Ivy Oxford Review

Decent place for a nice dinner. Good menu, service was also pretty good. No faults really

Excellent drinks and lovely ambience in a beautiful building.

Superb food in a beautiful setting. Great service and the toilet's are stunning!

The food was atrocious. Super bland and one of the appetisers even had watermelon seeds. Also, we had the soup but had to pay 4.25 quid for the bread.

So 1 star for the environment, 1 star for the great maitre d service and 1 star for the very nice manager who comp'ed us for the two non-edible meals.

This place is nicely decorated and has a cosy atmosphere. The menu seems a bit boring and uninspired. Nevertheless we found some dishes. Well, the bang bang salad, or whatever they call it, was a bit dry. The minute steak was delicious but the accompanying chips were too salty. The duck salad was nice but also a bit dry. The blackened cod was very nice and tasty. The choices of wine by the glass is limited to the house wine which is a bit pricy and frankly not that tasty. The service was just alright. Our waiter was inattentive and rudely kept calling us "guys" in the modern fashion. For a restaurant with such pretence that is quite a surprise. When we wanted to pay we were not given the option to decide on how much tip to give: it was either a hefty 12.5% or nothing. Again, it is a bit of a ridiculous system for such a place. In short, go there once or maybe very occasionally; but we certainly shall not be rushing back there. However, the hand santitiser they provide on each table smells absolutely gorgeous!!

A very nice meal and such a great evening. Amazing staff great food

Beautifully decorated. The pink toilet is a must visit just to appreciate the design.

Food was average. Our of 5 staff we interact with, 1 was impressive, friendly and know her staff, 1 was clueless, but confident - insisted that the hot chocolate she served was a latte.

Value for money.

Would definitely recommend it to anyone.

Had a great evening with friends and our waitress was excellent. The food was delicious!!

I ate here on 19/08/20, and would not recommend it to anyone. The first thing you need to know about The Ivy is that the 12.5% service charge (added to the bill automatically, and paid by every customer who doesn t wish to look tight) is More

Beautiful building and stunning interior, this place is a feast for the eyes and the attention to detail is faultless.
Enjoyed my breakfast here. Staff friendly and attentive. Will definitely be returning.

Lovely atmosphere, fantastic food, attentive staff

Fantastic environment. The staff delivered great customer service. This is a new fine dinning in Oxford and it s best to book a table before hand. When we arrived there were few tables available but by the time we left the place was buzzing. The space was well designed and the decor is really nice, they didn t spare any costs, even the toilets look superb, but that s to expect from the Ivy, given it s reputation.

Went for a date night with my partner and had such a wonderful night! The food was really nice, my partner ordered a filet steak and he says it was one of the best ones he had in Oxford. They also have a really good choice of both wines and cocktails. The service was phenomenal, Eva served us and she was so attentive and lovely. It is a bit of a high budget place but so worth it! Strongly recommend it for a special night. Will definitely be back.

This place is the business ... The interior is excellent ... The kippers are to die for ... The whole breakfast was a real treat

Best food at this level I have ever had. I had onion soup and half a chicken which was delicious. My wife had the salmon, which again was superb. Service superb - very attentive. I recommend this restaurant, which is a cut above most of its type and only marginally more expensive. Only slight reservation is background music, but this gives a buzz which is not aimed at my more mature age group!

What a wonderful weekend brunch. Came here for the second time and wasn't a bit disappointed. The decor is beautiful, the menu varied, the food tastes amazing and the service was second to none. Thank you for such a lovely time, we will definitely be back.

I have already dined here three times since its opening in early November 2019. Lovely, well-trained staff; great food: and finally somewhere in Oxford that feels 'special'. I hope they manage to fend off diners whose children put their feet on the beautifully upholstered seating, and preserve the high end feel of the restaurant area. Also, fussy and entitled diners who expect a production kitchen to cater to extreme dietary demands with no notice. Upstairs, the restrooms are spotlessly clean and glamorous. The bar is pretty and nicely lit, with a great range of drinks. I recommend this to anyone appreciative of ambience and elegance. If not, there are plenty of ordinary places to go in Oxford.

