The Magdalen Arms has just celebrated its tenth birthday and, if you really think about it, how many of Oxford's independent food businesses have made it past the 10-year mark? Recently, The Rusty Bicycle and The Missing Bean have hit a decade and there’s also Clinton Pugh’s trinity of Café Coco, Tarifa and Kazbar, plus Edamame, Pierre Victoire, Chiang Mai, Al-Shami and … [Read more...]
Restaurant Review: Giggling Squid, Jericho
Having visited Giggling Squid on preview night, I was interested to see what a full-blown dinner experience would be like now that they’re a month into opening and very much in the swing of things. Originally a supper club in Brighton it’s now a chain with 32 outlets under its belt (with more on the way according to the Manager). Giggling Squid is unlike most of the … [Read more...]
Restaurant Review: The FLO Cafe
Way back in what feels like the depths of time, I opened a café in East Oxford. My cohorts and I (then all fancy-free, well oiled and in our late 20’s/early 30’s) were keen to attract our peers and have a trendy breakfast place that doubled as a cool coffee shop. The space was not exactly buggy friendly, the toilets were tiny and frankly, we viewed kids as being a bit of a … [Read more...]
Preview: Giggling Squid
On Friday myself and fellow Bitten brethren, Lucy, headed to the opening of the newest chain to grace the city, Giggling Squid. Started as a pop-up restaurant in Brighton in 2002, Giggling Squid is now well into it’s 30’s in terms of branches in the UK. For the uninitiated, the food is billed as Thai Tapas and marketed as ‘Staggeringly Good Thai Food’. As well as ordering … [Read more...]
10 Great Coffee Shops Outside the Ring Road
I have recently moved out of the city into rural Oxfordshire. Being a regular frequenter of Oxford's (currently excellent) mix of coffee shops, it begged the question of where I take my crew for our Saturday morning caffeination. I thought I’d make a feature of my search, we’ve really enjoyed the variety and challenge of finding these different places. This list is … [Read more...]