The Dolphin Tavern, Holborn, WC1

A former Whitbread pub, I came here once, probably in the late 1990s so don't remember it that well, other than that it was a rather dull locals' pub. Well it's still that, but has probably had a clean since Mr Rattus' visit. It's a very basic backstreet boozer, the only concession to modernity being the louvre blinds to the windows. You can clearly see the clock to the rear, but it actually stopped at 10.50, having lost 10 minutes over the last 100 years. There's muted music and a TV, off. The barman was friendly enough, ales on offer being Timothy Taylor's Landlord, Truman's Runner and Zephyr at £2.20 a half which isn't that bad for the area but is a lot for a pub of this calibre. I don't really see myself coming here again, not least because the lavish Enterprise is immediately opposite.