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    The Handlebar

    4.0 (24 reviews)
    Closed 9:00 am - 11:00 pm

    The Handlebar Photos

    THE HANDLEBAR ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Good for kids
    Good for groups
    Dogs allowed

    Recommended Reviews - The Handlebar

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    Iced dirty chai
    Tori S.

    Good food, great if you want the classic English breakfast! I had the spicy chicken burger and it was really good!

    Veronica J.

    This place is absolutely fantastic. I stumbled upon it by chance, when organising an event in the city centre and looking for a place to go after. We were welcomed warmly. The food was just amazing, while service is immaculate. We came via Groupon, but no doubt the food is worth full price. The deal included two dishes ( a main and a starter or dessert) up to you, amongst our group we all chose differently, but all the dishes were just superb. Atmosphere deserves its own praise - a lot of thought was put into the unusual bike-themed interior design. Can't wait to come back again!

    Kathy L.

    i'm a big fan of the handlebar!! the ambiance is so lovely - a really wonderful place for a brunch and place to gab with the gals. portions are very generous and i can always count on leaving feeling full. on the weekends there can be a lengthy queue for a table but it's worth it!! i would really recommend the "fava toast" - delicious and super filling

    Vegan Coconut pancakes
    T L.

    Cute coffee shop connected to a bike repair store. Large seating area upstairs. Have a nice vegan coconut pancake and avocado toast. 2 dishes and 2 coffees were 25quid.

    Tori U.

    So...this place has A BLOODY MARY MENU. That's right, it's not advertised but I attach photographic evidence that this Bicycle brunchery has a whole menu devoted to this lycopene laden, seasoned sign of the hangover gods' mercy. On another note, their brunch is awesome and their hanging cycle-centric decor is spot on. Hipstery, but not too much so. They'd let you in even if you left your windowpane glasses at home. Given that I am not keen on eating the flesh when I'm riding the wooziness wave of yester-night, I chose a herbivore's recovery meal - the Goodie Veggie. Definitely top 5 best vegetarian breakfasts I've had the pleasure of scarfing down. Poached egg, creamy mushrooms, feta, bright mixed beans, avocado, and soft plantain slices alongside a roasted tomato made for some positive reinforcement of the preceding night's bad behavior. Other tempting dishes: 2 poached eggs with confit duck and hollandaise or gravadlax and shallots with dill cream, and smashed avocado on toast with beetroot hummus and feta. Happy riding.....

    Sea bream at the handlebar and the cocktail with a kick!
    Amy H.

    Good cocktails and nice food. We ordered a cocktail that sounded quite unique to the bar (forgot the name tho, only remember it's something fruity). When we got it, we noticed there were chilli in it, which actually went with the drink really really well! - gave it a nice kick! We were so addicted to it ended up ordering 2 more of the same thing! Slow roasted lamb was nicely cooked and very flavoursome. My friend's sea bream also tasted good - tho portion for the fish was on the small side. We had 2for1 on drinks and 30% discount on food which made up the sum total for 2 ppl just over £30. Overall it's good value with the discounts and decent food and nice atmosphere. Definitely worth going again. If without discount then I'd say food may be not within the cheapest range.

    Avocado toast
    Luci L.

    Get the avocado toast!!! Or else you will watch other people get it and then crave it. There are a lot of tables, and it gets very busy around noon. There are old- and new-fashioned bikes hanging from the ceiling and it's on the first, not ground floor of the building.

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    10 years ago

    A lovely place for studying. Ideal noise level, delicious food, friendly waiters

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    Review Highlights - The Handlebar

    . Given that I am not keen on eating the flesh when I'm riding the wooziness wave of yester-night, I chose a herbivore's recovery meal - the Goodie Veggie

    Mentioned in 2 reviews

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    Bill's - Waiting area.

    Bill's

    3.8(28 reviews)
    0.0 mi
    ££

    Such a great little place that I stumbled across in Oxford! Food was delicious, and the ambiance…read morewas really cute. Great place for a date night. Service was great and wasn't too crowded for a Saturday night which was nice. Got the crab cakes as an appetizer and loved them, definitely would get them again. The steak was good, but nothing too special about it. The Pims drink was also good, but the best was the Raspberry and Rose Hips Collins and Love it! It isn't too sweet which I love!

