Fishers

Stepping off St Clements, the revolving glass door deposits you on the deck of Fishers. When underwater creatures are on the menu, it's tempting to stray too far down the seafaring theme route, but Oxford's only independent fish restaurant has managed to avoid going overboard (couldn't resist) and opted for a subtle take on the theme. Striped tablecloths and a few strategically wall-mounted life rings give a nod to all things nautical, but the only area where the sea dominates is the menu.

The culinary offerings at Fishers change daily, making sure that what's on the menu is seasonal. In addition to very reasonably priced lunch and early dining offers, diners have a choice of 11 starters and 13 mains, encompassing all manners of pesceterian delights. Hot and cold shellfish platters are also available for seafood lovers with a decent dining budget (a hot platter for 2 is £42). For those concerned about the origins of their meal, Fishers supports sustainable fishing, and there was plenty of UK fish on offer on the night I visited. And although the food focus is firmly on creatures of the deep (as you would expect), there's always a vegetarian option and a meaty main course for those accompanying fish fans.

Eating a la carte hits the wallet significantly harder than the offers: but then I expected it to, as fish isn't exactly our country's cheapest commodity. Fish starters ranged from £5.50 for deep fried calamari to £8.50 for 6 Irish rock oysters, served with gherkins, white wine and shallot vinegar. Also on offer were a vegetarian soup, a tiger prawn, fennel and olive salad, grilled sardines and smoked haddock and mustard tart, among other options. Not feeling particularly flush, I skipped ahead to the mains.

Main courses at Fishers are largely a classic British affair, with a few more adventurous options such as the tasty-sounding bouillabaisse with pesto crouton, parmesan and rouille (£11.95) thrown into the mix. Tempted as I was by traditional haddock fish and chips in beer batter with mushy peas and gherkins (£11.50 - they sure seem to like their gherkins at Fishers), I branched out and opted for chargrilled swordfish steak with samphire grass and a tomato, caper and garlic dressing (£15.50). I could have told you what J would choose before we even saw the menu: as the person who taught me how to eat France's favourite mollusc properly on a holiday to Normandy, J is something of a mussel connoisseur. Sure enough, she ordered a kilo of River Fowey mussels in a white wine, garlic and shallot sauce. The majority of Fishers' dishes come with either chips or new potatoes, with side salads and seasonal vegetables available from £2.50.

While we waited, we polished off the basket of homemade bread provided free of charge. We didn't have long to chat over our glasses of wine: Tuesdays aren't exactly any restaurant's busiest night. Both our dishes were well-presented, with the silver pot the mussels were served in receiving particular praise from J.

Chargrilled swordfish with samphire grass

Kilo of mussels

I wasn't asked how I wanted the swordfish cooked, but at first bite it tasted medium: slightly pink on the inside, but not scarily so. The marinade was light and fresh, although the described 'dressing' was decidedly chunky - and all the better for it, as it added more substance to the dish. The samphire grass (a sea vegetable, in case you were wondering, as I was) was an excellent complement, adding to the dish's summery feel. As I neared the middle of my substantially-sized steak, it took a turn for the rare, which wasn't to my taste. On the plus side, the new potatoes were rich and buttery, and on the whole it was a simple and tasty take on swordfish.

J's mussels went down a treat: she rated them as high quality, with only one closed mussel in the kilo. They were plump and well cooked, the sauce adding flavour without overpowering the dish. Although she rated the taste of the chips, she did point out that they were the wrong style for mussels, which are usually served with skinny french fries rather than chunky chips.

With a wide variety of good quality fish dishes on offer, Fishers has rightfully secured its corner of the market. The choice and emphasis on seasonal and sustainably-fished dishes is commendable, but comes at a price. I'd like to return one weekend when there's hopefully a little more atmosphere - and when I've got a bit more cash to splash so that I can sample some of their starters too.

Rating 7/10

Fishers is at 36/37 St Clements, Oxford OX1 4AB. Tel: 01865 243003.


For more places to eat fish in Oxfordshire, please listen in to Jo Thoenes's show on BBC Radio Oxford at 1pm on Friday 29 July, when I'll be discussing this topic.

Santorini (Kalamata)

 Update: As of 2012, Santorini has changed its name to Kalamata. Under the same management. See below for updated review.

If you're looking for the taste of summer on a plate, Santorini's your restaurant. Step off Cowley Road into its pillared confines and you might as well be on holiday. Although moussaka and meaty main dishes keep Greek food on the British radar during winter, its emphasis on ingredients such as feta cheese, peppers, rice, spinach and tomato mean that it really comes into its own during the excuse for an English summer that is June, July and August.

