Artful Dodger Pub

We visited here with a group of 7 and were lucky to get a long table. The pub can get busy and on another trip we couldn’t get our group in (seated together at least.)
The place is old and dated English décor. But that’s not a bad thing. It’s perhaps a tad shabby around the edges. But it makes it kind of cozy.
The food is really what set the The Artful Dodger apart for me. On the appetiser menu, the Deep Fried Pickles were notably above average and the Scotch Eggs were simply fantastic! The Fresh Grilled Salmon main was really spectacular. A friend had the Potato & Cheddar Perogies and was quite happy with them.
There was one main that got lost on the kitchen end causing a member of group to wait quite a long time for their food. But mistakes happen and the wait staff were apologetic.

The food is basic. The service runs hot and cold. It is, however, a very safe place to be and the specials are very hard to beat. English style pub with several floors, a small patio out front and one in back i believe.
I do recommend the place. The type of place that you could bring your boyfriend/​girlfriend to or your parents.

We loved everything about this place! Room was cozy, busy but not crazy. Server was attentive even tho he was the only one working the room. Food was well worth the price. We did not feel rushed at all, even though I am sure they could have used our table. Just a nice little restaurant

Server was left out to dry. Only one server for the entire upstairs. Probably 60+ people. Not sure if he was just overwhelmed but he was quite brash with us. Food was OK, I had the Bangers and Mash. It’s English food so I added some S&P.
Would recommend tho! Great Pub!

Had some beers & wings after seeing a play at the Panasonic theatre. They have three ambiance, you sit yourself.
No complaints here, beer was good, wings were good, service was good.

Pub just off of Yonge towards Church Street on Isabella. Not a really authentic pub, my experience here has varied widely. I’m come here a few times for drinks in the evening and the service has been… sporadic… and it seems like sometimes they try to get away with the bare minimum of staff.
On the other hand, came here for brunch on Sunday and was unexpectedly pleased. The brunch menu was very very reasonable and pretty delicious. My girlfriend’s egg benny was 8.99 $ and two eggs with bacon, toast and beans were 6.99. Good sized portions and good service. I’d recommend the place for brunch

My friends and I walked up and down Yonge St. looking for somewhere to eat and we made a great decision! The Artful Dodger did not disappoint. Beer was reasonably priced and they offer several local brews. Veggie burgers were great as were the fish n’ chips and the mac and cheese. Wait staff was very friendly. The place overall had a great atmosphere and I would recommend this place to anyone looking somewhere for dinner in Downtown Core.

I had a really mixed experience here. There were two girls working the bar and serving and one was an absolute 5-​star amazing girl and the other was so horrendous that when she dropped some stuff she was clearing from the table next to me instead of helping her I just sat there with an evil grin. So let’s break this down…
Atmosphere/​décor: I enjoyed it — I loved the pin up artwork on the walls, and the British pub style. The place was certainly old and the woodwork, carpet, etc. showed it, but there is a difference between being old and being dirty. It was not dirty in my opinion.
Food/​drink: drink prices seem to average in my opinion. Ordered a plate of nachos with my friend and they were fabulous. Tons of cheese and pulled pork on top, mmmmm! Also a very generous portion, although they could have given more guacamole and sour cream on the side.
Service: first the amazing girl. She got our drinks right away and asked if we wanted anything to eat. We said not now but we might want some food later, she said no problem the kitchens open until midnight. She was very friendly and just all around great. But then there was the other girl. I went to the bar to get a menu and stood there for about five minutes while she was busy texting on her phone — completely oblivious to anyone at the bar. She handed me a menu with a look like I was intruding on her social life and said with the attitude of a high school student «the kitchen closes at 11:00pm.» My friend went up to the bar to order the food and the same girl was busy wiping what looked to be an already clean counter. She looked at him and then continued to «clean.» The nice server then said to my friend «is she not taking your order?» When he said no she had a WTF look on her face, but was then very pleasant, took our order, and brought the food quickly.
Overall, I would return to The Artful Dodger for 2 reasons 1) pulled pork on nachos– this is a concept that rivals most of DaVinci’s work and 2) as horrible as the one server was the other one more than made up for her.

