City Grocery — Restaurant in Oxford

In my five years of residing in Oxford, I have never experienced such disrespect and poor treatment as I did at the City Grocery Bar on Friday, January 27th. I was part of a group of eight individuals, all of whom were international, and we had intended to enjoy a night out and have some drinks together.

Upon entering the establishment, some of our IDs were checked by the security and we were allowed to enter. However, one of the bartenders suddenly and abruptly told us, "all of you, get the F out." My friends and I were confused and taken aback by this reaction.

In an effort to deescalate the situation and find a resolution, I approached the bartender calmly and politely to discuss the situation. The bartender alleged that we were attempting to sneak in underage individuals, which is completely untrue as all members of my group are over the age of 21. Furthermore, if the bartender had any concerns about the age of any individual in our group, they could have simply asked for our IDs instead of immediately telling us to leave.

The security stopped me when I attempted to have a professional and friendly conversation with the bartender to clear up any misunderstandings. The security guard was respectful but the bartender told me to "F off" and another bartender came up and told me to "get the F out". I was left feeling confused and disrespected.

I firmly believe that the treatment we received was nothing but outright racism. I have never felt so unwelcome and disrespected in my entire time in Oxford. I cannot help but wonder if the treatment would have been the same had we been American instead of Middle Eastern foreigners.

I have frequented City Grocery bar on countless occasions and have never been treated in such a manner before. We even hold our quarterly company dinner many times at City Grocery dining. It is with great disappointment that I will never be visiting this establishment again, nor will my friends or my company be doing any business with them. The staff, including the security and bartenders, require proper education and training in order to provide a welcoming and respectful environment for all patrons. I am deeply saddened and disappointed by the events that...

Recently dined at City Grocery on yet another very busy Friday evening in Oxford – this time, graduation weekend, and it was indeed very crowded and busy on the Square. Despite the bustling crowds of the Square, we were pleasantly surprised by the seamless experience. Although our reservation was for 6:45, we arrived over an hour early and were promptly seated by a gracious hostess who expertly managed the bustling atmosphere. Securing a table at City Grocery can be a challenge, so her efficiency was truly commendable.

We opted to forgo starters due to the limited selection, instead diving straight into Caesar salads with a twist, featuring kalamata olives and hard-boiled egg. While not your traditional Caesar, they were a delightful departure from the norm. Entrees included Wasabi-crusted salmon, Char Siu pork belly, pan-roasted duck breast, and a grilled flatiron steak. Each dish showcased impeccable flavors, with highlights being the perfectly cooked duck, salmon, and rare flat iron steak. Though the pork belly leaned slightly towards being overdone, the accompanying scallion rice grits and sesame infusion added a delightful Korean barbecue flair. I don’t know if this is what the chef intended, but the flavor was outstanding.

For dessert, we enjoyed crème brulee, chocolate-filled profiteroles, chess pie reminiscent of Mississippi Mud Pie, and strawberry mousse. Throughout our dining experience, the service was satisfactory, with attentive waitstaff ensuring our needs were met in a timely manner.

Dining at City Grocery was memorable, despite the bustling atmosphere. While there were minor flaws in some dishes, the overall quality of food and service makes it a worthwhile dining destination in Oxford. I would certainly return and recommend...

We made our first trip to Oxford for a birthday celebration and my husband made sure we had dinner reservations at City Grocery. After having had an excellent meal the night before at another local restaurant we were especially excited to try City Grocery given it’s outstanding reviews. Sadly, very little of the hype lived up to our expectations. Our reservation was fairly early in the evening so the restaurant was still quiet enough that we could hear the music which should have been out first indication that things weren’t going to be what we expected - it was bar music, definitely not fine dining. The lighting was so low, I and other diners had to resort to the flashlights on our phones to read the menu. Our drinks and peach salad were lovely, if over priced. I will say the trout dish was delicious, well prepared and flavorful if uninspiringly presented but my husband’s chicken dish, while equally well prepared was bland and unseasoned. The blueberry hand pies and in-house ice cream we had for dessert were also disappointing, tasting like they’d been microwaved and again, with no presentation whatsoever. By this time our waitress was busy with a large party in another part of the restaurant and done with us. We were never offered coffee with dessert but kuddos to the kids that kept our water glasses filled. Thankfully we had many other wonderful experiences during our visit to Oxford and good food in other places. We’ll eagerly return to Oxford but we won’t be back to...