Correction (2 October 2026): an earlier version of this page listed places and details we could not stand behind. It has been rewritten, and every place below was checked against its own current information.
A date wants low stakes, an easy exit and something to talk about that isn’t the menu. We could verify five places near Kew that suit a drinks-led date: two in Kew itself (Fly Lie Bar and Araliya) and three just over the border in Hawthorn (The Kilburn, Lido Cinemas and Santoni Pizza & Bar). Talk-ability below is read openly from what each venue publishes, and nothing here is a memory of a night out.
We didn’t capture tram or train times, so your exit plan is a quick check on the PTV journey planner against each closing time. Drinks are optional on a date. Araliya and Lido both publish food, and Lido lists soft drinks as well.
The quick picks
| Stage | Pick | Price band as listed | Closes |
|---|---|---|---|
| First date, low stakes | Fly Lie Bar | Pots $5, pints $10, cocktails $15 to $16 | 1am Tue-Sat, 10pm Sun, closed Mon |
| Third date, shared plate | Araliya | Duck Kothu Roti $43, serves 2 | 10pm Tue-Thu, 10:30pm Fri-Sat, 9:30pm Sun |
| Anniversary, cocktail-led | The Kilburn (Hawthorn) | Happy hour $9 pints, $15 cocktails | “Late” most nights |
| Something to do first | Lido Cinemas (Hawthorn) | Jazz Room $30 or $35 | Jazz Room 8pm to 10pm Fri and Sat |
| No-frills pizza and a drink | Santoni Pizza & Bar (Hawthorn) | PDF menu; no prices copied | 11:00 pm daily |
Fly Lie Bar — 309 High Street, Kew VIC 3101
Stage: first date. The format is simple: the menu page is a drinks list, and the bar describes itself as “inspired by 1980’s goodness”.
Split or splurge: split. Carlton Draught is $5 a pot or $10 a pint, an Aperol Spritz (Aperol, prosecco and soda) is $15, the Espresso Martini is $15 and the Frozen Margarita is $16 (the list’s own spellings are “Espresso Martin” and “Frozen Marg”).
Talk-ability: check the night. Its site carries a post about a “MAY KEW MUSIC FEST LINE UP!”, undated, so ask whether there’s a gig on before you book a talking date.
Closes: Tuesday to Thursday 4pm to 1am, Friday 3pm to 1am, Saturday 2pm to 1am, Sunday 2pm to 10pm, closed Monday.
Say this: the venue describes itself as inspired by 1980’s goodness. Ask which decade your person would have picked.
Araliya — 1/118 High Street, Kew VIC 3101
Stage: third date or an anniversary. Araliya’s own site lists “Relaxed Fine Dining”, “Experimental Cocktail Bar” and “Restaurant” together, and says you can come for “sharing plates, a curated degustation or a quick nibble”.
Split or splurge: split the Duck Kothu Roti, $43, which the menu says serves 2: shredded house-made roti tossed with egg, confit duck and vegetables (kothu roti is a Sri Lankan street-food dish built on chopped roti). The Vegetarian Hopper is $19, a bowl-shaped pancake of rice flour and coconut milk with mixed vegetables. Splurge on the Jaggery Beef, $49. Share a cheeky dessert: the Vatalappam, a steamed coconut custard, is $18.
Talk-ability: a sit-down restaurant format, with no music night listed in what we read.
Closes: Tuesday to Thursday 5pm to 10pm, Friday 12pm to 10:30pm, Saturday 4:30pm to 10:30pm, Sunday 12pm to 9:30pm. No Monday hours are listed.
Say this: its website dates Araliya Restaurant to 1985 (“SINCE 1985”).
The Kilburn — 348 Burwood Road, Hawthorn VIC 3122
Stage: anniversary, or a cocktail-led third date. Its own site calls it “a luxe, intimate cocktail experience” with more than 350 bottles of whisky and another 200 of other spirits.
Split or splurge: split, if you go in happy hour. Its What’s On page lists happy hour from 4 pm to 7 pm Tuesday to Sunday: $9 lager pints, $8 house wines and $15 for an Aperol Spritz, Espresso Martini, Cosmopolitan, Long Island or Margarita. A Dark Passion Fruit Daiquiri on its ordering page is $20 (a daiquiri is traditionally rum, lime and sugar). We found no food menu on its own site, so there is nothing here about food.
