Food & Drink

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Editors: Jonah Poulard, Nina Holguin, Duoya Li oxstu.food@gmail.com

Gloucester Green

an introduction to Oxford’s best food market

Nina Holguin

One of the best food places in Oxford has to be Gloucester Green. It’s an international food market open Wednesday to Saturday, selling anything from souvlaki to bao, pasta to curry. It’s a great place to escape college life for a lunchtime, some delicious food and socialise.

I should mention however, before anyone gets the wrong impression, it’s no hidden gem of Oxford, in fact often it is very busy. Nor should you be expecting a cheap lunch. Generally, lunches here range from £5-10, so I would say most people count it as a treat rather than a regular occurrence.

As I live in Worcester, I do have my favourites, but you’ll have to bear with me, as I never remember the names of the stalls. The Mexican place is delicious, though small portions and the waiting time is often one of the longest in the market. In general, I think Oxford is lacking a proper Mexican restaurant, and this is the closest I seem to be able to get to it. There’s a new Korean stall that sells cupbap and bibimbap, which I have only managed to go to once but was exceedingly tasty (and surprisingly filling, which is sometimes lacking from the other stalls). All of the numerous pad thai stalls are great, but as it’s very popular it’s frequently a bit of a wait, so don’t expect to be ready for you in a rush.

One of the most popular places is the Asian snack place, always one of the last (or first, depending on your walking direction) stalls, but normally you can spot it by the red lanterns and the extremely large queue. Don’t fear though, they serve very quickly so you don’t have to wait awhile. Of course, it’s tasty, but one of its main charms is the £1.50 bao buns and other snacks that range between £1-£2 that fill you up for under a fiver. However, Pie Minister have recently set up a stall that sells pie and gravy for £5 as well, so if you’re feeling like some pastry, as a Northerner I always am, you can satisfy your cravings without breaking the bank too much.

I think one of the beautiful things about Gloucester Green is that it feels continually fresh and exciting with the ever-changing stalls, while also feeling homely and communal. The best spent Gloucester Green visit is one with friends and family, trying new foods you’ve never had before. I would definitely recommend heading down at some point to explore the varying options while also browsing the secondhand clothes and nick-nacks stalls; it’s a lunchtime well spent.

Cocktail Time

Where it all began

Jonah Poulard

Hello and welcome to a brand new (hopefully weekly) column focussing in on a different cocktail every week.

In this inaugural edition, it seems only fitting that we commence with the most classic of classic cocktails, the oldest of the old, the true essence of what it is to be a cocktail: the Old Fashioned.

Many of you may have heard of this drink, be it from Mad Men or not, and may know its lofty status as ‘the first ever cocktail’. The first definition of ‘cocktail’ appeared in 1806 in a magazine called The Balance and Columbian Repository, saying it is a ‘potent concoction’ of spirits, bitters, water, sugar. Think of almost any cocktail, and these four elements will be there.

If we take a look at the ingredients of the OF (as known amongst the aficionados), we see that the simple mix of whiskey (with an e as usually American), Angostura bitters, a sugar cube and ice shows that the primitive 1806 definition of the cocktail is the recipe for an Old Fashioned.

These days, the Old Fashioned has retained its long-standing popularity, a drink for both the Don Drapers of the world, the wannabe hipsters and everyone in between.

It promotes a suave, confident image when in the right hands, and a braggadocious or pathetic need to show off in others. Either way, it is delicious.

This is my way of making it, but it is by no means the only way.

First, in a short ‘rocks’ glass place a sugar cube and soak in 3 dashes of Angostura bitters and 2 dashes of orange bitters (I like Regan’s). Add a splash of soda water and muddle to dissolve the sugar.

Then the important part, add a generous pour of around 60ml of a nice high proof Bourbon and place a fair bit of ice in the glass.

Stir for around 15-20s. Remember, with ice the bigger the better: dilutes slower, looks cooler.

Garnish with both an orange and lemon twist, aka ‘bunny ears’ and enjoy.

Here’s one I made earlier (fig. 1), but when I had run out of lemons.

Try it for yourself, order it at a bar, buy nice whiskey only to waste it on pres, it’s your choice.

Cheers!

Image credit: Jonah Poulard