Shared food also seems much more tempting in the summer somehow, no doubt reminding me of sociable evenings in Seville, ordering plate after plate of tapas washed down with tinto de verano. On a warm evening in Santorini, the four of us decided to bypass the (excellent-sounding) mains and ordered 8 mezze, dipping into both the hot and cold sections of the menu. Assuming there was something missing from the listings, we requsted a certain chickpea-based dip from the waiter. 'We don't do houmous. We're Greek,' he announced, to our great puzzlement. In case you're interested, internet research informs me that houmous is actually Middle Eastern in origin, but no matter where it's from, it still goes down a treat as a pre-dinner nibble.

We stopped the minor houmous-related sulk as soon as the mezze arrived, though. Eight substantial portions and a basket of oil and oregano-dressed bread filled the table and had us diving for our cutlery ready to dig in.

The rice-filled vine leaves were perfectly divisible between our party of 4 and came on a bed of salad, topped with a healthy dollop of tzatziki, a refreshingly light yet creamy yoghurt, cucumber and mint dip. The sizeable helpings continued with the gigantes plaki, baked butter beans in a rich tomato, onion and parsley sauce with a touch of chilli, infusing the beans with flavour. Also full of flavour was the spanakotiropita (spinach and feta pie), its pastry thankfully avoiding the sogginess sometimes resulting from the cheese and spinach combination.

Cheese dishes are an excellent choice at Santorini, as the kefalotiri saganaki proved. Deep-fried halloumi-style cheese may not be the most artery-friendly option on the menu, but it was definitely delicious, oozing oil but maintaining that signature chewy taste. Cheese also popped up in the garides saganaki, a tasty confection of prawns and feta baked in a tomato, white wine, garlic and parsley sauce - and once again, the cheese made the dish, adding a perfect contrast to the prawns. The theme continued with gemista piperies, tiny red peppers stuffed with feta and chilli and providing a deceptively miniature morsels. We managed to control the cheese craving for our final options, the roasted aubergine and tomato delight that was melitzanes imam balidi, a garlicky, herby dish slow-cooked to perfection, and patates yahni, oven-roasted potatoes served in a tomato sauce with onion, garlic and olive oil.

Full of fresh tastes, this delicious spread may have filled us up, but I'm hungry for more of what Santorini has to offer. With meze ranging from £3 to £4.75 (and our meal for 4 with 2 glasses of wine and a 10% service charge adding up to just £47), Santorini's just as good value as a holiday restaurant, with friendly service and a homely atmosphere thrown in for good measure. What more could you want?

Rating: 8.5/10

Santorini is at 126 Cowley Road, Oxford OX4 1JE. Tel: 01865 241260.

Update: I visited Kalamata in August 2012 and although the staff haven't changed, the menu has one important difference. Kalamata serves houmous. Interesting that a change of heart accompanies a change of name. I have to say I was far less impressed on my most recent visit: everything appeared too quickly and had a distinct feel of microwave. It's a shame as the food is still incredibly tasty, but inadequately reheated dishes aren't really good enough. We were also presented with bread we hadn't ordered and then charged for it. The waiter did remove the charge when we asked, but it added another sour note and meant that the 10% service charge really wasn't warranted. I'd be interested to know what experiences others have had there recently.

Al Shami

A residential Jericho sidestreet might not be the logical place to situate a Lebanese restaurant, but Al Shami's tucked-away location certainly hasn't done it any harm. Established in 1988, this smart but friendly place is a cut above the city's other Lebanese restaurants looks-wise: there are no gaudy window displays and shisha pipes on show here, just a ligh-filled room of traditional wooden furniture and white table cloths.

The menu begins with an extensive selection of meze (divided into hot and cold sections), with a selection of vegetarian and fish main courses and plenty of meaty numbers under the 'charcoal grill' heading. Although reasonably-priced vegetarian mains such as cracked wheat, lentils and fried onions served with yoghurt (£6.90) sounded interesting, there's nothing like a bit of variety, so we stuck with the meze.

As S had kindly agreed to renounce flesh for the evening, we opted for a dish of houmous and one of mohammara (a violently-coloured blend of crushed nuts red capiscum, olive oil and spices), a fattoush (mixed salad with herbs and toasted Lebanese bread), some fatayer sebanikh (pastries filled with spinach, onions, pine nuts and lemon juice), sanbousek biljibneh (feta-filled pastries) and some falafel. This may sound like more than two relatively small people could stomach, but given the delicious-sounding selection on the menu, it was a fairly restrained order.

