Paddyfield

We were in town shopping, looking for a city centre restaurant, but all were full so we kept walking until we arrived outside Paddyfield. So we went in, sat down and had a glass of wine...now, I have to be careful here as the family know me very well as we eat often at their sister restaurant the Lan Kwai Fong, which is very good so it might be difficult to compare...! But: lunch arrived, good food as always, maybe not up to the excellent Lan Kwai standard but still good. And the price - wow, that's why it was busy: the bill arrived and we wondered if they had made a mistake! Good food, great prices  - we'll be going again for lunch for sure.

Chef Henri (Unverified), 27/01/11

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Absolutely excellent meal, throughly enjoyed the experience and so did my guests. Normally Saturday nights are a bad time to go out in Oxford as everywhere seemed to be busy, and service is often very slow. Not at Paddyfields, the waiting staff was very friendly, polite and professional.

There were eight of us, and having not booked a table, i thought the chances of getting a table would be slim as they seem very busy. But the manager notified us a table was leaving soon and quickly arranged the table as soon as they left. We order drinks immediately, and they didn't take long to arrive. They have an impressive range of non alcoholic drinks of fresh fruit juices and Iced teas and coffees. We had great fun trying the different varieties of Fruit Iced Drinks, the favourite was Fresh Strawberry and Fresh Indian Mango.

Not wanting to waste time going through the impressive menu which has over 200 items, we choose the Leave It To Us Feast, which left the menu for the kitchen to decide. However we didn't make it easy for them, as we all had a different diet request. The manager who spoke perfect English and didn't sound Chinese at all, was very knowledgable and very patient, even asked if anybody had any allergies, which isn't often asked in other restaurants.

Our starter of Mixed Hors D'oeuvres contained Spare Ribs Chicken Wings Spring Rolls Satay Chicken and Crispy Seaweed. They even fried the items in a cripsy coating of Cornflour instead of plain flour as one of my guests was wheat intolerant. The Dim Sum Hors D'oeuvres was absolutely divine, on par with the best in Hong Kong.

Second course was the Crispy Duck, and they don't skimp on the portion size here, we were given a whole duck. We had our bamboo steamer of pancakes topped up regularly by the attentive staff. The manager gave my wheat intolerant friend some crisp Lettuce leaves to use instead of pancakes, he loved it and it was the first time he didn't have to sit and watch others enjoy crispy duck.

The main course dishes were excellently selected, containing a good mixture of different flavours from different regions in China. Our favourites was the Sichuan Spicy Lamb, the Beijing braised aubergine and the sizzling Beef in Black pepper. All the dishes were cooked perfectly and the meat was still very juicy and succulent. Also unknown to a lot of people is that they don't use MSG, which is very rare in a Chinese Restaurant, so credit to them.

We were all absolutely stuffed and feeling very satisfied like we just took a round trip to China. The last amazing thing which finished the evening perfectly, the bill come to roughly £25 per person. Considering the amount of food we got and the excellent service, this was real good value.

Will be recommending this place to all my Friends.

Oxford Happy Eater (Unverified), 15/11/10

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I was very pleasantly surprised by the extraordinary lunch deal that is on offer at Paddyfields: starter, main course (with a mound of egg-fried rice) and a pudding for the price of the main course, all of which came in around the £7 mark! I can’t think of a decent restaurant in Oxford that can even come close to competing with that. My colleague and I ordered the chicken satay and garlic chicken wings to start. The satay consisted of three generous skewers of chicken with a generous topping of peanut sauce and although the chicken was a little dry in places, it was overall a good choice.

The garlic chicken wings (again a portion of three) looked well seasoned and tempting, but, thinking of my main course on its way, with my appetite already dissipating in the heat of the day, I declined the offer to try them. For the main course I chose the monkfish in black bean sauce and my friend, the king prawn in yellow bean sauce. The mountainous portion of egg-fried rice was a little daunting and we both raised our eyebrows in mutual appreciation of the difficulty we were going to face in doing it justice! I have to say, I wasn’t overly impressed with the monkfish: it tasted dry and more ‘fishy’ than it should have done. Still, what can you expect for £6.95? It was probably a bad choice on my part. I also felt that the black bean sauce was too much for the fish as it was very rich and salty. However, the egg-fried rice was delicious and I ended up eating more of it than I had anticipated! My friend’s prawn dish looked pleasant enough and he did a much better job of clearing his plate than I had been able to. Completely stuffed, both of us declined desert.

All in all, I think the lunch deal is a fantastic offer. With regard to a second visit, I think I would choose a much cooler day, I would steer away from the monkfish and would go feeling very, very hungry!

Dr Mukti (DI User), 12/07/10

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I took a party of 12 of us here for a work lunch yesterday and it was really good. We had the "business lunch" where the starter and dessert are included in the price of the main course. All the food was excellent and the service was extremely polite.

I would give this 10/10 if it wasn't for the fact that our server started clearing away the main course before we had all finished eating. I really hate that but maybe that's just me!

Otherwise excellent and would recommend it. We all got entered into a free raffle to win a free one-way flight to Afghanistan as we left. And it wasn't even 1st April :-)

Tony Brett (DI User), 01/04/10

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Haven't been to Paddyfield for years. My friend and I decided to try it on Tuesday night. There were a few other customers in there, but not overly busy. The restaurant was nice and we were served quickly. We both decided to choose the £17.50 per person leave it up to the chef menu. We asked whether we could have the mixed starters, the waitress said we could.

We had mixed starters, duck and pancakes then 4 main dishes with egg fried rice. We had a beef dish, a pork dish, a vegetable dish and a prawn dish, we didn't enjoy the pork dish, and the vegetable dish was a bit boring! The waitress did ask us if there was anything we didn't eat or like which we replied no, I think if I go again and choose the £17.50 menu, I'll tell them no pork or vegetable dishes!!

