Gathering friends and family round the table at Christmas is one of the best things about the holidays, but more and more of us are deciding to leave the kitchen well alone and let someone else do all the hard work for us instead. Whether you’re looking for somewhere to go with colleagues in the run-up to Christmas or want to spend the actual day being served the finest food and drink at a Michelin star restaurant, here are our top picks for what promises to be a memorable Christmas banquet.
With a shellfish cocktail to start and a turkey with all the trimmings for main and Christmas sponge with mulled winter fruits for dessert, traditionalists will be more than catered for at this Michelin-starred pub in Clitheroe. But it’s a world away from your average home-cooked meal; with triple-cooked duck fat potatoes, poached and roast turkey and more adventurous options (such as the delicious sounding sherry trifle with Pedro Ximenez jelly) on offer, this is a Christmas lunch to remember.
£120 per person on Christmas Day, £29.95 for three courses from 1–23 December. For more information click here.
The Galvin brothers’ empire continues to expand, and one of their latest openings – Galvin Green Man outside Chelmsford in Essex – recently won a Bib Gourmand from Michelin for its exceptional pub food. There are various menus on offer throughout the festive period, but the one on Christmas Day is a real treat. You can choose from halibut, venison, beef sirloin, squash or turkey for your main (with all the trimmings, of course), and finish with figgy pudding or the classic tarte Tatin (among many others).
Christmas Day menu £95 per person. For more information click here.
Nigel Haworth has been cooking turkey and Christmas pudding in the same way at Northcote for the past thirty years, using traditional recipes that have stood the test of time. The pud comes from an eighteenth century recipe given to him by the grandmother of the restaurant’s managing director Craig Bancroft, while the turkey breast comes with a slow-cooked leg to ensure it’s as moist and flavourful as possible.
£44.50 for a four-course lunch up until 23 December, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day menus also available. For more information click here.
Blending traditional dishes that we all know and love come Christmas with contemporary cooking techniques, this famed Jersey restaurant offers diners the chance to enjoy the season in the beautiful adjoining hotel, with plenty of delicious food to tuck into throughout.
£540 per person for a three-night stay over Christmas including breakfast, lunch and dinner. For more information click here.
Michael Caines’ country house hotel only opened this year, but already it has a Michelin star and is regarded as one of the best places to eat out in the whole of Devon. It looks like he’s pulling out all the stops this Christmas, with special dinners on Christmas Day and Boxing Day, with the option to stay over for several nights (allowing you to roll to your plush room after some excessive Michelin-starred feasting).
For more information click here.
What makes The Elephant’s Christmas Party Menu special is the fact that you can indulge in some truly fantastic local produce expertly cooked to Michelin star standards. You’ll be hard put to find a better turkey dinner anywhere else in the country, and one of the starters – citrus-cured salmon with dill and mustard cream – sounds like a real treat.
£26 for three courses. For more information click here.
Dominic Chapman’s beloved gastropub has everything you could want from a festive venue, with all the classics on offer as well as dishes such as sherry trifle, wild mushroom tart with dandelion salad and potted rabbit with pickles. You can also buy food prepared by the restaurant to take home – think oven-ready turkeys, mince pies and Christmas puddings.
£39.95 for three courses. For more information click here.
Lancashire cheese soufflé, butter-roasted turkey and steamed Christmas pudding are just a few of the tempting courses on offer at The Terrace’s Christmas Day feast, but it’s the little courses in between that really stand out. Mulled wine 'snow' and Winslade cheese and chutney certainly mark the occasion, while alternatives like a glazed passion fruit tart or escalope of organic Loch Duart salmon means there’s plenty of choice.
£190 per person (Christmas Day). For more information click here.
There are four different ‘feasts’ on offer this year at Chantelle Nicholson’s Tredwells, with each one offering plenty of flavour and interesting little twists. Traditional confit turkey legs can be swapped out for a Lake District hanger steak, and the hot smoked salmon starter can be upgraded to a Brixham crab salad with pear, Parmesan and chestnuts. The puddings stray from the classic Christmas pud, but if you’re more of a cheese fan then these can be swapped out for a selection from La Fromagerie.
£45–£75 per person. For more information click here.
Since Gary Foulkes took over the kitchen at London’s seafood-focused restaurant Angler, it’s gone from strength to strength. This year there’s a festive menu on offer in the run-up to 25 December, but the real treats can be found on Christmas Day itself. Start with Dorset crab ravioli with Orkney scallop or a stuffed chicken wing with chestnut velouté, before tucking into your choice of either Dover sole or barbecued Angus beef. To finish there’s the classic Christmas pudding, or a more unusual combination of chocolate, banana and hazelnuts.
£100 per person (Christmas Day). For more information click here.
Turkey here is served ‘Waters’ style’, taking the roast meat and turning it into a brioche bon bon with pork stuffing, chestnuts and cranberries, while Christmas pudding comes with chocolate and a butterscotch sauce. While it is a set menu, there are at least six options for every course, ensuring everybody gets what they want.
£39 for three courses. For more information click here.
One of the few restaurants in the UK to offer a full festive tasting menu, chef Graham Campbell has pulled out all the stops. Tuck into Highland venison with cabbage and vanilla, John Dory with sweetcorn and lemongrass and a chocolate palette for pudding, among many other delights. There are also set three-course menus for those who want something a little lighter, with dishes including salt-baked salsify, Angus beef with bone marrow and poached peaches with gingerbread.
