The Half Door

Billolick

New York

4.13/5  rDev 0%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$

We stopped in here for some brew and nourishment after a disc golf tourney at nearby Wickham park, Irish themed all the way, beer was varied upon 15 or so taps, many Irish selections as well as a few Belgians (God I love Delerium Tremins on tap) You'll find several very BA worthy brews here on tap as well as some interesting vintage bottle selections. The food we had, a few differant types of burgers, fish and chips etc was all pretty good, friendly service, funky neighborhood, all adds up to making this a good place to try in the Hartford area.

07-21-2006 13:24:12 | More by Billolick

WhiteOak

Connecticut

4.35/5  rDev +5.3%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 4.5 | $$$

We hit the Half Door on weekends around lunch, and are always ready for some beer.

First was the Hofbrau Maibock on-tap, very nice, malty with dark fruitiness and much more nutty complexity than the muted stuff out of a bottle.

Next came the Chimay White on-tap, which was outstanding. I am being drawn back there for another one as I recall how good it was. I would have probably not considered a Chimay, but it was the only tripel on-tap so I went for it, and I'm glad I did.

Then we had some Harviestoun Old Engine Oil ON-TAP, that's right, on-tap. Niiice.

Most recent trip: Brewdog DIPA and a Schwartzbier on tap, and bottles of Weihenstephaner HW.

The Half Door is an oasis in an urban setting, and it is like a time- and place-travel, simultaneously. Great Irish pub atmosphere. But I only like bars when they are not crowded, so we visit accordingly. Parking sucks, as in non-existant other than by chance on the street.

Hungry? try the "Cobblestones"!

Great Euro-brew selection.

04-30-2010 19:45:04 | More by WhiteOak

MaxBrews

Connecticut

3.74/5  rDev -9.4%
vibe: 3 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | $$$$

Stopped by here on after work on a thursday evening 5-7pm, because I was promised Delirium Tremens and Chimay were on tap. Not disappointed they were.

The Half Door is one of Hartford's better places to go and for now my favorite watering hole in Hartford. It is in Hartford's West End which appears to outsiders as a rough neighborhood. However its gone through some gentrification over the years and some nice restaurants are popping up.

Theres no parking lot so try your luck with street parking and be sure to check the signs twice, they're pretty adamant about towing in Hartford.

This place is very small and you could easily miss it from the road. Inside is small as well. Wooden Decor, a nice bar and a few tables. Light is kept low. I visited this on an early evening and it was fairly quiet. Late on Thursday and Friday is when I hear it gets busy.

Theme of this bar is a Irish Pub/Euro beer bar, so don't expect any American Craft beer to be available.

It appears there are several taps, but when you read them many are wasted on things like Guinness, Harp, Smithwicks, and other run of the mill commercial English and Euro beers. I guess they got to pay the bills somehow. However there are also things like Old Engine Oil, Chimay Cinq Cents, and Delirium Tremens on tap.

Bottle list is decent with plenty of Belgian Beers I've never heard
of. Decent selection of English and German beers as well. Prices are very high. $6.50 for a Sammy Smith Oatmeal stout, $20 for a 750 of Chimay. My beers were 7.25 a piece which I suppose isn't terrible for Belgians on tap.

Bartender was friendly and new about the beers he was serving. Poured properly and used all the right glasses, major points on that.

A nice cozy environment. Would stop in again and I'd recommend it to anyone in the area who is a fan of Belgian European beers, just don't come looking for American Craft Beers or a bargain.

12-18-2009 17:07:29 | More by MaxBrews

Stoutkitten

Connecticut

4.63/5  rDev +12.1%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 5 | selection: 4.5 | food: 5 | $$

Picked my husband up at Bradley airport and we stopped in for a bite to eat and a pint. I am on a personal mission to visit as many Irish pubs in CT, NY and MA as possible. So this was on my list. Parking is rough but once inside it made it worth it. I loved the atmosphere to the old bar and the cozy seats. I think they were old church pews at one time. Enjoyed reading the menu and wish I could have tried more. I had the fish and chips which were great. My husband had fried pickles and shrimp which I thought would be really odd but it was so tasty. We came in thinking we might try some different beers. But it was half price Guinness night and well we couldn't pass that up. If your up that way I suggest stopping in. I plan on making a trip there again soon

10-27-2009 22:30:43 | More by Stoutkitten

mltobin

Connecticut

4.18/5  rDev +1.2%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$

Located not far off of I-84 (exit 46), on Sisson Ave.

The Half Door is apparently celebrating their 10 year anniversary later this year, and I cannot believe that I waited so long to go there.
It has an atmosphere of an irish pub as noted in earlier reviews, very homey and welcoming. The staff is friendly and familiar with their offerings, both food and beer.
They have about 8-10 taps: hoegaarden, duvel, delerium tremens, rodenbach grand cru, guinness, smithwicks, an italian one whose name slips my memory, and a couple others when I was there.
In addition to the taps, they have a healthy bottle list. It includes a large selection from the United Kingdom, good selection from Belgium, and some from other areas. Their website has a listing of most of their bottles.
And the food is really, really good, be it a soup or entree, it is on point, served by a great waitstaff. I am looking forward to going back to the halfdoor.

