RestaurantsOxfordshireOxfordOX1

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11 - 12 Little Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX1 2HP

Harden's says

A 'hyper environmental' seasonal restaurant, wine bar and wine shop in the upmarket Jericho area.

survey result

Summary

£60
  £££
3
Good
4
Very Good
4
Very Good
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

Wine expert Kent Barker’s two-year-old wine bar/restaurant has a sharp focus on ethical sourcing and sustainability, with more than 400 mainly biodynamic wines available – “a wide range by the glass” and in “brilliant small taster measures”, with “very knowledgeable staff to guide you through”. The cooking was already rated “very reliable”, but should have gone up a notch since our survey with the installation of a new kitchen and chef’s table last autumn, accompanied by the appointment of Ben Wood as head chef.

Summary

£57
   ££
3
Good
4
Very Good
3
Good
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

This “independent & affordable” restaurant, wine bar and vintner in Jericho makes a “very welcome addition to the Oxford food & drink scene”. With more than 400 vintages available, wine is very much the star of the show, backed up by “very knowledgeable staff” and a “friendly ambience”. There are also branches in Salisbury and Frome.

Summary

£31
    £
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

This ‘hyper environmental’ seasonal restaurant, wine bar and wine shop launched in Jericho in May 2021, taking over a former Café Rouge with 90 covers and a large terrace. Very early reports are hard to read (hence no rating) but the wine list seems an undoubted attraction (and there are over 400 vintages available in the adjoining shop). It also has a sibling in Salisbury and sister business in Frome.

For 33 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).

Have you eaten at Wilding?

What the Newspaper Critics are saying

The Times

Giles lunched at “Wilding, a big, mazey restaurant that used to be a Café Rouge and before that a Dome, where my friend Catherine Kenyatta, granddaughter of the liberator of Kenya, used to work, back in our Bumwiddle days.”


There was no doubt, Giles said, that it was “the best restaurant in Bumwiddle”, but he was more exercised by the tortuous mark-up process by which “in the end I stupidly paid £140 for a 2013 Grand-Puy-Lacoste that I now know you can get for £60 at Majestic or £39 from Bordeaux Index”.

Giles Coren - 2024-03-10

Prices

Availability 2 courses 3 courses coffee included service included
Lunch £19.50 £23.00

Traditional European menu

Starter Main Veggies Pudding
£8.50 £20.50 £4.00 £6.00
Drinks  
Wine per bottle £22.00
Filter Coffee £3.50
Extras  
Service 12.50%

Restaurant details

Highchair,Menu
Yes
14
No dress code
11 - 12 Little Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX1 2HP
Opening hours
Monday12 pm‑11 pm
Tuesday12 pm‑11 pm
Wednesday12 pm‑11 pm
Thursday12 pm‑11 pm
Friday12 pm‑11 pm
Saturday12 pm‑11 pm
Sunday12 pm‑7 pm

The 2025 Harden's Guide

2025 Hardens London Restaurant Guide

"User friendly in price, size and outlook"

Financial Times