Heather M.

Unfortunately, I have to give this venue 0 stars. If someone wants to host an event here, I would be very careful of the hidden fees. We ended up paying much more than we expected for a very tiny space. This also includes the fact that they have very expensive drinks and take 100% of the bar spend. VFD stated (via email in writing) that they are a charity, which is why they have these fees. Not sure if this information is true or not.

You can hire the venue downstairs until 4 am, but the smoking area closes at 11 pm, which doesn’t really make sense. If you want to go down the route of being a co-producer, which is where they offer the venue for ‘free,’ please note that this means they would have full control of all your ticket sales. You will have no say in the ticket sales at all, unless you choose to pay for the space instead. I’ve never heard of this being the case, and it seemed like another way to make money from us.

The cloakroom was disorganised, and we had guests waiting outside in the cold for over 30 minutes. The tech person we were told to pay for on the night of the event (another hidden fee not included at the beginning) did not know how to use any of the equipment, and our DJ set cut off. When we told the tech person, they began to google the manual.

To say it’s been a rollercoaster working with VFDalston is an understatement. I am just happy our event is over and we can go somewhere else.

J E.

It’s very important to have queer venues but 6.70 for a can of beer is quite steep. Other than that the space is small but the toilets were clean.

Raphael G.

I just wanted to flag an incident which happened last weekend. On arrival at this venue my partner and our friend were both racially profiled. Before they entered and were confronted, several other yts members of our group including myself entered without issue. When it came their turn to enter the venue they were manhandled in a specific way and asked offensive and exclusionary questions such as “do you have drugs on you” this treatment did not match with the rest of the groups entry experience. This venue claims to promote “a be kind policy” which does not add up to this very disturbing incident. We will not be entering this space or ones affiliated again. I hope you can find a way to handle this situation internally with respect and dignity to the communities you claim to present.

Stefano D.

Very small place. They host interesting and alternative entertainment. Cash only bar. Quite expensive can of beer (£4). The woman working there was very friendly and a good chat.
Very tiny loo.

Debbie A.

How could I not love this place. Awesome host. Warm friendly audience. Other great readings. You could feel the tension and passion in their works. So eclectic. I enjoyed every minute!!

molly L.

I'd put 0 stars if it were possible, if you want to wait in a queue for up to or over two and a half hours then this is the place for you. Baring in mind when I got to the front I was met with abuse from the staff handling the crowd. There was a small, short haired, scroungy, aggressive looking woman doing most of the shouting, she said to me, and I quote, "I hope you get punched in the face" when I told her it wasn't possible for me to get any closer to the wall as there was such a high concentration of people pushing their way to the front. Never even got in, gave up at the final hurdle because by this point it just wasn't worth spending £5 for an hour and a half in the club.

Natasha C.

Awful, vile, rude and abrasive person bigging herself up as the owner! I will never order a drink from an establishment where the person in charge doesn't have a clue about decent customer service - shame on you! The talent was amazing, young people going places and needing a platform was my inspiration thank you guys and I look forward to your next gig at a better run establishment! Fantastic organisation from Spoken Word London.

Sofia V.

I had a very bad experience with a member of the staff to which the venue opened a internal enquiry and got back to me with concrete measures. Very much appreciated, the space works on building a safe queer community space.