    Came here for a giant group dinner (think 30+ people), and Bill's was so accommodating to seat all…read moreof us, and also have us each pay individually at the cashier, as opposed to all of us getting one big check and trying to figure out how to allocate payment. Their waitstaff was friendly and courteous. Food-wise, I wasn't too impressed. I ordered the steak and rarebit pie, which I hate to say, tasted really weird. It tasted as though the meat had been preserved for some time and became slightly rancid. I still ate it all anyway, and thankfully I didn't feel weird after the dinner, but it just wasn't that palatable. There was also a side of what seemed to be some carrot potato salad with some greens (not a whole lot). This was kind of mushy and weird for me. The green juice was refreshing, but it just came in a small bottled glass, so there wasn't a whole lot of it to drink. At least it's a great place for a large group if you need to seat a huge party.

    Photos
    Bill's
    Bill's - Bar area.

    Bar area.

    Bill's - Crab cakes

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    Crab cakes

    Le Pain Quotidien - Kitchen

    Le Pain Quotidien

    3.0(2 reviews)
    0.1 mi

    A French bakery and coffee shop, with meal I ptions for breakfast, lunch or dinner, Le Pain is in…read morethe Westgate shopping complex. Since Oxford University draws people world-round, it's hard to tell if the French accents and real or for the benefit of patrons. Several of the waitstaff and counter staff in the bakery/coffee bar did their best to make us wonder. I had scrambled eggs, done perfectly evenly yellow, with crispy ham and a crusty whole wheat toast. Full coffee options from Americano to Espresso we're available, but I chose an pot of breakfast tea. Their handless cups are Belgian tradition, and the cups for coffee are and closer to a bowl. A great way to warm hands while sipping. Breakfast options include Shakshuka, avocado toast, baked eggs and salmon, and many traditional and healthy options. As we and others were taken to tables, we wondered about their "system" as couples were sometimes seated at small tables, and sometimes at a large "community" table in the middle. Initial service was fast and food was also delivered quickly, but we saw at least four table who had to approach their server to ask for the bill, and as we grew weary waiting, I did the same. Perhaps they don't want to rush people as the restaurant had ample open tables, but it seemed like a general lack of attention. We returned later for take away, and I recommend a visit, but you too may need to ask for the check when you are ready to pay.

    Dunno what the last review was on about. A lot of staff definitely have non-English accented speech…read morebut certainly not of the French variety. Not that it matters since this is a global chain, and I'm sure most of their food is supplied and not made in-house other than slapping sandwich ingredients together. This place has plenty of inside and outside seating, which they maximize to the point where if you're sat at one of the crowded inside tables, you'll be knocked and nudged every time a waitress or fellow patron gets up. My chair and elbows were getting knocked every 5 minutes or so, and I'm far from being hefty. Portions are very small for the price. My toasted ham & cheese croissant was an emaciated and flattened sandwich with scarcely any filling hanging out. The "mixed salad" that it came with was literally 3 tiny leaves of mixed greens. Such a sad sight. Even sadder was how chewy the croissant bottom was. A fresh croissant is light, flaky, and almost melts as it disappears in your mouth. This was more what you get when you microwave bread, dry and chewy. p.s. Gluten-free bread alternatives available.

    Photos
    Le Pain Quotidien
    Le Pain Quotidien - Indoor Seating

    Indoor Seating

    Le Pain Quotidien

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    Whittington's Tea Barge

    Whittington's Tea Barge

    5.0(3 reviews)
    23.8 mi

    What an awesome tea room! Literally on the Thames!…read more 7 of us booked a table for brunch and were not disappointed! This is quite a big barge and seats about 20 people comfortably, offering a great range of cream teas, sandwiches, breakfasts and drinks. A little quaint, traditional barge tea shop. The cups and saucers are just fabulous and the coffee mugs are varied - all adding to the variety and experience of this wonderful place. The tea is served in leaf form so you have your own strainer, which is really cool! I opted for a full breakfast today which was just right! Unfortunately they had ran out of bacon but I got an extra sausage for that! Locally sourced food which was cooked perfectly from the kitchen you can see at the end of the barge. All the staff were extremely friendly and helpful, offering their advice and explaining the food options as well. The service was excellent and relaxed. The most important part of finishing the meal is the separation of the bill, especially in a group. However they offered to spilt this and each of us pay separately, this worked great! Overall, this is place is highly recommended for anytime of the day, relaxing on the Thames, in wonderful surroundings, watching the swans swim by.

    How am I the first to add this to Yelp? What an outstanding find. It's a small barge moored along…read morethe Thames. Great tea, food, service, and atmosphere! Highly highly recommend...

    Photos
    Whittington's Tea Barge - Bacon egg sandwich

    Bacon egg sandwich

    Whittington's Tea Barge - Sauces!

    Sauces!

    Whittington's Tea Barge

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    The Handlebar - coffee - Updated July 2026

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