Eat and drink
The Straw Kitchen, Whichford
The café at Whichford Pottery, open from Wednesday to Saturday, with a seasonal menu that changes weekly: brunches, soups, ramen, curries, salads and homemade cakes. It closes for a long winter break.
The reason to make Whichford Pottery a lunch trip as well as a shopping one, with a menu that changes weekly and goes further than the usual soup and scones. The catch is its short week and winter break: it is closed from 19 December until 19 March 2027, and takes no bookings.
- Good: Weekly changing menu of brunches, ramen, curries, soups and cakes
- Good: Part of a working pottery, so an easy half day out
- Good: Close to the Rollright Stones for a half day out
- Good: Food served until 3pm
- Worth knowing: Open only from Wednesday to Saturday
- Worth knowing: Closed for winter from 19 December 2026 until 19 March 2027, and no bookings
About
The Straw Kitchen is the café at Whichford Pottery, in the village of Whichford in the hills south-west of Banbury. It is there to feed people visiting the pottery, and it does so with more ambition than most: a seasonal menu that changes each week.
Expect brunches, soups, ramen, Sri Lankan curries, salads and homemade cakes, with a children's menu and food to take away, though the café prints no prices. It opens from Wednesday to Saturday, 10am to 4pm, and the kitchen stops serving at 3pm. It takes no reservations, so a busy day may mean a wait.
The important thing to know is the winter break. For 2026 the café closes at 4pm on 19 December and does not reopen until 19 March 2027, so check before planning a winter visit.
Whichford Pottery itself is the attraction, making handmade flowerpots here. The Rollright Stones are close by, and The Norman Knight is the pub in the same village if you come on a day when the café is shut.
Opening hours and season
| Monday | Closed |
|---|---|
| Tuesday | Closed |
| Wednesday | 10:00 to 16:00 |
| Thursday | 10:00 to 16:00 |
| Friday | 10:00 to 16:00 |
| Saturday | 10:00 to 16:00 |
| Sunday | Closed |
Food until 3pm. Closed Sunday to Tuesday. Winter break from 4pm on 19 December 2026 to 19 March 2027.
The details
- Food
- Café food
- Serving
- Brunch · Lunch
- Booking a table
- Walk-ins only
- Features
- Café · Shop
Photos
Inside the Straw Kitchen 
The stove 
Eccles cakes 
Summer rolls
Location
Places to stay nearby
-
The Norman Knight, Whichford
Pubs
A pub with rooms in a restored former bakery at Whichford, serving seasonal British food and well-kept ales, with four rooms, five cabins, supper clubs, live music on Saturdays and a monthly car rally in summer.
Verified Nov 2026
-
The Red Lion, Long Compton
Pubs
A Grade II listed inn on Main Street, Long Compton, under the Rollright Stones, with seven dog-friendly bedrooms, an AA Rosette and Breakfast Award for 2025, a play area and dogs welcome in bar and restaurant.
Dog-friendly · Family-friendly · Walker-friendly
Verified Nov 2026
-
The Gate Hangs High, Hook Norton
Pubs · Hook Norton
A country pub on the Whichford road outside Hook Norton, with local ales, an open fire, freshly cooked food from Wednesday to Sunday, rooms and a large camping field with electric hook-ups.
Dog-friendly
Verified Nov 2026
Nearby walks, places and things to do
- The Norman Knight, Whichford 0.2 km away
- The Still House Café, Stourton 2.3 km away
- The Red Lion, Long Compton 3.3 km away
- The Malthouse Kitchen, Hook Norton 3.7 km away
Sights nearby
-
Whichford Wood
Sight · Wood · Whichford
An oak and hazel wood in a steep valley south of Whichford, a Site of Special Scientific Interest for its wet flushes and rare plants, with bluebells in May. The Macmillan Way and public bridleways run through it; other paths are private.
-
Rollright Stones
Sight · Hill fort or barrow
Three prehistoric monuments on the Oxfordshire and Warwickshire border, built over more than 2,000 years: the Whispering Knights, the King's Men circle and the King Stone, with a legend of a king and a witch to go with them. Open daily; adults £2.
-
St Peter's Church, Hook Norton
Sight · Church · Hook Norton
Hook Norton's Grade I church, with a Norman font carved with Adam and Eve and signs of the zodiac, a Romanesque chancel and medieval wall paintings. In the middle of the village, open every day, says the benefice.