Dirty awful pub, with terrible owner, and terrible food.
This place used to be «so-​so» but now it is not even worthy of 1 star. Food is over priced and mediocre at best. The owner is a rude, sexist misogynist and we will never be returning.
We have done a number of work drinks, and birthday/​Christmas parties here, but never again.
There are too many pubs/​restaurants in Toronto, and in the immediate area, that nobody should ever have to bother going here.

Absolutely horrible. I wouldn’t even give it one star! I went there with 8 people to watch the Canadian women’s Fifa team in the quarter finals. The part owner Michael Henry refused to put the volume on the televisions in the establishment. One would assume that if televisions were in the bar, they would be happy to put on the volume for sporting events. But after a few requests, the fantastic servers told us that they were not able to because the owner refused. I appealed to the owner considering it was Canada’s soccer team in the quarter finals and he was very rude and said he couldn’t change policy… In a bar he is part owner of I might add. I will absolutely never go back to this bar for any reason again. Their disregard for their customers told me everything I need to know about their establishment. And I ordered food before a this happened, and it was not great.

Good local not chain pub with some better than expected food options. Perogies!

I live around the corner from The Artful Dodger Pub, and after the gym on Sunday, my friend and I decided to give their brunch menu a try. The restaurant is quite large and as a result it always feels empty. Although I had planned to order a dish with eggs, but as soon as I saw the calamari on the menu I had to order it. The Artful Dodger has a broad menu that includes pub favorites (e.g., nachos, chicken wings, fried pickles) and items not normally found in pubs like butter chicken, and pasta. They also carry a good range of beers.
The Artful Dodger is always a safe bet — tasty food, affordable prices, and good portions. Not mind-​blowing food, but a good place to chill with friends on a Friday night.
DAILY SPECIALS
With Beverage Purchase Only Not Available for Take-​Out
MONDAY Beef or Veggie Burger & Fries 7.95
TUESDAY Fish & Chips 7.95
WEDNESDAY Half rack of BBQ Ribs & Fries 7.95
THURSDAY Chicken Wings (10 pc) 7.95
SATURDAY after 4 p.m. — 10 oz. New York Steak — 13.95
with roasted red-​skin potatoes, asparagus, southern-​fried tomato
& a Stilton-​mushroom demi-​glacé
SUNDAY after 4 p.m. — Prime Rib Dinner — 15.95 with Yorkshire pudding, horseradish, mushrooms, mashed potato, vegetables & homemade gravy

Good food, good beer, good service.
Far better value than the overpriced pub chains closer to downtown.
Would recommend this pub to travellers and locals.

Cute little patio, but the service was so bad I didn’t have a chance to try the food b/​c we left after sitting there for 15 minutes without anyone coming by to even ask if we wanted a drink.
The patio was ¾ full when we arrived. Stood there for a moment and no one came to seat us so we just asked someone clearing a table if we seat ourselves. He gave us a sort of nod, so took our pick of one of the open (but completely messy) tables. They hadn’t cleared any of the tables where people had left, which is not very inviting to say the least.
Someone came over and cleared all but one of the empty glasses on our table. And that was the last we heard from any service.
Multiple times people came out and cleared tables or brought out food, but not a single person even looked at us. Not to take a drink order, give us a menu, or even say «I’ll be with you in a minute».
I saw another couple come in and sit down next to us. A waitress came out to drop off some food, and she went over to the new table to take their drink order. We waited to see if she would come serve us next, but nope, she went right back inside.
After 15 minutes of sitting there we left.
I would never go back this place.

I’ve never had food here, but a coworker of mine likes going to this place because it’s somewhat hidden (Yonge and Isabella). The atmosphere is more of an old school pub and on the menu, they have a decent selection drinks. So why the two stars?
1) For some reason, the pool table was missing a ball and they had to go find it. I know that may not really be their fault but still, we were waiting for 5 minutes and trying to find the missing pool ball
2) While they have lots of drinks on the menu, the first thing the waitress said to me was «we may not have all the drinks on the menu». I asked what they don’t have and she said tell me what you want and I’ll let you know if we have it… ugh.
3)Clumsy coworker knocked an empty glass onto the table (just lightly) and the glass shattered — i.e. cheap glassware.
However, on the bright side, they have two levels, which is good for hosting lots of people. Upper level is better than bottom level.

