This week sees exciting news for our Oxford Blue readers, as the city welcomes the launch of new menus from the local fine-dining restaurant, Six by Nico, on Westgate’s rooftop level. Keep reading if you want to find your next fifth-week-blues treat location, with an exclusive discount from Six by Nico, especially for our readers.
The restaurant, which launched its Oxford branch in May, delivers a unique menu style: a six-course tasting experience based on a “theme, destination, or concept” that changes every six weeks and retails at £50pp (and an additional £38pp for paired wines). It already has popular locations up and down the UK, and Kiaya and I, your very hungry Editors-in-Chief, were invited up on Tuesday, October 8th, to give it our stamp of approval at their launch, with special guests from Oxford United FC.
At noon, we emerged weary from our (actually quite short and easy) Freshers’ Fair set-up and made our way to the restaurant for our reservation. Upon arrival, we were greeted by its beautiful exterior and a bustling queue of other invited guests. Despite the hubbub, we were ushered in quickly by extremely friendly staff, and seated under an atmospheric indoor tree to await the start of the experience – and what an experience it was. Kiaya and I were invented to taste the ‘Best of Six’ menu (see image below) along with its paired wines, which captured different aspects of past menus from the restaurant’s six-and-a-half-year career that were deemed to be the very best of their tenure. Here is what we thought…
Now, for the food – oh, the food. Here are our highlights.
Niamh’s Pick: Aperitif – Sakura Spritz cocktail
The Sakura Spritz cocktail was selected from their 2024 ‘Tokyo’ menu. A blend of Lychee Liqueur, Dry Vermouth, Prosecco, and soda – what a welcome. Throughout the experience, we spoke with our hosts who provided concept explanations, sommelier descriptions, and various other thoughtful details about the food. Kiaya, a foodie, and myself, a wino, have perhaps less expert vocabulary to recount our gastro-experience, but we hope that they suit your tastes anyway, dear reader.
NIAMH: The Sakura Spritz was mellow, delicious, with a tangy hint of the prosecco. Presented beautifully, I thought it acted both as a hint of the eclectic tastes we were about to imbibe, and a smooth palette cleanser to ease us into the afternoon.
Niamh’s Pick: Snack – Pork and Prawn Hotdogs, or, Kiaya’s Pick: Snack – Mushroom and Five Bean Corn Dog (V)
NIAMH: I am not a foodie myself, so I have never actually tasted saffron, nor have I ever tasted saffron emulsion. I am dying to taste it again. The flavours inside the corn dog were light, and distinctly savoury. The emulsion was just indescribable. Amazing snack, 10/10.
KIAYA: I am a lover of saffron, but with it being at such a hefty price point it’s not something I eat on the regular. I think it paired amazingly with the mushroom filling of the corn dog and gave what could be quite a basic dish a definite tang.
Niamh’s Pick: Course 2 – Bacon, Egg & Cheese, or, Kiaya’s Pick – Double Yoker (V)
NIAMH: Now this course was unexpected. The chef, Nico, seems to like putting a tang into his dishes. The confit yolk added that very tang to a perfectly cooked pork belly morsel, adding a bit of glide to its crispy, parmiggiano-y bed. The paired Romanian white wine was refreshing and dry, topping off the strong and punchy flavours of the dish.
KIAYA: The confit egg yolk was like nothing I have had before. Its gooey centre was the perfect texture combo when paired with the potato rosti, and the hot sauce gave it a spicy tang that Nico seems to be prone to utilising.
Niamh and Kiaya’s Pick: Course 3 – Gaudi
NIAMH: All of my praise here is for the ‘Hen of the Wood’ mushroom. I am not a mushroom fan and never do mushrooms, but with a menu so carefully curated as this, I HAD to do the mushroom. I was very tentative at first, but the minute it landed in my mouth, I realised it tasted like meat. Succulent and smoky, like steak, this mushroom was the star of the show in ‘Gaudi’, and as the host described its inspiration coming from La Sagrada Familia, I could sort of see the resemblance. A brilliant choice, another brilliant dish.
KIAYA: This was perhaps my favourite dish. As a mushroom lover, I was curious to see how Nico was going to take what could be such a plain vegetable and make it special. He certainly succeeded in my eyes, the mushroom was beautifully cooked and pulled apart seamlessly as I tore into it. Its smoky flavour gave the vegetable a meaty texture. Paired with the Hazelnut pesto – which was fresh and intensely nutty – it went down very easily!
Niamh’s Pick: Course 4 – Fish Supper
NIAMH: ‘Fish Supper’ was much more familiar territory for me. As a northern lass, I am well-acquainted with a chippy tea, and extremely excited for this section. The fish: juicy, succulent, melt-in-your-mouth. The beer scraps: next level. How can you improve on fish and chips? Ask Nico. Beer scraps that actually taste like beer! Fish that is light and beautifully presented! Couldn’t ask for more, could you?
Kiaya’s Pick: Course 6 – Queen of Hearts
KIAYA: No good meal is complete without a sweet treat, and this one certainly signed off the meal in the best way. Usually, I sway towards a chocolate dessert, but the vanilla mousse in this simply melted on the tongue. It was also paired with my favourite wine of the evening, a sparkling red which was light and fruity working perfectly with the raspberry frangipane. This was my 10/10.
Final notes
If you’re a bit of a gastronaut, or just fancy trying something new, Six by Nico is well worth the visit to try their new ‘Hollywood’ menu, running now until November 3rd. The customer service is impeccable, it is clearly obvious that the chefs care deeply about what they create, and all that is wrapped in a little bow with skyline views of Oxford. If that sounds good to you, then get excited.
Six by Nico is offering readers of The Oxford Blue an “Oxford Roast Exclusive Reward” on their one-of-a-kind Sunday Roast Tasting Experience. This five-course tasting experience will run every Sunday until November 3rd, and they are very kindly offering us a £30pp price with a free welcome drink. So, I strongly advise you to get booking, and try their reimagined roast as an early Oxmas treat – you deserve it.
To book, click here, or follow this link:
https://www.sixbynico.co.uk/oxford/sundayroast-blue/