I'll admit the Artful Dodger has a pretty pretentious name, and to be frank, I am not sure what really distinguishes it from all the other professorial wannabe English pubs out there. But I like it. Nothing's nicer than curling up at a table next to their giant fireplace on a cold winter night and ordering some of their hearty pub style classic entrees like bangers and mash with a pint of stout. And in the summertime, they have a really popular patio that just so happens to be gayborhood-adjacent. I also recommend their burgers and their wings. And of course, pitchers and pitchers of beer. The crowd in the Artful seems to be a very mixed bag, both in terms of age range and overall demographic. Maybe its proximity to the middle of the universe Bloor/Yonge subway hub makes it accessible to a lot of different types of people, but you just can't say who you will run into there. From older sorts who might meet the "professorial" designation to goth kids, football-hooligan types, german tourists, and stray partiers from Church Street, this place really does represent how varied this city is. Table service can be a bit slow, especially during peak times like summer nights on the patio or winter nights in the dining areas. With a cavernous amount of space I guess the waitstaff have more turf to cover than cramped Queen Street art bars. Stop in for a beer and a chat, maybe you'll meet a new Goth friend when you're there! read more

Love the Artful Dodger! The name is worth the four stars alone! I hosted a large party here for about 75 people and Tom - the manager - was great about customizing party platters and helping us organize. They gave us the top floor which had a couple pool tables and a seperate bar area. The downstairs is really nice with fireplaces and a true British feel - cozy, comfortable and a great place to grab a drink. read more

Decent beer selection (but not amazing). Pretty good food. Very pleasant patio. Attentive service. A nice place to grab a drink.

Our group of 6 popped in here for dinner, prior to seeing RENT at the Panasonic theatre. Nice patio space in the front for groups of 2-3, with small tables. Out back is the garden patio, with more seating. I was lucky to grab a larger table, since I arrived shortly after 5:00pm. Good selection of beers and menu had the standard pub fare. We took advantage of the Thursday night special, 10 wings for $6.95. Our server did a good job, but the wait for food took over an hour, as there was a mix up with the computer system. Overall, I didn't find really find it all that special. read more

My friends and I are born the same week. We decided to do a beer crawl for our birthdays and included artful dodgers as one of our stops. It's a neat place with a relaxed vibe, we enjoyed our apps and the darts on the wall. Too bad the bartended was miserable. There were about 15 of us and she complained that we didn't make a reservation so she was thrown off guard. I've never heard of a bartended not excited to see customers and make tips. We all went up in seperate groups and had our own encounters but the overall consensus was she was a grouch. Aside from that it was a great stop for our beer crawl but I don't think I would go back. read more

I've recently decided to *try* to go vegetarian and the Veggie burger here makes me believe it's possible for me! It happened to be the daily combo (burger, fries, choice of beer on tap). The patty was deliciously packed with some sort of bean or chickpea body, not too loose but not too solid, not dry at all. I acknowledge that this isn't what regulars come here for, but just a heads up! The fries were okay - flat shaped and on the thicker side. My friend had the fish and chips, which looked ok. We sat in the more intimate area by the bar since upataira was deserted like an old country saloon. (6pm on a monday) I couldn't finish my combo so I asked for the waitress to put it in a takeout box. She came back with a much larger portion and explained she'd accidentally thrown the original away. Fries werent my fave, but I was definitely okay with that. I would come here again for a casual couple of beers and that veggie burger! read more

This place is great. It has a great atmosphere and the patio in front is kick ass especially on a warm night. The interior is really warm and inviting and reminds you of an old school English pub. The selection of beer and mixed drinks is ample and reasonably priced. The sweet potato fries are killer. I popped my Toronto pub cherry here and this is often my go-to starter place to meet people. It will always remain near and dear to my heart....*love*. read more

I come here with colleagues every few months. They have tons of seating, both indoors and out, and a really welcoming atmosphere. That said, there's nothing that really stands out to me about this place. They have standard drinks and standard pub food. Though it definitely gets points for being close to work! read more

Had some beers & wings after seeing a play at the Panasonic theatre. They have three ambiance, you sit yourself. No complaints here, beer was good, wings were good, service was good. read more

This is a nice if a bit down at heel pub, very friendly feel and service but a bit grungy. The beer selection could do with a touch up, Stella, Amsterdam Blond, Creemore, and I think Guiness. Patios in front and back. Perhaps we ordered poorly but the food was very uninspiring, standout was the scotch egg but the accompanying side salad was dressed with something that tasted really wierd, I want to call it vinaigrette but it wasn't, it kind of tasted sweet and oily and a bit fishy. Fried calamari was decent but not as fresh as it should have been. Bagers and mash consisted of meh mashed potatoes, canned beans, and breakfast sausages dressed with sautéed onions (which were basically raw), reminded me of bad English cafe food... We ate all of the above but did we enjoy it? Not really. That said it definitely go back for a pint. read more

