Ashmolean Dining Room in Oxford

Decided to treat ourselves to lunchtime at the Ashmolean to complete our special time in Oxford. What a letdown! Had the ravioli from the limited main course menu, which was dry, tasteless and all together a big letdown / underwhelming.

My sister and I brought our elderly mother here and everything was excellent. Matheus went above and beyond to look after us. Very much appreciated and recommended in an era where a focus on customer service seems to have been forgotten by so many establishments.

We booked lunch for 5, to celebrate our Book Group anniversary. We were treated exceptionally well by the front of house and waiting staff. We ate a range of mains and desserts. All were very tasty and helped make our visit a memorable one. I had the herb crusted pork fillet, which I enjoyed, but it was overcooked and my friends could see I was struggling to cut it up. My suggestion would be to use a good pork chop instead. Had my pork been more tender, I'd happily have rated the restaurant 5 stars.

Four of us enjoyed a delicious lunch at the rooftop restaurant. The food, ravioli & gnocchi dishes, was really unexpectedly tasty and the plates were warmed (a big plus). Service was great and the carafe of wine sufficient for 2 of us.

We had a really nice and tasty cream tea at the rooftop cafe. Matheus was really friendly and helpful and looked after me and my mum really well. We really felt cared for and welcomed.

We stopped here at the beginning of our visit to Oxford, starting at the Ashmolean Museum. Rooftop restaurant, really nice views of the surrounding buildings. We stuck with lattes and desserts, and we very happy with the food and the service. A nice place for a break in your busy day !

Prompt and personal service. Very good dish of the day: delicious and well presented.

Great service, Matheus was excellent

The food and tea was delicious! Thankyou Matheus for your awesome service and smiles!

Had a lovely cream tea here from Matheus. Thank you :)

Our English tea was very nice, all was very freshly made. I didn’t particularly like buses of very old tourists being dropped off to visit the restaurant. Felt like a nursing home, I’m sorry.

Atrocious service and the food was appalling. The afternoon tea portion was small and it was not worth the price tag. The waiters ignored me when I was trying to order and then seemed unhappy when I asked for another menu as they would have to do more than the bare minimum.

I booked the afternoon tea at the rooftop restaurant as a birthday treat for my Aunt. Unfortunately the weather was wet so we ended up sitting inside which was a shame but this did not ruin the experience. The service was friendly and the food excellent. It was a farily typical afternoon tea and had some fairly traditional parts such as the scones but also had a few interesting twists such as Prosciutto and cheese sandwiches. My Aunt enjoyed it which was the aim so on that basis I would happily return.

You can have a good time on the roof terrace of the Ashmolean Museum. We ordered the original afternoon tea once and the vegan option once. Both tasted absolutely amazing. We ate them for lunch and the portions were more than enough. In the vegan option, the clotted cream was more cream, but that made the scone refreshing and light in the sunny weather. The price is a bit high, but the view and atmosphere, the very good service and the very tasty food were all worth it!

Great spot for lunch - but on busy days you need to book. Interesting menu and we had lunch and came back another day for their tea! Not that cheap but good standard of food and service. On a nice day sit outside! Some views of Oxford across the chimneys.

During our mini break in Oxford we visited Ashmolean Dining Room for a cream tea once we had been around the museum. Staff are really friendly and attentive. Lovely panoramic views of Oxford from the rooftop. A must visit.

Fantastic restaurant on the rooftop, amazing afternoon tea, excellent chicken breast sandwich. Waiter Matheus 5 stars!!!!

Matheus è stato gentile e cordiale , parla anche italiano e questo è stato molto piacevole. Il ristorante è molto rilassante e per noi rimarrà un bel ricordo.

Have been here several times. Had a nice lunch today with a business colleague visiting from London. Good view and great services but was surprised to learn that waiting staff don't get the 10% discretionary service charge added to the bill. Is that even legal any more and if they don't get the service charge who does? Please tell me it's not the management/owner being greedy. I had always assumed the Ashmolean was one of the good guys.... Discretionary service charges should ALWAYS go 100% to the staff.

I had a delicious pasta one day for lunch and another day scones both were excellent Scones were way better than the one at the “Vault” on Radcliffe square . It is more expensive but quality and peaceful

Whilst the view outside was nice and the food good, our waitress was really short tempered with us and made my friend and I feel unwanted.

