Bucks &amp; Oxon

Glad you enjoyed it Pat. I’m a big fan too x

We are ladies who lunch and visited to celebrate a birthday. We enjoyed fabulous food, wine, atmosphere and a wonderful host Stacey. Thank you so much, will definitely be visiting again very soon.

I was working with somebody today who was telling me about this, she went in the week and couldn’t recommend it highly enough!

We love it. Lovely atmosphere and Consistently great food.

Im of pensionable age&#8230;.so in the area next weekend. Will take a look!!!!

<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-location">THE LOCATION</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="2250" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare101.jpg" alt="Boxing Hare Swerford frontage" class="wp-image-178683" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare101.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare101-533x800.jpg 533w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare101-667x1000.jpg 667w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare101-267x400.jpg 267w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare101-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare101-1365x2048.jpg 1365w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



I first reviewed <a href="https://www.theboxinghare.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Boxing Hare</a> pub in Swerford, North Oxfordshire in January 2018, when it was so new the signage hadn&#8217;t even been put up (literally, I watched the workman on ladders as I lunched). The team creds, though, were firmly in place with chef Nicholas Anderson, a two-time Michelin star and 3 AA Rosette winner, enticed away from The Bell of Hampton Poyle to head up the kitchen.



Since that first review, The Boxing Hare has steadily grown in popularity with a Cotswold crowd who are attracted to the informal, warm service, spot-on food and phenomenal portions (let&#8217;s just say you&#8217;re not pushing solitary peas around a plate here). Only five miles from Chipping Norton, and a 15-minute jaunt from private members club Soho House, there&#8217;s a tantalising steam of celebrity diners amongst the in-the-know locals and foodie day trippers that make up the clientele.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-vibe">THE VIBE</h2>



Buzzy, confident, well-heeled with the killer combo of the atmosphere of an inn and the cooking of a smart restaurant. The pub has all the arched windows, wooden beams and fireplaces you&#8217;ll need. Tables and chairs are kept simple and wooden, but occasional quirky touches lift the look &#8211; flamingo lampshades, modern photography on the walls and, of course, a giant hare that greets you before you even step through the front door. For bigger parties or private dining there&#8217;s an attractive hops-strewn garden room that was busy the night I visited. In summer there&#8217;s a large garden for lolling around.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scoff-quaff">SCOFF/QUAFF</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="2250" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare133.jpg" alt="Table laid at Boxing Hare Swerford" class="wp-image-178684" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare133.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare133-533x800.jpg 533w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare133-667x1000.jpg 667w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare133-267x400.jpg 267w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare133-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/BoxingHare133-1365x2048.jpg 1365w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



You can have charming pubs that succeed with average food and scruffy pubs that succeed with amazing dishes, but it&#8217;s not that easy to run a charming pub with relentlessly superior gastro offering, so bravo.



The menu errs towards restaurant fare, particularly with the à la carte, though there are still pub crowd-pleasers (albeit with a fine dining sheen) &#8211; winter mushroom risotto with truffle, rocket and parmesan; spiced cornfed chicken kiev; 8oz steak burger in a brioche bun; and last but not least the roasts, which have deservedly become the weekend calling card. The gastro showboat, however, remains the 70-day Longhorn dry aged beef, with the 10oz sirloin setting you back a reasonable £38.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1584" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/Boxing-Hare-meat.jpg" alt="Cut of beef, Boxing Hare Swerford" class="wp-image-178685" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/Boxing-Hare-meat.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/Boxing-Hare-meat-758x800.jpg 758w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/Boxing-Hare-meat-947x1000.jpg 947w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/Boxing-Hare-meat-379x400.jpg 379w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/Boxing-Hare-meat-1455x1536.jpg 1455w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



Children are well catered for here too, with their own menu (up to 12 years old), offering macaroni and cheese, steak burger, sausage and mash and the roast all options.



Having eaten here several times for Sunday lunch (tip: book well in advance, it&#8217;s a sell-out for a reason), I came in for an evening meal instead, and ordered a phenomenal sirloin and triple-cooked chips accompanied by a butter sauce and generous side salad for mains. It&#8217;s pretty easy to cook a steak badly so I often have it when I&#8217;m reviewing (also, come on, it&#8217;s steak). Tender, hitting medium-rare bang on and with crispy fluffy chips, it hit the mark with my glass of punchy Mendoza Malbec. I was driving so it was just one glass for me, but the wine menu can take you from entry level bottles at £24 through to the serious £60-80 Tuscan territory. Again the axis between quality and value feels sound.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="2000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/Boxing-Hare-Swerford-surloin.jpeg" alt="Steak frites at Boxing Hare Swerford" class="wp-image-178387" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/Boxing-Hare-Swerford-surloin.jpeg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/Boxing-Hare-Swerford-surloin-600x800.jpeg 600w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/Boxing-Hare-Swerford-surloin-750x1000.jpeg 750w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/Boxing-Hare-Swerford-surloin-300x400.jpeg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/Boxing-Hare-Swerford-surloin-1152x1536.jpeg 1152w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



Dessert took me into the naughty zone &#8211; a sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice-cream that cried out for a matching sticky wine, so I&#8217;ll return to the pub in the passenger seat for test out that combo.



