Backspace

Ben Cester opened it because nowhere else on that stretch would take a walk-in group with thirty minutes before a dinner booking. That is the whole brief, stated by him, and it is why the bar is where it is.

Why go

George Parade runs off Collins Street behind the Grand Hyatt, next door to Philippe Mouchel's bistro and opposite Il Solito Posto, which is an expensive block to be casual on. Cester managed Whisky Den on Russell Street for Joseph Kornides, who owns it, and the two of them took a former MJ Bale shop and put forty seats in it. The drinks are built around one idea rather than a long list: a sugar-free highball on Nikka Coffey vodka, then three variations on the same base using Stone's Ginger Wine, Midori or green tea. For something heavier there is a Melbourne Sazerac carrying a coffee infusion under the rye and cognac. Bar manager Jason Walls came from Jungle Boy and La Rue. The ten-seat bar top is Tasmanian oak, made by Orio Randi of Arteveneta, whose counters are also in Embla and Vue de Monde.

Order this / avoid

Order: the Nikka Mecha Lemon first, then whichever of the three riffs sounds least likely. The Melbourne Sazerac if you want a proper drink. An Orion off the tap, which Cester calls "probably one of the coldest beers in Melbourne" ref.
Avoid: Sunday. And do not plan on eating here until somebody confirms the kitchen opened.

What locals & experts say

Ben Cester, owner, on why the bar exists: "There aren't many bars around here that can take groups or walk-ins if they've just finished a show or have 30 minutes before dinner. And we want to develop that local following. Talk to the guests, focus on the chat, build long-term relationships." ref
Broadsheet Melbourne files it as "a laid-back spot in the CBD's Paris End." ref
Nobody has reviewed it. Time Out Melbourne has no page, and Backspace appears in no category of the 25th Australian Bar Awards finalist list published in July 2026. One opening piece is carrying this entry.

Good to know

Where: 27 George Parade, off Collins Street, behind the Grand Hyatt.
Timing: Monday to Saturday, 3pm to midnight, as at opening.
Booking: walk in, and it takes groups, which is the reason it is here.
Coming, unconfirmed: a food offering and an upstairs 30-seat whisky-focused bar were both announced at opening. Neither has been confirmed as open.
Name: Broadsheet and the venue's own site call it Backspace Bar. The list keeps Backspace, which is the key everything else joins on.
Safety: Victoria publishes no per-venue hygiene rating. Safe Food Victoria's register of court convictions under the Food Act 1984 was read in full on 1 August 2026 and does not list this venue. ref

Jeff's take (his words)

Note: none. Melbourne has no saved-places export in the repo, so nothing here can be traced to Jeff's own words.

Verdict (Chef Jeff ladder)

could-visit — Ben Cester put his finger on the gap when he opened this: nowhere at the Paris End takes a walk-in group that has just come out of a show or has half an hour before a booking. Backspace is forty seats in George Parade behind the Grand Hyatt, next door to Philippe and opposite Il Solito Posto, and the drinks are built for exactly that window. The signature is the Nikka Mecha Lemon, a sugar-free highball on Nikka Coffey vodka, with three more riffs on the same base using ginger wine, Midori or green tea. There is a Melbourne Sazerac with a coffee infusion under the rye and cognac, and an Orion lager on tap that Cester reckons is about the coldest beer in the city. The ten-seat bar top is Tasmanian oak by the woodworker who did Embla and Vue de Monde. It sits at could-visit because nobody has reviewed it since opening week and it made no 2026 award list, not because there is anything wrong with it.