Excellent our lunch with a couple of friends after visiting the current exhibition. Good food & wine was enjoyed by all. Nice table location too just inside by the patio doors. Helpful maitre d & waiting & kitchen staff too. We will certainly book again when next at the Ashmolean.

Quite a disappointment. We expected a top quality experience from a world class museum. Very far from it. We had to wait ten minutes to be shown to our table, which was sticky. No one came to take our order. A request for a virgin mary was met with bemusement, indeed incomprehension. The food when it came - the main took 20 minutes - was no more than passable; the wine expensive. Oh, and the MD asked us to double-check the bill because he thought it was wrong. It was. These days there are quite a few decent restaurants in Oxford. Try them rather than this one.

Came up here for a view of Oxford. View is fine but that’s not what disappointed us. Taken to our table in a friendly manner. All well and good. This was 4.15pm. Ordered coffee. All good. Coffee came out. Tastes like from an instant machine rather than espresso but ok. Then asked if we need anything else as bar is closing. This is by 4.30. Would have been nice to know this before we sat down as we had been planning to enjoy the view and not be pushed out. Then suddenly an awkward receipt brushes my arm and lands on the table. No “Hi there would you mind if we take a payment?” And starts typing into the eftpos. Feeling completely like a number and not given much of what you could call “service” we saw a 10% service charge on the bill. For two coffees and staff unable to communicate? Went to pay with cash. Don’t take cash. No mention of this before. Wouldn’t bother coming again. Not worth the “fees” for the ok location.

Two of us had the cream tea. Lovely environment and food. It was a very hot, busy day and the sandwiches had already started to form a stale feel about them by the time they reached our table and the fillings were rather scant. The four scones were delicious, though to enjoy them at their best a larger portion of clotted cream is really needed. Two of the portions that looked very neat on the rack would be ideal. I cannot fault the other items.

is there a better place to eat in oxford? lovely outdoor terrace tree top skyline views, delicious menu with great veg options frequently changing, great service, friendly staff....great value. a favourite.

Our American guests were making their first visit to the UK. Sitting outdoors under an umbrella on a perfect sunny day in Oxford, enjoying a bottle of excellent Rose, and a delicious light lunch will be a memory to cherish. Te staff were courteous and helpful, as they were on the first occasion my wife and I enjoyed a meal on the roof terrace: that was on the second day you opened. Nice to be report continuing excellence! Well done!

Food pretty good, without being outstanding. Outdoors on a fine day is great. But one big problem—they don’t answer the phone. I was delayed by traffic and phoned to say so. No answer, “please leave a message” (10 min. before my reservation. Really no one there?). So I leave a message, and when I arrive late nobody has picked it up. What if they’d given the table away?

Fantastic service (they made a birthday treat very special), delicious food and lovely atmosphere. Highly highly recommend!

Our waitress and the maitre d' were very kind and helpful on a terribly hot day. We were served quickly and left alone to have a long and peaceful conversation. Thanks everyone.

Good place to eat and relax. Booking required beforehand.

The staff were lovely and thoughtful. The setting was lovely but the sandwiches could have been tastier. We ordered the vegetarian afternoon tea. The drinks were delicious and I loved the scones!

Slightly on the pricey side, but overall worth it for a lovely vegan afternoon tea treat - lots of interesting cakes and sandwich fillings, and really fabulous scones with cream and jam. Will be back.

Really lovely experience ebing up on the roof with a view over the dreaming spires with some lovely food.

I booked afternoon tea for my mum’s birthday, we all really enjoyed the food and the service was excellent. This was the first time we had been to the Ashmolean, we sat on the outside terrace, I would fully recommend it.

We have had afternoon tea across London and the South East and this was by far the poorest experience and the worst value for money. The service was poor and distracted and half of the restaurant terrace was closed off for a photo shoot. The food was okay for the regular tea although it was clear that it wasn't freshly made to order. The vegetarian tea (which had been pre-ordered online) had several items missing so 3 pieces of very dry ginger cake were provided instead, no pakoras and no flapjack. The planters looked like they needed new plants and it generally looked a bit shabby. It was our granddaughers birthday tea so we didn't want to make a fuss but we paid over £100 with a water and two soft drinks added plus a £9.69 discretionary tip!! We definitely won't go back and won't recommend it to anyone we like....