Talk-ability: quieter on a plain night, louder on two. Its What’s On page lists trivia every Tuesday from 7 pm and a musical bingo night on the last Thursday of each month, starting 7:30pm. It also says: “Book your spot or walks-in always welcome.”
Closes: open Tuesday to Friday from 4pm to late, Saturday from 1pm to late, Sunday from 4pm to late, closed Monday. No closing time is printed.
Say this: each week it features a different whisky at 25% off. Ask what this week’s is.
Lido Cinemas — 675 Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn VIC 3122
Stage: first date. A film gives you something to talk about afterwards, and Lido’s food and drink page says its Victorian boutique wines and craft beers “can be taken into the cinema or enjoyed in the foyer after your movie”. Not drinking? The same page lists soft drinks, Noah’s juices and Hepburn Springs sparkling.
Split or splurge: the Jazz Room’s live music is $30 for members and seniors, $35 for non-members. The room is “tucked underneath a cinema screen and down a narrow stairway”, plays Friday and Saturday nights from 8pm to 10pm, and seats 40 guests alongside the in-house piano and drum kit.
Talk-ability: live music means louder, so keep the conversation for the foyer or the walk after.
Closes: sessions are listed daily on its website, and a 9:15 pm session appeared on its 2 October 2026 listing.
Say this: its food page suggests you “share a bowl of warm edamame beans with your cinema date”.
Plan B for rain: this one is indoors by definition.
Santoni Pizza & Bar — 634 Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn VIC 3122
Stage: low-pressure, any stage. This is the thinnest entry. Santoni’s own site, santonipizza.com, calls it “a three level eatery with a rooftop in the heart of hawthorn”, lists hours of Monday to Sunday 10am to 11pm, and links a PDF menu that covers pizza, pasta, share plates, bottled beer, wine, spritzes and cocktails. The PDF prints its prices in a separate column, so we copied none. The Glenferrie Road business directory gives the same address and 10:00 am to 11:00 pm every day, and says “Santoni was born out of a passion for Italian food & culture.”
Closes: 11:00 pm daily, per its own site and the directory listing.
Quick answers
Which venues near Kew suit a drinks-led date?
Five that we could verify: Fly Lie Bar (309 High Street) and Araliya (1/118 High Street) in Kew, and The Kilburn, Lido Cinemas and Santoni Pizza & Bar in Hawthorn.
What time does Fly Lie Bar close?
Its own site lists 1am Tuesday to Saturday and 10pm on Sunday, and says it is closed on Monday.
Is there a happy hour near Kew?
The Kilburn, Hawthorn, lists happy hour from 4 pm to 7 pm Tuesday to Sunday: $9 lager pints, $8 house wines and $15 for five named cocktails.
What can we do on a date that isn’t a bar?
Lido Cinemas, 675 Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn, lists its Jazz Room on Friday and Saturday nights from 8pm to 10pm, at $30 for members and seniors and $35 for non-members.
Is Araliya open on weekday nights?
Its own site lists Tuesday to Thursday 5pm to 10pm. It lists no Monday hours.
How we checked
On 2 October 2026 we read each venue’s own website: Fly Lie Bar’s, Araliya’s (home page and menu), The Kilburn’s (home page and What’s On page), and Lido’s (home, food and drink, and Jazz Room pages), and confirmed each address at a second source such as OpenStreetMap or a business directory. Santoni Pizza & Bar’s own site (santonipizza.com) and its PDF menu were read for its description, hours and menu sections; its address is confirmed by the Glenferrie Road directory listing and OpenStreetMap. We captured no transport timetables. The Kilburn’s daiquiri price is from its online ordering page, and happy-hour and event details change. The photos are illustrative, from Unsplash: they show the kind of scene, not these venues.
Seen something out of date? Email [email protected] with the page link and what has changed, and we will check it again.
Sources
- Fly Lie Bar: flyliebar.com.au, its drinks list and OpenStreetMap
- Araliya: araliya.com.au, its menu and the Kew Junction directory
- The Kilburn: thekilburn.com.au, its What’s On page, its ordering page and OpenStreetMap
- Lido Cinemas: lidocinemas.com.au, food and drink, Jazz Room and OpenStreetMap
- Santoni Pizza & Bar: santonipizza.com, its menu PDF, Glenferrie Road directory listing and OpenStreetMap
