The Dolphin is a by far the most popular pub on Mare St. in Hackney. Its appeal lies in its dingy, grungy nature. It is a rock and roll kind of place. I found the beer to be not of the best quality, but I guess that goes with the overall vibe of the place. Although there is no food menu, I politely asked the barman if I could bring in some chips from the shop down the road and he had no problems with that. Besides, rather than sitting down to a meal, eating hot chips with a pint seems like a more appropriate thing to do in this establishment. The beer garden is a nice amalgamation of styles. Part western saloon with the balcony, part sauna with the wooden decking, and part tropical with the palm trees, it makes for a quirky setting. It is quite during the day, and from Monday til Wednesday it is quite at night. Thursday to Sunday nights are its busiest time (as with most pubs). Sunday nights in particular, the place really gets going due to Karaoke night that is held. Sunday nights can be a lot of fun at the Dolphin, but they can also be quite trashy. It often seems that a few of the clients may be still carrying on the big party from the night before. read more

The Dolphin - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

Show me a pub that's open until 4am and I'll show you a good time. That's what was had by all at The Dolphin last night. It's always a winner in my opinion, the first time I ended up there was after a party in Hackney that all got a bit gun crime happy. The initial disappointment of having to run out of a warehouse with a few hundred other screaming Shoredicks was very much alleviated by a nice cold pint at this wonderful establishment. It has everything a good pub should have; pool table, big screen TV, smoking garden, beer, fun, free crisps and lots of people. The centrally placed bar gives the place a kind of merry-go-round effect, it's always packed so you end up dancing around the bar like it's a massive maypole decorated with beer pumps instead of ribbons and flowers. I get the feeling that a lot of the people who frequent the dolphin may dabble in illegal substances, however this adds a certain something to the atmosphere and means in general that everyone is very, very friendly. read more

The Dolphin - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

This is an unusual bar, It still has some lovely Victorian architectural features, such as the exquisite tiles and unusual ceiling. Great jolly atmosphere, usually! karaoke, locals, arty alternatives regurarly visit this establishment! read more

The Dolphin - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

Like your typical Mills & Boon novel, this place is a hefty portion of pure filth with a side of guilty pleasure. But here, the filth is literal as opposed to innuendo. Grime. Grot. Yeeeah, welcome to East London, babies. Arriving here on Thursday, a relatively quiet night in most cities, this dirty Dolphin spoke volumes through its crowd of revellers, inside and out. The outdoor area is ridiculously generous, with plenty of places to sit for smokers and fresh air connoisseurs alike. It's a remarkably large place, the drinks are plentiful and it really is a heck of a spot to hang out into the wee small hours. Clientele-wise, you can expect an eclectic but predictable mix - creative arty types, thrift store junkies, skinny jeans and cool hairdos... and as the lovely Chris D has already pointed out, it's the perfect place to have those monumental conversations that turn into excellent inside jokes. Where can you get a decent basket of ham these days? It might have been a grubby place, but it's a treasured London experience of mine. I'd happily duck back in.. it might take a couple of stiff drinks before I'm willing to touch anything there (walls, bathroom fixtures, people) but I'll give it my best shot! read more

The Dolphin is my guilty pleasure!! On so many levels i should hate this place but you can't fail to love it's seedy charm. Karoke nights on a saturday are brilliant entertainment, get there early if your wanting a sing-a-long, i've yet to manage to get a slot on the mike! This makes me very sad as i am pitch perfect?! honest! Open till around 5ish this is a great place to go for a late night boogie and booze up. I also love the fact you can dance on pretty much any of the furniture...a word of warning the tables are a little unsteady. A great (wooden) garden with plenty of seating for the smokers out back, you will always meet an interesting mix of people out there. The blend of local chav's and east end trendy's suprisingly works and gives the Dolphin a great atmosphere. read more

