Latest reviews from Oxford Jericho
| 74 /100 8 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “This is now a sister pub to the newly re-opened Grapes in central Oxford. Up until very recently this was a Green King pub but now the lease lies in the hands of a tiny group that operates on a Free House system, although the beers are similar to those on sale in the Grapes. It's in a pleasant, traffic free lane in Bohemian Jericho, opposite the Rose and Crown. It has a smallish frontage but goes back a long way giving lots of seating inside and also there is seating out the front. There are 6 hand pulls along with a small range of Kegged beers. Well worth a visit.“ |
| 52 /100 2 North Parade (Grocery Store) 2 NORTH PARADE “Things have changed here somewhat since the previous contributors visits, they just stock a small range of beers from a single brewery now, which is Earth Ale Brewery to fit in with their vegan beliefs. As it is close to 2 of the better pubs in the area it's worth popping in though.“ |
| 48 /100 54 WALTON STREET “Impersonal pub. Messy bitty layout. Looks like a pub-grub place for the non-quite-so-discerning punter. Also a sport-pub for the lager drinker with its big screen and general noise. 6 hand pulls, but 15 kegs, some kegs’o’kack, but about half a dozen kraft ones too, behind the obligatory, and much disliked by me, white tile bank of taps. Of course, the casks were greene-king and pseudo-greene-king dominated. Found one tick amongst them, so stayed for a swift one. Can’t say I enjoyed the place much, it’s a bit like a noise version of the less pleasant JDWs (of which Oxford has a classic example).“ |
| 60 /100 Jericho Tavern (Bar) 56 WALTON STREET, JERICHO “Nice boozer, very open in front of the bar, and spacious tables to the sides. Has an old-fashioned feel to it. Slightly sterile and echoey on a quiet sunday afternoon, but I’m sure it throbs at busier times. At least the music here was to my tastes. Only 2 hand pulls, but 12 kegs, and a bunch of cans/bottles to keep the youngsters satisfied. The real ales not being ticks, I grabbed a quick craft brewery tick, and continued my crawl looking for more hand pulls. Staff were pretty decent, friendly, and knew what they were selling. Prices for craft beers were a bit crafty. If doing Jericho, this is a must, and it’s probably worthy of going out of your way for if you’re doing the whole of Oxford too. I’ve been told the curry house opposite is one of the best in town, that’s a pretty handy feature for a pub. Alas, it was closed that early when we were there.“ |
| 52 /100 17-18 VICTOR STREET “Of course, I’m no fan of GK, but this is a fairly pleasant environment for a beer. A proper boozer, with slightly shabby somewhat decorative wood everywhere, which adds a bit of character. Maybe just a touch claustrophobic, at least round the left side. The best bit about the interior was the third loo - there’s Gents to the left, Ladies to the right, and in between there’s "Not Sure". The middle one clearly gets the least use, so is the recommended one for a more pleasant experience. 6 hand pulls, mostly GK and fake-guest GKs, but a couple of very mainstream actual guests too. 4 kegs’o’kack too. Found a cask tick, so stayed for one, and it was on decent form. Staff were perfectly pleasant, no complaints there. Not really worth singling this out as a beer stop, but as I indicated, it’s pretty cool as a loo stop.“ |
| 60 /100 Rickety Press (Arkell’s) (Bar) 67 CRANHAM ST. “Quirky characterful place - I expected to see street urchins running in the street outside. You can sit up or sit down, as it’s quite a foody place. Menu looked good, but we didn’t eat. 5 handpulls, 6 kegs. Staff were excellent - they were handing us samples before we had an opportunity to do anything, and they enjoyed chatting about the styles. Best, they didn’t get flustered when it was clear my tastes were different from theirs, and kept things to the objective more than the subjective. All the beers had some merit to them, and we left thinking that it would be a worthy place to return to.“ |
| 44 /100 Victoria (Marstons) (Bar) 90 WALTON STREET, JERICHO, OXFORD, “It’s a beautiful building, split over two floors. I think it’s been seriously smartenned up since I had my first ever mild there over 25 years ago - solid dark wood everywhere. 3 hand pulls, one of which was a tick - so we stayed - and 6 kegs’o’crap. At least their real ale was on form, even if the printed menu and the pumpclip disagreed on its ABV. Early on a sunday afternoon, it was pretty empty, so nice and quiet. I was happy to watch a couple of frames of Ronnie O’Sullivan on the huge projection TV whilst drinking. Food menu looked like quality nosh, but didn’t eat. Unless you’re a Jericho completist, it’s pretty safe to skip this one on your crawl, but it’s not intrinsically a bad pub, at least from my experience.“ |
| 54 /100 Grog Shop (Beer Store) 13 KINGSTON ROAD “2017 review: Totally changed, this is now just a cornershop with a really good range of beers. Everything from trashy to crafty, plenty of ticks for me, but not time to drink them, and no space to carry them. Staff was somewhat sleepy. If you’re crawling Jericho, you can’t avoid this, so might as well pop in. At least grab a street tick, as you’ve got all of 3 minutes to the next pub!
