We received a meal and a bottle of wine in at Wilding Oxford in exchange for this review. Find more details here.
Last weekend, we were very lucky to be invited along to Wilding, a Wine shop, bar and restaurant based in Jericho, Oxford, to try out and review their Christmas a la Carte menu.
As we walked in, the first thing we noticed was a MASSIVE wall of wine. It was 7pm on a Saturday and seemed to be fairly empty, and we noticed the lighting was quite bright; then we were led to the restaurant, where several tables were already full and the lighting was softer.
We were sat at a table which happened to be the same as the one we’d dined off at The Oarsman in Marlow; it was sited against a wall which meant it felt snug and private. As the restaurant filled up the acoustics were surprisingly good; we could hear each other talk and were shielded from other tables. It was the perfect date night venue.
(Talking of date nights; across from us, there were a young couple in their 20s who did not look up from their phones the ENTIRE evening. She was literally scrolling on TikTok throughout, and they didn’t exchange more than a handful of words over their entire meal. It was absolutely baffling; I’ve never witnessed anything like it at all. They must have spent well over £100 on food and not even so much as smiled at each other the entire time. I’d be fascinated to know what’s going on there).
Anyway…
The menu at Wilding, Oxford
The Head Chefs at Wilding, Michael Carr and Ben Wood, have between them years of Michelin cooking experience it absolutely shows. The menu is very much creative fine dining, with many things you won’t have had before.
The menu we were handed – the Christmas a la carte menu – was a bit confusing to the unprepared, without sections for starters, mains and desserts as you’d traditionally expect.
Instead, the waitress explained, they are ordered in relation to their size and all intended for sharing, a bit like tapas, and would be served as it was ready. This is one of my favourite styles of eating because I always get food envy no matter what I order, so I was very excited!
She suggested we go for a few starter-sized portions, and then a larger, main-sized portion each or to share.
We went for:
- Porthilly Oysters & Smoked Jalapeno x2
- Charred Pear, English Cured Ham, Blue Cheese & Hazelnut
- BBQ Squid & Confit Chicken Wings with Carrots and Pinenut Gremolata
- Roast Troncon of Halibut and Curried Clam Butter Sauce with Purple Kale and Mojo Rojo for me
- Lake District Farmer’s 60 Day Age Ribeye with Bone Marrow
- Goose Fat Roasties
The first dish to arrive was the oysters; the jalapeno sauce was unusual but gave it a lovely kick; not too spicy. Oysters are never much to look at if we’re being dreadfully honest but the overall presentation of the dish on a bed of rock salt was great, and a good start to the meal!
The Charred Pear, English Cured Ham, Blue Cheese & Hazelnut dish was absolutely divine; a real treat. The sweet flavours from the pair were matched perfectly with the smokier ham and the blue cheese and the cheese crips gave it a lovely crunch.
The BBQ Squid & Confit Chicken Wings with Carrots and Pinenut Gremolata was probably my favourite of the three starter-sized dishes.
While chicken and seafood may not seem a natural pairing, the smokey, salty barbecue squid went perfectly with the rich and tender pieces of chicken. The sauce was divine. I could eat this one for breakfast, lunch and dinner and not get fed up for a long time although I imagine given how salty it was, it wouldn’t be great for me. But oh, wow.
I would have been very happy just choosing more sharing plates at Wilding and having more gastronomical experiences as exciting and new as those we’d already tried. Even or if you fancied just a small bite with a lovely glass of wine, they’re very tempting. I’d pop in if I was shopping just for a sit down and a bit of something.
However we were going for the full three courses (well, four if you include the cheese!) to test out what else Wilding Oxford had to offer so we could properly review it, of course.
Main courses
There were only three ‘mains’ sized portions on offer at Wilding Oxford; a vegetarian option, halibut, and steak. Obviously when doing a review it’s necessary to go for different things – and neither being vegetarians we went for the other two dishes.
