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Dove Free House, E8

24 Broadway Market
E8
E8 4QJ

Phone: 02072757617

Correct details

Served areas

Hackney, London Fields, Broadway Market

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Dove Pubs Wishing all our lovely customers a very Merry Christmas. But we are still Open and will Be Christmas Eve until earl… https://t.co/8uSVuvbCmI 1:12 PM Dec 23rd 2022 from Twitter Web App

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Reviews of Dove Free House (Average Rating: 8 of 10) Add Review see review guidelines

Steve of N21 left this review about Dove Free House

My inaugural visit to this Broadway market stalwart was last month on a Wednesday evening when it was proposed as a meeting place by a colleague. Then it was very lively, both inside and outside with a largely hipster crowd described in the review below, who were mainly enjoying the Belgium beers and the craft options from the keg taps which dominate the main bar. Fortunately for me there are still two ale taps (if there were more I didn’t see them and certainly not the six from 14 years ago that earned this establishment rave 10’s from a couple of reviewers) which were dispensing Crouch Vale’s Brewers Gold and ELB’s Bow Creek IPA, both in very good nick and at £5 a pint. So good enough but not good enough to trouble the GBG editors nowadays.
Décor as described below and I quite liked the dark wood multi-roomed Belgium bar feel and also the overall décor (especially the facsimile of Michelangelo’s The Creation of Adam adorning the ceiling of the main bar room, with both God and Adam holding glasses of Leffe, also mentioned in the reviews below). But I wasn’t too enamoured by the toilets which are basically a long urinal tray behind a screen to the right and seven unisex cubicles to the left. It’s one way of dealing with the he, she, them, other issue that establishments have to deal with nowadays but one I will continue to not favour over the old arrangements.
However, I still had such a good time that when walking the Regents canal last Thursday lunchtime I convinced the throng to take a detour for a revisit. Sadly, not the same experience. We were one of the first through the doors at 12.30PM and The Brewers Gold was already reversed ( probably went the night before and hadn’t been changed) and then the ELB went off at the end of our round and as the single barmaid on duty for this early shift wasn’t going to replace them it wasn’t long before we were heading off back on the tow path towards Bow. Also, interestingly the Unisex Toilets were out of order and the only facilities was a disability cubicle at bar level. Presumably this unisex set up experiences carnage on a busy evening which cannot be rectified by a damp rag.
On our latter experience I would be slating this one, but as I have experienced it when it is a very enjoyable pub for an evening I will rate it according to that experience.

On 30^th July 2024 - rating: 7
[User has posted 2236 recommendations about 2098 pubs]

Please Note: This review is over a year old.

Tris C left this review about Dove Free House

This was until around 1990 the Goring Arms and a first for us a few nights ago.
This former Taylor Walker house is situated along Broadway Market, which is to hipsters what the Vatican is to Catholics, so it’s no surprise that a facsimile of Michelangelo’s The Creation of Adam adorns the ceiling, with both God and Adam holding glasses of Leffe, presumably influenced by a similar fresco painted to the ceiling of Oxford's Victoria. Presumably then, this pub is to hipsters what the Sistine Chapel is to the Vatican.
The interior is a hotchpotch of styles and periods: the floor is modern bare boarded with slanted t ‘n’ g panelling to dado height. The walls are a mungy nicotine colour – unpainted since the smoking ban? – with some seemingly Art Deco panelling to the front with complementary sconce lights. There’s Anaglypta to selective areas of the ceiling in a similar colour, with parts of the paper peeling off the walls; there are also some rather ugly exposed metal structural members along with what looks like some exposed concrete. Also on view is a lot of saggy electrical wiring. The impression here is that when any electrical work is done, the existing wiring is left in place; it’s not attractive; furniture is mismatched and eclectic. Décor comprises much Belgian brewery regalia. To the rear right is initially what appears to be a balustered gallery but is in fact the rear of the pub which is accessed down a couple of half stair flights. Here, there’s a very attractive dark wood panelled room with separate areas, a little like booths; it’s quite at variance with the front room. At the bottom is the entrance to the lavs which comprise seven unisex cubicles, open to the rear room; I hope there’s adequate air extraction. Customers were understandably young, certainly younger than us, though this is hardly surprising, given that the area and its amenities are generally geared towards a younger crowd.
There is of course a wide choice of Belgian beers on tap and in bottle with three real ales, a selection unchanged for a good nine years: Crouch Vale’s Brewers Gold, TT Landlord and ELB’s Pale Ale, in great shape and – for London – a very agreeable £4.50 the pint, served up by friendly and efficient staff.
Taken at face value this pub is initially a bit of a disappointment, but the beer is good, very competitively priced and can be enjoyed in a very attractive pub, if consumed to the side or rear.
I would return on passing and would especially include this place on a crawl of the area.

On 19^th May 2022 - rating: 7
[User has posted 2207 recommendations about 2164 pubs]

Please Note: This review is over a year old.