Dovetail

Bar in The City

8 / 10 from 3 reviews

Address
9 Jerusalem Passage
The City
London
EC1V 4JP

Map

Telephone
020 7490 7321

Region
The City

Nearest Station
Farringdon
0.20 miles

Category
Bars

Website
http://dovepubs.com/

Opening Times

Monday	Open 12:00 - Closes 23:00
Tuesday	Open 12:00 - Closes 23:00
Wednesday	Open 12:00 - Closes 23:00
Thursday	Open 12:00 - Closes 23:00
Friday	Open 12:00 - Closes 23:00
Saturday	Open 12:00 - Closes 23:00
Sunday	Closed

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We're not sure how this doesn't make it onto Best Pub's in London lists more often - they have over 100 Belgian beers!

All In London

Dovetail specialises in Belgium beers and food. They have 101 bottled and 10 draught beers, and also offer speciality sausages in a variety of flavours. They can cater for private parties of up to 120 people. Seating on the pavement is provided, weather permitting.

All In London Review

a Belgian beer café, just like the sign told me

The Dovetail, it’s a Belgian beer café don’t you know? Educated by the sign outside and spared the embarrassment of assuming this was some kind of pub or restaurant even, I was in, and save for the slightly pretentious sign first impressions are good.

Arranged in blocks, the mixed furniture does its best to act as decoration and so benefit the place with touches of panache. Form supports function and the religious overtone of the décor is interesting in itself. Church pews, high Abbey arches and hymn boards draw on the links between the beers and some of their roots in the monasteries of Belgium.

It’s not such undiscovered country around St. John’s Square anymore and with the Modern Pantry plus the behemoth Zetter Hotel on the corner, the suits are getting sharper.

Looking around, it is all very City, but if you can avoid the Thursday and Friday nights then you might just avoid the pumped up money men (and women) who love to get loud, apparently.

This evening it’s quiet and it’s the beer I’m interested in and with over 100 of them there’s nowhere better in London to hunt for the exotic. Satan Gold, Grimbergen Blonde and Rochefort 8 are just some picks to be savoured. There are a lot more to be explored though and there are beer tastings that can be booked for the chance to really be schooled. The food’s good too and classics include the Carbonnade, a rich beef stew and the Waterzooi Van Vis, a tasty Antwerp fish dish. Plus of course, there’s moules mariniere. Prices are high but bearing in mind the rarity of the imports, it’s worth the extra cash.

Toward the end, looking around from a lone corner it all becomes clear to me. Yes, this is a Belgian beer café, just like the sign told me. Ale with the strength of wine, barely audible crooners on the stereo and a hush-hush approach to fun, it’s almost as continental as you’re going to find in London.

Reviewed by T.A.O
Published on May 4, 2011

Things to Try

Belgian Beer Tasting

There are worse ways to spend an evening than sampling the finest Belgian beers and eating delicious moules mariniere.

User Reviews

T.A.O

Aug 5, 2013

The Dovetail is a genuinely relaxing bar that takes you out of London and dumps you in a venue that looks somewhat like an amalgamation of Bruges, Brussels and the interior of an ancient resurrected abbey.

They have Chimay on draught, old French music on the stereo and one of the walls is covered in Tintin pictures, there's nothing not to like.

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Anonymous

Jun 1, 2009

Perfect place to get away from the city suits. Great range of drinks unusual brands you can't get anywhere else. The food is yummy and not too pricey. Highly rated by me and my friends. Really friendly staff.

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