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Restaurant

Hippo Bottle & Bar

280/282 Smith St, Collingwood VIC 3066, Australia

Recommended by 17 people

Updated

Find Hippo Bottle & Bar

280/282 Smith St, Collingwood VIC 3066, Australia

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+61 3 8529 7045
HoursMonday: 4:00 – 10:00 PM Tuesday: 12:30 – 10:00 PM Wednesday: 12:30 – 10:00 PM Thursday: 12:30 – 11:00 PM Friday: 12:30 – 11:00 PM Saturday: 12:30 – 11:00 PM Sunday: 12:30 – 10:00 PM

*Opening hours may differ during holidays.

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About Hippo Bottle & Bar

Collingwood’s bottle-o and watering hole lets you raid retail shelves of craft beer, boutique wine, and rare spirits to drink on-site for a five-dollar corkage. Set up in an expanded Smith Street space, patrons settle in along the sunny front stools or head out back with friends. Independent local drops pour on tap alongside rare international finds—think Croatian brandy—curated by Matt and the crew. A daily happy hour cuts tap prices in half between 4 PM and 6 PM with ten-dollar pints of Guinness, and bringing your own takeout is completely welcome.

  • Drink-In Retail Selection: Pick any packaged craft beer, wine, or rare spirit off the retail shelf to crack open on-site for a flat $5 corkage fee.
  • Daily Half-Price Happy Hour: Enjoy 50% off all draft taps alongside $10 pints of Guinness every day from 4 PM to 6 PM.
  • BYO Food Welcome: Bring your own takeaway to pair freely with tap pours and fridge cans across the front bar and back seating area.
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What's On at Hippo Bottle & Bar

Upcoming events, special menus and other reasons to plan a visit.

No events or specials listed right now.

Why Choose Hippo Bottle & Bar

Explore what makes Hippo Bottle & Bar Collingwood's favourite neighbourhood hybrid bottle shop and taproom.

  • Drink Packaged Craft Retail In-Venue

    Guests can select craft beers and wines straight from the retail shelves and enjoy them on-site with either minimal or no corkage fees.

    The best thing is you can drink any of the cans in store with no corkage fee!

    Alex K

  • Daily Half-Price Tap Happy Hour

    A daily happy hour from 4 PM to 6 PM delivers 50% off all draft beer tap offerings across the board.

    They have happy hour from 4 till 6 all taps half price!

    Lorena Ruiz

  • Neighbourhood Local Atmosphere

    The hybrid venue offers an unpretentious, friendly setting where visitors instantly feel embraced as neighbourhood regulars.

    It feels like you are a local when you have a drink here.

    John Jenkman

  • Retail Pricing Without Bar Markups

    Patrons gain genuine satisfaction enjoying high-calibre craft drinks at bottle-o retail rates rather than paying steep pub and restaurant markups.

    bottle shop prices and a sunny place to sit down with a cold one outside

    Alex Oosthuizen

  • Pre-Dinner Gatherings with Friends

    A relaxed layout with streetfront benches and indoor seating makes it an easy pre-dinner gathering point to kick off an evening with friends.

    This is my go to for start of the night drinks before I go for dinner with expensive drinks.

    Ben

  • Bring Your Own Food Flexibility

    Guests can bring outside food and takeout directly into the venue to pair with their favourite drinks from the fridges or taps.

    Upbeat, great tunes and outside of covid BYO food.

    Mikhael Hardy

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you buy drinks from the bottle shop to drink on-site?

Yes. Hippo functions as both a bottle shop and a bar, allowing you to pick cans or bottles directly from the shop to drink on-site for either no corkage fee or a flat $5 corkage fee on wine and shop purchases.

When is happy hour and what does it include?

Happy hour runs daily from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM, featuring 50% off all draft beers and taps, including specials like $10 pints of Guinness.

Can you bring your own food?

Yes. Guests can bring their own outside food to enjoy with their drinks, and the bar also offers small bar snacks like jerky.

What is the space and seating layout like at the new venue?

Following a move to 280 Smith St in early 2025, the venue expanded to more than double its original size, featuring front seating, outdoor spots on Smith Street, a bar area, and a large seating space out back with proper permanent restrooms.

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