Food

College lunches represent excellent value for money, offering pay as you go options and buildable meal bundles at a heavily subsidised price for St Cross students.

Lunch is served in Hall Monday to Friday, from 12.00 noon to 1.30pm, with the Hall remaining open until 2.00pm for diners to finish their meals. Prior booking is no longer required, but please ensure you have signed up via your personalised email invite from our payment provider Kanpla to pay for meals in hall and the café. 

If you are unable to attend a booked lunch, please cancel by the booking deadline to avoid being charged.

Lunch is available year-round, with short breaks only during:

• One week at Easter

• Two weeks over Christmas

• A brief closure in late August for a kitchen deep clean

For the most up-to-date information, including closure dates, please refer to the Termly Calendar.

Alumni lunches:

If you are passing through Oxford and would like to visit College, we would love to welcome you back. Please email the Development Team, who can arrange fob access, a tour, or perhaps lunch or dinner, depending on the nature of your visit.

Alumni are entitled to take lunch in College twice per term. Please contact the Development Team with at least a day's notice if you would like to come in to lunch. Payment can be in hall on the day.

Should you wish to come into College for lunch more frequently, you might consider Membership of Common Room, which entitles you to lunch five times a week.

Lunch menu:

Menus for lunches commencing Monday 5 January will be added to this page in due course.

Lunch price list:

Hall Dinner happens in College on Tuesday nights throughout each term. It is a themed formal, served, three-course meal for which College members are encouraged to wear gowns. 

Hall booking closes each Friday at 10:00am in advance of the Tuesday sitting. Members are permitted up to three guests for Hall nights. Members may only book two dinners of the same kind per term.

Please ensure any special dietary requirements for you and your guests are indicated at the time of booking. Wine pairings available to pre-book (£14, two glasses plus a top up). Alternatively, members attending a college hall or dinner, may purchase drinks by the glass in the bar ahead of their meal and take them upstairs to finish with their meal.

For details on the dates and themes for Hall dinners, as well as how to book, please visit the events page.

If you have any queries, please contact the team at mealbooking.queries@stx.ox.ac.uk. 

The College hosts regular formal dinners for its members, as well as feast and tasting dinners throughout the year. Members are welcome to book up to 3 guests to dinners, with the exception of feasts, which are reserved for members only. 

Formal Dinner types:

• Special Dinners feature a set 3 course menu and includes a pre-dinner drinks reception in the common room. 
   
• Special Black-Tie Special Dinners are a 4 course menu and includes a pre-dinner drinks reception in the common room. Members are encouraged to wear black tie. 
   
• Feasts are a 5 course menu, and includes a pre-dinner drinks reception in the common room. Members are encouraged to wear black tie and gowns.
   
• Tasting Dinners are where our catering team really show off, a 7 course extravaganza of culinary creation, includes a pre-dinner champagne reception in the common room. 
   

Booking is essential for all these events and happnes twice per term (Week 0 and Week 3) . As they are popular, they quickly get booked up once open. Please indicate any dietary or seating preferences at time of booking. Premium wine pairings available to pre-book (£24, three glasses minimum plus a top up). Alternatively, members attending a college hall or dinner, may purchase drinks by the glass in the bar ahead of their meal and take them upstairs to finish with their meal.

Please visit the events page for formal dinners, feasts and tasting dinner dates and booking.

Open Monday – Friday, from 10.30am to 3pm, the Café serves fresh barista style hot drinks, cold drinks, pastries, snacks, plus hot lunch selections, such as paninis, sandwiches, salad bowls and soup.

The café is a great place to work, catch up with friends and have lunch in a more informal setting.

No prior booking is required, payment via your Kanpla app, please make sure you have signed up for your account via your personalised email invite.

The Bar is an informal space for members to enjoy an evening drink.

Located in the basement of the College's Main Site, the bar has a range of inexpensive drinks, and is run by students but frequented by the entire college body.  

The bar has ample seating as well as a foosball table, dart board, board games, piano and guitar, and a TV and large screen projector. 

The bar is open weekly Tuesday to Saturday throughout term, from 6pm - 11pm (with last orders at 10.30pm).

Members attending a college hall or dinner, may purchase drinks in the bar ahead of their meal and take them upstairs to finish with their meal.

From January 2026, lunch in hall does not require an advance booking. Members may walk in and pay on the day at the tills in hall. Members must download the app Kanpla from their individual email invite (due to be circulated on Friday 12 December). If you are having trouble downloading the app, or did not receive an invite yet, please contact: Mealbooking.queries@stx.ox.ac.uk

Booking for dinners:

The College's meal booking system allows members to book online onto Halls, Special Dinners, Feasts, wine tasting and other internal events in advance. When booking onto meals, you can also add dietary requirements and guest details.

How do I log in?

If you are a member of the College (student, Fellow, MCR) you can register an account at the login page. To book for College dinners, use your booking system login and password, then select the date and time to process your booking. Make sure to Log in/Register before processing your order.

If you are having trouble logging in, or any other queries, please contact: Mealbooking.queries@stx.ox.ac.uk

Instructions

Step-by-step instructions on using the meal booking system are available using a PDF file here.