Gees Restaurant, Banbury Road, Oxford in Oxford

I gave this 4 star despite not enjoying my meal. We had lunch on Mother's Day and the place was buzzing and vibrant. The building is an old flower shop with glass ceilings so every noise is intensified making it difficult to hear the person opposite you. The service was good and the waiters attentive but it did take a long time to receive our starters. However, they were really tasty and decent portions. I choose the Sunday roast which was lamb but it came smeared with a large dollop of a green splodge which even the waiter didn't know what it was. It turned out to be an Italian type of spinach but it really did spoil the meat for me and I left most of it. Would I visit again? Probably yes but I'd be careful to ask how everything is served.

Very good food in a lovely decorated conservatory just a few meters from central Oxford. Very pleasant walk to the restaurant.

We enjoyed a very good meal in this superb setting. The ambience pervades on arrival, this attractive Victorian glass house with the original floor tiles and welcoming staff is a joy to visit. All personnel are attentive, friendly and efficient and the growing buzz from happy diners surrounds you. We both chose roasted celeriac soup with crispy sage. The quantities were so large that we almost could have shared one bowl but delicious if slightly low on celeriac flavour. I then had a wild mushroom tagliatelle which was heavenly. Again I found it too much but the attractive little box which I was given containing the excess provided me with a small lunch the following day. My daughter had the fish of the day – fillets of halibut which delicately flaked with the fork. We decided to have an affogato each to follow – one with Pedro Ximenez and mine with Courvoisier. Affogato is such a refreshing taste to relish after any meal. Another reason for our visit was that said daughter is to be married next year in this very place so after lunch we were conducted around the wonderful space that only recently has been developed for such occasions by a most informative guide. Both of us hardly can wait for this family wedding in 2024.

We had lunch in the glass house, which has a very distinctive atmosphere. It was quite comfortable despite being a cold, wet day. Considering that the restaurant pitches itself as being somewhat upmarket the food was acceptable rather than outstanding. My wife had the Gees Burger, which had a high meat content but was somewhat dry. I tried the grilled guinea fowl. To be perfectly honest, and perhaps because I am not a foodie, I would have trouble distinguishing this from a grilled butterfly chicken served in Nando's (for half the price). It was bland. However, the wine was not overpriced in relation to the food, and the service was good.