Old 2011 review (2:7:9:x:7:12=60) Slightly grungy, no frills. But what matters is what’s on the plain shelves. Lots and lots and lots of beers. And ciders too when I went there. Good prices, and, even if the UK range isn’t the most exciting, in total there’s an eclectic selection, always worth sticking your head in to see what’s inside. Shame it’s a bit of a trek from the centre.“ |
| 62 /100 39 PLANTATION RD. “Popular sunday lunch spot, we barely found a seat. 4 hand pulls, 6 kegs. Real ales looked eclectic, 3 ticks. Very pleasant staff - samples were offered whilst we grepped our lists. Nice friendly local feel - it appears that they even had a stash of pub umbrellas so that if you’re caught in a downpour, you can get home dry. It’s the little things. Assuming you’re starting at the Rose and Crown, this is the perfect 2nd stop on a Jericho crawl. (But remember to pick up bottles in 2 North Parade too!)“ |
| 64 /100 2 North Parade (Grocery Store) 2 NORTH PARADE “25 bottles, including more ticks than I could carry, including brewery ticks. Staff was super-helpful, not only able to tell us about each of the beers (and mead), but also willing to direct us to the nearest park, so that we could park tick! (No room to carry any more home, we had to drink everything we bought). The rest of the food in the shop looked like it would make an awesome snack plate, this place needs to expand and become a cafe! Opening hours are, erm, challenging, but it’s worth popping by here on a daytime Jericho crawl.“ |
| 58 /100 Rose and Crown (Bar) 14 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “My kinda pub. Not a ticking place, a banter and beering place. 4 hand pulls, 4 kegs. No standing on ceremony, no showing off, this place is all about kicking back and relaxing. Opening at 11 made it the first pub on our crawl, so alas we didn’t do too much relaxing. Staff were great - loved the offer of beer in dimples, which we gladly accepted. Lovely interior, wood, sports club and related knick-knacks on the walls. Pickled eggs available - and I think we almost managed to persuade the lovely Polish barmaid to risk trying one at some point. This is a classic English Pub.“ |
| 66 /100 39 PLANTATION RD. “A happy, relaxed pub in the northern part of Jericho within a residential area. Not to be confused with another Gardener’s Arms nearby which is a Greene King pub. This is very popular for its vegetarian food, there are no dead animals on this menu. There is a slightly worn garden to the rear for sunny evenings. Good rotating list of beers and guests. Worth the trip.“ |
| 46 /100 17-18 VICTOR STREET “There is a very much improved atmosphere in hear now, the place is certainly buzzing. The beer choice remains G.K plus a couple of guests, so not a destination beer pub, but if you are looking for a place with good food and ambiance this is for you.
