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The Dog & Bell, Deptford, SE8
SE8
SE8 3JD
Reviews (Current Rating Average: 8 of 10) see review guidelines
Tris C left this review about The Dog & Bell
Around 1900 there were approximately 150 pubs in SE8, today there are about nine. Situated in a pub graveyard and close to the Thames and Deptford Creek, this one dates from at least the start of the 19th century, but I suspect was rebuilt in the same century; it’s very much a backstreet pub, with some of the curtilage punctuated by colourful kegs. It also recently featured in a Time Out list of must-visit London pubs.
The Guinness sign to the fascia and stained glass Celtic knotwork to the picture windows indicate that this was once an Irish pub, as do some of the whiskey distillers’ mirrors, but despite the vestigial Gaelic gallimaufry, it’s an Irish pub no more. The interior is a real old-school traditional experience with a riot of knickknacks and nautical ephemera – a boat is nailed to the ceiling – and Toby jugs; hop bines adorn the pot shelf. There’s a bar billiards table and rather good live acoustic music wafted out of a side room. Customers were about 1% traditional curmudgeonly old locals, then 99% students from the nearby University of Greenwich campus and accommodation block, the large majority crowded out front, all doing studenty things.
The ale front wasn’t as exciting as I was led to believe, with three real ciders then Iron Pier Killick’s Mill, Surrey Hills Greensand IPA, Cellar Head IPA and Blue Bee’s Langsett Light at just £2.10 a half, served by very friendly bar staff; it was however a bit of a ‘juicy’ beer, which isn’t to my liking; there were also 42 bottled beers offered on a board, many Belgian.
This is a real pubgoers’ pub and although it may seem a little heretical, a better and wider choice of beers would have got the score up a point.
On 2nd July 2023
- rating: 8
[User has posted 1985 recommendations about 1951 pubs]
Moby Duck left this review about The Dog & Bell
How have I not been here before? A wonderful pub , hidden away slightly on approach in a side street, the Red frontage may divide opinion but once inside It's every thing a traditional pub should be complete with a Bar Billiards table and more. The bar stretches through both rooms, five pumps in the far one and ten in the front area, understandably these days the beers on offer were down to six on cask and unlike on Johns visit six years ago the brewers were what I would call first division or thereabouts, apart from the double clipped Pride we had Wiper & True Heading Home a very nice Mild at an excellent £4.20 a pint,Cellar Head Fireside, Park Field Of Haze, Dark Star Sky Lab and Iron Pier Bitter, There were also a couple of craft beers amongst the trad keg. Steadily busy on a hot Saturday and I could have easily spent the afternoon here.
On 18th June 2023
- rating: 9
[User has posted 1872 recommendations about 1845 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Will Larter left this review about The Dog & Bell
A friend in Sheffield recommended this one to me, and he wasn't wrong. Two sets of five hand pumps, with London Pride doubled and the rest from Irish breweries Bullhouse and Lacada. To be fair, this was the St Patrick's beer festival but all the beers I tried were in tremendous condition.
On 17th March 2023
- rating: 9
[User has posted 3740 recommendations about 3477 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
john gray left this review about The Dog & Bell
Nice locals pub.Ugly red frontage but clean tidy 2 room interior with good rear outside area for smokers(or indeed anyone).Quiet on my visit.Loads of Belgian beers in the fridge (how quaint) 5 cask beers on but from the second division of brewers so I went for Plato brewery on keg.Nice and reasonable price.Casks from Bluestone.Conwyn,2 from Southwark.
On 30th September 2017
- rating: 7
[User has posted 1023 recommendations about 1009 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Ian Mapp left this review about The Dog & Bell
Looks like its had a make over. Immaculate, inside and out.
Traditional pub - possibly the only London pub with a Bar Skittles Table?
Four for five real ales on. I went safe for a perfect pint of London Pride at £3.80.
Worth seeking out. A near religious experience with the stained glass window and pew type seating. My type of Church.
Visit blogged at http://bit.ly/2nw0e2o
On 2nd April 2017
- rating: 10
[User has posted 277 recommendations about 276 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Rex Rattus left this review about The Dog & Bell
They had five ales on in here when I visited Wednesday lunchtime - London Pride, Colchester Diesel, Hogsback TEA, Mauldon Mole Trap and Clarence & Frederick Golden Ale (£3 a pint). I had a pint of the Clarence & Frederick which, while a little hazy, was a tasty hoppy summer style ale. I didn'e eat in here, but I did see a chalkboard on the wall advertising sarnies at £3.50 and pub grub main meals at around £6 - £7. There's a bit of outside seating at the back, and there were some newspapers for customers to read.
This is not only the best pub (by a country mile) in Deptford, it's the only decent pub there and was a welcome sight after the depressing walk up Deptford High St and spotting at least four closed pubs, with only the uninspiring White Swan bucking the trend. This pub hasn't changed appreciably since my last visit some five years ago (which is a very good thing indeed). The layout is the same with the separate room on the right that still contains the bar billiards table, and with traditional furnishings throughout.
This is a reasonably priced, clean and simple pub that does decent ale. That works for me. Definitely worth the walk from Deptford Station.
