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Take the stress and strain out of perfectly timing the turkey or wasting time over the washing up. Here's our pick of the best restaurants and pubs open in London for Christmas lunch.
Decimo
10th Floor, 10 Argyle St, London WC1H 8EG
Decimo at The Standard, London, celebrates the festive season with Spanish and Mexican-inspired menus. Chef Peter Sanchez-Iglesias has created celebratory set menus, meat-based and vegan, with seasonal holiday flavours and Spanish/Mexican twists. Expect roaring fires, warming cocktails and iconic London views.
Price:£150 for the meat menu, £120 for the vegan menu.
Hotel restaurants
The Lanesborough
Belgravia - 80 Houndsditch, London EC3A 7AB
There are two options at this hotel for Christmas Day. There's The Lanesborough Grill for a menu that includes options of Quail agnolotti alongside the roast turkey. Or you can book The George's Room for a special Christmas Day Buffet that features everything from cep parfait through to pudding and trifle.
Price: £275 for the buffet, £370 for The Grill
Nobu Shoreditch
Shoreditch - 10-50 Willow St, London EC2A 4BH
There is a huge waiting list for the Nobu brunch, but they're also serving it up on Christmas Day, so if you want to jump the queue, this is a good opportunity. You'll be able to raid the bunch bar as much as you like before settling down to a main course of dishes like king crab yuzu butter with caviar or lamb chop with sage truffle crust.
Price: £150
Dalloway Terrace
Bloomsbury - 16-22 Great Russell Street, London, WC1B 3NN
Consistently one of the prettiest restaurants in London, Dalloway Terrace at The Bloomsbury has become a winter wonderland for the season. On Christmas Day, things start with an aged cheddar madeleine and duck liver parfait and venison carpaccio while the main is turkey milanese with smoked mash, winter vegetables and red currant wine jus.
Price: £95 for five courses
Marcus
Knightsbridge - The Berkeley, Wilton Pl, London SW1X 7RL
Marcus Wareing's restaurant at The Berkeley is closing on 26 December, so Christmas Day will be one of the final chances to visit the restaurant. It'll be a special five-course menu on the day, including Rhug Estate turkey with nutmeg cream, spiced red cabbage and sourdough, finishing with a buche de Noel.
Price: £450 (£185 for children)
Mauro Colagreco at the OWO
Whitehall - 57 Whitehall, London SW1A 2BX
This will be the first Christmas at The OWO, so they're bound to put on something special. Two of the Mauro Colagreco restaurants are open on the day. Mauro has a seven-course menu including a glass of Champagne, with courses including duck with spiced apple agnolotti. Saison will have a set three-course menu including ballotine of Devon organic turkey with traditional stuffing, sweet potato and cranberry sauce.
Price: £295 at Mauro, £180 at Saison.
Claridge's Restaurant
Mayfair - Brook Street, London W1K 4HR
It's a first Christmas for the new Claridge's restaurant too, with a five-course menu (and extras) on the day. Dishes include Foie gras terrine with port & quince, and roasted Norfolk bronze leg turkey and stuffing (with beef fillet, squash pithivier, or halibut also available). Their own Claridge's Christmas pudding will finish things off. Lunch and dinner is also available in their Foyer.
Price: £495 (£225 for children)
Alex Dilling at Hotel Cafe Royal
Piccadilly - 10 Air St, London W1B 4DY
Now a two-Michelin-starred restaurant, Alex Dilling's impressive restaurant is back open for Christmas Day this year. On the main is whole roasted duck with stuffed savoy cabbage, pomme puree and glazed winter vegetables en cocotte while the lunch finishes with an exotic fruit vacherin.
Price: Four courses for £350 per adult
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal
Knightsbridge - Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, 66 Knightsbridge, London SW1X 7LA
Heston Blumenthal's London restaurant has a set five-course menu that features "duck and turnip" as the main and a couple of the restaurant's classics in there too. So there's a plum meat fruit course as well as the option of a Christmas version of the signature Tipsy cake.
Price: £320 per adult (£160 for children)
Royal Lancaster
Hyde Park- Lancaster Terrace, London W2 2TY
For Christmas lunch with a difference book The Lancaster's bottomless Christmas Day brunch. Fancy sushi? You've got it. Turkey with all the trimmings? No problem. Waffles and pancakes? That's on offer too.
