A foot in the door

First I have to start with the raspberry gin at The Oxford Kitchen. And then we will talk about the cheese, both of which have been turned from the predictable into something quite extraordinary.

Which is what John Footman does best of course, defying our expectations by deconstructing them and then offering something so superior in its place that you wonder how you coped before.

So, the raspberry gin and tonic we had on arrival. Hailing from the Foxdenton Estate, a family business in Leighton Buzzard, and served with Fever Tree tonic, I had to crease my forehead up with concentration until it finally came to me, the aperitif tasting like a very posh Tizer, absolutely gorgeous, and worth the visit alone.. I have since ordered my own bottle.

The cheese however was something else entirely – a prime example of the ex-Manoir chef taking the simplest of ingredients and transforming them into something utterly unexpected. Ordering the cheeseboard, albeit at the end of the meal, we expected the usual suspects, but instead, a smoking container, much like a cigar box, arrived like something in a magic show. When opened we found the smoked Tomme shaved to appear like a frisée lettuce leaf with fig three ways (puréed, pickled and fresh) and caramelised walnuts. I had to almost tie up my dining companion before she would let me near it, so delicate were the flavours. My favourite however was the second of the three – a Tunworth mousse with white truffle honey and toasted rye, more like a fondue, and something I could have dived into like an Olympic Tom Daly without the abs, and a bit of a cheese belly. And yes, I did end up eating it with a spoon.

As if that wasn’t enough, the Bleu des Basques had been fashioned into an ice lolly on a stick, the blue cheese served with a white chocolate casing, and an apricot and almond frozen filling inside.

Who else would go to that much trouble to not only surprise you but also take your breath away, and I would happily return for the cheese trio alone.

But that would be to detract from the wonderful menus John and his dedicated and hardworking kitchen team have invented. The à la carte for example is two courses for £32 or three courses for £37.50.

From the amuse bouche of cauliflower velouté with onion bhaji which arrived in a bowl, the warm, foaming, soft broth enveloping the spicy Indian street food to the bread from Gatineaux served with a butter quenelle mixed with crème fraiche and then through the chicken wing presse, poached hen’s egg, celeriac and morel, which was almost too pretty to eat, as you can see in the picture, the chicken ring alone heavenly to behold, perfectly matched by the softness of the egg and the nutty autumnal morel and celeriac. Then the assiette of Manx Loaghtan lamb, roasted garlic, bulgar wheat, shallot purée and lamb jus, the unctuous lamb cooked absolutely perfectly, the silky bulgar what absorbing all the flavours. We also tried the goat’s cheese panna cotta with toasted rye, beetroot and mustard frill, a taste sensation of seasonal texture and flavour.

If the Oxford Kitchen does have an Achilles heel, it’s not in the kitchen but in the slightly mean dimensions of the restaurant, more of a narrow corridor leading to the back, than a big spacious dining room, swallowing up atmosphere as it squeezes past the slim bar. Those in the know choose the window seats or the cosy leather banquettes, ably served by the attentive front-of-house William Massaquoi.

But back to the pudding, (I know – it must make you feel full just reading this), another of John’s trademarks – the caramel roasted pineapple, guava, crispy tapioca and mango sorbet crying out to me.

However, the cheese thief won on the pudding front by ordering the Madagascan chocolate cream with pineapple and rosemary ice cream (rosemary and chocolate, who knew?) each component defying belief, so I had to resort to pointing at things on the other side of the room and then nicking spoonfuls when she had her back turned.

But then that’s John for you, his food makes deviants of us all. And to have a chef of his calibre right on our doorsteps in Summertown is a real coup.

Oxford Kitchen, 215 Banbury Rd, Oxford OX2 7HQ