Dogma is a bit like Kentucky Fried Chicken, it has a secret recipe that dozens of other bars in Nottingham would kill for.

With enough going on than your average bar, and with prices that don't make your hangover hurt even more, Dogma is one of Nottingham's hottest night spots.

The Venue
Dogma sits on one of the prettiest little streets in Nottingham. It's a street so quaint that even the great clothes designer Paul Smith opened his first shop in the city, directly opposite where Dogma now stands. It has been around for quite a few years now, inhabiting the spot where Jallands stood for many years and is run by the Ever So Sensible chain which owns a host of pubs in the Midlands.

It is a mighty space, spread over three levels. There's a smallish restaurant upstairs, an immense middle floor with a main bar and a downstairs area, which is often used for dancing the night away. The middle floor is where most of the action happens and even though it is a fabulously sized space, it can get absolutely rammed at times, especially at weekends and on bank holidays when they're open until 3am.

The People
Ever So Sensible, the chain which owns Dogma, is run by Chris Bulaitis, the man who helped set up the student chain pub It's A Scream. His Dogma bars are clearly aimed at an older market - the late twenties, early thirties crowd - who aren't up for the usual pump-heave clubs, but aren't ready to retire to their cosy, fireside local just yet.

Dogma achieves this and its banging tunes and thronging crowd make a party atmosphere that isn't as tiresome as a club, or as boring as a pub. However, this mix can sometimes feel as if it's trying a bit too hard to be cool. For the most part though, it manages to maintain a bit of credibility, even if this can err on the side of pretentiousness.

Staff are far too busy to be fun and friendly. Sometimes you have to make a real effort to get their attention. They are very busy so it can be forgiven, but when it happens more than once or twice it's quite annoying.

The Food
Dogma is more a lunchtime bar than evening eatery. They currently offer a free drink with any meal bought between noon and 3pm. Nothing is served that particularly wows the customer, but it's fresh and that’s what matters. For the starters there's calamari for £4, or there's food to share including chips and dips for £3.50 plus sandwiches and Oriental wraps.

Main courses include the ubiquitous burgers for around £8 and there's a nice vegetarian option of Mediterranean vegetables and mozzarella burger. Steak and chips is £9.50, ham, egg and chips is £8, moules and frites is £8.50 and there are also jacket potatoes.

Dogma also offer discounts on food and drink to holders of a Dogma card, which can either be bought from the bar for £3 or you can get one online for free. What are you waiting for?

The Drink
Dogma is definitely one of the better cocktail bars about. Although not setting its stall out as solely a cocktail bar, what they serve up is certainly well above par. They don’t really serve anything too far away from mainstream cocktails, but they have a good choice of some contemporary classics, which are well-made. A Cosmopolitan is £5 and a Lynchberg Lemonade is £5.50

They have an abundance of shots (not the cheesy ones) priced around £3 plus beers and top quality spirits and what is great is that they don’t charge silly prices and many are reduced if you have a Dogma card.

The Last Word
Dogma is certainly one of the busiest places in the centre of Nottingham, it has all the feel of a nightclub gelled together with the slickness of a bar. Unlike a club however, there is no entrance fee, so there’s no excuse for not giving it a try.

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