I usually go for fish when I’m out, so opted for the halibut, which I’ve not had very often. To be honest it didn’t present as a natural sharing dish – and I didn’t share it, beyond a taste or two, it was alllll mine.
Compared to the exquisitely presented starters it might not look like the most beautifully presented piece of food art (particularly based on my pictures) but my god, it was tasty. The curried sauce was very good indeed and the fish was perfectly cooked; not chewy or overdone at all in the way fish can be.
It was also a very decent sized portion but I ate the lot because I’m a champion.
The ribeye however…
Now in fairness, the waitress did say that it was a large portion, suitable for sharing. To this we visibly scoffed because my partner is a certified eating champion (if you ever meet him, ask him about winning the eating competition at university; I’m fairly sure it’s one of his proudest achievements after his kids and of course, scoring me).
However, I concede that she was right.
The menu we were handed didn’t explicitly tell you, but on their website it’s clear that this is definitely a sharing meal for two people. Or maybe one and a half 6ft4 eating champions.
I have never before seen that quantity of cow on a single plate before. I’m not sure the pictures can adequately show just how big this dish was. I have no idea on weight but we’re not talking any puny 12oz steak here.
And as well as there being a metric tonne of it, it was all cooked superbly. With the rarer beef on the bottom and more well done – but falling apart in your mouth style – steak on the top it also came with marrowbone which is just salty deliciousness. I can see why my dog is so keen.
Fair play to my partner though, he gave it a bloody good try with only a tiny amount of help from me. I’ve never seen a man eat so much food, even a very tall one. By the end there wasn’t even enough to warrant a doggy bag. I think he should write that one on his CV to be honest.
Dessert
Although we were both absolutely stuffed by this point, we agreed to split a Brown Butter Tart with Preserved Raspberries and Juniper Chantilly. We’d split the best part of two bottles of wine at this point so forgive me if my recollection is a little hazy, but all memories point to it being banging as we finished the lot in very little time.
We rounded it off with a plate of Jericho Cheese Company Cheeses to share. There was a great selection with a blue cheese, a soft goats cheese, a cheddar and a hard cheese (I wish I could be more specific but, wine) served with a prune puree and bread. It was a wonderful end to a wonderful meal and sharing it just about tipped me over the edge to ‘overfull’. Oops.
The wine list at Wilding, Oxford
With an impressive display of wines greeting you at the entrance, Wilding, which is based in the Jericho district of Oxford, is quite obviously more than ‘just’ a restaurant. Founded by wine lover Kent Barker, it’s a wine bar, and a wine shop too.
The wine list is extensive with a great range of choices available by the glass – which is great if you want to try something new and don’t want to commit to a full bottle or want to match your wine choice to your course.
We opted for ‘Dog Point’, an almost smoky but very citrussy (and delicious) Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.
To go with his ribeye, my partner also got a glass of Collioure, ‘Magenca Rouge’, an elegant and aromatic French red.
What does a meal at Wilding Oxford cost?
Although we were gifted a meal and a bottle of wine at Wilding, Oxford for this review, the whole three-course meal – with two oysters, two starters, two mains, a dessert and cheese court – would have set us back just shy of £295, including two bottles of wine at £48 each and a large glass at £20. Service is then added on at 12.5%. The ribeye was by far the priciest dish at £70 but as it arrived the pure size of it explained that. There’s no doubt in my mind that we could have split it – but you live and you learn.
It’s more than we’d spend on a regular weekend, but also a lot less than we’ve spent on birthday celebrations in the past, and the food was excellent quality, tasty and looked amazing; almost certainly Michelin star quality. The ambience (apart from the weird couple who didn’t talk to each other AT ALL) was lovely, the acoustics were good, and in general we just had a great time.
For a restaurant with such a superb and creative menu, Wilding wasn’t at all stuffy or – it seemed welcoming and thriving. I would definitely consider returning next time we’re in Oxford – it’s easy to get to from Reading by train, and a short walk from the train station too.
You can see more about Wilding on their website here.