On 8th March 2014
- rating: 8
[User has posted 2606 recommendations about 2520 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Quinno _ left this review about The Dog & Bell
Having heard a good few things about this place, I ventured in here with high hopes after walking the Deptford Creek. It’s tucked away down a side street off the main drag and certainly takes a little bit of determination to find. There’s a traditional bar to the left as you enter and a separate, more sparse, room up a few steps to the right. A friendly welcome and a couple of pints of ESB were got (cheap too, compared to Fuller’s own pubs) which sat alongside a couple of interesting micro brews and London Pride. Sunday lunch was being served and we decided to partake, having worked up an appetite. This is where things went massively awry – in short, my friend’s turned up and mine didn’t, even after I went over to the bar to have a quiet word. Still having not turned up and my friend now finished I decided it was money-back time and matey doing the dinners then proceeded to get snotty and started loudly blaming the woman behind the bar, then me. Abysmal customer service and it put a real dampener on what I judged to be a really good little ale pub (the other beers were all good as we drank them whilst waiting for the Bermuda Triangle roast).
Whilst I’d happily recommend this place for liquid refreshment, steer clear of the food is my advice. Without the ‘incident’ I would’ve given this one an 8. Shame.
On 21st August 2011
- rating: 6
[User has posted 5082 recommendations about 5065 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Pub SignMan left this review about The Dog & Bell
The Dog and Bell is about a five minute stroll from Deptford station, in the direction of the river - a stroll that is well worth taking in order to find one of South London's finest backstreet pubs. The main bar has dark wood floors, tables and benches, which are offset by green panelling and yellow walls, all of which combine nicely to create a warm and comforting ambiance. A large pump clip collection is displayed above the bar counter whilst some modern art prints and a painting of the pub fill the walls. A TV screen is mounted above the door allowing those sat at the bar to watch French Open tennis during my stay.
A second room on the right hand side of the pub is carpeted and mostly filled with standard tables and chairs, although there is notably a bar billiards table at the rear of the room. A few people were sat in here, away from the busier main room and one or two seemed to be enjoying meals from the reasonable pub menu. A small outdoor patio area, covered by a large awning can be accessed from the rear of the pub, although their appeared to be maintenance work going on out there, so I didn't explore properly.
There were five handpulls dispensing Fullers London Pride and ESB, Slater's Top Totty (£2.95), Dark Star Golden Gate and Sharp's Doom Bar, all of which are listed with prices on a blackboard at the end of the bar. I tried the Slater's and found it in good shape. The pub is CAMRA friendly, with a table near the door covered in their literature.
For anyone looking for a charming traditional pub with well kept beer and friendly staff, the Dog and Bell is up there with the best the capital has to offer. Having poked my head in a few other pubs on my way back to the station, I would suggest that this is by far the best pub in Deptford at present and well worth seeking out if in the area.
On 27th June 2011
- rating: 8
[User has posted 3114 recommendations about 3114 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Roger Button left this review about The Dog & Bell
The Dog & Bell is a rare delight in an area where rare delights are pretty thin on the ground. The pub has survived the redevolpment that surrounds it and couldn’t be further from the karaoke and cocktail lounges that many pubs in the area have become.
The interior is in 2 distinct halves with a smaller room at the back. The main bar is all bare floors, plain décor and basic furnishings, delightfully unfussy and underplayed whilst the section away from the bar is a long narrow carpeted room with bright yellow walls, a small open fireplace, a row of tables down one side and a bar billiards table at the end. The smaller room at the rear is a go between to the kitchen but has a couple of additional tables and a selection of board games in a bookcase. At the rear is a small enclosed beer patio that captures the smell of the cooking form the adjacent kitchen.
The place is generally geared towards peace and quiet with low volume piped music, a selection of newspapers sitting on a sideboard and a TV (upgraded to flat screen since my last visit) that will never be found pumping out MTV or Sky Sports. More often than not the only people present will be regulars gathered at the bar assisting with the evening’s crossword, local cyclists for whom the D&B is a sort of magnet or CAMRA enthusiasts who have no other reason to visit Deptford other than the contents of the 5 hand pumps. The bar canopy contains a collection of numerous pump clips from the assorted guest ales that pass through. London Pride and Fullers ESB seemed to be the regulars available with Nethergate Lemon Head, Triple FFF Moondance and Whitstable East India IPA making up the guests on my latest trip.
There is a very reasonably priced menu of simple food (Burgers, Meat Balls, Ploughmans, Shepherds Pie, Fish & Chips etc) with most main courses under £6 and whilst I have never eaten here, the food did smell good!
In an area devoid of anywhere half decent, the Dog & Bell is worth seeking out and remains absolutely streets ahead of any of its local competitors.
On 23rd May 2010
- rating: 8
[User has posted 1239 recommendations about 1233 pubs]
Please Note: This review is over a year old.
Just a quick pint, then I'm off left this review about The Dog & Bell
I guess there may have once been a hundred backstreet pubs a bit like this one within a 5-mile radius. However, most of these have now gone and very few would ever have offered the range of beer you get here. Nothing obviously special inside or out, but clean and tidy and a warm welcome when you enter. Five real ales on, including a fine Gadds Oatmeal Stout. First rate.
On 30th October 2009
- rating: 9
[User has posted 8117 recommendations about 8117 pubs]