The service was good and we both enjoyed our meal, our only complaint was that they had the air conditioning was on, they charge a service charge even though there were only 2 of us and I had a Baileys coffee at the end and it wasn't the best Baileys coffee I've had and it cost £4.25!!

PW (Unverified), 30/07/09

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Just writing to say that Paddyfields do some brilliant cakes to order, with sizes up to 31cm x 31cm, and can be customised with a message in English or Chinese. I haven't explored all the flavours possible, but the green tea and red bean paste is delicious!

Y (Unverified), 20/01/09

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We had our Xmas dinner there last night. The restaurant was full soon after we arrived. The food was very good and so was the service. The staff there were very friendly and helpful.

Organic (Unverified), 21/12/07

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Went there today for lunch. The service was very attentive without being overbearing. The food was as good as in the past. The decor has improved.

03/12/07

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I also went there last week and it was not the same. I heard they changed owner and chef.

20/11/07

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Went back here after about a year. Restaurant has changed management and I'm afraid its a step down. My dofu had about 20 chillis in it and was practically inedible (and I like spicy food). The staff were friendly but the service alternated between it being hard to catch a waiter's eye and having enquiries about how the food was when we were in the middle of eating and our conversation (has anyone stopped to think about how uncomfortable that makes diners feel?) Plus we got a hard sell on the plastic dessert menu even though we had just ordered a mooncake. Still v popular by the looks of numbers but no longer my favourite chinese resto in town.

asia (Unverified), 05/10/07

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I had lunch on Monday at Paddyfield. Between three of us, we ordered ten dim sum dishes and were very satisfied. Being semi-vegetarian, we stuck to seafood and veggie dishes. Paddyfield does not cater to vegetarians specifically, as dishes are cooked in pork fat. However, we were willing to overlook that, so there were enough seafood options for us to make a good meal.

The service was very good, with staff pouring tea for us, responding to eye contact immediately, and asking how we were enjoying the food. This may be because it was a relatively quiet meal time.

It worked out at less that £12 per person, including service charge. I would go again.

Joan (Unverified), 10/09/07

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In a city where good food is hard to come by (unless made at home), Paddyfield is one of Oxford's saving graces. They serve what true Chinese food is like: light but filling, tasty but not overpowering. It is a bit draining on the wallet, and the service leaves much to be desired, however, the food is worth it if only to finally feel satisfied in eating out.

M. (Unverified), 29/08/07

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This is best place to go in Oxford for good authentic chinese food and nice friendly waiters and waitress. I have been searching for a good place to eat since studying in Oxford, and this is the only one that can match the best restaurants in Hong Kong. Even in Hong Kong now, I miss the Paddyfields, which is why I am writing this review.

Definitely try the Dim Sum for lunch. I always go for the Har Gow, Wor Tip and the crispy squid and the Beef ho fun noodles. Sunday is the best day to go for the true Chinese Dim Sum experience because of all the noise and the waiters rushing around. It can be a bit slow at the busiest times, but everything is freshly steamed, unlike some other places I have tried. On Sunday you must order the freshly baked Egg Tarts, I always get there late and find it has been sold out.

Evening dinner is really good as well, although a bit expensive if you go with just one or two friends, as I always want to try many different dishes. It is best to go with a big group of friends, as you can order more dishes. The best dish is the roast duck, as every time I tried it, it has been juicy not too much fat and crispy skin. But don't just look at the menu, ask the waiters as they can recommend lots of specials.

Also, ask the waiter/manager to make a cake, as it was the best cake I have had in England, lots of fresh fruit and light sponge. It was for a friend's birthday, and he made it even with such short notice.
I can't believe I am saying this, but I can't wait for university to begin again, not because I miss classes, it is because I want to eat at Paddyfields.

HK happy eater (Unverified), 29/06/07

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Famously known as the only Chinese restaurant that Chinese people actually go to in Oxford, my friend and I went along enthusiastically for a spot of Saturday lunchtime dim sum (I am HK Chinese, my friend an ignorant ‘guilo’). And indeed the restaurant was filled with mainly Chinese people. I could only spot two tables of non-Chinese munching away. The decor was also typically Chinese; a blend of tasteful calligraphy and tacky new year banners. So far so good then.

Dim sum is eaten mainly by Hong Kong Chinese and consists of morsel-sized delicacies ranging from fried squid cakes to steamed custard buns. The idea is to get lots and share, and maybe get some fried rice or noodles at the end to finish off the meal. The menu at Paddyfield’s, which does dim sum from midday to 6pm daily, is rather good, although mainly consisting of traditional dishes (Liaison on Castle Street, on the other hand, like to do a lot of ‘specials’).

My friend and I opted for 6 dishes to share: prawn dumplings, glutinous rice parcels, cheung fun with dough stick, spare ribs in black bean sauce, grilled dumplings, and fried meat and vegetable buns, with the menu ranging from £2.10 to £3.00 for dim sum dishes, and from £5 for rice and noodles. The food was generally of a good standard (and I am an experienced dim sumer!), except for the cheung fun, which had very strange, dense dough stick and a slightly artificial sauce. They were also a bit mean with the meat and vegetable buns; you only get 2 for your money. I would recommend the spare ribs though - they reminded me of my mum's cooking.

The only problem is that the service is a bit poor. The dishes are not supposed to come all at the same time, but then you’re not really supposed to wait 10 minutes between each one either. It was also rather difficult trying to catch a waiter’s eye.

The bill came to £16, which includes tea and tip. Oh, and for that final Chinese touch, the dirty dishes were left piled up in full view of the customers.

Connie Kwok (Unverified), 17/02/03

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