Thursday night, and we were able to book out the back patio for a private-​ish going away party.
It was nice to have the separate area, and it’s funky with some sort of beach and flower theme going on. It’s not the most glamourous, as you walk through the alleyway where their recycling and storage is to get there, but it’s decent.
There is the bar at the back dedicated to this area, but it only serves a limited portion of the drink menu. Anything missing you’ll have to go to the main bar inside.
The bartender working there was quite busy and it would be nice if she could have had some help knowing that there will be a party back here. She couldn’t come around and take orders so we had to meet her in the back, which was fine. But this means that if she was serving, she was MIA and our plates and empty drinks didn’t get cleared as needed either. She was really hardworking and busy though, so kudos to her.
Food was hit or miss.
The nachos were so pathetic looking, not enough cheese to cover it, and was barely melted. Fresh tomatoes and lettuce, but looked like something you can put together at home. At $ 13 expected a lot more.
Instead we got the spinach and artichoke dip for $ 7 which was much more substantial and filling, but nothing amazing.
However, their special wings today was excellent. 10 wings for $ 8 was more than enough to satisfy. Try the Guinness BBQ sauce!
Great for Groups esp on Thursdays!

I’ve been here a few times for after work drinks. The inside is cozy and spacious. The patio is more of a chairs on the side walk deal but with trees which looks like a cool idea at first until the birds start flying around on the trees start shedding their little seeds into your beer. I’ve heard good things about the food and can confirm that the quesadillas are very acceptable. For such a big place I think the beer selection could be larger so I usually end up sticking with Tankhouse. The big area this place loses points with me is the service. They take too long to come ask if we want refills. They brought us menus yesterday and then never bothered to ask if we want food. One of the female servers hasn’t mastered the use of please and thank you and just drops stuff on the table. I’ll continue to go here for the location but it could be greatly improved with a staff change.

Gord and I had tickets for Dancing with Rage so we had supper beforehand at The Artful Dodger.
The pub was busy when we got there but we managed to snag a table on the second floor by a window.
I ordered garlic cheese bread and honey garlic wings. The garlic bread was $ 5 and I was expecting a small order … it was huge. I had a couple slices and ate the cheese off the rest. My wings were good … there were ten to the order ($ 10). The honey garlic sauce was good … I wish there’d been a bit more. I’d order them again but would ask for extra sauce.
Gord ordered a burger and onion rings. He enjoyed it and would get it again.
Though the pub was packed, service was good.
I had ordered a Captain Morgan dark rum and Diet Coke before we left. I’m not sure what I was served but it wasn’t Captain Morgan dark rum. Our server checked with the bartender and confirmed that it was what I ordered. But I know it wasn’t … though tasty, there was too much of a vanilla taste.

The Artful Dodger is as cozy a neighborhood bar as you’re going to get this close to Yonge and Bloor. The crowd is mostly local and tends to be a bit on the older side.
On the bright side, the Dodger does boast two floors with a few spacious rooms, making it a good spot for a last minute big group meetup.
The staff is nice and accommodating, and the bar options are what you would find in your local essential British style pub (in Canada!)
Overall I probably wouldn’t travel to the bar if I didn’t live close by, but it’s alright!

j’y suis allée en soirée avec des amis et a peine on arrive que la serveuse nous parle avec une agressivité incompréhensive en nous demandant si on veut boire.
je peux comprendre qu’on né soit pas toujours de bonne humeur mais parler comme cela au client n’est pas très professionnel, donc ni une ni deux nous sommes parti avant même d’avoir consommer.

Pretty nice atmosphere, though a bit crowded on a Friday night.
I was happy that the suicide wings were indeed quite hot… they were covered in a habanero sauce. The were also not-​breaded and pretty tasty (yay!)
It’s a nice place to hang out, but nothing special, really.