melbourne, I think we’ve created something unique and beautiful. The critics agree.”
Wesley Church was built in 1858 and restored in 2020. The original architect, Joseph Reed, also designed Melbourne’s Town Hall, the Exhibition Buildings and the Public Library. In the late 19th century, the church was smack bang in the middle of Melbourne’s slum ‘and redlight district known as ‘Little Lon.’ According to city records, the cottage for the church caretaker was built in 1914 and used as a residence until the 90s.
Looming over both the church and the cottage is a brand new, uber-contemporary 35-storey mirrored building called Wesley Place that plays home to Australian Super, Vanguard, and Telstra Super. The juxtaposition between the church’s neo-Gothic architecture, the cottage’s bijou, and the sharp angles of the glistening 6-star sustainable building is striking.
We loved the location,” says Matt Stirling, one of the other owners. “Being nestled in the city’s epicentre, in the theatre district’s throng, and a stone’s throw away from some of Melbourne’s best restaurants made the decision easy.”
The centrepiece of the 1-hectare Wesley Place district is not the church, as you might expect, or even the arresting new skyscraper. The 150-year-old olive tree takes prime position outside Caretakers Cottage, adding to the charm and warmth of the bluestone cottage while also providing patrons and their carefully crafted cocktails respite from the piercing sun. The effect of the diverse architectural and environmental elements coming together is intoxicating.
Taking care of the menu
It’s after 5 pm on a warm November Wednesday, and I have decided to stop at Caretakers for a drink after work. Taking a seat at the Tasmanian oak bar, the record-spinning bartender greets me with a smile. An oblong orange coaster, sparkling water encased in a small steel cup, and a menu resembling a mini vinyl sleeve are placed in front of me. Hiroshi Sato’s Awakening is playing through the speakers.
The vibe is light, bright, and homey, and I ordered a cocktail with similar characteristics to coordinate. “There’s a natural layout here that makes people feel instantly disarmed. It is essentially hosting people in your home – how would you make them feel and treat them?” says Libecans. The Malibu Stormy arrives in a chilled coupette glass garnished with dark fuchsia rose petals. It’s everything a $25 cocktail should be and often isn’t.
Caretakers made the ‘World’s 50 Best Bars of 2024’ list, which ranked it 21 – up two places from last year. The Cottage also took accolades for the Best Bar in Australasia, Best Bar in Victoria, and both bartender and hospitality team of the year. The approachable staff and atmosphere are a part of what makes the place so special, says British-accented Libecans. “It feels like a bit of a festival outside and a house party inside. The energy of this place just grows.”
Getting closer to 6 pm, I can feel the transition happen. The thickening crowd is an eclectic mix of bearded hipsters, office workers in collared shirts, young guns and their skateboards sitting under the magnanimous olive tree, and sophisticated women perched in the bay window sipping white wine.
It is difficult to pinpoint exactly why Caretakers works so well. “The building is old, and the music format we play is analogue. There’s so much that is dated in here, but it doesn’t feel like a museum,” says Libecan.
After polishing off my second cocktail – the El Diablo Milk Punch, set around a cubed raspberry-infused ice block – and a $25 serving of curry spiced crisps, I meander my way through the paisley green wall-papered rooms of the cottage and head for the front door. “The Caretakers Cottage is a home,” says Stirling. “It’s a series of rooms and spaces that really are so dysfunctional in the context of a hospitality business. And yet it is exactly that heterogeneous feel that gives the Church an adjacent-joint soul and keeps people from far and wide coming back for more.
*The World’s 50 Best Bars were in announced Madrid in October 2024, as judged by 700 international bartenders, drinks writers and cocktail specialists.
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