Headington Restaurant Guide

2024 Review: From a now nine-strong “cheap ’n’ cheerful” Sri Lankan chain that wants to create a relaxed island vibe – candles in coconut shells, upbeat music – and has found a real audience for its “very tasty” and “excellent-value” small plates (including many vegan-friendly options) plus potent cocktails (aka ‘cocotails’).

“High-quality fish dishes” at “very reasonable prices” are the draw at this low-key spot just across Magdalen Bridge from the city centre, where fish ’n’ chips or fritto misto costs £14.95 and a signature cold seafood platter on crushed ice £24.95 – but you can also splash £95 on 50g of caviar.

“Tapas at another level” has earned local cult status for this outfit that celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, and is hidden behind neighbouring historic shopfronts (for a chemist and a watchmaker) – “every dish is delicious, and there are excellent veggie options too”. “It’s so popular you always have to book”, and the timed slots are restricted by opening limited to three days a week (Thursday to Saturday) – a problem that should be eased by the late-2025 launch of a new branch in the city centre’s old Covered Market, with 90 covers spread over two floors (downstairs walk-in only) and projected 7-day operation.

“The kind of restaurant you are happy to find!” – an Oxford legend run by Meiko & Peter Galpin for almost three decades now, and whose “convincing cuisine” focuses on Japanese home-style cooking. “There’s a small menu that changes regularly and a special sushi menu on Thursday evening” – add in a “relaxing environment with friendly staff” and “reasonable prices” and it’s “top-notch all round”… do, however, be prepared for the fact that “it’s really busy all the time and you can’t book, so have to queue outside”.

“The food is sensational” at this legendary Oxford outfit, which delighted its many fans by reopening last September after a three-year hiatus while founders Rufus & Ladd Thurston switched to a retail operation as Elle’s Deli, in search of a better work/life balance. With their children a little older, they have relaunched their Thai project with most of the beloved classic dishes, such as – according to one report – “the best confit duck Penang probably in the world!”. But it’s still only open three days a week, with the familiar three-month waiting list for an evening booking.

This “big old pub with a jolly, slightly bohemian atmosphere” is a well-known “gastro-pub (with the emphasis on gastro)”. It achieves solid and still-plentiful support in our annual diners’ poll, despite a feeling that “the food falls well short of the standards at its London siblings, Anchor & Hope and Canton Arms”. Top Menu Tip – “the suet crust steak-and-ale pie to share is a lovely, lovely thing”.

“Lively and convenient venue”, “well-placed in the centre of Oxford” and serving brasserie fare in the “attractive surroundings” of the Old Bank Hotel. Ratings here are often dragged down by the odd report of “variable” results – the “good-value set lunch menu” goes down best with reporters and helps make it a popular choice for business lunchers as well as loving parents with their bookish offspring.

“Rightly an Oxford institution”, this self-service café with a “student vibe” is a “go-to place for a good-value wholesome brunch in a buzzing atmosphere”; sit inside on trestle tables or “outside in the sun, surrounded by the architecture that makes Oxford famous”, as you enjoy “fab cake” and “tempting” mains, with a “great choice from vegan to Asian curries and lovely cakes”. Fans are “glad to see it has survived” thus far – indeed some 15,500 of them signed up to save the venue, which remains at the heart of an eviction dispute between café owner Will Pouget, and the University Church of St Mary the Virgin, where it sits, and whose landlord wants to create a larger social enterprise in the space; having already been adjourned in April 2025 due to the complexity of determining if the land is consecrated (the pivotal point), the case was listed to recommence at the High Court shortly before we went to press.

This “calm and pleasantly traditional” bistro in a sidestreet close to the city centre “never seems to disappoint”, with its combination of “charming, professional service, great wine and really excellent food” – “set lunch is remarkably good value at £21.50 for 3 courses” (main courses are mostly £20-30 each). Top Menu Tip – “try the Lobster Bisque”.

A substantial 17th-century parsonage in the city centre, now a plush boutique hotel with a “charming atmosphere and well-chosen art on the walls”. Its Grill is “an excellent all-rounder with a good choice of well-executed dishes”. Afternoon tea is also on the agenda, and “one set tea is quite enough to share between two with an extra pot of tea added”.

Humbly billed on its website as ‘Oxford’s Most Beautiful Restaurant’, this former Victorian florists’ – just outside the city-centre as you head north – has a gorgeous greenhouse-style interior and has been packed out for four decades now. Feedback on its Mediterranean cuisine, however, is perennially patchy and indifferent and this year is no exception.

“Long standing and always fun and reliable” – this well-known venue (est. 1993) has competition these days from the likes of Oli’s Thai. But between its remarkable setting – a historic, Tudor-style building in a medieval lane off the High; its “absolutely fantastic” Thai food (not least green curry); and its “nice buzz”, it continues to please all who comment on it. Further boons: the “lunchtime menu is fantastic value” and the “team are so welcoming and friendly” too.

A meal at this “great location on the roof of the Ashmolean” makes the perfect culmination of a mooch around the museum (or a visit in its own right) – but it can seem a little “mediocre unless you’re outside on the terrace”.

Reams of praise for this “always reliable bistro” near the centre, which is a real local “favourite and always packed”. By all accounts it “produces classic French dishes” at “very reasonable prices too” – not culinary art but “amazing VFM!” (and for a big group meal, its wide menu with something for everyone makes it an excellent choice).

“Sometimes it just has to be ramen”, and this group from Japan Centre owner Tak Tokumine provides noodles and broth that are “consistent, quick”, “high-quality and very reasonably priced” – “service isn’t amazing but the food makes up for it”. The 12-hour tonkotsu pork broth is a speciality of Hakata, Tak’s home district of Fukuoka city on the island of Kyushu.