When I first started this blog, I made a list of things and places I wanted to write about but I completely missed out Oxford. A couple of days ago one of my friends who was planning her trip to Oxford asked me for some cheap eat recommendations around the city, since she knew I used to live there for one year. I immediately recalled my blogging list and couldn’t believe that I had totally forgot putting Oxford on it. How silly I am! Anyway, thanks to my friend it was much easier for me to decide the topic for this third post (and some extra motivation as well ^^).
Although Oxford is an expensive city you can actually find many affordable restaurants around the city centre. Below is the list of my top 5 favourite budget place to eat out in Oxford. All these restaurants offer really tasty dishes and generous portions that are only under £10. When I gave this list to my friend she told me there was too much Asian food haha. And I have to admit that she wasn’t wrong. This whole list is completely based on my taste buds so that’s why I added the word “my” in the title. Though they might not what you expected, I hope it will still give you some helpful information for planning your trip to this lovely city.
1. SasiThai
I loveeee this place! Whenever I wanted something quick, cheap, and delicious for lunch I always went to Sasi Thai. It is a small and cosy restaurant inside the Covered Market, where you can get a generous portion of hot dishes and rice with just £4.95 to £5.95. My favourites were all the spicy main dishes they have, especially the green curry and spicy chicken with basil (I haven’t tried other non-spicy dishes but my friends told me they were just as good). Just keep in mind that since the restaurant is quite popular among students and the locals, it can be a bit difficult to find a table during peak lunch hours. If you don’t want to take away go there around 11am when it’s not crowded and all the main dishes are still available.
2. Chiang Mai Kitchen
Another Thai restaurant on the list. It is pricier than Sasi Thai (Pad Thai £9.10, one main dish with rice £11-£12) but in return you get a warm and comfy place to dine in with your friends or family. The food is tasty and reasonably priced except for the starters, which I’m also not very impressed of. I loved the chili oil fried rice here but I couldn’t find it on their menu on the website so I’m not sure if they still have it or not. As the name suggests, it can be very spicy for some but it’s incredibly tasty and once you taste it you really don't want to stop.
3. The White Rabbit
I found this pub by chance when I was on my “Oxford discovery trip”. And I have to say that I became a huge fan of it right after the very first bite. It is an incredibly cosy pub that offers excellent pizza with super fresh ingredients at a great price (£6.5-£11.45). I think the previous sentence has summed up really well all the reasons why you need to go there. It’s a very popular pub among the locals so it’s best to avoid 12pm – 2pm period in the weekend since you may have to wait a long time to get a table.
4. Gloucester Green Market
It is Oxford traditional open air market that takes place on Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday every week. Here you can find several cheap and tasty food stalls such as Japanese dumpling, Indian curry, kebab, churros and fresh homemade bread. The dumpling was absolutely my favourite, it was surprisingly cheap and tasty (£2.5 for 5 huge dumplings). If you look beyond these amazing food stalls, there is also a variety of vintage jewellery and clothing, collectables, craft antiques and even music instruments. So I would say that this market is definitely a must-visit place when you are in Oxford.
5. Edamame
This is probably my favourite Japanese restaurant in Oxford. The restaurant offers really high quality and authentic Japanese food in generous portions at pretty reasonable prices (£7-£10.5 for lunch, £7-£8 for sashimi). The opening hours might be a bit odd but it’s one of their charms. Sushi is served exclusively on Thursday evening so prepare yourself to come early or stand in a long queue. Although this restaurant is not the most comfy place to dine in, the quality and tastiness of their dishes will never make you disappointed.
BONUS
BONUS
1. Ben's Cookies
The best cookies I have ever tasted! They are crunchy on the outside but so soft and gooey inside. It was always impossible for me to visit the Covered Market without getting some triple chocolate and peanut butter cookies at the store. If you’re from the UK or Singapore you may have known about this irresistibly yummy cookies brand. But if you aren’t familiar with it don’t forget to try these incredible cookies when you visit Oxford. They will make you the happiest person in the world at the very first bite!
2. George and Davis
After leaving Oxford I have tasted pistachio ice cream in so many different places but I have yet found one that can beat G&D. Their ice cream is extremely delicious and creamy with tons of flavours for you to choose from. Honey and Greek yoghurt ice cream was my second favourite here, before they added ginger into it :(. At G&D they also serve pretty tasty cookies and sandwich so you can go there for a simple lunch and finish your meal with one or two scoops of their excellent ice cream. A day always feels lovelier with these tasty and creamy friends ^^
3. Formosan Tea Bar
A hidden gem in Oxford, where you can get amazing bubble tea. Different from teas at big chains like Chatime or Gongcha, which are full of sugar and artificial flavour, you can really tell that they use quality tea here. So even if you’re not a big fan of tapioca pearl you can have plain tea (with lemon and sugar or honey), it will taste just as good. I remember whenever I was tired or stressed out I made sure to get a cup of hot Jasmine green tea with lemon and honey at Formosan; it really helped calm me down and warm up my body even on the coldest day in winter.
While those are my most favourite budget eats in Oxford there are still many other popular restaurants and pubs where tasty food is served at a cheap price I didn’t mention here. For example, Will’s Deli, Atomic Burger, Byron or The Big Society. Although I hope this post will provide some useful information for those of you who are going to visit Oxford, I also encourage you to be a bit adventurous, simply pick a random restaurant or pub while walking around the city. The food might be a bit pricey or it might taste not really good but that will make your whole trip become much more exciting and fun! ^^
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