Walkout at The Goose

[JudyB]

Had an email from Ryan the other day regarding his new venue, which should perhaps by now be a done deal.

It is in Oxfordshire and I have been invited to the launch

Hope its very soon.

Can you tell us any more about the location? We live just south of Abingdon so anything new in that area is definitely of interest.

[david goodfellow]

Had an email from Ryan the other day regarding his new venue, which should perhaps by now be a done deal.

It is in Oxfordshire and I have been invited to the launch

Hope its very soon.

Can you tell us any more about the location? We live just south of Abingdon so anything new in that area is definitely of interest.

Sorry, no venue details at present as the legal stuff may not yet be completed, however rest assured you will be the first to know

[Hearno]

The plot thickens.

A real shame, especially for us living in a county high in quality produce but low in quality restaurants.

By the sound of his quote, the building could be set to become a private house.

[JudyB]

The plot thickens.

A real shame, especially for us living in a county high in quality produce but low in quality restaurants.

By the sound of his quote, the building could be set to become a private house.

The person I feel most sorry for is the new chef who was brought in to The Goose. Although I'm sure that Ryan & Co would probably have preferred not to move, they seem to be doing well at Orwell's (on the basis of our visits there so far).

In terms of the lack of quality restaurants in Oxfordshire I think that part of the problem is that in principle Oxford itself should be able to support more quality places, but the city centre seems to be full of Irish theme pubs and the restaurant equivalent of "pile it high, sell it cheap" supermarkets.

I've lost track of what exactly the owner is intending to do with it now (housing I think), but the Lemon Tree in North Oxford has gone through similar "problems" to those at The Goose - attempting to serve quality food in the wrong place - although with fewer ructions (as far as I know) between the owner and the chefs...

[Hearno]

Orwells is excellent - two really superb meals there so far.

I agree, although John Footman is obviously a talented chef who was battling against issues beyond his control. I expect - and hope - he will resurface very soon.

Oxford is atrocious. A medley of chain bars and pseudo-brasseries. Unbelievable how it ever got to this point. In the county's defence, there are some excellent pubs - the Nut Tree, Crooked Billet, The Kingham Plough - but decent restaurants are at a real premium, notwithstanding le Manoir.

Most of the pubs seem to open parping PR guff like "locally sourcing, food miles, sustainability" without understanding their customer base or, indeed, the area.

there's no excuse, but similarly there's no logical reason for the malaise.