The Vegan Guide to Oxford

Kerry, 16 May 2003

Despite warning them twice that a vegan was attending (once when I booked a week in advance and then in the afternoon before), they told me they couldn't do anything "totally vegan". The starter was fine (breadsticks with hummus and a tomato dip) but the main course (roast vegetable tart) was cheesy or eggy (I couldn't really tell which). The alternative was pasta which was apparently made with egg and cream. Perhaps I don't argue enough, but it wasn't helped by a language barrier.

Kake, 10 Nov 2000

Just a small update to say that I've been here a couple of times since the review below, and they're still fine about vegans. They did tell me one time not to bother phoning in advance, and so the next time I didn't, and they got themselves in such a muddle when I did turn up that I think it's probably best to always warn them.

Kake, 11 May 1998

The waiting staff here are very helpful, though it's best to telephone in advance to warn the chef that a vegan will be attending. I was told that their usual way of pleasing a vegan is to amend a vegetarian item. The Prix Fixee menu at lunch offers two courses plus coffee at £5·95, or you can order from the menu. When I visited, none of the Prix Fixee starters were suitable, so they offered to substitute the Soupe au Pistou from the normal menu.

The only items on the current (Spring) menu that are already vegan are the Soupe au Pistou (£2·25) and the side dish of Salade de Tomates (£1·95), which could probably double as a starter.

The Soupe au Pistou is quite a substantial starter. I enjoyed it very much, though I couldn't identify any of the vegetables except carrots and cabbage; and I certainly couldn't find any of the beans that were supposed to be in it.

My main course was Fricasse of Mushrooms on a Couscous Biscuit, amended from the vegetarian option of the Prix Fixee. The couscous was very well-flavoured and totally un-biscuit-like, which is a Good Thing. The mushrooms came in a tomato sauce, which I thought at first might drown the flavour of the mushrooms; but the varieties used were quite assertive enough to show through. This course was more than I could eat!

We had a glass each of white house wine with our main course - 175ml for £2·00. This was just fine, as was the generous cup of coffee included in the Prix Fixee.

A service charge of £1·95 was added to our bill (2 people).