Pubs & Beer & 3-points for Oxford City

Oxford, August 2025
Becoming a little disillusioned by football's elite clubs (by which I mean Forest and Oxford United, of course) I set off on a Saturday lunchtime to watch Oxford's second team in action.
With a couple of pints in Headington beforehand and a couple of pints in the centre afterward, here's how the day panned out.

First point of call was the city's sole micro pub, the Tile Shop Alehouse, situated in a row of shops alongside barbers, printing press, charity shop and pizzaria.

The Tileshop Alehouse (10 Windmill Road, Headington, OX3 7BX)
We chatted to one of the owners when this first opened, who told us they'd sourced beers initially from Tring but would be expanding the choice in the future.  That never materialised, so the Tile Shop is still your Oxford go-to for the Hertforshire beer and not a lot else...

To be fair, the 'Ridgeway' was on decent form: a robust malty best bitter, poured straight from the barrel into your choice of handled or straight glass.  The cask coolers were just about doing their job in the unpredictable August weather, although I'd be wary on a day the thermometre tips past 30°.

The colourful tiled section in the picture of my pint is a memento of the former guise of these premises.  There were just half-a-dozen in on a Saturday lunchtime, 'Side Pocket for a Toad' and Franz Ferdinand's debut played in full not drawing in the masses.

A short stroll around the corner took me to the Royal Standard, a Greene King inn that I figured was worth popping my head into for a bit of footy on TV and to see what beers they had on.

Royal Standard (78 London Road, Headington, OX3 9AA)
Ah, not a lot..

"Coming soon" your house beer or 'IPA'.  Bet you can't wait.
Lilleys cider fans were well catered for with a dozen or so varieties boxed in the fridge.
I opted for the GK 'Level Head' on keg, a citrussy refreshing IPA which isn't a bad option in the summer months but always seems to be fiendishly expensive.  £6.10 in this case. 💸😲

I'd have done better with another sub-£5 pint in the micro, but then I wouldn't have gotten to watch the second half of the Villa-Newcastle match.
Here's Oxford's Villa contingent, claret and blue flag draped over another chair out of shot, just about to shout at the Magpie's keeper for breaking the 8-second rule.

The Royal Standard used to be one of Oxford's less appealing pubs but has benefitted vastly from a refurb a couple of years ago.  Okay, there's a lot of grey paint and dubious wallpaper, but some decent comfy seating, pool table, and small enclosed patio to the rear.

Villa's opening game of the season wasn't a thrilling affair and Newcastle playing in green was an oddity.  As it rumbled on to a 0-0 conclusion I drank up and walked into Old Headington village.
Time for a quick beer in the White Hart?

The White Hart (12 St Andrews Road, Headington, OX3 9DL)
This historic inn opposite the Parish church is somewhere I don't tend to get to very often, other than the annual trek to its wonderful back garden in May for their beer festival.
It's a three-roomed trad pub, with the most of the chatter eminating from the front bar where the locals congregate.

An Everard's pub, the ale choice was 'Tiger', 'Old Original' or a seasonal strong blonde called 'Predator'.  The staff member declared the 'Predator' to be at the end of the barrel and not servable - fair play for not trying to palm it off on me.  Except the 'Old Original' had a bit of an odd tang to it that I only noticed half-way through, so a bad day for the cask ale on this occasion.

And did I really need a hasty 5.2% ruby ale with kick-off 45 minutes away?  No, probably not.
At least it's all downhill from Headington to the MGroup Stadium, previosuly the RAW Charging stadium, probably best referred to as Court Farm.
Straight through the turnstiles, I poked my head in the club bar where I sensibly decided not to join the polite queue for keg fizz in plastic pots.

So what do I need to report on from this tie against National League North newcomers Macclesfield Town?
You'll be wanting to see the balloon arch creating jealousy for those without wristbands to get them to the VIP portacabin...

And you'll be wanting to see Wayne's brother John Rooney managing Macc...

But most important of all is that quick check of the cistern in the gents to assess the quality of stickers the away support have brought with them...

There were a decent amount of folks who'd made the trip down from Cheshire to cheer on the Silkmen. 

But to no avail, as Oxford came out 2-1 winners.
They did let a second half Macclesfield goal in to increase the jeopardy towards the end, but never really looked too threatened as Macc hit the reset button after Robbie Savage took his favourite players with him to Forest Green.

Exiting after the full time whistle was blown, I caught an X3 bus to the centre of Oxford and made my way to the nano-bar in the Covered Market where a couple of familiar local charaters were drinking.

Teardrop (Unit 21, Covered Market, Oxford, OX1 3DU)
Teardrop opened in 2019 and has been in the Good Beer Guide for the past couple of years.  Named after the shape of the dinky caravan bar which they used to transport to outdoor events, Teardrop is linked to west Oxfordshire's Church Hanbrewery. 
They offered a run of kegs covering a wide range of styles plus one cask - on this occasion their 'Ale X', a 4.5% IPA - murky, flavoursome, in good condition, and an ideal post-football beer.

Drinking up, we moved on to Broad Street and a visit to the White Horse...

White Horse (52 Broad Street, Oxford, OX1 3BB)
Somewhere that often slips off my radar being as it's small and perpetually busy.
However, the reclaim of a portion of Broad Street for flower boxes, bench seating, and various food and craft stalls has made securing a seat inside the White Horse much easier.
And look what I would have missed!...

Yep, Bass availability faltered a bit in Oxford, so great to find it on good form.  The Kirkstall got the thumbs-up from the members of our group who had it, whilst local Loose Cannon and London's Gypsy Hill completed a line-up that was one stout away from being exceptional.

Bass satisfaction complete, we moved on to the Lamb & Flag, now almost constantly busy, an impressive revivial since spending a few years closed.
I turned to the lip-puckering sour side there with a Holy Goat 'Bramble Smasher'.

Then we ended up in The Bear on pricey Gales 'HSB'.
A visit to the Bear did give me the chance for a first look at the extension that this old pub has made into the neighbouring one-time tanning salon.
It's very micro-pubby, isn't it?

That extension has provided some very posh new WCs though and will possibly be a draw on colder nights.  On this Saturday evening the crowds were squeezed onto the outdoor tables, leaving the original rooms inside, complete with collection of ties, remarkably quiet.
But really! Why would you sit outside or in a modern room convered from a shop when you can grab a table in a pub room like this...

Time to call it a night.
A day that had taken in a couple of Oxford suburban drinking spots, Oxford City's first three-points of the season, and visits to a couple of the centre's most historic inns.
I must have enjoyed myself, as I started hatching plans to return to the MGroup stadium and to make it to an away fixture soon.