Dec ’11 rating. Greene King pub with a glorious past but now a standard Jericho tavern with little choice. Sad.“ |
| 56 /100 54 WALTON STREET “Large but cosy Greene King pub on the southern end of Jericho that manages to keep the Bohemian atmosphere of the area. With the privately run Phoenix cinema nearby this is handy for pre and post cinema drinks, the walls of the pub are covered with old and new film posters adding to the effect. The range is mostly from the GK stable, but with a guest or two, plus check out the fridge with imported American tinned beers. The food looks popular. Give it a go.“ |
| 64 /100 Grog Shop (Beer Store) 13 KINGSTON ROAD “We cycled into Oxford today, Saturday 31st May 2014. On our return we cycled through Jericho to the Grog shop the first time I’d been there for about 3 years. The shop is at the northern/top of Walton street, i.e. further away from the city and sits on a corner, it is just about where the shops and cafes etc stop and after here it is just housing, expect a good 15 min brisk walk from the centre of Oxford to get here. It has been reconfigured since I last visited and whilst there is a reasonably decent selection I did feel that the vast majority of these were the usual suspects, such as Fullers, Box Steam, Leffe, Sierra Nevada Pale etc. There were a only a few that I’d not seen before but really nothing of interest. However where this place is quite good was the prices, I thought they were very reasonable. I wouldn’t go out of my way to go here again, but for something like Chimay (all three regulars) Duvel and one or two others then it is just about worth it.“ |
| 70 /100 2 North Parade (Grocery Store) 2 NORTH PARADE “A nice little place diagonally opposite the Rose & Crown on North Parade. We visited on Saturday 31st May 2014 on a cycle ride into town on the recommendation of Fred a friend from the village. I guess you would desribe this as a delicatessans, it has a nice selection of cheeses, salami’s and breads all of which are sourced from small scale producers locally as with the beers which can be found at the rear of the shop. The beer selection isn’t huge but for someone in the locality it is a good opportunity to get hold of the likes of Shotover, Abingdon Bridge, Malt the Brewery and Compass as well as a couple of local ciders. The staff were really friendly and very helpful. Its a great little shop in a lovely little road.“ |
| 66 /100 Jericho Tavern (Bar) 56 WALTON STREET, JERICHO “We tend to get to The Jericho 4-5 times a year, primarily for the music which is hosted upstairs. Our most recent visit on Wednesday 14th May 2014 with John (work colleague) saw us go to see Ezra Furman (great gig) however amongst the usual none too exciting beer range was spotted Tiny Rebel, Beavertown and Siren all in bottle and at £4.25 - £4.75 for the likes of 8 Ball, Undercurrent etc not too badly priced. The Jericho is situated in North Oxford an 8-10 minute walk from the centre I guess, you will find it just beyond the Jude the Obscure and virtually next door to the independant cinema. It is quite roomy inside, the bar is directly in front if you and the pub opens out to the left where more people tend to sit whilst eating though you can just sit at one of these places to drink also. We went out into the back garden, which you acess by walking to the left of the bar turn right when past and you’ll see the door ahead near the stairs. I was surprised at the amount of seating out here and despite being all hard standing it was very pleasant sat out here. A new manager whom we chatted to for a while seemed very keen on the fledgling bottled range. A great music venue getting better on the beer front.“ |
| 32 /100 Victoria (Marstons) (Bar) 90 WALTON STREET, JERICHO, OXFORD, “A standard Marstons boozer that does food and has a popular drinking area to the front. We have only seen the standard Marston beers in there. Not a pub for the beer hunter.“ |
| 44 /100 Harcourt Arms (Fuller’s) (Bar) CRANHAM TERRACE “No. 8 on my Oxford crawl and this is a stop off on the way back into town. This is a pub in the famous Jericho area of town where the inhabitants were largely bargees trading on the Oxford canal. These days Jericho is an eclectic mix of student dwellings and gentrified houses. The Harcourt is a Fullers pub that serves the standard beers and a seasonal, not the most comfortable place on the trip but worth a visit if you are still up to it. Update Aug ’13. There has been a changing of the guard in this pub, it remains a Jericho local but is horrendously expensive and a small range.“ |
| 78 /100 17-18 VICTOR STREET “Greene King place but I had Dark Star Sunburst 4,8% and Hardys & Hansons Olde Trip 4,3% (19.6.2009).“ |
| 72 /100 Harcourt Arms (Fuller’s) (Bar) CRANHAM TERRACE “A nice Fuller’s place not in the city centre (19.6.2009).“ |
| 76 /100 Rose and Crown (Bar) 14 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “Just time for one pint. Greene King Dallaglio’s Heroes 4,2% (19.6.2009).“ |
| 60 /100 17-18 VICTOR STREET “We called in here on our way back to the station after a day out in Oxford’s finest pubs and I must say it was my second favourite of all the places we visited. Sadly this was not because of the beer, which is limited to four rather ordinary hand pumps, but because it had a great atmosphere.