It was busy and our pots of tea arrived within 15 minutes of our arrival, which was fair. However, the food arrived some 20 minutes later, by which time the tea was lukewarm. The waitress who served us was efficient but lacking in warmth - no sign of a smile. When making the booking, we had specified that it was for a special occasion (our Golden Wedding that actual day,) but we didn't feel that we had had a particularly special experience. When the food DID arrive, it was very pleasant and there was plenty of it.

Great place, good ambience. The waiter Mateus was amazing and such a sweet guy. Recomend

Lovely sunny afternoon for tea on the terrace. Quality of service and food both very good, some imagination had gone into the sandwiches, the crayfish was delicious! I’d like more tea, please - a bigger pot would be lovely.

It was my wife’s birthday and the visit began well as the waiter presented her with a complimentary glass of Prosecco. We ordered three main meals and waited an age before a waitress apologised for the delay saying there was a problem with the chicken! She offered us olives while we waited - we declined. Another age passed and two meals arrived one for my daughter and one for me, but still none of the problem chicken for my wife, despite a nearby late arrival clearly having his chicken with no problem. Quite some time later my wife got her order, but no apology! Two meals had gone cold. We asked for an extra spoon which did not arrive. My daughter fetched one herself. We asked for the bill and true to form we waited an age. I actually paid the discretionary service charge of £8 which had been automatically added. No thank you from staff.

At last we had a booking when the weather was good and could sit outdoors! The food and service were excellent as always. Staff were accommodating when we asked to move to a table with more shade. Very enjoyable meal.

Very nice food and service by Matheo

Beautiful views with the worst service in Oxford. Impossible to get attention from the staff.

Make sure to reserve the afternoon tea, service ahead of time. Great spot and busy location.

Service was excellent, we had lovely weather so we ate outside on the terrace, the staff were very attentive and the food was great. I have enjoyed lunch here before and they always have something interesting on the menu.

The location is undoubtedly great - and very convenient for families who spend a lot of time in the museum. Unfortunately, this is all that is convenient in it. Food was OK, although not great. I was rather astonished for getting deep-freeze chips for the price.... And they are SLOW. We waited 20 minutes for a bowl of soup - and at that point the restaurant was far from being full. Then we waited further 15 minutes for the mains - save one, which arrived 10 minutes later, meaning we were half done with our mains when one of us got theirs. Some of the portions of the mains were of good size, but one was very small. I strongly suggest eating elsewhere and going back to the museum after lunch.

Very poor service - they add service automatically to the bill but the servers are brusque, disinterested and unfriendly. I wouldn’t go there again.

Haven't been for a few years and had forgotten how lovely it was up on the rooftop - lucky with the weather. Food was delicious.

Excellent food. Tasty and creatively presented. A bit too noisy for conversation and the wait staff could have been more consistent but this time place always delights so we will be back for certain.

This is a charming restaurant at the top of the oldest museum in Englanf. Entry to the museum is free & well worth a visit. I really liked the decor & all the many herbs growing on the roof terrace. There was plenty of staff who were polite & smiling. Their g & t was a triumph. Beautifully presented with a sprig of rosemary. What lets this place down is the lack of seasoning in the food. It is frankly bland. We chose the fish cake & the asparagus tartlet with a side of fries & ciabatta bread with balsamic in oil. Bland bland bland. The bread & oil was tasty. Sort the food out & this restaurant could be 5 ☆

Visited on a Sunday and greeted by very friendly staff, menu looked promising and this is where it ended for the food. Sadly the fish cake and asparagus tart were both under seasoned and underwhelming. The place has the potential to be fantastic, just needs the right chef.

We had a great time celebrating my birthday. The food is always innovative and delicious.

Good food, friendly staff and good location ! I am frequent repeater of this restaurant !

Matheus was a very good and friendly host. He made us feel welcome and took care of us very well!

Had a lovely high tea at the Ashmolean with wonderful service from Matheus. Extremely warm and friendly! :)

On our last visit to the Ashmolean we found that the basement café was under refurbishment and a member of the staff said that the restaurant was serving coffee and cakes . The only cake available at the time was scone. It turned out that they only had cheese scone and these came with jam and cream!!! We said this was odd so gave back the jam and cream and asked for more butter. The waitress was surprised, she obviously had an odd palate. So we had this and was drinking our coffee when a waiter came along and took our plates immediately we had each finished our scone and then the cup almost before we had drunk the last drop. Obviously hustling us to leave. He was then surprised when I refused to pay the service charge!! As a regular to the Ashmolean I suggest that some serious staff training should be carried out.