Price: £195 which includes a glass of Champagne on arrival and free flowing red and white wine.
The Game Bird
Mayfair - 16-18 St James's Place, London SW1A 1NJ
At The Stafford, The Game Bird is open for lunch with both a main Christmas Day menu that includes Exmoor caviar on crumpets alongside the standard turkey and Christmas pudding (with saffron-cured turbot as a non-turkey option). They also have both vegetarian and vegan menus.
Price: £275 per person
Whitcomb's at The Londoner
Leicester Square - 38 Leicester Square, London WC2H 7DX
Right on Leicester Square, this restaurant has a Mediterranean take on Christmas Day lunch. Options on the menu include an oven-roasted black cod as well as chicken in red wine sauce and a Baileys Sacher torte with salted caramel ice cream to finish.
Price: £195 per person (including a glass of Veuve)
Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester
Mayfair - 38 Leicester Square, London WC2H 7DX
The three Michelin-starred restaurant has a lunch which features dishes like Duck foie gras terrine as well as Fillet of Cornish turbot and a “Yule Log Our Way” for dessert.
Price: £450 per person (including a wine pairing)
Straits Kitchen
City of London - 80 Houndsditch, London EC3A 7AB
In the Pan Pacific London, Straits Kitchen takes its inspiration from Singapore. The Christmas Day menu here includes snow king crab tartare and A5 Japanese Wagyu as the main course.
Price: £195 per person
Booking Office 1869
King's Cross - Euston Rd., London NW1 2AR
At the St Pancras Rennaissance, the hugely impressive dining room at Booking Office 1869 is serving up a five-course menu on the day. There's a rolled turkey breast as the main course (or roast turbot) as well as Devonshire crab or a game terrine to start.
Price: £145 per person
See also:
Colony Grill Room (Mayfair) - At The Beaumont, the menu features smoked goose and foie gras terrine and lobster and tarragon dumpling alongside the turkey (£195)
The Grill by Tom Booton (Mayfair) - At the Dorchester, Tom Booton's menu features dishes like duck liver custard, artichoke, parfait, truffle as well as chocolate & clementine warm tartlet to finish (£280)
Le Dame de Pic (City) - Anne-Sophie Pic's two-Michelin-starred restaurant doesn't have any turkey, with dishes instead including wild seabass and caviar as well as guinea fowl and pommes dauphine. (£360). In the same hotel, Mei Ume has a Chinese and Japanese take on Christmas festivities (£198).
Sea Containers (Bankside) - The Sea Containers menu has beef, stonebass, mushroom & chestnut tart or Turkey as your main options in a three-course menu (£125).
Pavyllon (Mayfair) - The new restaurant from top chef Yannick Alleno is having its first Christmas and is offering both a breakfast and a lunch, with the lunch menu featuring guinea fowl supreme as the main event (£240)
The Soho Hotel - For Christmas lunch in the middle of Soho, this three-course menu is worth a look, which finishes up with the option of a cranberry and orange pavlova. (£165)
Ham Yard Hotel (Soho) - Also in Soho and in the seclusion of its own courtyard, Ham Yard is also open for Christmas Day. here, instead of the turkey, you could opt for a venison Wellington, ceps and truffle duxelles, red wine sauce. (£165)
108 Brasserie (Fitzrovia) - Their Christmas Day menu has options like a Chapel and Swan smoked salmon and dressed crab tian before the main event. (£120 including a glass of Champagne)
The English Grill (Victoria) - This restaurant at the Rubens Hotel has a lunch menu complete with all the trimmings and you can choose to have their "famous Dover sole" instead of turkey (£250). The hotel's afternoon tea will also be available on Christmas Day.
Bingham Riverhouse (Richmond) - Christmas Day lunch is in The Garden Rooms with two menus (each at £140) but with the option to add lots of extras like canapes and fire pit marshmallows.
The Ritz (Mayfair) - If you're after something spectacular, then the Ritz should do the job. There are a few options for Christmas day which start at £600 for lunch (or £420 for dinner) and there will be a live band, a caricaturist and, of course, a visit from Father Christmas.