Raw

Sipping a glass of Lebanese white wine as we waited, a platter of raw vegetables appeared in front of us. I'd call them crudites, but last time I checked, a whole green pepper and half a lettuce didn't fit into this category. An unusual addition to the table maybe, but an easy way to your five a day as long as you don't mind a bit of at-table chopping action.

Within a matter of minutes, the waiter whirled over with a tray of well-presented little dishes of vegetarian delights. All were a decent size for the price (between £2.50 and £3.50 each) - none of the thimble-sized portions so common in UK 'tapas' restaurants. The houmous was smooth and creamy and the mohammara just spicy enough; perfect smeared on chunks of fresh flatbread. An ideal summer dish, the fattoush was fresh and lemony tasting, with the crispy flakes of toasted bread adding substance. The falafel was a touch on the dry side for my taste, but slathered with houmous it was perfect. Both the pastries were surprisingly light and full of flavour - I thought that the fatayer may feel somewhat lacklustre without any cheese content, but the addition of pine nuts and lemon juice was definitely enough.

For just £28.50 for 2 people including 2 glasses of wine and a 10% service charge, our meal made me understand why Al Shami has been drawing customers to this corner of Jericho for over 20 years: it's a class act, without the hefty price tag.

Rating: 9


Al Shami is at 25 Walton Crescent, Oxford OX1 2JG. Tel: 01865 310066.

Everest Nepalese

Residential Howard Street isn't exactly somewhere you'd usually consider when deciding where to eat out in Oxford. Just a few years ago, Cowley Road was as good as it got in the OX4 postcode, but with tempting new additions such as the Rusty Bicycle, the Magdalen Arms and the Indian Room popping up on the map, excellent dining options are definitely spreading east. This residential street has been put on the map by Nepalese restaurant Everest, which occupies half of the converted Donnington Arms pub.

The dining area isn't the biggest of spaces, with around twelve tables of varying sizes. It's a testament to Everest's popularity that by 7.30 on a Tuesday evening, almost half of them were occupied. The decor is smart but simple, with comfortable leather chairs and a touch of tasteful artwork. The focus is definitely on the food, though: the smart menu features mainly Nepalese dishes (as you'd expect), with a few Indian numbers thrown in no doubt to please the palates of the curry-conditioned population. Similar to Indian cuisine in its extensive uses of spices, Nepalese food is similarly varied, with dishes as diverse as dumplings, noodle dishes and bean and potato masala on Everest's menu.

The  menu begins with a page of starters, priced between £2.95 and £5.95, including the dumplings in question (momos), which I've heard excellent things about. There's a page of vegetarian dishes, tandoori options, chef's specialities (including the interesting-sounding manu farsi; lamb and red pumpkin cooked with ginger, red pepper and garlic), as well as a number of classic Indian dishes and biryanis. I skipped straight to the vegetarian specialities: mostly Nepalese, many  can be ordered either as a main course (£6.95) or as a side (£3.95).

Annapurna vegetables and kadai chicken

I opted for annapurna vegetables (potatoes, okra, cauliflower, mushrooms, courgettes, aubergine, broccoli and green beans, £6.95), with plain rice and a garlic naan. The vegetables were perfectly cooked, with just the right amount of bite, and the depth of flavour was impressive. They were light-tasting and moreish: portion sizes are generous but not over-facing, justifying the price tag for the vegetarian dishes at least. My dinner companion S opted for a kadai chicken (with onion, capiscum, green chillies and gren peppers, £7.95) from the Indian classics section, which was flavoursome but rather too greasy for her liking: once she'd transferred it over to her plate, the serving dish was left with an unappetising reservoir of oil at the bottom. That said, the taste prevailed and she ate the lot. The naan was generously smothered in garlic and fortunately escaped the grease trap of the kadai chicken.

With a wide variety of tempting-sounding dishes on offer, Everest is a good value introduction to Nepalese cooking. If you're looking for something a bit different than the usual options of pub/Italian/Indian/Chinese, give Everest a go: with such a range of dishes on offer, you're sure to discover something new. Given the greasiness of the Indian dish compared to the Nepalese, it's probably best to stick to what Everest is all about.

Verdict: 8 for the Nepalese, 6 for the Indian

Everest Nepalese is at 147-151 Howard Street, Oxford OX4 3AZ. Booking recommended at weekends. Take away available (collection or free delivery for orders over £15 in a 5 mile radius). Tel: 01865 251555.