The ultimate student guide to The Covered Market

Student Traditions

Being in the heart of Oxford college land for 250 years, The Covered Market has certainly shaped many a student tradition over time. Here’s a whistle-stop tour of just some of our iconic places:

The Garden and Jemini Flowers are a traditional haunt for exam carnations. Students order their white, red and pink carnations in advance or pick up on the day.

The Oxford Cheese Co. has been a firm favourite for many years for Uni cheese and wine socs to stock up from. They have an incredible selection of cheeses including lots of vegetarian options and higher animal welfare being a keen interest of theirs.

You can’t get more Oxford than May Day. Brown’s café is a traditional haunt for over 100 years now for that hangover busting 6am breakfast. Their special May Day breakfast is so well loved you can now it all year round.  On the day itself, lots of our cafes now join Browns in opening up super early to offer that much-needed morning pit stop.

Covered Market Nights

Every Thurs – Sat  you’ll find a selection of our traders opening later into the night.  Think alternative takes on the traditional bar concept. These include the first ever bar to open in the market Teardrop’s nano bar, plus  The Market Tap by Tap Social, Neapolian inspired il Corno, The Market Cellar Door for wines and bookshop Gulp Fiction all serving fine specialist craft beers, wine, and other treats as well as delicious hot drinks.  Be sure to get there before 7pm if you want to try the oh-so-delicious stone ground pizzas by Sartorelli’s.

There’s also a whole array of events in the market – many are free – including live music, poetry, cultural talks, comedy, a book club, and the new regular open mic night “A Night of Music”. The Woolhound also host most of their craft classes and socials in the early evenings and daytimes at their neighbours place Gulp Fiction.

If you see a closed entrance after 5:30 and it’s a Thurs, Fri or Sat, don’t give up! We only open two entrances on High Street, and two on Market Street.

For coffee lovers

There’s all kinds of tea and coffee haunts throughout the market. Colombia Coffee Roasters grow their own coffee in Colombia, alongside buying from other growers local to their Colombian residence. They then roast the coffee here before selling it in their stylish shop. You can’t get more direct to cup than that and they’re super ethical about their sources! It’s a great place to sit and watch the world bustle by.

For espressos, Brown’s cafe serve the delicious Delta (Ouro) coffee (meaning Gold) famous for being Portugal’s No1 coffee brand and a rare find in Oxford. For Brown’s filter coffee they buy a specially made blend of Italian dark and mocha mix from Cardew’s of Oxford – specialist tea and coffee supplier opposite.  Ever tried Ethiopian Coffee? Lula’s Ethiopian Cafe and Deli serve up this wonderfully aromatic experience daily, plus every Thursday you can join in on their Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony.

Here’s the detail on what coffee the rest of our traders serve: Gulp Fiction serve up coffee by locally-owned Jericho Coffee Traders. Sofi De France brew Italian Pascucci, Taylors serve illy and Brother’s serve Italian Caffee Diemme. Cardew’s  of Oxford also offer a huge range of fine coffees and teas to take home and make a fine brew with. Established in 1945, Cardew’s are the oldest supplier of specialist tea and coffee in Oxford – just walking into the shop is an aromatic sensation of its own.

The Market Tap by Tap Social Movement serve a tasty brew too along with their mouth watering pastry offerings from their own bakehouse Proof Bakery. Il Corno serve authentic Neapolitan coffees too.  The Market Tap, Gulp Fiction and Il Corno open into the evening Thurs – Sat. So you can still get your coffee fix then too!

Quiet Time and secret hideaways

Relax and soak into a book with a fine cuppa, or indeed a pint, at Gulp Fiction – many don’t realise it also has a wonderful upstairs with a lovely sofa. Georgina’s café is the only other place where you can go upstairs. It’s been a traditional hideaway for students. There you can enjoy great Greek home cooking too. Not as quiet but fun to watch everyone else buzzing about – we have benches in both the central squares where you are welcome to take food from any of our traders to eat. There’s also seating tucked in a corner just outside iScream near the bike racks.

Fancy browsing the tranquility of crystals, the Covered Market have that covered too with Crystal Spirit Emporium. The stunning aromas of their huge range of insense also makes the shop very difficult to leave.

Where to get a full English breakfast…

Partied hard the night before? We have a huge selection of cafes in the market. Most famous for its traditional greasy spoon English breakfast, is Browns Café. Family-run Brown’s has been operating for over 100 years, it’s also been featured in Morse and Endeavour! You can also enjoy a hearty breakfast at Brother’s, Taylors and Sofi de France. Most offer tasty breakfast baps for takeaway too, including mouth watering bagels from Colombia Coffee Roasters.

Exam-busting healthy eating

No time to cook but want to eat well – look no further than Alpha Bar. They cook delicious locally produced organic salads and hot meals. It’s fast food bursting with vitamins, and all in eco-friendly packaging. Their open times are Monday to Friday, 11am to 3pm. There’s also superb Greek home cooking as we mentioned earlier from Georgina’s, plus fantastic wraps with all fillings made freshly on site from Rozana.  One of our newest traders is Ginger and Spice – as well as their delicious chai the serve up authentic indian cooking made on site from scratch it’s an absolute must!

Grab a tasty handmade pie or pasty from David John Butchers – they also do vegetarian options and their pies come in paper bags. Fancy some fish for the brain Sushi Bowl serve up deliciously fresh Sushi very aptly taking over the stall where the market fish stall used to be.  Their freshly made sushi on site has quickly become a firm student favourite. Or how about a delicious hearty baked potato from Covered Spuds.

Socks, gloves, and everything in between

We’ve quite literally got you covered in the market – ahem, sorry can’t resist! For stunningly creative threads, jewellery, bags, gifts, woolly hats, gloves and socks.  We have vintage and preloved clothing with Again Garments,  Next to Nothing offer up a cheekie line in men’s t-shirts, as well as relaxed colourful womens clothing and everyone inbetween.  Goodies are specialists in mens clothing from casual to formal, Nothing Boutique run along one side of the market packed with all sorts of accessories. For super-high-end jewellery and watches there’s John Gowing Jewellers.

If you love your quality underwear and are ecologically savvy, Y.O.U. are the perfect choice. They have a huge selection of ethically-made underwear, PJ’s, homeware, toiletries and more. For more bags, we have Pingui who also specialise in luggage, and Fedele, who supply high-quality leather bags – they import their leather from their own farms . While Leonard Jay do formal wear they also stock jumpers and sweaters. Is your head spinning yet, ours is!