We loved the museum but were very disappointed with the rooftop restaurant. The limited food choices and quality simply don’t justify the gastropub prices. We pointed out that the bill was in error in fact under charging - the response was curt - a new bill was produced and we paid the correct price without any thanks or acknowledgment that we had saved their error. It just didn’t feel like a great experience and we wouldn’t come again

Excellent food and excellent service at this restaurant.

Overall it was a disappointing experience. Fabulous venue, let down by 2 major problems. Firstly, 2 of us ordered the slow cooked lamb with couscous from the specials menu and the meat was tepid at best. We asked the waitress to return it for reheating and when it came back it was little better, suggesting a few seconds spent in the microwave. The explanation given that couscous is a salad item and therefore cold was unsatisfactory. The second problem was the noise level. A large group came in not long after us and were seated inside. They were obviously celebrating something but it made it very difficult for us to hear each other resulting in 2 of the group not being able to join in the conversation. We finished the meal early because of this.

The Ashmolean is a fantastic museum in the heart of Oxford; the restaurant is a nice pitstop when browsing through decades of history. We've had amazing weather when visiting, so the rooftop terrace is a great opportunity to enjoy the weather with a view over the rooftops. As for the food, for a premium size, the portion size and quality is fairly average. We've had the olives and sourdough bread for starters which were both a bit disappointing. The lemon chicken was nice, but for £8 quite a small portion, even for a starter. All in all, worth stopping by if you're visiting the museum. Solely for food and drinks, there might be better places around.

An incredibly beautiful place with a wonderful atmosphere 😍 Delicious food and excellent service (the waiter was very friendly, thanks to which our mood improved several times - a guy with glasses and a beard - Matheus kept asking if everything was fine and if we needed his help, I think that he is one of the best waiters I met in Oxford)

Great place to come after a morning in the gallery

The fishcakes were especially good. We had nothing else to comment on and to have a minimum of 50 characters in order to log a review is just stupid.

It's a great place to eat al fresco on a good June day; the food was excellent and the service discreetly efficient, with a good house white.

had the afternoon tea, overpriced for the tiny amount of snack, they didn’t even taste satisfactory. cost me £50 for one with additional two glasses of apple juice. i even have to get the water carafe from the bar to flush down the hot drinks.

Courteous and helpful service, delicious food, and outstanding location.

We eat here for lunch several times a year, and it is always excellent for food and value and service.

The char grilled chicken (open sandwich) was OK, but quite ordinary. It’s a nice space.

Great and friendly service, delicious lunch, rather pricey. Would definitely go again

Restaurant was very busy but the staff coped very well.

The ashmolean rooftop restaurant. Before visiting the museum, I was not aware that this restaurant existed, so after an exhausting 20 minutes looking around the fantastic art (and samurai consumes) the ‘rooftop restaurant’ sign can as a welcome sight. We had the soup of the day, it was brilliant, the bread however was fairly hard. The cream teas were fantastic. The service wasn’t the best, but don’t think this is a consistent thing, I think we just got a bit unlucky, so I can’t complain too much. Definitely reccomend

Found this nice restaurant while walking through the Ashmolean museum, with an amazing view! We had soup of the day and cream tea’s for lunch 🫖💕 Prices are decent, we will be coming back!

Lift to restaurant out of action snd likely to be for some me time so major drawback. The ambience is excellent but food not quite up to that standard.

A stunning rooftop restaurant offering panoramic city views, delicious gourmet dishes, and exceptional service from Matheus’s side. Perfect ambiance for romantic dinners or special occasions. A must-visit for a memorable experience.

I recently had the pleasure of dining at the rooftop restaurant and was thoroughly impressed with the entire experience. The ambiance was delightful, offering stunning views that perfectly complemented the exquisite meal. I must extend a special thanks to Matheus, who provided exceptional service throughout. He was attentive, knowledgeable about the menu, and made excellent recommendations. His friendly demeanor and professional attitude truly enhanced our dining. I highly recommend this restaurant and look forward to returning soon.

