Restaurants open for lunch in London on Christmas Day 2024

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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. 

Hotel restaurants

Dovetale

Mayfair - 3 Berkeley Street London W1J 8DL

Tom Sellers restaurant will be cooking Christmas lunch on the day as a family-style affair. Some of the restaurant's signatures are on the menu, like the olive-fed English wagyu with a Roasted bronze turkey ballotine as the main event. Plus you can take a stroll around nearby Green Park to work off some of that turkey. 

Price: £195 (children £95)

Menu: Christmas Day menu

Holborn Dining Room

Holborn - 252 High Holborn, London WC1V 7EN

This restaurant is, of course, known for its excellent pies, so if you don't fancy turkey (which is available) they also have a chicken, chestnut and tarragon pie as an alternative main course. There are also more great-sounding dishes on the menu like a baked wild mushroom custard tart or a valrhona chocolate marquise for dessert. 

Price: £250

Menu: Christmas Day menu

Dear Jackie

Soho - 20 Broadwick Street, London W1F 8HT

If you're looking for something in an opulent setting, then the lower-ground Dear Jackie at The Broadwick is definitely worth a look. The three-course menu features options like foie gras and chicken liver parfait and a roast free-range Norfolk bronze turkey with sage, leek and pancetta stuffing. there are vegetarian options, and if you don't fancy Christmas pudding, there's a chocolate soufflé tart for dessert. 

Price: £200 (including a glass of Champagne)

Menu: Christmas Day menu

The Ned

City of London - 27 Poultry, London EC2R 8AJ

If you're a fan of the Ned's Sunday Feast, then this Christmas version will certainly be of interest. it's the same thing but with "festive roasts" (yes that means added turkey) all the usual trimmings, oysters, salads and those massive piles of lobsters. 

Price: £225 per person, £295 with unlimited  Champagne, half price for children ages 6-12.

Brooklands

Belgravia - The Peninsula, 1 Grosvenor Pl, London SW1X 7HJ

If you want to take in a fantastic view with your Christmas lunch, then Claude Bosi's two-Michelin-starred restaurant Brooklands one to consider. The menu here includes pate en route, cod with caviar sauce and for the main course a choice of stuffed capon or fillet rossini (and a Black Forest gateau to finish). 

Price: £350

Menu: Christmas Day menu

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 aquanaria seabass ceviche, loin of venison (with turkey available) and torrija or  pudim abade priscos for dessert. 

Menu: Christmas Day menu

Price: £135 per person

The Lanesborough

Belgravia - 80 Houndsditch, London EC3A 7AB

There are two options at this hotel for Christmas Day at The Lanseborough. There's The Lanesborough Grill for a menu that includes options of South Coast turbot and shrimp alongside the roast turkey. Or you can book The George's Room for a special Christmas Day Buffet that features everything from cep parfait and potted salmon through to pudding and trifle.

Menus: Christmas Day menu | Buffet menu

Price: £295 for the buffet, £420 for The Grill

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.

Menu: Mauro menu | Saison Menu

Price: £295 at Mauro, £190 at Saison.

Claridge's

Mayfair - Brook Street, London W1K 4HR

Thre are two options at Claridge's, the Foyer and Reading room (which also has a dinner service) and the main Claridge's Restaurant. Alongside the turkey, fishes in the Foyer include butter poached lobster and chicken liver parfait while the Claridge's restaurant menu includes lobster risotto and duck, chicken & apricot terrine.

Menu: Claridge's festive menu

Price: Both restaurants £525 (or dinner for £300)

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 fillet of beef royale as the main and a couple of the restaurant's classics in there too. So there's a plum meat fruit course to start as well as the option of a Christmas version of the signature Tipsy cake.

Menu: Christmas Day menu

Price: £325 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? A lte Christmas breakfast as your first course? You've got it. Turkey with all the trimmings? No problem. Yule logs, mince pies and Christmas pudding - all at the same time? That's on offer too.

Price: £235 which includes a glass of Champagne on arrival and free-flowing red and white wine.

Menu: Bottomless brunch menu

The Game Bird

Mayfair - 16-18 St James's Place, London SW1A 1NJ

At The Stafford, The Game Bird is open for lunch with a menu that includes Exmoor caviar on crumpets and a Deveon crab doughnut alongside the standard turkey and Christmas pudding (with pan-roasted turbot as a non-turkey option).

Menu: Game Bird Christmas menu

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 apple and smoked duck tarte tatin and for the mains black cod, corn-fed chicken or beef tenderloin (no turkey here). For dessert, as well as Christmas pudding and a yule log, there's the option of a yuzu mousse. 

Price: £195 per person (including a glass of Veuve)

Menu: Christmas day menu.

The Dorchester

Mayfair - 53 Park Ln, London W1K 1QA

The Mayfair hotel has four options for the day - The Promenade, The Grill by Tom Booton, Alain Ducasse or a special chef's table dinner. The grill's menu includes lobster cocktail to start and a mince pie tart for dessert (and buck's fizz soft serve). Alain Ducasse's three-Michelin-starred menu features duck foie gras terrine and a ‘Jaune des Landes’ capon as the main event. 

