The Fir Tree Pub

Having drunk in a pretty soul-​less Greene King pub much nearer the centr of Oxford the previous evening I’d initially avoided The Fir Tree but as Iffley Road only has a few such places on it I ended up circling back to it. Thankfully going in proved to be a good idea.
A good range of regularly changing ales was on offer, the place has bags of personality with all of the varied town– and beer-​related items hung around the walls, it serves very good homemade pizza and is not bad for watching televised football in.

I have a lot of good memories of The Fir Tree and it was one of my favourite pubs when I was living off Iffley Road. The customer base is an eclectic mix of old man and student, set in a cosy but slightly cramped space. The pub has a selection of Greene King draught with the usual array of lagers and serves a weird-​but-​wonderful array of snacks such as Mini Eggs (!)
The place never gets properly packed, but it does get toasty warm when busy. Also, if you’re a strapping young lad, you may end up with a mystery admirer putting money behind the bar for you, as happened to one of my friends. He never did say what happened when he went to the loo. I have to say though, once you’ve been to The Fir Tree once, you’re very likely to go back.

The Fir Tree gets an automatic 5 star simply for the fact that it is a ye olde pub, and you don’t find many of those these days.
It is also a great late drinking venue if you don’t fancy dancing.
Shame the foozball table is gone. But the pub and staff are authentic.
I think they also do good home cooked food — bring on the Sunday Roast!
Love this pub — my friends swear by it!

Since being taken over, this place has really improved. The staff are really friendly and the atmosphere is great. It can be rather squashed, especially if you’re in a group of more than 5 or so, but it makes for a nice intimacy and sociable place to talk.
It calls itself «a friendly, pleasantly quirky neighbourhood pub», which seems about right. Nothing stands out in particular, but it’s got a good range of snacks (including mini eggs!) and hot food is served:
Tues-​Fri: 5−8pm
Sat: 3−6pm
Sun: 12−4pm (Sunday roasts)
It’s typical pub grub: bangers and mash, including some very good veggie sausages, fish and chips, chilli con carne, etc. The sides are really cheap and good, especially their hand-​cut chips.
I had their special ‘Fir Tree Mega Burger’ with homecut chips which defeated me near the end: ‘8oz beefburger in a lightly toasted sesame seed bun with melted swiss cheese, bacon, tomato, lettuce and relish’. Yum.
The prices of drinks and food are reasonable, (£5-£6 for big meals) although when we ordered in a big group, it took a long time for food to come. They won me over by giving me unlimited ketchup in a little pot. Excellent.