For fans of BBQ, Oxford can often prove slim pickings. The city lacks a good smokehouse or provider of exemplary barbecued meats. And yet nestled in the depths of the Ozxone Leisure Park is The Ridge, a bar and grill that proved a surprisingly effective provider of good quality BBQ.

There is a friendly vibe to The Ridge, with approachable, warm staff, cool, graffiti-tinged cartoons on the wall and a welcoming approach to families. The restaurant offers a number of deals, from buy one get one free burgers on Monday, to children eating for £1 during the half term week we visited. It's nice for an establishment to be so accessible for families without losing too much of its identity along the way.

The Ridge offers all kinds of grilled treats, with an exemplary roster of burgers as well as nachos, mac 'n' cheese and hot dogs. But my partner and I felt the best way to test what was on offer was to go one of the Tap Out Platters, specifically The Meat One. This consisted of baby back ribs, beef brisket, wings, chicken strips, and pulled pork, with fries, corn on the cob and mac 'n' cheese, and promised to fulfill my craving for barbecued meat. We added fried halloumi and onion rings as sides and were set for a feast. The food proved flavoursome, with the ribs and brisket particularly standing out as something I'd have again. The platter was packed with food, but not so much as to overwhelm us. The only downside for me were the sides, with the onions proving somewhat disappointing and lacking in filling, whilst the halloumi wasn't as piping hot as I hoped it might be. But the meal itself was a satisfying one, packed with some heavenly grilled meat.

Although our shared platter (plus a rather scrumptious Malteser milkshake to start) had defeated me, my companion had just enough room to sample the desserts. Sadly The Ridge were all out of cheesecake, so they went for an ice cream sundae, with a fruit fool topping (mixed berries and raspberry sauce). This proved a suitably approachable pudding after the excess of our mains, with the berries proving a sharp relief to the sweet sauce, perfectly balancing the course. The Ridge offers excess but also something light for those seeking it.

The Ridge may very well be the best destination for food at the Ozone Leisure Park, offering approachable food in a comfortable dining space, successfully managing to balance family friendly touches with a setting suitable for adult diners. It's not perfect, but as a stop-gap for food around a game of golf, bowling or a trip to the cinema, it does exactly what it needs to do.