£55 for tasting menu at dinner. For more information click here.
Entirely inspired by classical Christmas flavours but delivered with a sprinkling of contemporary flair, Phil Howard’s Michelin-starred restaurant offers plenty of choice and the very finest produce. Celeriac and pear soup with a partridge hot dog, haunch of venison with green peppercorns and a prune, chestnut and armagnac tart are just some of the dishes available.
£50 for three courses. For more information click here.
This beloved, more casual offshoot from Tom Kitchin is going all the way with its festive offerings. Start with a venison and partridge terrine with orange and celeriac, before tucking into a turkey ballotine or hake from the North Sea. To finish, there’s a ginger sponge with brandy custard or a selection of British cheeses. It’s the perfect, relaxed way to spend an evening with friends and family.
£29.50 for three courses. For more information click here.
In the weeks before Christmas, you can enjoy a Winter Solstice menu at one of Wales' most famous restaurants with rooms. Enjoy griddled scallops with cauliflower, pancetta and capers, roast plaice with laverbread sauce and chicken with wild mushrooms and tarragon cream before a piece of Christmas pudding.
£39 per person. For more information click here.
The treacle-cured Welsh beef fillet at Bryn Williams’ Primrose Hill stalwart comes with truffle mash, wild mushrooms and baby leeks, which promises to be something to remember. Whet your appetite with a Cornish crab lasagna or slow-cooked egg with Parmesan, and finish off the meal with Bryn's now legendary jaffa cake.
£45 or £60 per person. For more information click here.
Set in the stunning Woburn Estate, Phil Fanning’s eclectic cuisine has been wowing diners for years, and it looks like its festive offering is no different. There’s no roast turkey to be seen, with dishes like duck livers with smoked chestnuts, plum and hoisin or a gin and berry tart. The six-course tasting menu is available up to 23 December and comes expertly paired with the world’s best wines.
£54 for six courses. For more information click here.
Chef Adam Bennett is a firm believer in the significance of the traditional Christmas lunch, but prefers to leave the turkey and pudding for the day itself. Instead, he serves his party menu (for groups of eight or more) which takes the best of the season and adds that festive touch with ingredients such as chestnuts and wild cranberries. Celeriac soup with chestnuts and pear, slow-cooked beef cheek and warm apple and hazelnut cake are just some of the treats on offer.
£49.50 for three courses. For more information click here.
Nine courses of the finest food in the South West will be on offer at Josh Eggleton’s Michelin-starred inn this Christmas, including day boat fish with braised octopus, venison with onions and turnips, gingerbread with teat prunes and sea buckthorn with cultured cream. However, if you’re after something a little more traditional, there’s also an à la carte.
Tasting menu £70 per person. For more information click here.
With pressed wood pigeon and foie gras to start, confit turkey and trimmings for main and a 'Chocolate Surprise' to finish (among many other delicious dishes), the offering at Bohemia is incredibly good value and offers something a little different for people looking for a festive meal out.
£45 per person. For more information click here.
Anna Hansen’s unmistakable cuisine is given a subtle festive twist in her incredible Christmas menu. While more familiar ingredients like sprout tops, venison, clementines and chestnuts make an appearance, it’s dishes like the baharat-spiced celeriac that really got us interested. If you’re a bit tired of the same old dishes in December, The Modern Pantry is where you should be making a reservation.
£45 for three courses. For more information click here.
There are all sorts of menus to choose from at Pascal Aussignac's restaurant this Christmas, including a vegetarian festive tasting menu. Meat eaters can expect plenty of foie gras, wild mushrooms, roasted capon and barbecued black cod, while veggies can enjoy playful dishes such as smoked chestnut cappuccino or white truffle potato spaghetti.
£120 for a seven-course tasting menu. For more information click here.
The Peruvians do Christmas a little differently than here in the UK, something that’s expertly reflected in Robert Ortiz’s festive menu. Lamp rump with lavender and coffee is the stand out dish, as is the octopus braised with green olives and potato cream for starters. With completely different flavours to the traditional British Christmas dinner, it’s perfect for people who aren’t a fan of all the rich, meaty dishes usually on offer.
From £49 per person. For more information click here.
If there’s a group of you looking for a place to celebrate, then Tamarind’s festive Indian menu is perfect. Somerset lamb osso bucco, venison cake, broccoli with kale and parsnips and a warm ginger rice pudding are just some of the dishes available, and the wines are perfectly matched with the spicy flavours.
£35 for three courses (£45 for group menu). For more information click here.
Fancy something completely different? Agnar Sverrison’s Michelin-starred menu is full of Icelandic influences, and while the hot-smoked salmon or the Scottish roe deer with sprouts and chocolate sauce might be familiar, a starter of herring with akvavit (a Scandinavian flavoured spirit) is something truly unique. Agnar’s style of cooking replaces butter and cream with light olive oil, too, so it’s great if you’re not a fan of fatty food.
£109 for six courses. For more information click here.
Southern Italian cooking is some of the most flavourful in Europe, and the dishes being served up at Sartoria do not disappoint. To start, the huge sharing board of antipasti sets the scene, before moving on to a plate of cauliflower and truffle lasagnetta. The main event sees a roast venison loin with smoked garlic mash and a blueberry sauce, with a beautiful mandarin sgroppino to finish.
£90 per person. For more information click here.
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