Unremarkable on the outside, inside it’s comforting and welcoming, with low beams and a quarry tiled floor. It felt a bit like walking into Santa’s grotto and it even has a train set on the ceiling.
I really liked it – it just desperately needs better beer.
(Visited 7 January 2012).“ |
| 58 /100 Harcourt Arms (Fuller’s) (Bar) CRANHAM TERRACE “The Harcourt Arms is a Fuller’s pub with four taps in a fairly quiet residential area of Jericho. It’s knocked through and laid back, with leather sofas in one area and tables and banquettes in another. The décor is simple but quirky – for example, there’s a papier mache zebra over the door, a mirror set in a tennis racquet frame and a barrel labelled “Monkey nuts in here – help yourself”.
(Visited 7 January 2012).“ |
| 52 /100 Grog Shop (Beer Store) 13 KINGSTON ROAD “The Grog Shop is like any other open-all-hours street corner newsagent and off license selling basic groceries, fags, snacks and fizzy soft drinks except that it’s mainly given over to an impressively large range of beer. It seems a bit incongruous that a place like this should be “the best beer shop in Oxford says CAMRA” (as it says by the door) but, by all accounts, it is.
Chris found three bottles to bring home for the next tasting but unfortunately the service was surly and indifferent.
I’m thinking of putting my local newsagent in touch. He could learn something about what to stock in his beer section and, in turn, he could teach them a thing or two about friendly service.
(Visited 7 January 2012).“ |
| 74 /100 Rose and Crown (Bar) 14 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “A great place!
This was my favourite pub of our day out in Oxford. It’s a delightfully unspoilt place in a small quiet enclave of pretty houses and various trendy boutiques north of the city centre. There are two small rooms, including the main bar, off one side of a cosy drinking corridor with books and benches, a covered courtyard at the back and, at the end of what would otherwise be the garden, another room with one large round table and a piano. The ceiling in the main building is low and it feels as if the whole pub has somehow sunk below ground level over the years. There are four hand pumps.
(Visited 7 January 2012).
“ |
| 64 /100 Rose and Crown (Bar) 14 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “A great little pub if you are local, but not worth the trek if you are not. During the summer the back patio is great, and during the winter my wife and I like to sit in the front room next to fireplace and watch the time pass. It is especially cozy when it snows. Beer options are very limited, but Shotover Scholar became a regular which is a solid beer. The two other beers on tap are generally Old Hooky and Adnams.“ |
| 90 /100 Rose and Crown (Bar) 14 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “The best boozer in Oxford! It is an old school pub as silktork correctly describes, a throwback to proper pubs with beer served in jugs, an ancient till and an eccentric landlord. This place has so much charm, it really suits Oxford. The draft beers like Marsdens, Addnams, Landlord, etc are always well kept and excellently poured, either by Andrew himself, his wife or the regular Polish? barmaids. I am not sure he even stocks lager. The English pub food is well cooked by a Nepalese lad, and the banter around the bar various. There is even a swear box which is taken very seriously and I believe a mobile phone ban too. An excellent pub taking beer back to its well groomed roots. The back garden is a great bonus in the summer too and the Sunday roast great value. It’s a pity the managed pub / brewery chains are forcing the more traditional independents out.“ |
| 50 /100 Harcourt Arms (Fuller’s) (Bar) CRANHAM TERRACE “Crowded on a Friday night. Not far from the Bookbinders which I would choose. But bartender’s haircut is worth a detour.“ |
| 70 /100 17-18 VICTOR STREET “Traditional English pub. Quite spacious. Loud and but not hopelessly crowded on Friday night. 5 casks. Worth a detour.“ |
| 78 /100 Grog Shop (Beer Store) 13 KINGSTON ROAD “Visited on a quiet Sunday afternoon in January, this is one of the better beer shops you’ll find in the county. Just a couple aisles of booze and some of food items, this poky little tuck-like shop packs a lot in. Dozens of Belgian and other continental offerings, and dozens more of local finds from Hook Norton, Vale, Ridley’s, and others like Marston’s and Adnams. I always find new ratings here, plus apparently if you place an order in advance, they’ll try to get in anything you want from anywhere in England. Very cool! The guy working there usually knows what’s new (he stopped me from buying an old bottle) and just you wander about with a basket. It’s a souped up convenience store, really. Absolutely worth the visit if you’re in town.“ |
