Mizu Japanese Izakaya — Restaurant in Cherwell District

We went for dinner on Sunday which was the opening night. I’ve always been a huge fan of Japanese food, having tried it throughout the world on mainly business trips. So naturally I was excited to have a Japanese restaurant opening in my home town.

Upon entering the restaurant you can’t help but feel the place is very special. The interior design is truly magnificent. This showed the promise of something special. This however, was not our experience.

When taken to our table I sat on the bench facing into the restaurant, but the table had been positioned so I was sat on a crack between cushions. We moved the table so this wasn’t the case and thought nothing more of it. Just an oversight for opening night?

The staff were quick to our table to offer water and take our drinks order. The drinks arrived quickly, but my wife’s glass had a very obvious lipstick print on it. How this got past a minimum of 3 people prior to arriving on our table is a mystery. Just an oversight on opening night? The drink was taken back and replaced promptly.

We then ordered a decent array of starters including the omakase Nigiri. I always like leaving the food to the chef wherever possible as it allows them to express their choice of ingredients for you. The food came out quickly and was as I expect of the cuisine, full of flavour and well presented. Japanese cuisine really is sensational when done right.

Having devoured those we ordered a foie gras and Unagi don buri, and the black cod. Well, you know you have to when it’s available. We were then presented with two bowls of don buri and no black cod. These were taken back and one instantly returned without the black cod, which we were told would be prepared immediately. Well, that never came for the next 15 minutes as we finished off the don buri, which was excellent. I told the manager we didn’t need the black cod any longer to which he apologised, then went to the kitchen and immediately returned with a warm serving of black cod. He did say it would be on the house, which is nice but not the point. Just an oversight for opening night?

All in all the food is as you should expect for a high end restaurant, full of flavour and well presented. It does seem as though there are some significant issues with training and service, which for the cost of the meal needs correcting if it is to be a sustainable success. Without discounts etc you should expect £50+/head for a dinner.

I hope they fix the service issues, and we will certainly be returning in a month to see if there is an improvement. I really want this to work as our town needs restaurants that are special. This has...

A beautiful interior, wonderfully aesthetic crockery choice, friendly staff and good food, Mizu is a welcome addition to the bicester food lineup!

I enjoyed my time there, as both me and my mother were waiting for Mizu's opening with baited breath, and are glad to finally be able to experience it.

The highlight of our order was definitely the nigiri omakase, the sushi was delicious, as well as the matcha and yuzu cake!

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The main feedback I would give though, is that we could tell that two of the dishes we ordered was adapted to more british taste buds, causing them to fall a little short for ours as japanese people. The soft shell crab had a very oily and strong flavour that did mask the crab a bit. It wasn't bad but we felt like it would have benefitted from a dashi dipping sauce to help temper the oily-ness of the dish, as it felt like it was lacking something. This was the same for the tempura okra, as someone who isn't good with spice, the wasabi mayo overpowered the lovely taste of okra, so we ended up dipping it in soy sauce from our nigiri omakase which was still too strong for it. It would be really really lovely if there was a dashi dipping sauce option for the people who would like the more traditional style of tempura.

I was also a little disappointed at the lack of variety of the non-alcoholic drink menu. My favorite thing is always the drink menu from japanese restaurants as you can usually find some unique drinks you usually cannot get at a typical restaurant. However all that was available was hot teas, soft drinks, and fruit juices.

The cocktail list all looked delicious, and I ended up ordering a matcha amore, but the taste of the alcohol was stronger than i was anticipating, drowning out the taste of matcha. I would absolutely love it if Mizu decides in the future to add some non-alcoholic cocktails, iced teas, or some homemade drinks, like a yuzu cooler for example.

Overall our visit was near perfect, and we will definitely come back again, anticipating how the restaurant will improve and grow as...

Mizu has quickly become one of my new favorite restaurants. From the moment we walked in, the service was exceptional—the staff are so welcoming, friendly and knowledgeable, especially when it comes to dietary requirements.

As someone with celiac disease, I was thrilled to find that they have a dedicated allergen menu, making it easy to see exactly what’s safe to eat. They offer gluten-free soy sauce, and many of their main menu items can be adapted to be completely gluten-free. The staff were incredibly reassuring, double-checking ingredients and making sure everything was safe.

Everything we ordered was incredibly fresh, beautifully presented, and absolutely delicious. I highly recommend the spicy tuna hosomaki. The miso soup was also fantastic, and knowing they can make so many dishes gluten-free is so reassuring.

Beyond the food, the interior was so elegant and the luxury atmosphere makes it a great spot for so many occasions.

Most importantly, it’s now the next day, and I feel great—no gluten reactions at all! Anyone with celiac disease knows how tricky it is to find a place that’s both safe and delicious, and I’m so relieved that Mizu delivers on both fronts.

We will definitely be back, and I highly recommend Mizu to anyone looking for amazing Japanese food in Bicester—especially if you need...