Please don't come here if you don't want a dirty east London experience. You will leave feeling violated. It will be your own fault because you didn't head this warning. Now I first started going to The Dolphin 6, 7 years ago. It was a place I would pop into for a pint after college with a few of the girls. It was a little terrifying but in the afternoon the locals have drunk enough to not have the energy to taunt you and if they do it's normally all "friendly like" if you know what I mean! Now that I am older this has become a late night haunt, terrible karaoke and last drinks of the evening before you head home. It's warm and cheap and you'll almost always get a seat. Overall a winner with me. read more

Its gross. Its dirty. Its over priced. And I love it! Quite a lot actually. Come late. Come drunk or just don't come at all. And if you don't do something mildly ridiculous like singing karoke badly or falling down the stairs or stealing shisha pipes off strangers you really didn't try hard enough to fully enjoy your time here. It also helps if you don't remember leaving the place. If you remember your exit then you really didn't have as much fun as you could have done. read more

To borrow and butcher the words of the the great AC/DC.... "It's dirty, its mean, its mighty unclean.....eh.......eh....oh, it'll snog your Nan..." Yeah...fitting. God lord in a ashtray, this place is grottier than a grotty thing that ain't washed in a while, and then when it has washed, its been in a puddle....a grotty puddle, with dead goats in it. Apart from that, its a fookin fantastical ass end pub, fit for the kind of drunken shenanigans that seem to pepper the hours after 12am...... This place will live long in the memory thanks, in the main to a extremely drunken discussion (wrong, read shouting at each other) that led to the birth of a phrase that shall forever be linked with this London trip......fellow basket of ham enthusiasts....i salute thee. Grotty, wild, expensive and definitly one you'll regret in the morning, this is one Dolphin that should not be allowed to slip the net. read more

Its been a while, but I have many many fond memories of being locked in this jam-packed pub with dodgy karaoke, drunken dancing on every horizontal surface, and plenty o' locals mixing it up with boho's and a surprising helping of famous people. Not for most people. Probably about time I went back. read more

The Dolphin on Mare Street is a beautiful old Victorian building, tiled inside with an unusual ceiling. It certainly attracts a mixed clientele, and has changed remarkably in the last few years. It wasn't that long ago when the Dolphin was seen as a dive, attracting a rough crowd and seen as somewhere that was open late so a last resort when there was nowhere else to go. Now, after highly publicised visits from the likes of Peaches Geldof and Kelly Osbourne, the Dolphin became cool and prices were hiked up. There is a decent outside seating area for the smokers, a pool table and karaoke on Sunday nights. I've had some memorable nights there but I think that was due mainly to the copious amounts of wine I had before... The drinks are expensive, they don't give you water from the tap, instead you have to buy bottled water, and saying the toilets are dirty is an understatement. They only get away with it because of its popularity and somehow people still go even after the entry price has gone up to over a fiver on weekends. Worth the money? Not sure it is. But sometimes its difficult to resist. read more

The Dolphin - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

Ah the Dolphin, this is an unusual bar, It has some lovely Victorian architectural features, such as the exquisite tiles and unusual ceiling. They have a pretty big Beer Garden out the back and a pool table inside! Anytime I've been here it's been a fun night! karaoke on a Friday night is always interesting to say the least! The clientele is a mix of locals and arty alternatives! read more

The Dolphin; for many Hackney residents the reputation of this place precedes it. Great neon signs cover the walls inside making it feel like a hybrid of British pub and strange Spanish bar, fun Karaoke on a Friday and it's always absolutely rammed on the weekends (a bit like Cheers if you go a lot as it's very much the same faces that frequent it). The bad thing is that you have to pay £5 to get in on the weekend and for 'events' happening in the week you might have to shell out a few pounds for entry. These include hula hoop lessons, which was good fun! Good sized beer garden at the back means you can sit under heaters with your Newcastle Brown Ale and set the world to right, wait is that just me?! Go, even just to say you've been. read more

