A friend’s birthday on Saturday called me into the centre of Oxford for some food, drink and general fun times. Unbelievably, despite having lived 30mins – 1hour away, (depending on mode of transport) for pretty much my whole life, this was the first time I’d been into Oxford at night. It was really pretty and I didn’t really spot any unsavoury characters either; a huge step up from Reading.
We visited 2 venues for cocktails and both were fabulous so I just had to tell you all about them just in case you’re in the area. Unfortunately the pictures I have are taken from the web as my camera is shockingly bad in low light conditions!
Bar 1 – Angels
As you can see, it’s not really much to look at on the outside but inside it’s very cosy, slightly dark and decorated in that slightly kitsch way I love my cocktail bars to be decorated. It’s also on a really quaint little street with other nice bars and some nice restaurants too so you really feel like you’re in the right place for a pleasant drinking experience. On recommendation from a friend I went for the Passion Fruit Daquiri which was divine; I couldn’t taste the alcohol at all and the passion fruit had just the right amount of bite to cut through the sweetness of the rest of the drink. Highly recommended! If you’re not drinking, this is also a great place for you; the bf had himself an Elderflower Presse cocktail which was also delicious, just needed a splash of rum in my opinion!
I would definitely recommend this as a great bar for getting your night started or somewhere where you can chat easily with your friends whilst exploring a large menu of taste sensations!
Bar 2 – Freud
Now don’t be put off by the rubbish website or the fact that this looks like a tourist spot by day. By night, this place is lit up and it’s transformed into what can only be described as a cross between a church and an industrial warehouse. The ceilings are exposed and warehouse-like but adjoined to the traditional walls encasing the stained glass windows.
The cocktails in here were also fabulous, nobody in the group had anything bad. I had a Planters Punch and it literally tasted like being on holiday in the Caribbean; not to mention it looked a bit like a sunset. An absolutely brilliant drink for anyone who likes to disguise the sour taste of alcohol! It’s a bit more lively than Angels in that it is bigger and generally louder but still a great place to catch up with your friends. Definitely give this place a visit, if only to check out the decor!
My lesson from all of this…I need a better camera. You’d definitely go to both if you saw how good the cocktails looked! x
30 Something Dreamer 