Food was lovely, particularly the muso chicken and barley salad, good service.

The food was lovely, the staff were excellent but the music was just too loud and not really needed. It wasn't at all fitting with the ambience of the restaurant. Looking around, I could see 1930s style and elegance with a modern twist but the music that was being belted out was Saturday night rave stuff ! We asked for it to be turned down a little and it was but it was still too loud. I wouldn't fancy having an afternoon tea whilst listening to that ! Everyone has to shout to be heard above it, which makes the place very noisy indeed. I would've given 5 stars otherwise !

Greeted by great staff and taken to the bar for pre-dinner drinks.
The bar staff were really chatty and friendly and mixed us some great cocktails!
The restaurant was very busy and buzzy.
The decor reflects the Botanical gardens in Oxford and the artwork throughout the building was beautiful.
Great menu, with plenty of choices. Lovely food as always from the Ivy brand.
Enjoyed the evening and will return to this restaurant.

A good restaurant in the middle of Oxford, with only one other restaurant to compete with it just along the road. Service a little slow during my visit as it was busy.

Had lunch here yesterday with a friend and we were really impressed. Very warm welcome upon arrival. Decor is just stunning, staff attentive and service was quick and flawless. We chose from the set menu which is very reasonably priced and delicious. Definitely worth a visit.

Beautiful restaurant, amazing serving and very nice food.

Cool atmosphere and vibrant decor, food is good but nothing to shout about and perhaps a little overpriced, aside from the desserts which are excellent.

Disappointed with the food. Service was pretty ordinary.

Ah The Ivy, only opened a few months ago & we were very impressed, think its an old Bank building & its got it all., Decor, Atmosphere, Food & A Team thats On The Ball. Great Menu Choice & our table of 4 had no complaints at all, Very Very Nice!! Book A Table as soon as you can. Definitely the Oxford Dining Venue to frequent.

Lovely Art Deco interior coupled with very well done and reasonably priced food! Very friendly service :) Will absolutely be returning!

There are better restaurants in this class in Oxford city centre, that may not have the trendy factor, but are better value for money, and have better service.
The experience of dining at The Ivy generally lived up to the (significant) hype. It is stylish, spotless, and well-managed, with the level of service that you would expect from a prestige chain. However, it did feel a little like a soft open, with the details not quite worked out yet. The food was just fair, with some dishes overseasoned, overcooked steak (despite asking for 'pink'), and lukewarm soup.
The biggest drawback was the individual service from our waiter, who was responsive, professional, and followed all foodservice etiquette, but screwed up our order in several ways. The wrong starter was brought to one of our group, then one of the steaks was delivered as well-done, despite clearly ordering pink (the other steaks were overcooked 'pink', this was a chewy well-done), and a side order was forgotten.
We were also disappointed to see that social distancing was not observed very well. Yes, they take your temperature at the door, and there is anti-bacterial spray on the tables. But unlike other restaurants, tables were still very close together, no dividers were up between them, and the staff were not wearing masks.

Nice smart place in the middle of the pub buzz in Oxford. Perfect for a posh drink at the bar

The experience of eating at the Ivy has been spoken about so much I was afraid it wouldn't live up to the hype, but boy was I wrong.

Lovely selections on the menu and staff who will take the time to ensure you've made the right choice make this place easy to recommend to anyone. It's a bit pricey, but the food looks gorgeous and tastes even better, so once in a while I'd say it's completely worth the money! I'd recommend an Irish coffee here at any time of the day.

We celebrated our golden wedding with our family. The food was good and the staff were brilliant

Situated in the old Coutts bank building, this is absolutely the best place for The Ivy in Oxford. We booked up early to beat the rush and you will do well to plan your visit; it's busy!



As I say, minor points (probably just teething issues), but I expect more, and it's always delivered at the other Ivys, hence the 4.