| 52 /100 Harcourt Arms (Fuller’s) (Bar) CRANHAM TERRACE “Competent pub grub. I hope they still have the bar billiards table too. Not a great selection of beers, but always served well in my experience. Saved me from many a hangover when I was a student drinking too much crap.“ |
| 58 /100 Rose and Crown (Bar) 14 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “A 70s throwback - beer served in jugs, pickled eggs and onions on the bar. Genuine old fashioned back street boozer and great for it.“ |
| 68 /100 Rose and Crown (Bar) 14 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “ Update cycled into Oxford Sunday 3rd August 2014 This place changes little and guess that is a large part of its appeal and charm. Old, small, dark and very traditional. Beer choice still a limited but Cotleigh Old Contemptibles (a WW1 commerative beer I guess) was a new one on me. Good, knowledgable staff nice covered back garden. A very slightly shabby look out back. Well worth a visit. I’ve up my mark slightly from my 2007 rating (see below) 68 now
We visited July 19th 2007 One of the most consistent and better pubs close’ish’ to the centre of Oxford. Quirky pub in respect of the layout, I always tend to walk through and sit in the covered back yard area. Beer is good but range usually quite familiar to most of us. Score 60 “ |
| 66 /100 Harcourt Arms (Fuller’s) (Bar) CRANHAM TERRACE “As tied real estate goes, I’m fairly happy to find myself in a Fuller’s pub, and I do quite like this one. A fire in the cold months, interesting locals, a slightly surly barman. This pub has something unpretentiously real about it that I find comforting. A worthwhile stop, but don’t miss the Gardeners Arms while you are in the neighborhood.“ |
| 62 /100 Rose and Crown (Bar) 14 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “I haven’t really tried the food, but Rose & Crown is my favorite Oxford spot for a pint of Old Hooky, which is a regular. A couple of Adnams beers on most of the time too. So pretty limited on selection, but what they have has been in consistently good shape. Nice quiet tables in the garden out back. Pistachio nuts available by the pint or half. Nice place for a bit of quiet talk.“ |
| 62 /100 Rose and Crown (Bar) 14 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “I enjoyed this pub. The faculty hang-out for St. Clare’s college, so it was forbidden for me. But, I snuck in and had pint of cider, which was not always an item found in other pubs. Nice heated covered patio in the rear, with booths and plants that make a very nice spot to bring a date or your friends for a pint. One plus for this place is that students do not venture here, or at least in large numbers, so the age group in this pub is older. A mature and charming spot.“ |
| 64 /100 Rose and Crown (Bar) 14 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “Felt very lucky to have a local (Tom of Oxfordbottledbeer) to guide me here and help select a few good ales. We found a spot in the covered courtyard. Even in the chill and rain of November it was fine sitting out w/ the fires going and all the locals having a good chat. Wish I was there right now.“ |
| 54 /100 Rose and Crown (Bar) 14 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “There is a place for this pub in Oxford but it is not one of my favorites for beer. North Parade is a cute street with shops--difficult to park, even difficult to park my bicycle!--and the R&C has two things going for it: 1) the back patio, which is decrepit but comfortable because of the heaters, and 2) the meals--they have a "sausage of the day" with mash and gravy that is pretty tasty and reasonably affordable. But the beer is unexceptional--no selection to speak of but for one or two (was it Marston’s Pedigree lately?). Good for a bite to eat but not a deserving stop on a beer tour.“ |
| 64 /100 Rose and Crown (Bar) 14 NORTH PARADE AVENUE “Number 7 on the Oxford Centre Pub Crawl, but one look at the map will tell you that this isn't quite the centre. This is true but it is easily walkable, even at this stage of the tour, and buses pass on the Banbury and Woodstock roads. The real reason for coming here, apart from the beer quality, is it is a rare example of a surviving corridor pub, where small rooms lead off from a main corridor which is also a drinking area. The patio area is covered and popular with plenty of heaters for cooler evenings. Loads of character in either room, it is a great place for a chat with locals.“ |
