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Beer of the Week (w/e 27th April 2025) with Thuck Phat
on the Pub Forum
Image posted by Old Boots
Submitted on Sunday, 28th July 2024
With picture contributions to 3577 other pubs
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Detail Pages
The Dolphin, Portsmouth
Portsmouth
PO1 2LU
Served areas
TheDolphinPortsmouth
@HRHHenryWindsor we would love to throw you a stag do and taste a portsmouth brew! We will give you £10,000 to one… https://t.co/iUjKKhF56O
3:12 PM Apr 5th 2018 from Twitter for iPhone
Reviews of The Dolphin (Average Rating: 7 of 10) see review guidelines
Old Boots left this review about The Dolphin
Advertised as Portsmouth’s oldest pub, established 1716 (but see the Spice Island Inn), opposite the cathedral and almost looking the part inside and out. The inside isn’t an 18th century alehouse but there’s lots of old and not so old wood, stained glass and brick fireplaces. Beerwise, four pulls with “Gales” Seafarers, Harvey’s Sussex, Tribute and a reversed clip. A couple of horseshoes provide a choice of national brands while Madri gets a solo. Some wag refers to it as “Tadri” due to its source brewery, in Tadcaster. There are separate spaces to the right off the main bar with its left hand counter and to the rear an almost separate dining area. The famous “Nelson” pane of glass is covered in scratched names mostly unreadable.
On 28th July 2024
- no rating submitted
[User has posted 3599 recommendations about 3279 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Dolphin
This spacious bare boarded pub opposite Portsmouth’s cathedral, claims to be the oldest in the city – a claim that seems plausible enough, although anyone casually strolling in would be hard pushed to recognise this from the opened-out interior. You enter into a wide space with high tables and stools to the left next to an upright piano, and an open-fronted snug to the right with some nice old beams and stained-glass screens helping to make it feel like the sort of traditional, historic pub they claim to be. In 2016, the landlord found a pane of glass in storage which was believed to have come from one of the pub’s old windows and been signed by Horatio Nelson. This pane has now been hung over the brick fireplace in this room with a brief explanatory note detailing its supposed significance. Armchair seating and shelves full of books, bottles and salvers give this room a cosy, homely feel and for me it was probably the nicest spot in the whole pub. The bar is along the left-hand side of the main room and has a grey panelled counter front and bar back plus a metal framed gantry, none of which enhances the traditional feel of the pub. There’s a decent sized seating area opposite with standard tables and chairs in front of a nice fireplace and a ‘community pillar’ which has been used to display various messages and advertisements of interest to the locals. Beyond is an area with a stained glass ‘Private Bar’ sign which offers lots of bench and chair seating in a smart space that in turns leads out to the beer garden. The décor is appropriate to the overall look of the pub and includes lots of old photos on the walls and some nice lamps.
The ale range here was a lot more extensive than in other pubs in this part of town, offering Adnams Ghost Ship, Sharps Doom Bar, Hammerpot This Is England, Wadworth Horizon, Bradgy Twt Lol Horny Goat Ale and Milk Street Uncle John’s Tarantula Juice. My half of the This Is England was nice enough and served up by a slightly surly barman.
It’s a bit of a shame that you don’t get much of a feel for exactly how old this pub is when you’re inside, but despite this, I still thought it was a nice enough place to enjoy a few beers from their decent selection. If you’re out and about in Old Portsmouth, this is definitely worth a quick stop-off.
On 9th September 2019
- rating: 7
[User has posted 3350 recommendations about 3350 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Strongers . left this review about The Dolphin
Not knowing that there is a well-kept enclosed beer garden at the rear of the Dolphin I decided to have a smoke out the front before I entered on a recent Friday afternoon. This gave me a chance to read the A boards on the pavement which advertised the Sunday comedy night, Thursday quiz and live acoustic music on Fridays. Inside the pub there is seating to the left and right of the entrance and there is a piano next to the bar that runs up the left-hand wall. On the right, opposite the bar, is a seating area with fireplace. At the rear is some seating on a flagstone floor that leads to the aforementioned beer garden. The plasma screen was turned off and there is no Sky/ BT Sports, but sports on terrestrial TV will be shown if asked for.
Heineken, Amstel, Hop House, Birra Moretti, Fosters, Strongbow and Guinness were the keg options. I counted six hand pumps that were drawing Hammerpot Brewery’s This England, Wadworth’s Horizon, Adnams Ghost Ship, Sharp’s Doom Bar, Trefforest Horny Goat Ale and Milk Street Great Uncle John's Tarantula Juice. Food is available from lunch and dinner menus. A basic burger is priced at £9. I quite liked it in here and would return if passing.
On 10th May 2019
- rating: 7
[User has posted 5965 recommendations about 5931 pubs]
View more reviews of The Dolphin (14)
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- Official site of The Dolphin - www.thedolphinportsmouth.co.uk
- Facebook - The Dolphin
- Twitter - TheDolphinPortsmouth
- CAMRA WhatPub :: The Dolphin - whatpub.com
Portsmouth Harbour, 1.14 miles, 22 min walk (show)
Fratton, 1.69 miles, 32 min walk (show)
Pub Details
Pub details supplied by members of this site to the best of their knowledge. Please check with pub directly before making a special trip.
- Accommodation : No last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Bar Billiards : No last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Beer Garden : Yes last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Car Park : No - pay municipal car park short walk away, near the Square Tower - last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Darts : No last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Dog Friendly : Yes last updated 08 May 2016 by Quinno _
- Function Room : No last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Hot Food : Yes last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Jukebox : No last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Karaoke : No last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Live TV Sports : No last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Micropub : No last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Pinball : No last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Pool Table : No last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Real Ale : Yes last updated 21 February 2016 by Quinno _
- Real Cider : No last updated 09 September 2019 by Pub SignMan
- WiFi : Yes last updated 09 September 2019 by Pub SignMan
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