Can't comment too much on it, but I went for a meetup there on the second floor. They have a pool table up there, so that's a plus in my book. The bartender was pretty nice as well. I was waiting to order a drink and got caught up talking to people, somewhat forgetting my intention of doing so, and she apologized for having to run downstairs for a minute which wasn't a problem for me at all. Didn't have enough of an experience with their service to rate it 5 star, so 4 will have to do. read more

Server was left out to dry. Only one server for the entire upstairs. Probably 60+ people. Not sure if he was just overwhelmed but he was quite brash with us. Food was OK, I had the Bangers and Mash. It's English food so I added some S&P. Would recommend tho! Great Pub! read more

We were looking for a place in Toronto that serves ribs and we found the artful dodger. The food was very tasty (we also ordered cheese tortellini) and the atmosphere (in September sitting outside with music) was great. read more

Artful Dodger Pub - Cheese Tortellini - Pubs Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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The fish and chips is delicious!! The batter is flavorful and crispy and the portion is generous. We sat at the bar and the bartender was thoughtful and friendly. The atmosphere feels like you've stepped into the old world - in a good way! It's simply charming. I would recommend this place to anyone. read more

Artful Dodger Pub - Try the fish and chips! - Pubs Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

I absolutely adore this place! Coming from the states, it's rare to find a pub that not only has great food and drinks but has reasonable prices AND a very chill vibe. There's one particular server there (Chris) who's usually around late nights and he's absolutely the nicest. Me and hubby (a Toronto local) frequented the Dodger a lot this summer and you bet we'd be back many more times. read more

Don't get it too complicated. It is not the place if you want a unique dinning experience but great to have your beer and grab a bite - food is fine for pub style. There is the area on ground floor to the right of the entrance. The rest of the pub is just for the case you can not find a spot there . Gives you a community feeling. It's a nice neighborhood English pub the way pubs should be. read more

Not worth the effort. Food is acceptable but the noise is deafening... No sound buffering at all and plain hard walls and ceiling; terrible. In addition, staff is lazy and has mastered the art of ignoring customers. read more

The last time I went to this pub I had an absolutely terrible experience. I have ordered the same drink twice "Black and Tan" an they always serve it to me terribly layered. It's like they don't even have a clue how to layer a drink. I asked the waiter what they had on tap and he sneered at me, and pointed to a menu. The food they have isn't good, the service is terrible, and the drinks aren't good. I'm not even sure what good there is to say. read more

the bartender on the second floor is just a jerk. first time we came in he could barely be bothered to help us. when i asked about the beers (he didn't offer us menus until we asked for them specifically) he was really snotty. i asked if they had a hefeweizen and he said they have a blond. i couldn't hear him very well and wasn't sure if that was a type or a label and asked what it was like and he said "it's like a blond." then we went in again and i asked for one of the hefeweizens on the menu and he said since he was busy he would only get me one of the four beers on tap since any others were downstairs. we were ordering food which was downstairs too i guess but all those beers on the menu must be imaginary. and he's just outright jerky. look i've worked in service before, and i know that there are ways to be an ass right up to the line of rudeness if you do it with a smile. he doesn't know that line very well because he comes off as a passive aggressive asshole. won't be going back read more

I've been here a few times for after work drinks. The inside is cozy and spacious. The patio is more of a chairs on the side walk deal but with trees which looks like a cool idea at first until the birds start flying around on the trees start shedding their little seeds into your beer. I've heard good things about the food and can confirm that the quesadillas are very acceptable. For such a big place I think the beer selection could be larger so I usually end up sticking with Tankhouse. The big area this place loses points with me is the service. They take too long to come ask if we want refills. They brought us menus yesterday and then never bothered to ask if we want food. One of the female servers hasn't mastered the use of please and thank you and just drops stuff on the table. I'll continue to go here for the location but it could be greatly improved with a staff change. read more

Great place - always busy during the summer. They have 2 patios I've seen a private party (hawaiian theme) happening in the back, while it's business as usual in the front. And the location is great. read more

Great food, service & atmosphere. A hidden gem off yonge. Came on a Monday and had their veggie burger which was on special. Service was casual but efficient and friendly! Will definitely be back read more

A good neighbourhood bar that has 2 levels and a small patio out back. The back patio is really fun and things tend to get pretty sloppy there real quick. Upstairs is another bar and then a lounge with a pool table. The front patio is nice on a summer night. read more