Price: The Grill: £295, Alain Ducasse: £470, Promenade £455 (or dinner for £185)

Menus: The Grill | Alain Ducasse | The Promenade

Straits Kitchen

City of London - 80 Houndsditch, London EC3A 7AB

In the Pan Pacific London, Straits Kitchen has gone a little more traditional this year (and it's more affordable as a result). We do like the idea of a carving station. So you can take your pick of turkey, dry-aged duck, curried monkfish, rib eye beef or mushroom wellington. 

Price: £135 per person

Menu: Christmas Day menu. 

Midland Grand Dining Room

King's Cross - Euston Rd., London NW1 2AR

Patrick Powell may have left this year, but The Midland Grand Dining Room is still an extremely impressive place to have your Christmas lunch. It also kicks off with mulled wine on the terrace which is a great idea. As for the menu, that includes Comte gougères, spiced game terrine and either Dover sole or beef Wellington as the main. Booking Office 1869 at the same hotel will also be doing a Christmas Day lunch.

Price: £225 per person

Menu: Christmas Day menu

Alex Dilling at Hotel Cafe Royal

Piccadilly - 10 Air St, London W1B 4DY

The two-Michelin-starred restaurant from Alex Dilling is back open for Christmas Day this year. The main event is a duck and foie gras pithivier with celeriac remoulade, juniper jus and pomme purée while the lunch finishes with a winter citrus pavlova. If you're after something quieter and very high-end, this is worth considering. 

Price: Four courses for £350 per adult

Menu: Christmas Day menu

See also: 

Wild Honey (St James) - Anthony Demetre's restaurant and the Bistrot are both open for lunch, with dishes like duck, pork, and chicken terrine en croûte  on the menu (Wild Honey £275, Bistrot £120)

Colony Grill Room (Mayfair) - At The Beaumont, the menu features Lobster and salmon ravioli and foie gras parfait alongside the turkey. (£300, £15 for children - menu here)

Pavyllon (Mayfair) - The Michelin-starred restaurant from top chef Yannick Alleno is doing a Christmas lunch featuring dishes like Albufera cheese soufflé and langoustine tail with a beef fillet as the main event (£350 - menu here)

108 Brasserie (Fitzrovia) - Their Christmas Day menu has options like a smoked venison carpaccio and 108 Gin & beetroot-cured Scottish salmon, before the main event. (£145 including a glass of Champagne - menu here)

The Ritz (St James) - If you're after something spectacular, then the Ritz should do the job. it looks like Christmas Day lunch might already be booked up, but there is a dinner option (from £455).

The Brush Grand Cafe (Hoxton) - This new hotel on Old Street has a menu that includes Smoked duck carpaccio and juniper cured salmon as well as the classics (£85, menu here)

One Aldwych (Covent Garden) - The hotel's Indigo restaurant offers a great view over its Christmas tree, making it a perfect spot for the big day. (£295, menu here). 

Chez Roux (Marylebone) - Let Michel Roux manage your Christmas dinner, this is the place, with dishes like Roast turkey, marjoram stuffing, maple-glazed pigs in blankets (£250, menu here)

The Wigmore (Marylebone) - Another Michel Roux place, this is his pub next door to The Langham which has a roast turkey pie on the day (£150, menu here)

Restaurants

Lucky Cat

Mayfair - 10 Grosvenor Sq, London W1K 6JP

Gordon Ramsay's Asian-inspired restaurant on Grosvenor Square is open for the day and is one of the few in central London to have an a la carte menu. This is one to think of if you want to swerve Christmas food altogether, with sushi, tempura, bao buns, dumplings and more dishes like black cod on the menu. If you want something a little more Christmassy at dessert, the Christmas Tree pudding is the one to go for. 

Price: A la carte prices

Menu: Christmas Day menu

Veeraswamy

Mayfair- Victory House, 99 Regent St., London W1B 4RS

Christmas Day at London's oldest Indian restaurant is a two part affair. At lunchtime diners can enjoy live music with their festive feast. In the evenings it's a more sedate affair. Highlights on the set menu include Bhatkal Devon Crab Biryani and Kashmiri Lamb Rogan Josh. there'll also be hot toddies and mulled wine to keep the cold away.

Price: £120

Menu: Christmas Day menu

Fallow

St James - 52 Haymarket, London SW1Y 4RP

This year marks the first time that Fallow is opening on Christmas Day, with a Christmassy take on their "conscious gastronomy" approach. So you'll find their signature mushroom parfait as well as a turkey ballotine or venison wellington as the main course. They'll also have a chocolate yule log to finish. 

Price: £195

Menu: Christmas Day menu

Thai Square

Trafalgar Square - 21-24 Cockspur St, London SW1Y 5BN

Thai Square's Trafalgar Square restaurant has opened every Christmas Day since it first launched back in 1998. It remains one of the most affordable menus in central London on the day and the festive menu this year includes dishes like soft shell crab with mango salad and a roasted duck curry with jasmine rice.