Yaatra
19 Great James St, London WC1N 3ES
Take away the stress of cooking Christmas lunch and dine within the iconic walls of the historic Old Westminster Fire Station at Yaatra. Perfect for those who crave a blend of tradition and spice, Yaatra’s Executive Chef Amit Bagyal has crafted a divine four-course set menu for Christmas Day lunch with a Christmas Bellini and a glass of Champagne on arrival.
Price: £85 per person
Book your table for Yaatra on Open Table
Restaurants
Bob Bob Ricard
Soho - 1 Upper James St, London W1F 9DF
If turkey really isn't your thing on Christmas Day, a trip to Bob Bob Ricard may be just the thing. The full a la carte menu is available, with lobster mac and cheese, beef wellington and lots of caviar all available. And as it's Christmas, you really should put that "Press for Champagne" button to good use.
Price: £125 minimum spend
Joia
Battersea- 15th Floor, 1 Electric Blvd, London SW11 8BJ
If you're after a Christmas Day lunch with a view, JOIA which is on the 15th floor of art’otel Battersea is going to be following Portuguese festive tradition. Their set lunch includes hand dived scallops with black aioli sabayon and a rack of Lamb with migas; and of course. For dessert it's Pudim Abade Priscos with port and mandarin sorbet.
Price: £150 per person or £110 for vegan menu with a centrepiece of Arroz de Cogumelos with wild mushrooms and truffle.
Cecconi's at The Ned
The City- 27 Poultry, London EC2R 8AJ
For festive feasting and live entertainment head to The Ned on Christmas Day where their Christmas Day lunch includes everything from lobster and oysters through to roast turkey and what's described as a lavish cheese and dessert bar. There'll also be live musical entertainment on The Nickel Stage.
Price: £200 per person or £270 with unlimited Thiénot Champagne (£100 for children ages 6-12).
Gaucho
Richmond and Tower Bridge
Promising to please both Christmas purists and those who fancy something a bit different is Gaucho. Two of their restaurants are open on Christmas Day with a five course set menu that includes trad dishes like cinnamon cured salmon and beef Wellington, alongside Latin-American inspired options including a Christmas empanada with pumpkin, provolone and truffle
Price: £95 for adults and £50 per child.
Orrery
Marylebone - 55 Marylebone High St, London W1U 5RB
Looking out over Marylebone, the Orrery is offering a Christmas lunch that does away with the traditional turkey. Instead, there's salmon gravadlax, potato raviolo and beef Wellington among the various courses on offer.
Price: The five-course menu is £159 with wine pairing an additional £105
Le Pont de la Tour
Tower Bridge - 36D Shad Thames, London SE1 2YE
Enjoy Christmas Day with a view of Tower Bridge at this riverside restaurant. They've got three Christmas Day menus on offer - a standard one with a turkey as the centrepiece, a vegan one featuring chestnut gnocci for the main, and a children's one.
Price: £130 for five courses (£100 vegan) and £50 for children.
The Cinnamon Collection
City, Covent Garden, Battersea, Westminster
Vivek Singh is opening four restaurants on Christmas Day for a Christmas dinner with a modern Indian approach. So if you're after something that veers away from the traditional lunch, all of these restaurants are an option. Dishes include clove-flavoured goose breast, Kokum-crusted halibut and more.
Price: Cinnamon Bazaar/Kitchen - £65 (Covent Garden, Battersea, City), Cinnamon Club (Westminster) - £125
Babur
Forest Hill - 119 Brockley Rise, Forest Hill, London SE23 1JP
In Forest Hill, Babur is offering a Christmas meal which they say embraces tradition but "remains decidedly Indian". So options include stuffed paneer tikka, walnut, raisin, mint chutney and green spiced wood pigeon as well as a wild mushroom stuffed turkey breast, tikka masala sauce.
Price: £64.95
See also:
Rick Stein (Barnes) - As you can imagine, there's a lot of seafood on the menu at Rick Stein, including cornish crab & prawn cocktail and scallops with truffle butter (but rest assured there is turkey) (£125).
Bluebird (Chelsea) - Their Christmas menu features many non-Christmas dishes like strozzapreti cacio e pepe alongside the usuals and finishes with the options of a Bluebird guinness & chocolate steamed Christmas pudding (£150).