05-10-2009 01:04:13 | More by mltobin

chuckd123

Connecticut

4.13/5  rDev 0%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$

Half Door is a great, very authentic Irish pub in Hartford, CT. Atmosphere works for everything. Great spot for a couple beers after work with friends, good for a date, and definitely great Sunday morning for brunch and soccer (sorry, football) games on TV.

Beer selection is largely European. Not surprising, but within that, tends to lean toward UK brews. Several Belgians on the menu as well (primarily in bottles).

This is not a beer bar per se, but in the fashion of an Irish pub, it's right on.

Food and service is great too.

Crowds vary -- Thurs/Fri nights it gets the UHartford and UConn Law crowds, lunch and after work is an older crowd, and brunch is a neighborhood pub crowd.

If you're in the Hartford area, definitely worth a visit.

10-07-2008 20:31:08 | More by chuckd123

opwog

Minnesota

4.41/5  rDev +6.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4.5 | selection: 5 | $$$

Found this place doing a search on Yelp, after landing at Bradley and having to wait for my luggage. Red Sox were on the TV, bartender was friendly, waitresses were cute and the beer selection was great (if maybe a little too cold on the bottles). I didn't get a chance to eat, but made the effort to stop back a second time after getting my luggage. Customers (mid afternoon/early evening) were very friendly, asl well.

Old school Irish bar in one of those borderline safe neighborhoods of Hartford. But when you are inside, it is as cosey as your favorite neighborhood bar. Easy access from route 84.

08-06-2008 07:28:16 | More by opwog

Loki

North Carolina

4.28/5  rDev +3.6%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | food: 4 | $$

At dinner there last night and the Shepard's Pie was great. The salad was so-so, but who goes to a pub for the salad?

Their draft selection is ok. A little to heavy on the larger production UK/Europe stuff. But they have DT on tap, so its ok. Their bottle selection is where they shine. Lots of rare and some aged stuff. Can get a little pricy, but they are expensive beers and again some are aged.

Had a Belgian Imperial Stout I had never had and it was great. Almost ordered one of the rare 750s for myself, but I had to drive and I felt a little weird getting a 750 for myself (especially the 12% Biere De Garde that I was eying)

Service at the bar was great. I might go back tonight.

05-08-2008 22:21:15 | More by Loki

FrankLloydMike

Massachusetts

4.56/5  rDev +10.4%
vibe: 5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$$

I go to this place just about every time I visit my girlfriend at home and it is absolutely superb. The times we've gone on the weekends they've had very good bands that seem to play a variety of well-done covers, originals and traditional music, and when there was no band, the music was nice as well. The vibe is very nice with a dark wood bar greeting you when you walk in, booths lining posts in the middle, and raised tall-back booths along one the side. It's a dark, very homey place, but the real appeal for me is the beer. I've never been to a bar with this kind of beer selection. There are the typicals for an "Irish pub"--Guinness, Newcastle and so on--but there are always different, rotating taps of exquisite craft beers that I've never seen or heard of anywhere else. The professionally attired (white shirt with narrow black ties) and friendly bartenders are always more than welcome to offer a sample of any of their beers. I haven't had any food as my girlfriend's father is an incredible cook, but it's always smelled very good. The one thing that keeps the wonderful, rotating selection from being a 5.0 is that it seems that there are few beers on tap that aren't pricey. Sure, the regulars are normally priced, but they're something you can get anywhere, and the expensive beers are certainly always worth the price, but I know that there are quality craft brews that financially allow me to indulge in more than one and it would be nice to see them offer a few of these as well... or at least post their prices so I don't feel like a cheap ass asking the price every time. Still, an exceptional place that is unlike any other place I've been. And right in the Rising Star of Hartford!

03-15-2007 16:55:01 | More by FrankLloydMike

SteveO1231

Connecticut

3.56/5  rDev -13.8%
vibe: 4 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | $$$

Stopped in the other night for the first time in a couple years. Tiny place right off of the Sisson Ave. exit of 84. Parking is kind of a pain in the ass. It's really small as you walk in with the bar on the right and some tables and booths to your left. Traditional Irish pub they serve the usual fare and have live Irish music on stage. Service is a bit slow, you're better off grabbing your beers from the bar. Nice tap lineup of European brews, Guinness, Spaten, Boddington's, Killian's, Chimay, Old Engine Oil, Harpe, Bass, etc etc. Even more extensive bottle list ranging from English brews to Belgian and Japanese beers. A bit pricey $7.99 for a Sam Smith Oatmeal. Anyways a pretty cool place, good atmosphere. Nice crowd, good beer list. I like to stop by once and a while for a change of pace.

11-03-2006 04:20:35 | More by SteveO1231