FOOD BIZ | Randolph Hotel, Oxford

L to R: John Tepper Marlin and Brigid Marlin.

It was a nice idea, going back to the MacDonald Randolph Hotel with my sister Brigid for lunch. 

The Randolph is right across from the Ashmolean Museum, which has been renovated and is a popular destination–except on Mondays, when it is closed.

Martyrs' Memorial from the Dining Room,

The Randolph dining room has a terrific view of the Martyrs' Memorial in St. Giles.

I was surprised to find the restaurant empty at noon and even at 12:30. We left at 1:30 pm and still there were few people at lunch.

My sister Brigid bearing up.

The service was attentive at all times, so the problem is not that the hotel does not want to please its customers.

My sister and I think that the reason there are few diners is that the food doesn't keep pace with the location.

I had a disappointing minestrone soup and an avocado salad with too much inferior salad dressing. Diners expect more than that nowadays.

However, an Oxford friend says I should consider this a lapse of the Randolph most likely caused by the lingering aftermath of a fire at the Randolph on April 20, 2015 caused by too much cognac in the flambéed beef stroganoff. 

So we won't go on about the poor quality of the meal.