Eat Like Ushi

I didn't expect to eat Chinese food in Oxford, but after failing to get a seat at Oli's Thai, this was on the way back and looked alright filled with all mainland Chinese students.

Although some dishes are cheap, the one that interested me the most was Xinjiang Dapanji stewed chicken with potato and handmade noodles in spicy sauce £14.8. For the price it should and could definitely feed 2. However there seemed little point on getting some leftover takeaway and so on this occasion it fed 1 well. It was ok overall, the chicken had a lot of bones and the flavour didn't seem too unique. It could have had more chilli. The noodles were quite good though.

My flatmate from Xinjiang said the dish is traditional, although the fable may not be. I guess it makes a good story regardless.

I wouldn't order it again (from there). But I'm sure there are other things I would try next time.

I have to admit the service was excellent. I thought I left my book in the restaurant and the manager checked the place after closing at about 1130pm to look for me. I can only express appreciation for that.

I wandered past this bakery on the way to a curry dinner and it looked interesting. I have a fondness for middle eastern food and seeing the sweet desserts on the counter meant a mental note to return. A few evenings later I made the trek to have some dinner and peacefully read a book. The owner from Palestine was serving was very friendly and took interest in explaining some menu items to me.

Naturally being a bakery with their own oven, the mannakesh baked flatbread was recommended. I went for the very simple Zaatar & Cheese (half zaatar, half cheese) £3.6 which was a medium pizza sized dish with crispy base and a fine spiced zaatar mix and mild cheese. It wasn't very salty overall (perhaps could have used a little more) but the flavours were nice. The Syrian style with minced meat and pomegranate molasses appealed also, but I didn't think I could eat that much.

The main attraction on the menu for me was the Maqloubah (traditional Palestinian dish of tender lamb shoulder, aubergine, tomato, onion, garlic, spiced rice with yoghurt and cucumber salad) £9.5. It was an earthy spiced dish pleasant with coriander and a touch of cumin. Overall excellent with soft meat and nice vegetables.

For afterwards I took home some baklavah which was different in the fast it doesn't soak in sugar syrup and is therefore much more dry. The owner (who admitted he buys them) was quite proud to show me the metal pan was completely dry underneath. He also recommended their homemade kunafeh for next time which he also said is very different to the (mainly Turkish) ones I have had.

I would definitely go back.

Magdalen Arms received a huge newspaper review in 2010 that proclaimed it as not only the best food in Oxford (which it admitted wasn't a huge accolade) but also as some of the best food in the UK. As a result lots of people have made their way here when in town, and because it is a short bus or a 15min walk from central Oxford it does take a small dedicated effort to make it.

Some of the reviews recently have been mixed about the dishes recently being average, duck overcooked and strongly overly salted. But of course some reviews were positively glowing. As usual who better to test than to know for myself? Part of the reason was the lack of other choices that piqued my interest (the other was The Anchor Inn, which I'd possibly try if I visit Oxford again).

- rosemary bread - complimentary first serve, and very highly salted crust, perhaps a little too much. Nonetheless very nice;
- Fish soup & rouille gruyere crouton - a tasty fish soup with small clams and lots of dill. The crouton was more a piece of bread but the rouille & gruyere were quite good toppings;
- Two-way Kerry Hill lamb, mashed potatoes & pickled red cabbage - firstly loin meat picked and set into a terrine mold then deep fried, and beautifully medium-rare lamb loin wrapped in belly. The fried lamb had a rich fatty flavour whilst the roll was soft and tender with a well-salted belly exterior. Excellent;
- Baked vanilla cheesecake & rhubarb compote - dense cheesecake with a few fruit pieces for healthiness.

All dishes were decent, but only the two-way lamb was superb. I chose it based on the fact it was the only single main that was similar to the choices for shared mains, and I have had some of the best meat experiences as shared dishes.

Next time I would order the lamb for myself or ideally to share with others. Mussels are the only other entree and the Toffee or Marmalade Puddings the only other desserts that sound good. Otherwise an extra main could be a better option, since the mains from other tables looked great too.

During the Easter break, overseas travel sadly wasn't an option. As a result I had to look at the domestic offerings of places to explore. After much internal turmoil, I eventually decided upon a weekend in Oxford and Cambridge. Neither are particularly known for food. Oxford at least does has a better reputation, although much of what I read seemed to follow the theme of 'this place is good, but not London good'.

The Big Bang has nothing to do with the TV show, science nor the creation of the universe. It actually refers to the restaurants specialty in sausages or 'bangers'. Apparently it is much nicer in summer when the sausage range is BBQ'd outdoors on the patio, drinks flow freely and in the evenings there is either live music or a dj. However I went in the midst of cold during the day, so had nothing to look forward to except a rest from the weather and some decent sausages.

The menu is quite clever and comes as a newspaper combining some history of the restaurant, the menu and also some recent news regarding the restaurant.

Considering the restaurant name, you really shouldn't choose anything other than sausages. The Big Bang selection of your choice of 3 sausages, mash and gravy is really the only thing worth getting on your first (and if it likely will be your last) trip due to the ability to sample variety. My sausages were the classic Oxford (pork, sage), Wild Boar & Pigeon, and a special of Curried Pork recommended by the waiter. This was served with carrot & swede mash and red wine gravy.

The Curry Pork was the most distinctively flavoured with a powerful curry hit (and a little spice); the Oxford is a soft blend of tasty meat; Wild Boar & Pigeon had a firmer texture and a nice but not special flavour. The mash and gravy were fine as extra filler and flavours, but I much prefer my sausages on their own and without the gravy (otherwise I like ketchup and mustard usually).

Next time I would order any Curry sausage and try a few of the other different specialty ones on offer. For a first time, I suppose the city's own Oxford sausage should be mandatory too. Overall the meal was satisfactory without being anything to go out of the way for. Maybe in the sun with some atmospheric music might make it more of an experience.