O’Neill’s has supplied a little corner of Ireland in Oxford city centre for nearly 15 years. The George Street premises were previously the showrooms for the Southern Electricity Board. I once bought a Hoover vacuum cleaner there to earn a free flight to the US. I was actually offered one, too, (unlike most attracted by the promotion) though rather stupidly didn’t take it.

A summer refurb by owners Mitchells & Butlers admirably restyled what had become a somewhat down-at-heel establishment (on my last visit, en route to Jamie’s Italian opposite, I found it hard to lift my feet from the sticky carpet beside the bar). All now looks very spick and span, with good quality food — as I discovered — to tempt us in.

Many will be sampling its wares, perhaps, in a break from the Christmas shopping or before a festive show. Rosemarie and I paid our first visit last week on our way to the press night for South Pacific. We enjoyed it very much (as we did the musical).

The first pleasant touch was to find our table identified by a notice saying “Reserved for Christopher. Thanks a million”. This hadn’t stopped someone sitting there, in fact, though assistant manager Ali quickly (and tactfully) removed the interloper. As we took our seats and began a study of the menu (glasses of the crisp Jakes Point Italian chardonnay in hand), I muttered to myself that the music was rather loud (if rather good, the song being The Waterboys’ Fisherman’s Blues). Someone clearly thought the same, as the volume was soon reduced to give us Mike Scott’s plangent vocal well below discomfort level.

Our orders given, food began to arrive with commendable speed, though not so fast as to suggest (in the case of my starter at least) that it had not been freshly prepared. I was on the hand-breaded gougons of fish (£4.25) — variety unspecified, but possibly I thought plaice. Four or five in number and perhaps two inches long, they made for crispy, succulent bites. The tartare sauce, with capers and gherkins, tasted home made.

Rosemarie was on the Irish onion soup (£3.25), which was delicious if perhaps a little salty. It came with what were styled “croutons”, suggesting cubes of toasted bread that would be floating in the liquid. Instead there were two large pieces of crusty bread topped with Cashel Blue cheese and served separately.

For the main course I had an individual fish pie (£9.25), which admirably fulfilled O’Neill’s boast to offer food in robust style. It was almost too robust for me, certainly in the matter of the exceedingly generous cheese topping and in the quantity of what was beneath. This time the white fish was specified, as cod. I must therefore accept that cod is what it was, though texture and flavour to me suggested the cheaper, but scarcely inferior, pollack. There were also prawns, smoked haddock, crushed potatoes and peas in a white white and dill cream. The accompanying salad was overdressed for my taste but not perhaps for everybody’s.

Rosemarie was meanwhile enjoying her Irish stew (£7.95), which was markedly less generous in terms of its principal content, lamb. But the rich pearl barley gravy, the root vegetables and tasty rounds of sliced potato supplied the necessary bulk — along with a couple of big chunks of soda bread — to make this a filling winter warmer.

Surprisingly, she still managed to find room for a chocolate fudge brownie (£3), with my help over the vanilla ice cream.

Other dishes you’ll find at O’Neill’s include starters of pork terrine and baked camembert, mains of braised rib of beef, minted lamb shank, lemon sole, and pumpkin and butternut squash risotto, and puddings like Eton mess, honeycomb cheesecake and apple and rhubarb crumble. Comfort food at its most comforting, then.

If our experience was typical, you’ll also find warm, friendly service. Our waitress, Shannon from Limerick, was a delight. Learning of our next port of call, she told us she had never been to a theatre. I surprised her by saying I had never set foot in Ireland.

Both of us pledged to alter the situation some time soon, though in my case I should find that O’Neill’s is able to keep me supplied with Irish blarney enough when this is judged necessary.