SUMMER 03: Now branded as the Honeypot, with strange ethnic looking chairs, trendy clientele and beers too
Antiquity Hall , Hythe Bridge St
Wadworth 6X, Marstons Pedigree, Tetley
Quality of beer : * * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * *
Food : ?
The time we went in the barman was wearing a truly horrible tie. Other than
that, we don't have much against it (or for it).
Bar Oz , Market St
Theakstons Best Bitter; John Smiths Bitter; Courage Best
Quality of beer : * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * *
Food : Barbie tucker, mate
Took over from the old Roebuck, which although wasn't exactly a salubrious
establishment, wasn't yet another plastic "theme" bar, as this is.
Big Sky screens, all day sport (sport, chuckle), crap fake Australian theme.
Some people like this sort of thing, apparently.
Bear , Alfred St
Tetley Bitter; Ind Coope Burton Ale
Quality of beer : * * * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * * * *
Food : ?
Small, central, busy, vast collection of ties on the walls.
Blenheim , St Ebbes / Brewer St
Tetley Bitter; ABC Bitter
Quality of beer : * *
Value for money : * * * * *
Atmosphere : * * *
Food : ?
Quite nice, but the beer was a bit off the time I went.
Brewery Tap , Tidmarsh St
Morrell's Bitter, Varsity, Mild
Quality of beer : * *
Value for money : * * * *
Atmosphere : *
Food : ?
The brewery tap for Morrell's (funnily enough), but apparently they're trying
to sell it. Quiet and local most of the time.
Castle Tavern , Paradise St / Castle St
Theakston's Best Bitter; Boddington's Bitter; guests
Quality of beer : * * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * * *
Food : ?
Good range of beers, but not exactly special.
Chequers (Osney) , Hollybush Row / St Thomas St
None
Quality of beer : *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * *
Food : ?
Not exactly great. Note red pool table. Nice.
Chequers (centre) , High St
Wadworth's 6X; Tetley Bitter;
Quality of beer : * *
Value for money : *
Atmosphere : *
Food : Good
Quiet and foody at lunchtime, bit of a nightclub in the evening.
Cock & Camel , George St / Gloucester St
Young's Bitter;
Quality of beer :* * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * * *
Food : Plenty, and decent quality
Despite me going in here first on an off day, the pub's not bad if you like the
trendier kind of city centre establishments. Always busy, especially at
lunchtimes, and it aims for the continental-style approach (coffee and stuff).
Crown , Cornmarket St
Charrington IPA; Bass IPA;
Quality of beer : * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * *
Food : ?
Not much to say about this one really. I suppose you could have a pint in here
while the wife does the shopping, if you've got one. A wife that is, not a pint.
Duke of York , Norfolk St
Morrell's Bitter, Varsity
Quality of beer : * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * *
Food : ?
Local, cavernous, not really worth it. Not bad considering it's in a car park.
Eagle & Child , St Giles
Wadworth's 6X; Ind Coope Burton Ale; Tetley Bitter
Quality of beer : * * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * *
Food : Good
Christ, if one more person goes on about Tolkien and CS Lewis getting beered up
together in here, I shall ensure that they meet them personally in the next
life. It's OK, but I don't really like it that much. Just an opinion.
Fuggle & Firkin , Gloucester Green/ Red Lion Square
Adnam's; Wadworth 6X; guest
Quality of beer : * * **
Value for money : * * *
Atmosphere : * * *
Food : Reasonable selection, but not the cheapest.
Not bad, if you like Firkin pubs. They now serve non-Firkin beers, which are
actually quite good.
SUMMER 03: Now called the ‘Goose’, serving reasonably priced ales in a very Wetherspoons manner, but to trendier people.
Gloucester Arms , Friars Entry
Tetley Bitter; Marston's Pedigree; Burton's; guest
Quality of beer : * * * * *
Value for money : * * * *
Atmosphere : * * * * *
Food : Cheap
Great pub this. No students, with a brilliant and loud jukebox, as pubs should have.
The food is as cheap as the Radcliffe Arms, and the beer is always great.
Grapes , George St
Morrell's Bitter, Varsity
Quality of beer : * * *
Value for money : * * *
Atmosphere : * * *
Food : ?
This pub is quite arty, being opposite the Apollo, but it's nice and dark and
cosy, and quite pleasant.
Head of the River , Folly Bridge / Abingdon Rd
Fuller's Chiswick, London Pride, ESB
Quality of beer : * * * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * *
Food : Nice, but not cheap.
Good during Bumps, but a bit deserted the rest of the time.
Hobgoblin , St Aldates
Wychwood selection; guest
Quality of beer : * * * *
Value for money : * * *
Atmosphere : * * *
Food : Yes
New as of October 98, this replaces the old Bulldog, and as far as I could see,
for the better. Kind of Firkin-esque decor, but better, in my humble opinion.
Good jukebox selection, and £1.50 a pint can't be bad.
Horse & Jockey , Woodstock Rd / St Bernards Rd
Morrell's Bitter ?
Quality of beer : * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * * *
Food : ?
Better than it was, but probably not worth the trek unless you live at St.
Annes.The nickname Horse and Seccy probably tells you a bit about the
clientele.
SUMMER 03: closed, turned into flats by some gits.
Jolly Farmers , Paradise St
Tetley Bitter; Bass IPA
Quality of beer : *
Value for money : *
Atmosphere : * * *
Food : ?
