Chefs at The Store hotel in Oxford are working to create a new winter menu.

The 101-bedroom boutique hotel on the site of the former Boswells department store opened in Oxford on May 7 and visitors have been flocking to its stunning rooftop terrace.

The Treadwell restaurant on the ground floor, led by head chef Andy Robinson has also been very busy and he is now creating a winter menu ready to be launched in November.

READ MORE: Oxford's newest hotel is set to open

While roast dinners will remain, together with some classic dishes including fish and chips, there will be new game dishes, tagine stews and winter cassoulets "with a British twist".

(Image: Andy Ffrench) Manager Simon Drake said he was excited by the prospect of the new winter menu and expected the Treadwell to compete with the best restaurants in the city.

"The barbecues have been removed from the roof terrace because it's the end of the summer and we are switching to an apres-ski mood, with eggnog lattes," he added.

Mr Drake said hotel bookings have exceeded expectations throughout June, July, August and September, and Balliol College and the Bodleian Library have asked the hotel to host guests for wedding receptions.

He added: "We have surpassed our budget expectations and are already seeing a significant number of repeat clients booking for 2025/2026."

(Image: Andy Ffrench) The manager said Oxford University students now returning to the city were dining with parents who remembered Boswells.

It is now almost five years since the news broke that Boswells would close, and it did not reopen following lockdown in 2020.

Mr Drake said Sarah Pearson, one of Boswells' managing directors, recently visited the hotel and told him she was "so proud to see what Boswells has become".

A bespoke history brochure of Boswells, and the building is now being created so that it can be placed in every bedroom, and Mrs Pearson is sharing her knowledge.

(Image: Andy Ffrench) Prints and other memorabilia discovered when builders took over the department store has now been used to decorate the hotel walls throughout the building.

Small businesses across Oxfordshire are being supported by the hotel, including Fabulous Flowers in Abingdon, which is now supplying the hotel with its flowers.

For guests looking for luxury, 14 bedrooms on the two top floors have their own roof terraces, with deluxe level rooms costing from £380 a night, £100 a night more than entry level bedrooms.

Only 11 out of 101 bedrooms have been fitted with baths - but that is a deliberate decision allowing designers to make individual bedrooms more spacious.

In the basement, just below Broad Street, there is a sauna, steam room and gym.

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About the author 

Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here. 

He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.

His Trade and Tourism newsletter is released every Saturday morning. 

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