Dawson Pub Reviews

Great music on a Friday night. ArchPalatine and Lia Meneker have great rapport with the audience. Excited crowd that is ready to party. And the beer selection is pretty interesting, too!

We came to Dawson street pub for the live swing band, parlour noir. But we've been before for the live music. It's never failed to disappoint. I love that Dawson street is always bringing in different acts and "weird" stuff you don't get outside a place like that. They're a real asset to the neighborhood for live music.

They also have a really great craft beer selection. They typically have a few cask beers and several regular craft taps. If you live in Roxborough it's a great place to check out.

We stopped by last Friday, March 11th. Ordered two meals and a beer. It took a long time for one meal to arrive and the other one never did. An hour later still no second meal. I complained and was only charged for one meal. The bartender was apologetic and said it was a small kitchen. I am still wondering how the group of four at the table next to us ordered after we did and were promptly served all their food before anything was served to us. The Dawson Street Pub is not on my recommended list.

This spot serves food until 1am I think. If not 1am definitely later into the night. Also the food is better than average bar food. Good spot for intimate live music. Wednesdays they host an open mic that can sometimes attract some of the primo musicians who live in the neighborhood.

Great music. Awesome food. Attentive bartenders. One of my favorite places to grab a pint. Taps and bottle selection is very diverse.

Great beer and happy hour 7 days a week at this hidden gem.

I literally love everything about this place. Amazing food for everyone; great meat and vegetarian/vegan items. They have BBQ trucks once a month, the staff is friendly and awesome live shows! I promise you won't be disappointed.

Rumour has it that Legendary O.G. DJ's here every now and again #Gucci

Haven't even been inside the place and I love the neighborhood

Great corner bar that's a tiny bit off the beaten path of Main St. They have a great beer selection, very fair drink prices, and the food is pretty damn good too. My only gripe is there is never any parking in Manayunk, so when I go I usually Uber. Otherwise a pretty great place, I would def go there quite a bit more if I lived closer.

The good: nice staff and the fries are good. The wings however where overcooked and under sauced. The quesadillas were OK.

Great live music and a good beer selection. They skimp on the liqueur pours though. I feel ripped off every time I order a whisky.

Great place for live music and barbecue food the 3rd weekend of the month a smoker outside awesome

It's without a doubt the best bar in Manayunk. Great beer selection.

Would have been five stars but the bartender made it clear we were not welcome. Be aware it is cash only. This should be made clear for out of town guests. The band was awesome!

They have a delicious mushroom quesadilla and wings! Their beer selection is endless.

Nothing better than Love Stout and a good live band!

Good vibes, features a band at night. Food was excellent. I would suggest the sweet potatoe fries, they were divine.

Incredible seitan wings, coming back for more for sure.

Best place in Manyunk especially when Travel Lanes is playing.

cozy bar, nice atmosphere. great beer selection. Fun for live music

Dave and Drew were very helpful with locating local cheesesteak shops. Also, the fresh Bloody Mary was delicious. And the cool cask beer history.

The happy hour is banging in this joint. Honestly, the place looks a little dumpy, but the food and the beer are spot-on. Half-price drafts and low price apps make it a great neighborhood stop. Bartender was really friendly and new Alotta Folks by first name. I guess if I lived here I'd probably stop in more often too. I had hot wings and Curry Ginger wings. Hot wings weren't that hot and the curry Ginger wings were interesting. My friend had a quarter pound hamburger and fries and said it was good.

Great local tavern. Great selection of draft beer. Outstanding happy hour prices.

The fries and veggie chili is a great combo. Watch a Phillies game here and have a lager or check out the live music. Great neighborhood spot.

They have a great beer selection and the food is top notch. They don't take cards though, so prepare accordingly.

This pub turned out to be such a gem! It's a dive bar with happy hour every day from 5 to 7 where you get 2.50$ vegan wings. And they have tons of vegan options and cheap drinks. It's going to become my place to hang! It's amazing!

A comfortable cash only bar that feels as cozy as fun. Food is solid and beer is rotated frequently making it worth it to come back often.

The selections on tap and in bottles were great. I can't be thankful enough that in a landscape of boring bars serving pilsners, pale ales, and ipas, Dawson Street has an interesting and excellent selection of beers on tap!
The sweet potato fries are different from any I've had before, and I absolutely loved them.
I also had the vegan wings and they were really, really good. Though we sat at a table, we went up to the bar to order food (which is fine with me). I appreciated that the bartender was knowledgeable about the beers on tap.
My only complaint is that the music was really loud and it was difficult to have a conversation. It was a Wednesday night, and the open mic was really pretty bad. I hate to say this because I want everybody to get up and get a chance to perform, but maybe playing in a band with some good musicians who can cover your mistakes is a better place to start and sending someone up there with a guitar and their voice. Or -and I realize this is an awkward position to put everybody in- maybe having some auditions first to see if people should play in the first place? I've been to quite a few open mics and this was one of the worst. Sorry!
Otherwise, this would have been an easy five star review.