The Dolphin - Pubs Near Me - London, XGL

I don't tend to notice drink prices - except for those ludicrous £8 V&T's in theatreland - I'm usually too squiffy. But I do notice inexplicable cover charges at East End pubs. Sadly, with its weekday £5 cover charge, The Dolphin's card has been marked. If only in this respect... Usually only venturing as far as London Fields, a night out on Mare Street was a refreshing change. I went to The Dolphin with a large group of friends last week - Option 4 preceded by Option 3, as per Fred's system - and a good time was had by all. The crowd was rowdy, the cavernous beer-garden a God-send for those nicotine fiends among us, and there were actually seats for those not keen to dance to the DJ's music while watching the X-Factor contestants' take on 'Hero' on The Dolphin's large screen TV's. read more

The Dolphin. What a dive! That very fact hasn't stopped the droves of people that cram themselves in there from Thursday through to Sunday (I'd suspect that some of them don't go home during that time). Someone in Hackney pronounced it trendy. Therefore everyone goes now. Even though it's much more basic, pared down, much less decorated than the George and Dragon in Hackney Road it's kinda the same deal; eclectic motown, indie and 50s tracks blaring, you have to get there very early to get a seat (even if you're looking for one outside) and prepare to fall over bags a lot. You can dance though; which was always a challenge at the George. Mainly because this place Is much, much bigger. It runs at clubbing times; closing at 3 when I last checked. Lots of people use it as a 'last stop before home' when they really don't want the night to end; this is especially the case on Sundays. There's apparently a karaoke night here; I've not seen it yet! read more

A dodgy dive, the sort of place you wipe your feet on the way out. Not wholly convinced that the draft lager is actually what the pumps claim it to be. The lager from both the Stella and Fosters taps both tasted the same, but not like Stella or Fosters. Toilets filthy. To be avoided read more

One day I decided to try this pub because it was local to me this is what happend, I went there was 4 security guards at the door, they said "sorry we have private party" if they don't like how you look no entry, like it is a 5 star pub. :) I have been to many clubs and pubs never had this kind of attitude. I have also tried other weeks is well with friends it was all same reason "sorry we have a private party". These security guards needs training I guess they're just repeating the same thing over and over again like a parrot "sorry we have private party" they are not that professional I guess, they can just say "sorry we're currently over our capacity, please come back next time", capacity limit is set by Council. Don't even think about it I warned you! read more

Really old pub and looks it,you may think it deserted,but its not, it caters mainly for the local Turkish people, discos are normally mainly turkish music,no special beers,and a little pricey for whats there, i noted that they also have a night club next door by the same name read more

i'm an amputee and often, when on my skateboard, at 4am on mare street they just pick me up......and place me on the bar......they give me shotz......then they put on their daft punk's greatest hits and i have dance with lobster. it's plastic. and jaunty. i luv sats nights and shundays at the dolphin because when i've had enough of the bo, sweat and piss smell i can go and have a cigarette in the ample and refreshing courtyard. the courtyard is great because it has wooden tables and chairs. they are made of wood.if you lose half of your phone, they find it. it's pretty impressive . dats whys i love the prince george pub shardona xxx read more

I would give it 10 stars if I could. I love you Dolphin, you grotty little ball of dreams

Went on a Saturday night - oddly it was quite quiet but it's a big place so I suppose it takes a while to fill up. Pop music was playing and despite the lack of people a dancefloor had already formed. There's also a pool table, outdoor seating and outdoor bar. About £5 for spirit+mixer so not bad prices. read more

The place is a dump but that's what gives it it's charm! if you want a rave up at pretty much any hour of the night... go to the Dolphin..

Went there all the way from Camden with my boyfriend was refused entry from male bouncer with no reason to explain just nodded head said not coming in a very unfriendly way I'm a 33 year old male and sure wasn't for I.D . Then my friend got in ten mins later with he's girlfriend .Need a change of door staff don't waste your time or money . read more

never again, got dragged into this place after a few drinks, door staff very rude bar staff not much better, would rather be tea total all my life than go here again read more