Oxford Restaurant Guide

“Quick, warm and tasty” is the verdict on Japan Centre owner Tak Tokumine’s “very busy”, “authentic ramen” noodle group, based in the West End but expanding fast via delivery-only kitchens. “The tonkotsu soup stock is a wonder” and the “side dishes are great, too”.

“Hard to believe you can step off Oxford High Street” and into this “wonderful medieval building”, home to “such good quality Thai food in a calm atmosphere with efficient thoughtful service”. Despite a minor fall from grace since its days as our top-rated Oxford venue, reports are all enthusiastic – “just like the real thing is the verdict of seasoned Thailand visitors – and still a safe-as-houses bet in Oxford”.

It's “not somewhere to linger and have an elegant time” and “there isn't really any service as such”, but this ethical/organic church-crypt café remains a “regular refuelling stop” for its “great selection of hot and cold food served up generously, canteen-style” (“come hungry”). “Outside tables offer a spectacular outlook over the Radcliffe Camera and Radcliffe Square.”

“Where Oxford goes to feel at home” – this “large, sophisticated venue with a buzzy atmosphere” and “lovely courtyard” in the city centre’s Old Bank Hotel serves “food that’s never over-worked and always great value”. “Celebrated our civil partnership here with our witnesses not long ago – where else?”

A “cosy restaurant with excellent food in the centre of Oxford, with a particular focus on seafood” and a Gallic touch to its brasserie cooking, as well as a stylish green-walled interior and dedicated bars for cocktails AND Champagne/oysters. It’s “well worth a visit”, especially at lunch when the “prix fixe menu always delivers, and is a steal at about £12 for two courses”.

“Absolutely top-notch food” – “pricey but great!” – is the key to the steady growth enjoyed by this Copenhagen-based Japanese group, whose most recent (2019) openings in Soho and Chelsea join established venues across London. It’s “an interesting concept, well executed” – “fresh and delicious sushi”, yakitori skewers, and “colourful, almost art-directed salads”, delivered in dining rooms that combine clean, Japanese minimalism with Danish hygge.

“Quality pizzas served by nice people in a bustling, energetic atmosphere. What’s not to like?” It’s a formula that’s winning massive, post-pandemic expansion for the Elliot brothers’ chain, which is adding eight London sites this year. Perhaps inevitably with such fast growth, it no longer enjoys the stellar ratings of yesteryear, but to an impressive degree also evades criticism: “always decent…”, “I can’t speak for the authenticity, but they’re tasty as hell”. Top Tip: “their pizza home delivery kit is great fun”.

The “stunning rooftop location” makes this museum restaurant with above-average cooking a popular spot for lunch and afternoon tea in the middle of Oxford. An open-air cocktail bar with deckchairs attracts a “buzzy crowd” of locals as well as students and tourists in summer.

2021 Review: “Your tastebuds are in for a roller-coaster ride” at this “madhouse of a venue, packed with Chinese diners” – less on account of its spartan décor than its “very strong spice combinations” and “outstanding” dishes of offal, etc (“put your concerns behind you…chitterlings are lovely!”). “There’s a lot more competition in the Chinese restaurant market nowadays, but this place still more than holds its own against the best”.

“Don't expect innovation” at this stalwart – survivor of a now defunct national chain – expect “traditional and soundly cooked French bistro food” that's also “good value for money” (especially the “excellent prix fixe menus”) and comes in “buzzy surroundings” too.

This ‘hyper environmental’ seasonal restaurant, wine bar and wine shop launched in Jericho in May 2021, taking over a former Café Rouge with 90 covers and a large terrace. Very early reports are hard to read (hence no rating) but the wine list seems an undoubted attraction (and there are over 400 vintages available in the adjoining shop). It also has a sibling in Salisbury and sister business in Frome.

2021 Review: This Jericho veteran inspires remarkable loyalty from fans – “been coming since it opened 30 years ago and it’s still the best Lebanese I’ve found in the UK” – “and great value too”. Others find it “pleasant enough”, with a “wide range of nicely flavoured dishes”, but complain there’s “no excitement”.

2021 Review: “First class steaks” and “excellent wine pairings” help win enthusiastic reviews for this large, attractively converted pub near the train station, which opened a couple of years ago.

2018 Review: A “regular ’turn to’ restaurant for a tasty, enjoyable and relaxed Italian meal”, where the “pizza and pasta staples are supplemented by a range of daily changing specials”; even those who visited in opening week a decade back “are yet to be disappointed”.

A “Jericho gem” for almost two decades, with “imaginative menus, excellent service and good outdoor space, including a recently expanded garden area”. “Italian-inspired cooking and a relaxed atmosphere make this a great location for families, with lunchtimes as good as evenings for ambience” – “my son far prefers the pizzas here to any you might get from a chain”.

With “superb tapas in a buzzy and fun setting” (“the salt-cod croquettes are to die for!”) and a “lovely selection of wines to accompany” the food, this diminutive former chemist’s shop “never disappoints” despite its casual set-up (you eat at stools at the bar, or perch at small tables).

“Authentic Sri Lankan dishes at affordable prices” – the hit formula behind this “lively” street-food outfit with eight branches in the South West; fans can’t get enough of their wacky cocktails and “the food is so good”.

“So good – writing this now makes me crave their tofu noodles!” – this Oxford institution takes a culinary tour tracing the voyages of China’s legendary fifteenth-century admiral Zheng, with a handful of dishes from each of Sichuan, Canton, Malaysia and Singapore. There’s now a smarter branch in Chelsea.