You might expect Oxford to be exclusive and expensive when it comes to eating out, but there are plenty of good quality budget restaurants for all tastes within this historic city.
If you arrive in Oxford, you won’t need Inspector Morse to find the best places to eat as the list is influenced by the folks at Oxford City Guide, so remembering the advice “Always eat where the locals eat”, this is where we would recommend heading.
The Big Bang restaurant is one of the most popular theatre restaurants in the city, but remarkably this doesn’t mean you’ll be paying the usual theatreland prices. It also follows the ethical and ecological ethos which seems to have developed in Oxford, with most of the produce used in the restaurant coming from within a 20 mile radius.
The cuisine is traditional British and they have recently been awarded the “Finest Sausage and Mash in Britain” by Restaurant Magazine, quite some accolade although we think they should have called it “Bangers and mash”.
Nosebag restaurant is a rather unusual name, but the food is the best of British and the soups are especially recommended. They also specialise in various homemade casseroles and plenty of vegetarian options too, so if you’re looking for some good old fashioned British grub, this might be a good alternative to The Big Bang. Why it’s called Nosebag we’re not completely sure.
The Mission Mexican Grill is ideal if you fancy something a little different with fresh Mexican food in the centre of Oxford. Much of the food is influenced by the California-Mexican mixture often known as Cal-Mex in the US. For fresh burritos, head for the Mexican Grill on St. Michaels Street.
Greens Cafe is a hot favourite with the students, so you know it’ll be good value. A local coffee shop with lots of seating and wi-fi Internet to boot, this is the place to head if you want hot bacon rolls, sandwiches, soups, jacket potatoes, bagels, fruit smoothies and milkshakes…and anything else you can think of that students usually eat.
Atomic Burger is as the name suggests a burger bar, but this is a lot lot better than any of those burger chains (and they have a better logo too). If you fancy an American style breakfast, head over to Atomic Burger on the weekend from 12 noon to 10.30pm. Burgers, fries, nachos, classic desserts and milkshakes are all on the menu.
More resources in Oxford:
Visitor attractions in Oxford
Hotels in Oxford
