The Oxford Guide

Formerly a pub, the Isis Tavern in February 2008 this was taken over by the owners of the nearby Isis Boat House to operate as a licensed café. Like the former café alongside the Boat House, these larger premises offer a range of home-made cakes and light lunches along with teas, coffees and other drinks to be eaten inside or in the riverside garden. As well as having much more space than the previous site, this building is licensed, so a range of wines and bottled beers are also served. The only access is by boat, or foot and bicycle along the Towpath. Nearest car parking is in Iffley - access then is by foot over [Iffley Lock]?.

The owners were clearly not quite ready on the first day of opening, during [Torpids]? 2008, with incomplete renovation work and a lack of heating (arrangements for delivering fuel had not been finalised). To top it off they were short-staffed and large queues formed around lunchtime. It is a credit to the charm of the owners that all this was taken with good humour by those who had come to investigate and people willingly waited to place their orders. The home-made soup was delicious, and the cake, as ever, was excellent.