Overpriced preserve for upper middle-class white people and their darling daughters. Waiter was not a native English speaker and did not known the menu well. The handmade pasta dish was bland, uninspired and served lukewarm.

I am a regular visitor and this occasion found the food and service to be excellent as always. Nothing to fault.

The rooftop terrace ambiance was excellent. The food and drinks quality was excellent. Certainly an enjoyable experience after visiting exhibition

Terrible service. Took 20mins after being seated for someone to acknowledge us & take our drinks order. Dessert menus were forgotten. Sat for another 20mins before reminding someone to bring them & then it took a further 20mins for one panacotta to arrive. The restaurant was not that busy. None of the waiting staff were apologetic or sympathetic to our comments pointing out the poor service on the day.

My friends and I had a delicious lunch following the exhibition yesterday. Really good choices for vegetarians as well as meat eaters. The service is attentive without being over the top. Also, the restaurant has a light and airy feeling.

The restaurant is spacious and airy. Staff friendly and helpful. Service prompt. Food very good- pleased to see an imaginative vegetarian option. Information about allergies easily available. Not cheap but less expensive than expected.

a) Tea in pot was tepid and no offer of more boiling water b) scones were too hard c) Iced ginger does not seem a very English cake - why not Victoria sponge cake d) tomato tapenade sandwich was horrible - why not smoked salmon sandwich Altogether disappointing food.

Delicious afternoon tea which was really good value for money. The scones were the only thing that weren’t as good as the rest of the food. The scone mix had been overworked which made the scones a little tough and they were a little under baked so we’re a bit doughy in the middle. The staff were all really polite and the service as quick. We were eating and drinking within 10 minutes of arrival. Would definitely recommend x

Great spot - menu was varied with lots of tasty options. Location is great if sun out and service was first class. Will be coming back

Excellent venue, great views. Food was really good, service slightly slow, but the restaurant was very busy. Staff were friendly and attentive.

Great views, comfortable surrounding. Excellent level of service. Nice menu and small wine list but very good. Good food. Would eat there again.

Light and airy pleasant space with good well presented food and helpful service

Reasonable choice of dishes, not extensive, but with good vegetarian options. Efficient service. Shame it was too cold to have a table outside on the terrace.

Great food in an amazing environment. Nice staff. One of the best places to have lunch in Oxford

Lovely setting and enjoyable lunch with the sun shining in

Fantastic service. Delicious food. Great view The museum is filled with treasures so it’s good to take a break and enjoy the food

Had a fabulous solo "artist date" here. Was made to feel very welcome and given a wonderful table with view of the rooftops. The service from Lesley was *brilliant*. Everything beautifully timed and I didn't have to wait ages for the bill (as that sometimes seems to happen). The wine was crisp and cold. The food was just wonderful. Light yet tasty with superb ingredients. The vegan burrata especially delicious. Tasted just like the real thing. The roof deck in the sunshine was a piece of heaven and loved the big bright interior of the restaurant. I will be coming back lots!

Way too expensive for the quality you get, Waiters were very polite

A spectacular location atop the Ashmolean Museum with views over Oxford’s dreaming spires across an outside wooden patio. A pity then about the food courtesy of (although you wouldn’t know it until you see where your debit card has been debited) Benugo. A carrot soup proved the highlight of a meal which otherwise featured some rather lacklustre pasta and what was effectively a chicken sandwich and chips as mains. My daughter was satisfied with chicken nuggets and chips.

First visit - pleasantly surprised. Service very good and food delicious and beautifully presented. Only downside was that the lift wasn't working.

Excellent as ever. Great menu with great food to match.

The noise level was quite high. There are a lot of hard surfaces so our group of five seniors, some with hearing aids, struggled to hear the conversation. But it was lovely to sit next to an open door and feel the sunshine and eat delicious food.

Unfortunately, this was a very disappointing experience. Service was sooooo sloooow. No one checked on us, hot food came cold, and it was expensive. Sorry, but I expected more.

Very friendly service and good range of cuisine. Enjoyable.

Very limited choice for 'lighter' options for lunch. Very overpriced veg lunch dish. The waiter did not know the contents of the dish. The reserved table was not wiped and cleaned beforehand. Noisy.