It's your typical pub and I had been here a few times for patio drinks and some apps. Today my wife and I were in and we were hungry and decided to eat. Usually some of these pubs have mediocre food but we were pleasantly surprised. We split a scotch egg and then had bangers and mashed, and the salmon for dinner. Food was so good. You could taste that it was home made. For the prices we didn't expect it to be this good. We will be back again. read more

3 stars for tasty toasty garlic bread & seafood chowder. 2 cosy fireplaces + comfy couches + chairs. Balti Butter Chicken great. Roast leg of lamb special too chewy. Good service, ATM + washrooms upstairs. No debit! read more

Typical English pub, went for lunch. Nothing special or impressive with this place. If you skipped it and never ate here, you would not miss anything. Most disappointing was Stella Artois on tap and it came in a regular pint glass. Everywhere else I have ever eaten or drank Stella comes in a Stella stemmed goblet and a knife is slid over the rim removing excess "head", just like on the tv commercials. It was lunch time with about 5 people In the place so getting the correct glass should not be a problem. Going out to eat or drink is about quality and some place that just pours beer into a glass without respect for "the process" is low end in my books. Spend your money in quality establishments. Food was good, but then again nothing better than everywhere else, in a market where you need to stand out and be special, The Artful Dodger stands out for being very average, beige against a rainbow. read more

The boneshaker is awesome! I find that there's also a nice mix of people here-- while most seem to be regulars. Sometimes you may see a group of students from the university chatting with a professor or something, but usually it is something like neighborhood fans who want to kick up their feet by the prized tables by the fire. People are generally a friendly bunch, and there's a patio which is great! read more

My girlfriend and I were going to a show at the Panasonic around the corner and I had been here before - thought everything was great. However, on March 29, 2013 I couldn't believe how horrible the service was. We sat in the room across the pub for 10 minutes, didn't see anyone. Went to the pub area and after waiting 5 minutes a waitress took our drink orders (like she was doin us a favour). I had to get our menus and go back to the bar to place the order after waiting another 10 minutes, to which the waitress said 'okay'. I won't keep rambling - in short the food was good the service was horrible. I like pubs and will simply go to a different one next time. read more

Downtown area with two patio areas, and daily deals. Everything is nice and well priced but the service is super super slow. Beer menu could also be improved. read more

Came for the patio on a Friday night. Not particularly busy but the server was incredibly rude and inattentive. Go somewhere else.... Food 2/5 Fries 0/5 Price 3/5 Service 0/5 read more

Love this place. Great drinks & I love the British theme. My current favourite local hangout for a drink! + great patio, too!

It was nice to find a patio that wasn't packed downtown, but that was likely for a reason. It seemed like there was only one TV in the place and it was showing hockey (2 US teams) instead of the Raptors game 6 vs the Bucks or even the Jays game. The food was quite lackluster - tiny potato skins, chicken wings that tasted a tiny bit off (although hats off to a spicy thai sauce that actually has some spice to it rather than just tasting like sugar and sweet peppers) and overall tiny portions for some of the sharing platters. One of those platters was ~$32 and it looked like it could probably have fed just one of us. read more

great place downtown at the corner of Yonge and Isabella. Great array of beers and spirits. The staff was great . Their patio is perfect in the evenings. Will go back again read more

convenient location, nice patio, attentive service, and clean bathrooms. food is just average for a pub. read more

Old-school pub but that's what attracted us to it. It has two fireplaces and a pool table, good drink offers and the menu looks great, we did not eat but will be back to try some grub, the menu seems very reasonable and I'm interested to try their brunch! read more

Strongbow pitchers are awesome! My friend really loved her pierogi, and I loved my honey garlic wings. The interior was a bit weirdly plush but we ate outside so don't take our word for the aesthetic for the pub inside. We got drunk, ate great food, had a great time at the Artful Dodger. read more

Great location to enjoy a beer on the outside patio. Very quick on the beer service and good selection. Food was OK, but really slow. If you have the time, great place to soak up the Toronto atmosphere. read more

Cool spot to have a drink outside on a hot summer day near Yonge Street. The food ain't bad it's simple but good

Amazing employees, great drinks, and the place has a ton of space. I didn't have any of the food, but it looked great!

I find this place a dive too but its a kind of dive that you want to hang out in. The price of drinks here are mediocre and the food is average. This a typical student hang out. It can host a large amount of people but you have to get the good seats on the 2nd floor in the very back. We had the fortunate to seat right in front of the bar but the tables were very annoying. Kept hitting our legs on the metal legs of the table. read more