Ye Olde Dolphin Inne, Derby

Tried to get a pint in here on Saturday afternoon. The beer festival was on in town so you would have thought they would have put some extra staff on. Two staff on, three deep at the bar, not good enough.

All the signage points to this being the oldest pub in Derby dating back to 1530 and the cobbled corridors and low wooden doorways back up the claim. It's a nice looking pub with some decent beers and a cheap menu. It does come across as a bit touristy though, with the eating area being named the “1530 AD Restaurant” and various advertisements for ghost walks and the like. There was also a notice about a spiritual medium appearing every Wednesday, I was there on a Wednesday and the next event was advertised as two weeks later, unforeseen circumstances maybe!! It's definitely worth visiting though as it oozes history.

A detached pub in white render, with part timber look.Claimed to date from 1530, the exterior tries to give that impression. There is a beer garden. The inside has a nesting of rooms, also in the white render, wood panel and beam look, continuing the Tudor/Jacobean theme and no doubt making the ghost hunters feel well at home (i believe ghost walks of Derby incorporate the pub into their itinery). We sat in the snug, which had a nice fireplace and various prints and other ephemera on the walls and elsewhere to add further interest. The service was very good and the clientele small, mature and friendly; with one ex-soldier joining in our conversations, which ranged from Jenny Agutter to the Domesday Book. Beer; tap stuff, with 8 handpulls, with Bass, Black Sheep, 'Dolphin Ale', Deuchars, Adnams Bitter and Abbot, with a decent drop of Y Not and Timothy Taylor Landlord. An excellent choice, even if perhaps they are not that uncommon to find. Another super place, you cant go far wrong in here

Billed as the oldest pub in Derby, it certainly looks old in places with low ceilings and lots of dark wood in its many little rooms. There is a good choice of well kept beers from regionals and a couple from micro's on the eight handpulls. Pleasant bar staff and chatty locals in a nice setting.