Dale Street & the Commercial District

Best time: Any day from 3pm, when all six are open; Friday to Sunday from noon (Dead Crafty opens at 3pm Monday to Thursday). Weekday lunchtimes are full of office workers. Opening hours change, so check each venue before you set off.

The stops

1. 

   Ye Hole in Ye Wall

   4 Hackins Hey, Liverpool L2 2AW · Moorfields (Merseyrail), 2 min walk

   Liverpool's oldest pub, dated 1726 (it celebrated its 300th birthday in April 2026), hidden down a narrow lane off Dale Street. Dark panelling, leaded glass and well-kept cask ales. Open Monday to Saturday noon–11pm, Sunday noon–10:30pm.

   Open in Google Maps

2. 

   The Lion Tavern

   67 Moorfields, Liverpool L2 2BP · Moorfields (Merseyrail), 1 min walk

   Beautifully restored late-Victorian pub on the corner of Tithebarn Street, with mosaic floors, tiled corridor and a stained-glass dome. Constantly changing cask ales, real ciders, a big Irish whiskey list and local pork pies. Liverpool CAMRA Pub of the Year 2020–21. Open Monday to Saturday noon–11pm, Sunday noon–10pm.

   Open in Google Maps

3. 

   Thomas Rigby's

   23–25 Dale Street, Liverpool L2 2EZ · Moorfields or James Street (Merseyrail), about 4 min walk

   Okell's multi-roomed pub in the Grade II-listed Rigby's Buildings, with an oak-panelled Nelson Room, a cobbled courtyard and cask ales such as Okell's Bitter alongside world beers. Open Sunday to Thursday noon–11pm, Friday noon–midnight, Saturday 11am–midnight.

   Open in Google Maps

4. 

   The Vernon Arms

   69 Dale Street, Liverpool L2 2HJ · Moorfields (Merseyrail), about 4 min walk

   Independent free house and traditional alehouse, a 2026 CAMRA Pub of Excellence and Cider Pub of Excellence, with changing cask ales and ciders, hot food and live music. Open Monday to Thursday noon–11pm, Friday and Saturday noon–midnight, Sunday noon–11pm.

   Open in Google Maps

5. 

   The Dead Crafty Beer Company

   92 Dale Street, Liverpool L2 5TF · Moorfields (Merseyrail), about 5 min walk

   Family-run craft beer bar and bottle shop (since 2016) and SIBA UK Best Independent Craft Beer Bar winner: 20 rotating keg taps served at different temperatures, 200-plus cans and bottles, and a crowler machine for takeaways. Open Monday to Thursday 3pm–11pm, Friday and Saturday noon–midnight, Sunday noon–11pm.

   Open in Google Maps

6. 

   The Ship & Mitre

   133 Dale Street, Liverpool L2 2JH · Lime Street (rail and Merseyrail), about 8 min walk

   Liverpool's premier free house, built in 1935 as the brewery tap for Bent's Brewery: the largest selection of handpulled ales on Merseyside, real ciders and around 200 draught and bottled beers including Belgian and German classics, with an Art Deco upstairs room and food from the One Pan Band. CAMRA Pub of Excellence. Open Monday to Thursday 11am–11pm, Friday and Saturday 11am–midnight, Sunday 11am–11pm.

   Open in Google Maps

Start at Moorfields station and finish at the Ship & Mitre, about 8 minutes from Lime Street, so it works well before a train home.

Food: Thomas Rigby's (Wednesday to Sunday), the Vernon Arms and the Ship & Mitre's One Pan Band kitchen; the Lion does pork pies.

Optional extras on the same streets: the Excelsior (121–123 Dale Street) and the Denbigh Castle (Hackins Hey) for more cask.