Good food, if you usually like The Ivy, you'll be pleased with this one too!

Spoilt. Best restaurant in Oxford. Look no further. Such character and charm. Perfect customer service. Thank you

Nice ambience however saying we had less than 1 hour didn t make us feel like a valued customer they obviously had to ignore this when our mains came out at the hour mark. My main did come out cold which I complained about and they replaced without hesitation and removed from bill. The food was honestly lovely and would look past the few hick ups considering it!

Had a nice meal but overall I was very disappointed. For the amount they charge for the food I was expecting a higher caliber of meal but it was pretty standard. The decor is lovely and would love to go in again for a drink but that's about it.

Average overpriced food and drinks. Below average service. Good setting. Although you book, you still have to wait outside in the rain for 45min to get in.

I was very excited about our visit here. We arrived and it felt special. The staff were attentive and pleasant. We ordered a cocktail and sat at our table. By the time our drinks arrived so had our starters! Hmmmm a cocktail with a starter, not a great combination. We then ordered wine with our meal, our meal again arrived very quickly but no wine! It arrived as we were finishing. Very disappointing. It felt very rushed, in and out as quickly as possible! The food was lovely but served too quickly, and the wine was just too slow. I would have liked wine with my meal not after. Such a shame.

The first impression was very good. Nice meet and greet, temperature check and hand sanitisation before entering.

Very courteous waitress. Sadly, the staff serving food were not wearing face masks.

The waiter who took our order was a disgrace, wearing a black suit and a white shirt which was too small for him, and a black tie holding the collar together - not what I would expect at The Ivy.

Starter of battered prawns and squid, very nice, would have preferred a larger portion.

When these dishes were cleared I asked for a 175 ml merlot - this didn t arrive - had to call the waiter and ask her to sort it out.

Sirloin steak medium rare (pink) with thick-cut chips and peppercorn sauce ordered.

The steak was rare at best if I had a defibrillator it could have been revived. - see photo The chips were either overcooked or warmed up many times, they were crispy and rock hard in places - see photo. The chips should never have left the kitchen. The peppercorn sauce was Luke warm at best.

The salt seller aperture was all bunged up, to get salt out I had to remove the top.

During the course of our meal, no one came to ask if everything was ok, the staff were very busy with other tables.

When our plates were cleared we were asked if everything was ok, issues were raised. Someone came to our table and said she agreed the steak was not medium-rare.

For the price of this meal, I expect a meal of better quality than we received.

The day we visited was the day the UK government reduced vat for a meal to 5% - The Ivy was not passing this saving on to customers.

When The Ivy is making an extra 12.5% on the meal, a service charge is very rude and then wants 12.5% service charge - STOP BEING GREEDY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As a first meal out since the lockdown, this meal was a great disappointment and waste of our pension.

We were given a complimentary dessert and chose the Chocolate Bomb - it was superb - but it did not compensate for the poorly cooked steak and overcooked chips.

Most of our food was good, but the lobster pasta was completely flavorless. 4 stars for the absolutely beautiful restaurant and great service.

Despite being a chain (albeit a well-established one), our experience smacked of a high end independent eatery. The service was excellent - one of our party had specific dietary requirements and the waiter went out of his way to explain the dishes and make recommendations based on her needs.

It was busy but the maitre de got our temperatures checked, booking confirmed and seated in an efficient and courteous manner.

Great decor, service and food. Has a wonderful atmosphere.

Very disappointed. We ve been twice with my girlfriend to just get a quick drink at the bar and both times they ve told us we couldn t whilst the bar was relatively empty. I won t try it a third time. Hostess was polite. A shame we can t enjoy the place as it looks nice.

Fantastic food and restaurant staff front of house not very nice when we arrived but once inside really good

I visited this exquisite looking restaurant last Friday and my experience was great!



On arrival, we were ushered to our table which was beautifully laid out.

