Trout Inn, Oxford

My colleagues and I went to The Trout for a celebratory meal. We were really looking forward to what we supposed would be an enjoyable outing. However, once through the doors our hopes were soon dashed by surly waiters and very poor service.

The pub was not busy, yet it took over two hours for our two courses to be served. Items were forgotten and the general attitude from the staff was quite blasé.

However, that was nothing compared to the fact that when the main courses finally arrived two of the dishes had pieces of packaging in them. One of which I wish I’d taken a picture of as it was huge - almost all of the packaging of some pre-made sauce. Which apart from disgusting also leads one to question how well made and fresh the dishes are.

To top it all off, at no point did the staff seem truly concerned by the fact that two of the dishes had food packaging in them. One even joked, upon finding the first piece of packaging, ‘Let’s hope there isn’t any in the other dishes!’.

The whole experience rather marred our celebrations and I would never recommend The Trout, under it’s present management, to anybody ever again. I think it’s a shame that such a lovely pub has become so complacent about its customers and is happy to trade off its name alone.

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This tavern is the oldest in Oxford, we decided not to eat here as there was at least a 40 minute wait so do be aware that pubs do get extremely busy at lunch time. There is a large beer garden & the inside area looks quite quaint. The food did look fairly good as far as pub grub goes.

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Great little restaurant/pub, very family friendly, great for brunches, but can be incredibly crowded, especially for brunch on the weekends. Indoor and outdoor seating, no table service (you order inside, usually on a fairly long queue). What's really special about this place, I think, is the walk through Port Meadow. Enter Port Meadow from Walton Well Road in Jericho (north Oxford) and the walk through Port Meadow to the Trout is more or less an hour, but is very beautiful. You walk along the river Isis (/ the Thames) and it's just lovely. Great photo opportunities here, also a great place to picnic in the summer.

The Trout is another of Oxford institutions. It's a popular palce with studentds, families, tourists, etc. Unless you ahve a car, or are prepared to walk Port Meadow, it can be difficult to get to. It's quite crowded here most weekends, especially in summer.

Favorite Dish: Their fish and chips had an excellent description - "A Whale of a Cod!" - and that's what I had.

Situated on the riverside, The Trout is a beautiful old pub in fact, some people may recognize it from the Inspector Morse series. The ambiance is to die for. I've been there on a really stormy night complete with thunder, lightning wind and torrential downpour. The electricity went out and the only light came from the fire in the huge fireplace. I've also been there on warm, sunny Spring days when you can sit outside listening to the river and savor a pint with friends.

Favorite Dish: Fish & Chips...more like half a whale and chips. The portion are huge!