It&#8217;s worth noting there&#8217;s a set menu available from Wednesday to Friday for lunch and dinner. In these times of tightening waistbands (metaphorically &#8211; you&#8217;ll need to loosen your trousers after a meal here), prices are good value at a welcome £26 for 2 courses and £35 for 3 courses.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1125" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/Boxing-Hare-Swerford-pudding.jpeg" alt="Sticky toffee pudding with ice cream Boxing Hare Swerford" class="wp-image-178388" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/Boxing-Hare-Swerford-pudding.jpeg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/Boxing-Hare-Swerford-pudding-800x600.jpeg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/Boxing-Hare-Swerford-pudding-1000x750.jpeg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/Boxing-Hare-Swerford-pudding-400x300.jpeg 400w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-around-and-about">AROUND AND ABOUT </h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="733" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/04/kitchen-garden-and-house-chastleton-oxfordshire-1785007.jpg" alt="Chastleton House frontage and garden" class="wp-image-158959" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/04/kitchen-garden-and-house-chastleton-oxfordshire-1785007.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/04/kitchen-garden-and-house-chastleton-oxfordshire-1785007-800x586.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/04/kitchen-garden-and-house-chastleton-oxfordshire-1785007-400x293.jpg 400w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Chastleton House </figcaption></figure>



We&#8217;re on the Oxfordshire side of the Cotswolds, so there&#8217;s no shortage of lovely things to see and do. Chippy Norton is just around the corner with its fabulous Chippy Theatre and plenty of independent shops on its high street. The National Trust beauty&nbsp;<a href="https://bucksoxon.muddystilettos.co.uk/culture/architecture-2/muddy-visits-chastleton-house-nat-trust/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Chastleton House</a> (one of my absolute local favourites, and made famous by Hilary Mantel&#8217;s Wolf Hall and now The Mirror and the Light) is a few miles further. 



Soho Farmhouse is a 15 minute chug up the road if you fancy a posh, celebrity rubber-necking overnighter. Daylesford Farm is 10 miles away, and then it&#8217;s a hop and skip into the Gloucestershire side of the Cotswolds. If you want to keep it truly local, there&#8217;s <a href="http://my.viewranger.com/route/details/MjNfMTUxNw==" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">a charming 5 mile walk </a>from Swerford (check out the gorgeous church) to the pretty village of Wigginton, though it&#8217;s not circular so you&#8217;ll have to either retrace your steps or get a lift back.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-muddy-verdict">THE MUDDY VERDICT</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="2000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/Boxing-Hare-sign.jpg" alt="Boxing Hare Swerford sign" class="wp-image-178737" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/Boxing-Hare-sign.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/Boxing-Hare-sign-600x800.jpg 600w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/Boxing-Hare-sign-750x1000.jpg 750w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/Boxing-Hare-sign-300x400.jpg 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/12/Boxing-Hare-sign-1152x1536.jpg 1152w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



Good for: Everyone really. The food is fab, there are enough crowd-pleasers to suit little palates, the pub&nbsp;has a pleasing number of different areas and nooks and crannies, and it works equally well for locals heading in for a well-priced G&amp;T or&nbsp;destination foodies searching for the perfect Sunday lunch. Parents can fling their tantruming toddlers into the garden come spring time and those on a budget will still manage a superior meal without selling a kidney. 



Not for:&nbsp;Those strongly averse&nbsp;to roadside pubs &#8211; though once inside I should point out that you can&#8217;t hear the road at all,&nbsp;and the lovely garden to the back of the pub is large and&nbsp;feels&nbsp;protected from the road too. Dogs are permitted with prior notice and in certain areas &#8211; don&#8217;t just rock up with your Great Dane and expect a seat. 



£££: Reasonable for the quality. Starters mostly around £7.50-10; mains around £17-25; 10oz rib-eye steak £38; side orders £5; puddings £8.



<a href="https://www.theboxinghare.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Boxing Hare</a> , Banbury Road, Swerford, Oxon, OX74AP. Tel: 01608 683212.

Review: The Boxing Hare, Swerford, Oxfordshire Cotswolds

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