The decor was absolutely fantastic and the setting was beautiful

Temperature checks available at the entrance before you are allowed into the restaurant, the staff at reception were warm and professional, our waiter was nice but forgot a few things which I would like to associate to tiredness

The food was good, nothing fancy, just simple and nice regular English menu but the dessert blew us away absolutely loved the creme brulee and chocolate bomb

The bathrooms were clean and we loved the wall papers, ambience was excellent!

Pricing was good for what you get and no crazy service charge

The food waiting time was abit spaced, food came out warm but we guess it was because they brought everyone's food out at the same time, could be hotter

We were given complimentary hand sanitisers on our way out which was really nice of them (these were also laced on the table throughout the meal)

In all, it was a lovely night out

Thanks to you guys for your hard work

Eaten in a fair few places since the pandemic situation and none as good as Oxfords Ivy!
The service was absolutely impeccable, with amazing staff.
Honestly the cleanliness and organisation was next level. I was extremely impressed.
If only every other restaurant followed suit.
The restaurant was packed but this unilke other places did not affect the the level of service recieved!

My steak was absolutely spot on.
I've not long lived in Oxford, and used the Brighton Ivy often.
The Oxford one smashes the Brighton one out the water!!

Nice looking decor, comfortable seating, efficient staff... and then the food arrived ! Omg looked good, tastes full of flavour, portion size was slightly on the small size but an amazing experience.

Fantastic atmosphere , food was amazing and staff were very friendly and helpful a lovely 1st experience at the Ivy

I went there with a friend for afternoon tea but unfortunately we forgot to check the times and we were 1 hour early! We ordered some starters and drinks what was lovely. So the afternoon tea starts at 3pm and they didn't let us order not even 15 min before !! We needed to wait exactly till 3pm ! what can we do.. but was just 15 min! After 45 min I asked if it's normal to wait so long for afternoon tea and they immediately apologized and 15 min after the food arrived! The staff who came to us was lovely and make a big discount at the end what I didn't expect! Thank you so much for that! About the person who was serving us can't say much, never apologized or anything and during that hour was always looking to us without any action... we could prevent all of that.. I will be back of course it's a new place so it's normal, mistakes happen.

We didn't eat here, but if it's a great atmosphere with excellent staff and awesome cocktails, you can't go far wrong.



It's The Ivy, darling, it's bound to be good!

Such a lovely staff! We felt like home ! We were looking to have a nice coffee and they recommended us the Vanilla shakerato, a beautiful Espresso shaken with ice, served in a martini glass such a glorious drink! Felt very fresh ! Definitely we will return

It's new. They are settling in. The service was a bit off and the menus a bit formulaic but pricing ok. Drinks are crazy as everywhere. 10/10 for trying to get it right but overall not 5* yet.

I visited the Ivy last weekend and absolutely loved the experience! From the moment you come through the door, you are met with wonderful service. There is a handy cloakroom to use free of charge so you don't have to sit with coats surrounding you as you eat. The decor is stunning and so interesting to look at! I love that there are bits of Oxford woven into the decor too and all of the plants.

The staff were fantastic throughout our breakfast and all went above and beyond to make sure that we had everything we needed. This is the kind of service worth paying a service charge for!

The food was great. We both agreed that it was probably the best eggs benedict/royale we'd had in a long time and we shared the delicious pancakes too. Tea is served in lovely heavy silver pots and has plenty for at least 3 cups.

You should also definitely pay a visit to the ladies' toilets - as far as bathrooms go, this is beautiful!

Thank you for a lovely birthday treat - I have already booked to come back in January!

Pleasant visit but besides the decor, nothing to blow us away. The interior design is 5*, all the staff look the part, the bar looks the part. However the food and service was lackluster. Pleasant enough but we both felt it was overpriced. Our waiter also paid little attention to a gluten allergy and bought out food with items of gluten on and suggested removing the item rather than replacing the dish.

Beautiful decor, friendly & attentive staff, temperature check & hand sanitiser before you enter the restaurant. The food was delicious. We chose from the set menu. The choices were good & varied & the atmosphere was just right. We are already planning our return.