Price: Menus start at £48 (including a glass of Prosecco)

Menu: Christmas Day menu

Gaucho

Covent Garden, Hampstead and Richmond

Promising to please both Christmas purists and those who fancy something a bit different is Gaucho. Four of their restaurants are open on Christmas Day including their latest in Covent Garden. After fried Christmas empanadas, there's a three-course set menu that includes dishes like salmon and beetroot gravadlax, with mains including turkey, beef wellington or salt-baked celeriac rossini. We also like the idea of a dulce de leche yule log for dessert. 

Menu: Christmas menu

Price: £95

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 ballotine, chicken parfait and beef Wellington among the various courses on offer.

Menu: Christmas Day menu

Price: £165

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. The Christmas day menu kicks off with snacks like duck croquette and Comte gougeres with galantine of turkey, pan-fried halibut or roasted jerusalem artichoke & chestnut risotto as the main dish. There are even mince pie bon bons to finish. 

Menu: Christmas Day menu

Price: £150

The Cinnamon Collection

City, Covent Garden, Battersea, Westminster, Richmond

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 Tandoori turkey tikka, grilled New Caledonian Obsiblue king prawns, roast goose breast and more.

Menus: Cinnamon Club | Cinnamon Kitchen | Cinnamon Bazaar

Price: Cinnamon Bazaar/Kitchen - £75 (Covent Garden, Battersea, City, Richmond), Cinnamon Club (Westminster) - £125

See also: 

Skylon (South Bank) - This restaurant will have great views across The Thames on the day (£125, menu here)

Yakuya (Ealing) - this Greek restaurant will be serving up a feast for lunch that includes dishes like sea bream "plaki" (£55, menu here).

Bluebird (Chelsea) - Their Christmas menu features many non-Christmas dishes like Fettuccini Cacio e Pepe and Vitello Tonnato (as well as turkey, of course) so it's a good option if you want something other than the traditional lunch. You can always finish with a Bluebird Guinness & chocolate steamed Christmas pudding (£150 - menu here).

Riding House Cafe (Fitzrovia)- The original Fitzrovia Riding House Cafe and the newer Bloomsbury restaurant are both open for a five-course menu (price and menu still to be revealed).

Duck & Waffle (City) - The sky-high restaurant has a Narnia theme this Christmas and as well as turkey, the menu includes cheesy polenta croquetas, foie gras crème brûlée and a sticky marmalade roll. (£155, menu here).

Langan's (Mayfair) - The old-school Langan's has two menus on offer, (early sitting £115 (menu), later sitting £185 (menu))

Tayaabs (Whitechapel) - If you just want the comfort of their standard menu, Tayaabs is open as normal on Christmas Day.

Pubs

Red Lion & Sun

Highgate - 25 North Rd, London N6 4BE

Not often open on Christmas Day, one of our favourite pubs in London has decided it's opening for lunch on 25 December "as it’s better than sitting at home eating a frozen pizza and drinking Brunello". There are two sittings and no special menu - just the usual a la carte, which also features the full Turkey option. The front covered section of the pub garden will be open for drinks only. Book via email.

Menu: Christmas Day menu

The Hound

Chiswick - 210 Chiswick High Rd, London W4 1PD

This is the latest pub that's co-owned by the JKS group and it will be their first Christmas. The menu on the day has been created by their Executive Chef John Sparks as well as Culinary Director James Knappett (the chef behind two-starred Kitchen Table). The lunch is served "family style" and includes wagyu tartare with foie gras toast, as well as turkey and beef and the option of lobster too. 

Price: £175

Menu: Christmas Day menu

The Prince Arthur

Hackney - 95 Forest Road, London E8 3BH

Here, chef Joe Couldridge will be in charge of their second Christmas Day feast. There are lots of options to choose from, including pig’s head croquette, boudin noir brioche, crown of Pierre Leon duck, whole guinea fowl and lots more. 

Price: £100

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 butter-poached ballotine of turkey, there's the option of carved dry-aged rump beef and a lamb cutlet or a sweet potato, celeriac, Roquefort & walnut Gratin. There's a glass of Champagne and rock oysters on arrival too but it's a great place for a Christmas pint of Guinness too.

Price: £175

Menu: Christmas day menu.

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 duck rillette, dressed crab or onion pissaladière as well as mains of turkey, tournedos Rossini, hake fillet or spiced cauliflower wellington.

Price: £115 (£57.50 for children)

Menu: Christmas Day menu

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: £120 (£60 for children)

Menu: Christmas Day menu

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 dressed crab on toast, fillet of halibut, turkey or rib of beef as well as a mince pie frangipane tart for dessert. 

Price: £115 including petit fours

Menu: Christmas Day menu

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 rarebit crumpet, before main choices that include turkey, venison, roasted curried monkfish and more. Desserts include a dark chocolate marquise and a pineapple tatin.

Price: £102

Menu: Christmas Day menu

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 halibut or rack of lamb alongside hand-carved turkey breast (£95, menu here)

And in the spirit of Christmas

Christmas at The Alexandra

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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