The noticeably all-male clientele gives away the fact that this is the gay pub for
the town centre. I'd recommend it for atmos and friendliness, but when we went
there _all_ the real ales had gone off - so a black spot.
King's Arms (centre) , Parks Rd / Holywell St
Young's Bitter, Special; Wadworth 6X
Quality of beer : * * *
Value for money : * * * *
Atmosphere : * * * * *
Food : Good
Studenty at the front, local at the back. Extremely popular, open all day.
Lamb & Flag , St Giles / Lamb & Flag Passage
Fuller's London Pride; Boddingtons; Greene King IPA; Brakspeare's Bitter; guest
Quality of beer : * *
Value for money : * * *
Atmosphere : * * * *
Food : ?
I don't know. Once an Oxford legend, and now half the pub it was. Despite the
wide selection of beers, they _still_ manage to make most of them taste bad.
Perhaps this has something to do with them having a staff turnover of about 2 a
week, most of whom do not understand what bitter is. Especially that git who
pretends to be "spaced" the whole time.
Mitre , High St / Turl St
Bass IPA; Tetley Bitter; Ind Coope Burton Ale
Quality of beer : * *
Value for money : *
Atmosphere : *
Food : OK
Really a Beefeater restaurant, with not much to say for it, except for Geolsoc
Christmas dinners.
O'Neill's , George St / New Inn Hall St
Bass Bitter
Quality of beer : * * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : *
Food : Good, and lots.
The Bass is good, the Guinness is better, but the fake Irish decor is terrible.
Old School House , Gloucester Green
Greene King IPA, Abbot, Black Baron
Quality of beer : *
Value for money : *
Atmosphere : * * *
Food : Good
Rather trendy. The beer is variable at best. Quieter lunchtimes and early
evening, turns into a nightclub at weekends.
Old Tom , St Aldates
Morrell's Bitter, Varsity, Mild
Quality of beer : * * * * *
Value for money : * * * *
Atmosphere : * * * * *
Food : Good
Another GBG regular, small, friendly and central.
Rendezvous , Pennyfarthing Place
Morrell's Bitter
Quality of beer : * * *
Value for money : * * *
Atmosphere : * *
Food : None
A half-decent pint of Morrell's, shame about the location. Saying that, there
was no Morrell's on when I went in, only Guinness. Used to be the Parrott, and
it seems they're after the same trendy (!) folk. Who like it round the back of
Sainsburys.
Rosie O'Grady's , Park End St / Worcester St
None
Quality of beer : * * * *
Value for money : *
Atmosphere : * * *
Food : Good
Irish pub, no beer but good Guinness, if you don't mind paying £2.45 a pint.
Live Irish folk music regularly. Good for the station. Was previously the
Queen's Arms.
Royal Oak , Woodstock Rd
Wadworth's 6X; Tetley Bitter; Burton's
Quality of beer : * * * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * * * *
Food : OK
Large pub with many small sections. Overpriced in my opinion. Unusually
Scottish, especially for Sky Sports.
Three Goat's Heads , St Michael St
Sam Smith's OBB, Museum Ale
Quality of beer : * * * *
Value for money : * * * * *
Atmosphere : * * * * *
Food : ?
Cheapest beer in central Oxford, good (but crowded) quiz nights on Wednesdays.
Turf Tavern , Bath Place
Archer's Golden; Marston's Pedigree; Flower's Original; 4-5 others
Quality of beer : * * * * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * * * *
Food : Very Good
Pricey, but with good atmosphere and a wide range of beers all the time. Great
for contracting hypothermia whilst sitting outside on those cold winter nights,
cos there's no room inside.
Turl Bar , Turl St
various
Quality of beer : * * *
Value for money : * * *
Atmosphere : * * *
Food : ?
Round the back of the Mitre. Regular jazz sessions, quiet the rest of the time.
CD _and_ video jukebox no less.
Wharf House , Butterwyke Place / Thames St
4-5 guests
Quality of beer : * * * * *
Value for money : * * * *
Atmosphere : *
Food : ?
The old entry read simply 'Utterly dire'. Now it has been taken over by a CAMRA
buff: the beer is excellent, with interesting guests, but the atmos is still
'Utterly dire'.
Wheatsheaf , High St / Wheatsheaf Yard
Morrells Bitter, Varsity, Graduate;
Quality of beer : * * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * *
Food : ?
Well-hidden town centre pub, pleasant enough.
White Horse (centre) , Broad St
Tetley Bitter; Ind Coope Burton Ale; Wadworth 6X
Quality of beer : * * *
Value for money : * *
Atmosphere : * * * *
Food : ?
Small, popular with Trinity rugby players and the like, but quite nice.
Wig & Pen , George St
Tetley Bitter; ABC Bitter; Theakston's Bitter; guest
Quality of beer : * * *
Value for money : * * * *
Atmosphere : * *
Food : ?
Large, good beer discounts sometimes, but vacuous. Unlikely to let geologists
back in after our Christmas dinner.
Yates Wine Lodge , George St
Boddingtons Bitter; Courage Directors Bitter
Quality of beer : * * *
Value for money : * * *
Atmosphere : * *
Food : Lots, and it's not bad
Before I slag this place off, I shall at least say that at least they do have
some proper beer in there. Right. I mean, what the hell is a "wine
lodge" anyway? Townie bloody poncy tacky nightclub impersonations at
weekends, harmless , characterless and manufactured enough the rest of the
time. I got refused entry one Friday night because I was wearing trainers.
That's not my definition of a pub.