James Street Tavern

Jolly nice place with good beer, friendly folk and lots of hops about the place.

Patrick Vale (DI Reviewer), 12/03/13

A truly lovely pub just off the Cowley Road; James Street Tavern is homely and quite frankly a brilliant place to relax.

A superb range of ales and ciders and friendly staff complete what is a proper decent experience.

Sadly the excellent chef left recently, and due to a kitchen flood food was not being served. The hiatus is over though and food is back on the menu - though not on a Monday. Food times can be a little random and the new menu does not offer a huge amount of choice.

On a recent visit my partner and I ate calamari, which was delicious, though had been put through a lot of salt which though I like, others may not.

For mains we both had the special burger which randomly comes with a slice of pineapple and a slice of beetroot as toppings. It actually works and again was most delicious.

Not pretentious nor too rowdy, this is one of the best pubs in Oxford. Awesome. Oh, a real fire too!

Service: 5/5

Value: 5/5

Venue: 5/5

Food: 5/5

Total: 20/20

BarntheBarn (DI User), 08/03/13

Had lunch at the James St Tavern today after a snowy walk. There was a lovely fire going, a great welcome, and amazing food. The scotch egg is really worth trying. It's all very well-priced too. Really recommend it.

vocallocal (Unverified), 20/01/13

I recently organised a group social event at The James Street Tavern and found the staff to be very welcoming and accomodating with our various requests. The pub was the perfect location for our social and the event was very succesful. The drink selection was fantastic and apparently they are soon to be opening the kitchen again. Looking forward to future social events at The James Street Tavern and maybe even some meals too.

Anon24/10/12

To sum it up, the James Street Tavern is a traditional English pub with an outstanding selection of real ales.

My wife and I came across it by accident on our journey through Cowley Road, and were more than pleasantly surprised by the welcoming and homely feel of the tavern. The bar staff greeted us warmly and offered us samples of their vast selection of ales, and we were pleased to discover that it had a private beer garden away from the hustle and bustle of the road.

We would definitely come back, especially for the Open Mic night that was starting as we left for dinner.

Definitely worth a visit or three!

BenSmithe (Unverified), 14/08/12

We stumbled across this pub by chance and found a gem, just off Cowley Road. We were after a meal and quiet drink and that's what we got. We both had the Sunday Lunch which was fantastic and only £7.50. What more can you ask for? The meat was tender, plenty of veg, potatoes and roasts: a really enjoyable meal and drinks. Will be back soon to sample the weekly menu .

captinjack (Unverified), 29/11/11

So, new management, new salubrious atmosphere, new menu. We went last night as a party of four, three of whom were tourists from Barcelona seeking a bit of traditional Englishness.

The most salient fact you need is that there is a meal deal whereby you get two mains and two drinks (pint, wine, soft, all normal options) for £14. So in this case four people had a meal with two shared desserts and a pint each for a grand total of £34.48. Not bad. Look out also for leaflets which offer a general 10% off food.

The menu is an interesting mixture of traditional and adventurous. Burgers and Macaroni Cheese and Lasagna rub shoulders with Curried Goat and alarming South African sausages. All prepared on the premises, several vegetarian options, and a general sense of people eager to please.

We had one Zappa Burger, one Lamb Burger, one Greek Salad and one Curried Goat. (I wasn't allowed the All Day Breakfast. Looks good though - both chips and toast included). Both burger eaters said that they were good, but a little dry. It must be mentioned, though that being from Barcelona, they have not the first notion of the theory or practice of ketchup, smearing mayonnaise on their huge chips and generally carrying on continental style.

The Curried Goat was simple, good, not too spicy, and the Greek Salad looked fine - a bit more side bread than it really needed.

Highlight was the Chocolate Sundaes (£3.60) a really big glass of cream and ice-cream and brownie. Even half of one was satisfactory.

In short, nothing extraordinary, but honest food at a very good price and extremely polite and helpful service. They deserve more custom, even on a dank Tuesday evening.

Ian Threadgill (Unverified), 08/07/09

The James Street Tavern has just been taken over by new landlords and has been completely refurbed. Looks amazing! Great music on the jukebox, very big beer garden and drinks, service and food are great too.

Zap lover (DI User), 14/04/09

Good pub with proper pub atmos. Is a little pokey and getting served is difficult if the small bar area is busy but there's a good atmos thanks to a mix of students and some colourful locals. Pool table dominates bar on right meaning seating is at a premium. Great deals on food/drink combos at lunch-times.

Joe B (Unverified), 14/03/07

I think the James Street is really good. Went there with a load of student mates tonight and found them really friendly and could really relax. It's got a laid back atmosphere and plays good music and makes a wicked fry up at the weekends!!!!

johno (Unverified), 29/11/06