In all honesty it’s been a long time since we’ve been to Oscars together. In fact probably not since our university days (yep the mid-late 1990s for us 😱). We remember Oscars when it was in its original home around the corner, where Stonegate Yard now resides. I do have very vague memories of jugs of sangria and tequila shots in ‘Old Oscar’s, though hopefully not at the same time.
Anyway I digress, back to 2018 Oscars!
The interior is I guess nothing out of the ordinary for a bistro wine bar but very pleasant and we were lucky enough to have a lovely window seat so we could watch the world of York wander down Swinegate and we spent some time discussing how trendy King Koby the barbers opposite looked – yes, we really are getting old.
The menu is pretty much as I remember it from 20 years ago with salads, chilli, nachos and burgers but also the exciting addition of ‘Ration Trays’ – from the menu we weren’t too sure what they were but they sound fun!
We seemed to wait a while to order any drinks and couldn’t decide if it was table service or if we had to go to the bar. The restaurant staff were pretty busy with a large group at the time so we decided to wait and in the end a friendly waiter popped over and apologised for our wait.
We ordered a bottle of Solar Viejo Crianza which was pleasant enough (when the bill came, turns out it was Happy Hour priced at only £11.95 a bottle. Wowzers!)
To eat, I couldn’t decide what to order, as most of the menu sounds delicious. I was very tempted by the afore mentioned Ration Trays but they sounded quite big and (unusually for me) I wasn’t that hungry. In the end I settled on a lamb burger from the specials menu. It was quite tasty but didn’t have enough of the promised tzatziki and harissa so I felt it was a bit dry. 
Cand ordered cheesy garlic bread as a starter, which we shared. It was yummy but it probably filled us up a bit too much, still it is Cand’s favourite starter – she’s easily pleased! She followed that with the Spicy Bean burger which she proclaimed was delicious, especially the onion rings!
All in all there was plenty of food, the wine was a bargain and the surroundings are cosy and relaxed. We will be back!
🍷 Meal for two with bottle of wine: £35.80 (but we did end up with the happy hour menu wine for £11.95 a bottle!)
🎉 My Highlight: The chips. Always the chips.
⚡️ Cand’s Highlight: Whilst I always have the same thing as I can’t resist an Oscar’s bean burger, I like the fact the vegetarian section is nice and clear. No hunting around for little v’s.
🍴 If I could change one thing… Just a bit more dressing and additions to make the specials burger a bit more special.
Restaurant details: www.biltmoreandoscars.co.uk/oscars-york
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