OXY ORIENTAL, OZONE LEISURE PARK, GREATER LEYS 01865 749888.

Even PAUL STAMMERS finds there’s enough to go around at this buffet eaterie.

Juvenile it may have been. But I won't have been the first diner to have sniggered to myself 'Blitz those zits with Oxy!'

This buffet station may not be in the business of banishing acne, but it sure knocks seven bells out of hunger pangs.

That is, unless you're the sort of awkward cuss who, upon seeing a smorgasbord of Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, Malaysian and Japanese dishes (plus a sprinkling of English comfort food and Brazilian grub) is prone to mutter it's not quite what you're after, like folk who insist there's 'nothing on the telly' these days.

WHAT WERE YOUR FIRST IMPRESSIONS?

It's like a smarter, flashier brother of the Dancing Dragon in Summertown. The décor is swanky-lite – the ceiling boasts exposed ducting, the chairs are tall and set at dark, glossy tables – but you still have to waddle to the buffet tables.

There wasn't any music playing when I was directed, despite the place being only half full, to sit uncomfortably near to a couple discussing everything from marriage to a Ricky Gervais comedy gig.

Like the north Oxford eatery, the price charged depends on height.

There's a 10 per cent service charge, based on the fact the staff insist on swiping plates and cutlery as soon as you pause for an instant.

And pause I did, not only to digest the rich and oily nosh, but also to ponder the ethical conundrum posed by the warning signs.

WARNING SIGNS?

Oh yes. Notices at the counter and on the walls nag customers not to waste food as the management reserves the right to impose a surcharge that will go to Save the Children. Laudable – but why encourage excess with an all you can eat deal anyway?

WHAT DID YOU HAVE?

What didn't I have, might be more to the point – the barbecued fare.

Oxy advertises its Brazilian roasts, but when I pitched up on a Monday night, few diners were interested in the meat sizzling on the barbie.

Most wanted to sample the tepanyaki (only available in the evenings or at weekends) – you pick your ingredients, and they're stirfried while you wait.

I queued too, but the tepanyaki was a disappointment – it tasted mostly of garlic and oil.

The small number of sushi rolls on offer also took my fancy, but I was more impressed by the two dozen or more types of soup, curries, stirfried dishes, vegetable dumplings (moreish), pancakes and fried rice.

Most were familiar, but I confess mussels in tomato and cheese sauce was a new one on me.

As for the Anglo-Saxon stuff, there were chips, jam tarts and jellies.

VERDICT: Ideal for pigging out after a movie or bowling – as long as you've got a hearty appetite.