RestaurantsOxfordshireOxfordOX4

survey result

Summary

£61
  £££
3
Good
3
Good
3
Good
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

Now in its 15th year, this gastropub’s “reputation has perhaps fallen from its earliest days, when it was the best restaurant in Oxford, but it seems to have returned to form with tasty and reasonably priced dishes”. It’s a sibling to London’s stellar Anchor & Hope and Canton Arms.

Summary

£58
   ££
3
Good
3
Good
3
Good
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

From the illustrious stable of London’s Anchor & Hope and Canton Arms, this “cosy”, high-quality gastropub exploded onto the Oxford dining scene in 2010. It keeps a much lower profile nowadays, notwithstanding its “friendly” style and “fantastic” cooking.

Summary

£58
   ££
3
Good
2
Average
3
Good
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

“Atmospheric and busy” – this well-known and frequently rammed gastropub has not quite kept up with the gastronomic achievements of its illustrious London stablemates, the Anchor & Hope and Canton Arms. Thin feedback this year, to the effect that “it can get over stretched but is better than average”.

Summary

£52
   ££
3
Good
3
Good
3
Good
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

“Sunday roasts are legendary, with care lavished on the ingredients”, say fans of this well-known varsity gastropub – “a busy place” (some would say “too noisy to be enjoyable” when it’s “packed out”: i.e. often), which has just celebrated its 10th anniversary. But while it’s rated consistently well, even so it can seem a case of “much hype about nothing”, and its albeit good ratings are not in the same league as its famous stablemate, London’s Anchor & Hope.

For 33 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).

Have you eaten at The Magdalen Arms?

243 Iffley Road, Oxford, OX4 1SJ

Restaurant details

Highchair,Portions
Yes
No dress code
100

Prices

Traditional European menu

Starter Main Veggies Pudding
£8.40 £20.00 £5.50 £7.80
Drinks  
Wine per bottle £21.50
Filter Coffee £3.00
Extras  
Service 10.00%
243 Iffley Road, Oxford, OX4 1SJ
Opening hours
MondayCLOSED
Tuesday5:30 pm‑9 pm
Wednesday12 pm‑2:30 pm, 5:30 pm‑9 pm
Thursday12 pm‑2:30 pm, 5:30 pm‑9 pm
Friday12 pm‑2:30 pm, 5:30 pm‑10 pm
Saturday12 pm‑3 pm, 6 pm‑10 pm
Sunday12 pm‑3:30 pm, 6 pm‑8 pm

Best British, Modern restaurants nearby

Quod
British, Modern restaurant in Oxford
£66
  £££
2
Average
3
Good
4
Very Good
The Vaults and Garden Cafe
British, Modern restaurant in Oxford
£32
    £
3
Good
3
Good
4
Very Good
No.1 Ship Street
British, Modern restaurant in Oxford
£68
  £££
3
Good
3
Good
3
Good

Best similarly priced restaurants nearby

Shoryu Ramen
Japanese restaurant in Oxford
£59
   ££
3
Good
2
Average
2
Average
Wagamama
Japanese restaurant in Oxford
£58
   ££
1
Poor
1
Poor
2
Average
Sichuan Grand
Chinese restaurant in Oxford
£58
   ££
3
Good
2
Average
2
Average