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MULTIMEDIA »  VIDEO: Pub Crawl Bartender, Jamie Cournane mixes a martini during a busy Friday night. Photo by Deb Cram

Ray, the manager and bartender, Jamie Cournane stay busy on a friday night Photo by Deb Cram

Just a short stroll up from the tugboats tied to the Ceres Street docks, the Spring Hill Tavern (located beneath the Dolphin Striker restaurant) is an oasis of warmth, great food and some kickin’ good times.

Whether you visit on a cold winter night, like we did last Friday, or any other season for that matter, what you’ll find is friendly and attentive bartenders in a great room that showcases local bands, usually with no cover charge.

Get there early — say between 8 and 10 p.m. — and you’ll likely be able to nab a seat at the bar, if that’s your pleasure. If not, there are a dozen or so deuces and four-tops, as well as tables for groups of six to 10 people.

"Our patrons are mostly 30 and up," says manager Ray Brandin. "We keep a very low-profile on the outside so that when people come in — wham — all of a sudden they’re looking at a four-piece band."

It’s the perfect spot to relax, grab a bite and linger, waiting for some great local entertainment, says regular patron Scott Wade who was dining at the bar with friend Diana Bevilacqua. "I’ve played guitar for 20 years and this place has a ton of bands where the guys are scratch ... cream of the crop."

Last Friday night, for example, Melvern Taylor and the Fabulous Meltones, a fantastic four-piece alt-folk-rock-pop act from Lowell, Mass., packed the house at about 60 people. It’s not often that you’ll get to see a ukulele player like Taylor fronting a band that commands attention and respect — from the audience as well as other local musicians. Plenty of folks on the local scene have great expectations for this group — including musicians Jon Nolan and Tom Colletta who were both in the house this night. (See Melvern and the band perform at the Blue Mermaid in Portsmouth on Saturday, March 4.)

The beauty of the Spring Hill Tavern — at least in my book — is that it can be quietly intimate one minute and then loud and silly the next. On this night, after the band had played a few beautiful new tunes, a woman who had clearly had a few drinks giggledly handed Taylor a note which read: "Can they play something more rocking to dance to?" To which Taylor replied with a reserved grin, "The answer is probably no — but do try the fish, I hear it’s excellent."

There really is no place to dance in this club, just the aisle space along the bar, but that’s never stopped anyone who might be so inclined from doing a little shimmy-shimmy-shake.

The physical textures of the exposed wood beam ceiling and supports, combined with mortar, brick and stone wall foundations, as well as the original fresh water spring well (glass covered and stocked with goldfish), give the space an earthy, rustic and comfortably-relaxed atmosphere. There are also plenty of nice paintings of schooners, whalers and other boats, as well as other nautical stuff to gaze upon that give the room that seafaring feel.

Drinks are quite reasonable, with pints of tap beers such as Guinness and Redhook going for $4.25; a good-sized Absolute Cape Codder for $6; and a very healthy Kettle One Vodka Martini for $8.

The menu is a bit pricey, but no more so than any other upscale eatery around town. Chef Gary Caron, who has run the line here for the past 16 years, serves some truly excellent dishes — honest and inventive such as the lobster and papardelle appetizer ($15), featuring fresh lobster meat sautéed with oyster mushrooms, leeks and sweet peas and then tossed with fresh papardelle pasta in tarragon beurre blanc sauce.

"Yum, yum, yum," Bevilacqua exclaims when this dish is presented by waitress/ bartender Jamie Cournane. "This is delicious — my absolute favorite." And I must note this was a very nice size serving for an appetizer portion — no frou-frou.

For a look at the menu, as well as a calendar of upcoming entertainment, check out the Web site www.dolphinstriker.com.

Michael Keating is managing editor/ features at Seacoast Media Group. He doesn’t get out to eat, drink, or hear music nearly as much as he ought to anymore.