Riding House Cafe (Fitzrovia)- Alongside the turkey, options at this Fitzrovia restaurant include whole grilled miso bass with prawns and cockles (£95).
Duck & Waffle (City) - The sky-high restaurant has a nutcracker theme this Christmas and as well as turkey, the menu includes crispy oysters, crab chowder and sherry trifle (£145).
Langan's (Mayfair) - The old-school and recently refurbished Langan's has a menu with lots of caviar, lobster and even a snail pithivier (£175).
Tayaabs (Whitechapel) - If you just want the comfort of their standard menu, Tayaabs is open as normal on Christmas Day.
The Roof Garden at Pantechnicon
Belgravia - 19 Motcomb St, London SW1X 8LB
With its incredible rooftop setting - full of greenery and beneath twinkling lights - Pantechnicon’s Roof Garden is a special place to settle in this Christmas Day. Celebrate in a traditional sense with roast turkey and all the trimmings followed by Christmas pudding, or opt for an all-out feast.
Price: £85pp, 12:30-6pm
Book The Roof Garden at Pantechnicon
Pubs
The Wigmore
Marylebone - 15 Langham Pl, London W1B 3DE
Next to The Langham, The Wigmore pub is open for Christmas lunch. On the menu, they'll have a lobster cocktail with warm crumpets, the Wigmore Wellington for two and traditional turkey, with chestnut stuffing, and pigs in blankets.
Price: 4 courses for £150, including a glass of Christmas punch
The Guinea
Mayfair - 30 Bruton Pl, London W1J 6NL
This classic Mayfair pub is opening its doors on Christmas Day for a three-course menu. As well as a roast ballotine of turkey, there's the option of Carved dry-aged rump beef and a lamb cutlet or a blue cheese, truffle and walnut gratin. There's a glass of Champagne and rock oysters on arrival too.
Price: £165
The Cadogan Arms
Chelsea - 298 King's Road, London SW3 5UG
This Chelsea pub, with the food managed by James Knappett, is opening for Christmas with a three-course menu (plus cheese). Choices include grilled tiger prawns and smoked salmon. For mains, there's the choice of turkey, celeriac and mushroom welligton, turbot or beef wellington.
Price: £250 including a glass of bubbles.
The Flask
Highgate - 77 Highgate W Hill, London N6 6BU
Work up an appetite before Christmas lunch at this Highgate pub or walk it off on the heath afterwards. The three-course menu has dishes like a dressed crab or curried parsnip soup as well as mains of turkey, beef wellington, roast turbot or spiced cauliflower wellington.
Price: £110
The Windmill
Clapham - Windmill Dr, London SW4 9DE
This festive-looking Clapham pub has an extensive menu on offer on Christmas Day. Start with dishes like Hampshire venison carpaccio, move on to mains of turkey, duck or mushroom and beet wellingtons or pan roast turbot and finish with a apple, fig and chestnut crumble.
Price: £115 (£58 - child)
Trafalgar Tavern
Greenwich - Park Row, London SE10 9NW
Walk along the Thames on Christmas Day to the Trafalgar Tavern at Royal Greenwich where their three-course Christmas Day menu includes choices of confit chicken and foie gras terrine, fillet of seabass, turkey or rib of beef as well as a brandy butter fried Christmas pudding for dessert.
Price: £115 including petit fours
Anglesea Arms
Kensington - 15 Selwood Terrace, London SW7 3QG
There's a three-course festive menu on the big day at this South Kensington pub - which kicks off with starters like crab and crayfish cocktail, before main choices that include turkey, venison steak, baked sole and more. Desserts include a dark chocolate & cherry marquise.
Price: £99
See also:
Lots of Young's pubs are open for lunch on the day - so if there's one near you, it's worth checking with them.
The Spaniard's Inn (Hampstead) At this pub, the Christmas Day menu includes pan-roasted venison cutlet or turbot alongside hand-carved turkey breast (£91.50)
And in the spirit of Christmas
Christmas at The Alex
Wimbledon - 33 Wimbledon Hill Rd, London SW19 7NE
A pub that every year truly gets what Christmas is all about, the Alexandra has become famous for its Community Christmas lunches. Anyone who finds themselves alone in London on Christmas Day can come here for a free dinner with no strings attached. They're also looking for volunteers and donations which you can find out more about here.
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