Top notch. Great service, cracking food, all six of us thoroughly enjoyed.

Awesome food. And they really made my wedding anniversary special

The food servings were exactly the right size (most places get this wrong). The service was excellent...the waiters were considerate , friendly and polite, without being intrusive. Love the decor and the music was good too. Being there was a total pleasure.

The food was good and the decor was lovely. But what made the experience was the superb service from Daniel! He went above and beyond to ensure that our experience was exceptional. He gladly shared fun insights into the restaurant which made us appreciate it more and notice new details. He is what made this evening into a memorable place that we will no doubt return to at a later date.

Excellent restaurant, good menu, good staff an absolute experience in wonderful surroundings. Well worth a visit for a special occasion.

had fhe 3course set menu. excellent service & ambience. starter& pudding memorable. steak was ok but serving it with egg I would ? wine was excellent. would highly recommend.

Have visited a few times. The food has been fantastic, very tasty. Unfortunately the service can be very slow. E.g 30 mins for desert and 25 mins to pay bill (after receiving bill).
For the high prices I'd expect better.

Had the best ever Steak. Nice environment. Beautiful atmosphere

Beautiful place, very good food, but very expensive

Great food, lovely ambience and decor. Staff attentive and made a birthday night extra special!

Excellent! There are no words to describe my experience in this restaurant, I went there for my niece's birthday celebration and it was a divine experience. The restaurant is beautiful, the staff is super efficient, friendly and polite. Loved every bite! Hope to be back soon.

Had our first experience of the Oxford Ivy last night for our anniversary. We had a table for two booked for dinner at 7pm. By that time on a Saturday night the restaurant was obviously humming already. The Ivy is a classy place, very grown up with a nice ambience. There was a live DJ playing the subtle background music and the bar had a good throng of people drinking cocktails. I ordered the duck curry that was mild and tasty, my wife had the salmon. Both dishes were of high quality (rather than huge quantity) but we came away satisfied and wanting to return to sample others dishes. The deserts were actually larger than we expected. Prices are high end for Oxford but justified by the Ivy name and quality of the establishment.

Amazing decor. Trendy vibe and food was just amazing. Staff extremely professional, they were there if needed but not intrusive.
Excellent. Will definitely return.

I refrained posting a review until I had gone a second time as a new restaurant can have its issues. I also took different people this time too.

Where do I start? Having been a fan of the Ivy and also the Brasseries in London I know what to expect and sadly this falls well short. I cannot understand how others have given the restaurant more than 1 or 2 stars.

Firstly there are many staff in hand who just mill around who clearly are not trained to serve and are just not attentive. There seems to be no ownership of a table having been visited on the first visit by no less than 6 different staff and the secondly occasion by 3. So guess what the person who takes the order delivers food that wasn t ordered.

Now to the kitchen where the real issues are. Very poor in getting food out on time. The average wait now is about an hour for food and when it does come it s not all hot and one person is likely to wait for theirs. Apparently food is shipped in prepared centrally and someone heats and plates it. So god knows what and how the kitchen works. So for example don t think you are going to get chips as these will just arrive inedible and cold. The staff know and are quite embarrassed by it.

I want this to succeed as Oxford needs a good place but the launch has been fraught. So if you try and book say through Open Table it will appear you can t get one. But I think this is deliberate at the moment as they just are not functioning so reduce the tables they can serve. But sadly this has not helped.

So while I hope it gets better just be aware that at the moment it really is not professional at all and if it s a special occasion chose somewhere else. Having voiced this to friends I am not alone in my experience.

So Ivy OXFORD up your game!

Service was not great. Removing plates before we had even finished chewing our food made everything feel very rushed. Food was great, but not exceptional.

Beautiful place. Food was delicious and service was good.
Can't wait to vusit again.

Amazing food and the service was excellent. A really good evening

Lovely food in a nice setting. Bit more expensive than your average high street place but very good. The chocolate bomb is delicious!