Dartmouth Arms — Restaurant in London

After hearing about this place from a few friends and most dating sites on quirky places, I finally managed to go.

Booking was very simple through their site and a confirmation email, which you don’t need at the place, just your name.

To find it, just walk to where the Bagel shops are and it is across the road, it is in the back of a clothes shop which does add to the charm of the place. There was a guy sat at a computer ushering you to walk through a black curtain…

Once inside the curtain, there we had to wait for one of two waitresses to tell us what to do, we had booked a table, but there wasn’t really anywhere to sit, so we waited and then told we had to go and put our coats up on a hook that was broken and this really started off the night.

The place is nice and dark, the chairs are old school chairs I think, so it was very East London in that respect.

Once shown to our “table” it is a big table that is shared with other people, but because of the space we were sat across from each other and since the table was huge, we had to basically shout to one another. This really didn’t make it the romantic, candlelit dinner I had imagined.

Our dinner was a set menu and the choices were quirky but in the end very, very tasty, the food was quite small but the taste was amazing, so that made it worthwhile. Even though the set menu was laid out, our waitress kept forgetting our order and food. Since the layout of the place, the waitresses didn’t really have their own tables, just each one of the customers to remember to go and see which I think caused us to have issues.

When it came to pay, I saw other customers complaining about their bill, looking at the bill, they had added a 12.5% charge (I think or 15%) and also added money for a charity, which they said would remove it. The only issue with this is, that you are on a date, doing a romantic gesture, so if you are asking for the bill to be removed, you will come across as something you don’t. So you will probably leave it, just a note as I find it quite annoying to add a charge for a meal for two, as opposed to a meal...

🚇 Tufnell Park 🍺 £6.00 Keller Pils

The Dartmouth Arms is located between Gospel Oak and Tufnell Park, on the borders of Hampstead Heath. The nearest Tube is Tufnell Park, it’s a ten minute walk to get here.

This pub has been trading since 1862 and has been through its ups and downs over the years. In 2017, the pub was saved by local residents and is now listed as an Asset of Community Value. The Dartmouth Arms is now run by @disappearingdiningclub who also run Simon The Tanner in Bermondsey.

This is a one bar pub that has a calming contemporary feel. The bar is a good size with traditional furniture, a centrally located servery and a bare boarded floor, the butcher’s block poser table is a cool feature. At the far end of the bar is a shelving unit packed with vinyl with a Disco and Jazz flavour. To left of the pub is an atmospheric cobbled courtyard with benches, tables and chairs.

The beer selection will appeal to the Craft imbiber with a broad choice of beers from London breweries and further afield. I decided on a pint of Keller Pils, my pint was on point, cost was average. This pub also hosts regular Tap Takeovers, @twotribesbrew and @orbitbeers visited recently. The Gastro food menu is a well celebrated and focuses on sustainable, seasonal ingredients. Also, if you have a @city_stack beer mat a discount is available.

We arrived just after 4pm on a sunny Saturday afternoon in May. There were a few different groups dotted around the pub, outside was busy and is where we decided to plot up. The service was great, we were served by a friendly member of the team who was funny and chatty.

The pub has plenty to keep you entertained, on Fridays are Vinyl Sessions, Quiz on Tuesdays and BBQ’s at the weekend.

Visiting The Dartmouth Arms was a very enjoyable experience. This pub has a great all-round offering which will please all different types of punters. This one is well worth a visit.

ℹ️ Info correct on visiting 18.05.24

More London Pub info...

My friends and I recently came to this pub for some Saturday afternoon drinks. We were an international bunch with many visiting London for the occasion. We had done it a few months ago, visiting a few local pubs and this was on the list last time and well received. A few of my friends were Welsh and jokingly started singing Land of my Fathers. We were told we were being too noisy and that this was 'a fine dining establishment' and not for singing. It still looks very much like a pub to me, especially as a CAMRA sticker was on the door and the place is still listed as pub. There were about 14 of us - men and women - some drinking beer, some wine and some coffee, and were being very polite and were seated. Plus it was a pub on a Saturday afternoon for goodness sake, and other people were talking loudly and a dog was loudly barking. But no, this was now a dining establishment, and we were told we could not make any noise by some jobsworth who obviously does not understand what happens in British pubs on a Saturday afternoon, and so we all decided to leave and take our custom elsewhere. Needless to say, none of us will be coming...