Great beer, vibe and staff. It's the local neighborhood watering hole with a nice outdoor patio and a jukebox. Happy hours are excellent, but the place is always welcoming when you arrive.

A well stocked and reasonably priced bar
Well done bar food basics with a few surprises
Well curated local bands in an informal setting
Really a winner all around.
Any musician just arriving in Philly and wanting to meet and check out local professionals, this is the joint

Very cool little local corner bar with awesome music.

The best damn local bar to get great drinks and if you're lucky enough...see some really amazing bands and DJs...

Friendly staff, reasonably priced, and amazing food! The honey sriracha wings are delicious!

Real old time neighborhood pub, but made new! Great beer and great music. Friendly atmosphere

Bring from the suburbs I consider this the epitomy of a corner bar. Fantastic selection of beers that are continuously changing and the pub grub is pretty good too.

Loved the live bands. Especially 49 Burning Condors. Great corner pub.

Love the chill ambience. Veggie wings are delicious as always.

Great little venue for live music, fresh pub fare, and hand drawn cask beers as well as a full bar. Uniquely Manayunk!

Great beers on tap, on the hand engine, and in the cooler. Awesome food with a bunch of veggie/vegan options.

I was there a couple weeks ago when I first got back and I had a fantastic time the music's good lot of finger food but hey it's well worth in the entertainment was amazing I haven't enjoyed myself like that quite some time oh and there's lots of pretty girls

Best BBQ in Manayunk. And we get to see the Cookie Rabinowitz Band. Yay!!

it leaves something to be desired. The food is lacking and the rotating draft list is disappointing. I recommend heading to main street,

Had a great time hearing a great funk band at this little neighborhood bar. It was a nice crowd. The beer was good. We had fun dancing and listening

great location to meet with friends. really nothing but enjoyable experiences here, i'll be back.

I was given quality service 4 years ago. Sadly, I don't get to visit there even when I am in the area

Good beer selection and excellent happy hour prices.

Good prices! Good selection of ciders for anyone that has to be GF.

1/2 lb. burger was made from 2 1/4 lb. burgers. Pro Tip: You can't make a burger medium rare that way.

great place with good live music and good drinks.
will defenetly go back

In house beer is more expensive than take-out by $2 /beer. Bathrooms are clean, bartender was super nice.

I saw one of the best bands o have ever see. Kind of alternative jazz/funk. Just amazing. And the last two shows I would say that about was QOTSA and Radiohead...

Great local atmosphere, incredible live music on Saturdays.

Cool little neighborhood bar, great live, local entertainment.

Great local dive bar with an excellent happy hour special.

Came here for a meet up and the happy hour was one of the best!!! The food was hot and fresh. It had ample flavor and best of all the price was amazing. They have a good selection of liquors and mixed drinker. Plus the servers were fast and friendly. Definitely stop by it's so worth it.

Totally legit. Great service, selection and prices. Definitely go.

Overall, this is definitely one of the best pubs in a neighborhood full of good pubs. Sometimes parking is crowded (welcome to Manayunk, should've taken a cab) and the cash-only policy is a bummer, but service is friendly (especially if you know your craft beer) and there are always new delicious brews on tap, right next to less adventurous staples like Yeungling Lager (if you're into that). The food is great pub fair resonably priced, and the weekly specials and nightly live music just complete the package. Great spot for a date!

Cool spot for music and good beer. Food is good as well

The BEST happy hour!! We go about once a week and can get 1-2 beers each and food for less than $25 with tip! The bartenders are always great and welcoming! We enjoy the music and beer selection!

Good food. Good beer. Good prices on happy hour. I like this place

AVOID THE OPEN MIC on WEDNESDAY! The host stacks 4-5 of his friends at the beginning of the list; the open mic officially starts at 9pm. If you're not lucky enough to nudge past all the musicians that run over to the list at 8pm you could easily end up 8th or 10th on the list even though you intentionally showed up at 7:30pm which means you'll play around 11-11:30pm. Not worth it...

I have been going to Dawson's for years. Everyone who works there is amazing, including the owner, Dave, who is always around. Not only do they have live music, but they show art, have plays, and support all local arts. They have a great vegetarian food selection with reasonable prices. An excellent place to drink with friends and make friends.

Best happy hour around. Half price drafts and select food items from 5 to 7pm. Great vegan options that actually taste good and aren't just tofu or veggie burgers.

Friendly neighborhood place with great tap list and atmosphere. Good cheap food too!

Great spot for locals and newcomers. Large selection of craft beer. Decent bar food menu including vegan wings! Live music and dj nights make for a great night out.

The beer and atmosphere are great, and Sophie behind the bar is friendly and wonderful

Solid local bar with good beer selection and live music. It can get crowded and you may not be able to find a seat