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10 of the best Christmas menus in London

SPONSORED FEATURE IN ASSOCIATION WITH AMERICAN EXPRESS Fed up with turkey and all the trimmings? Christmas is very much upon us but if youÂ’re in London and looking for something a little bit different to the usual festive fayre, then read on for 10 of the best Christmas menus in the capital. This post was researched using TripAdvisor after connecting my American Express Card. Doing so unlocks a range of exclusive content and offers, as well as marking your own reviews with ‘Amex TravellerÂ’ and allowing you to see user review content by other like-minded American Express Cardmembers. Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, Mayfair As one of the UK‘s four 3-Michelin star restaurants, Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester needs little introduction. Celebrate Christmas in exquisite surroundings and a vibrant ambiance with bespoke menus and wine pairings designed by Executive Chef Jocelyn Herland and Head Sommelier Christopher Bothwell. Yule log The restaurant’s Christmas Eve dinner menu (£150, plus £80 with wine pairings) caught our eye, a 6-course extravaganza starting with cauliflower velouté, delicate royale and black truffle, followed by a fish course of simmered halibut, butternut squash and toasted hazelnuts. The Anjou pigeo à la broche with braised lettuce and salmis sauce is followed by Colston Bassett stilton and finally bûche de noël à notre façon (‘Yule log our way’). The New Angel, Notting Hill The New Angel is the latest opening from Michelin-starred chef John Burton Race. Together with his kitchen team, Head Chef Stephen Humphries has designed an elegant 7-course sample menu for £85 per person to create a very special dining experience for Christmas this year. Immerse yourself in the glory of the season with dishes on the menu such as chilled Cornish lobster, served with a delicate potato and winter truffle salad, and roast squab pigeon with wild mushrooms, golden raisins and Monbazillac jus. The New Angel Alternatively, choose from two three-course menus (£30 or £55). Follow your starter with roasted teal, rich and delicate sauce Armagnac and earthy winter fruits, and finish with a gorgeous caramel and chocolate cream with hazelnut and truffle. It just wouldn’t be Christmas without chocolate! L’Autre Pied, Marylebone Having previously won the Taste of London best dish, L’Autre Pied is known for beautiful food in a contemporary yet relaxed environment. If your festive indulgences continue until well into the New Year, then spare a thought for Michelin chef Andy McFadden’s New Year’s Eve menu. Scallops with pickled cucumber Served from 6pm, this 6 course menu starts with a complimentary glass of fizz served with canapés, before moving through the formalities of amuse bouche and on to dishes such as ceviche of hand-dived scallops with pickled cucumber, black quinoa, crème fraiche and dill and sika deer cooked in cocoa and juniper with beetroot, black pudding and peanut crumble. It is priced at £99 per person, with an optional wine flight at £58.50. The Cinnamon Club, Westminster Add a sprinkle of spice to your Christmas Day this year at Executive Chef Vivek Singh’s award-winning modern Indian restaurant, The Cinnamon Club, and enjoy an inspired Indian feast with all the trimmings. Set against the book-lined shelves of the historic Westminster Library, The Cinnamon Club is going all-out with a four-course, spice-infused lunch menu (£85 per person) with dishes such as Keralan-style lobster soup flamed with brandy and South Indian-style stir-fry of goose breast with red onion, curry leaf and layered paratha. Cinnamon Club Wahaca, various locations Wahaca was born in 2007, inspired by Thomasina Miers’ travels in Mexico, running bars there and exploring the cuisine. She – a winner of BBC2’s MasterChef in 2005 – and co-founder Mark Selby later set about recreating Mexico’s vibrant flavours and social dining culture at home in the UK, and now have places at Canary Wharf, Covent Garden, Islington, Soho and more. Duck confit enchilada with side salad Wahaca serves dishes that are conducive to sharing and have a MEXmas menu which includes dishes such as the Huitlacoche tortilla pie, made from the first European Huitlacoche crop, and a duck confit enchilada and sprout mole (roasted Brussel sprouts with toasted almonds, in rich mole sauce and topped with crumbled feta). 20 pence from each dish goes to Ednica, a UNESCO-backed charity helping to educate street kids in Mexico City. L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon, Covent Garden Located in the heart of London’s West End, a stone’s throw away from Covent Garden, the three floors at L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon offer the perfect setting for a really special Christmas and New Year. Here Executive Head Chef Xavier Boyer has created two truly memorable dinner menus to celebrate Christmas Eve and Boxing Day. L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon There is an intricate and sophisticated 7-course Christmas menu using traditionally festive ingredients in a courageous way. Enjoy delicacies like Le Caviar de Sologne Imperial with Sologne Imperial caviar on a symphony of salmon tartar; Le Turbot, poached turbot with Champagne sauce and Le White, a dessert showcasing a stunning white chocolate sphere with poached pear, chestnut and black truffle mousse. The specially curated menu will be available for dinner on both Christmas Eve and Boxing Day. Club Gascon, Smithfield Low-key, sophisticated and consistently rated as one of London’s best restaurants, Club Gascon is offering a tasting menu, Le Marché du Noel, throughout December. At this intimate and chic venue with marble walls, wooden floors, large framed mirrors and olive-green banquettes, Chef Pascal Aussignac is offering some mouth-watering courses using only the best ingredients. Oceanic tulip, braised morels and clams A highlight of the menu includes oceanic tulip, braised morels and clams (Pascal is well known for cooking with tulip flowers). Six courses costs £80 (£120 with wine pairings) or you can enjoy just 3 courses for £48 (£70 with wine pairings). Galvin at Windows, Mayfair Make it a Christmas party to remember with lunch or dinner at the Michelin-starred Galvin at Windows. Not only will you be able to enjoy a 360-degree view, but the haute French cuisine restaurant is offering a festive party menu. Galvin at Windows Head Chef Joo Won is serving up a 3-course menu for £75 with starters including a choice of marinated Loch Fyne salmon, Dorset crab, orange, beetroot and horseradish cream, mushroom velouté, poached hen egg and truffle cream or ballotine of pork, confit duck leg, aioli and pickles. Our pick of the mains would be the slow cooked ox cheeks, snail persillade, parsley root, pomme purée and shaved truffle (£6 supplement). After a dessert of pear tarte tatin and tonka bean ice cream or Piña Colada panna cotta, spiced mango compote and rum granite, head to the bar for a post dinner cocktail. What could be a better way to celebrate the festive season? House of Ho, Soho Bobby Chinn opened his first London restaurant – The House of Ho – in Soho earlier this year. The House of HoÂ’s modern Vietnamese menus echo BobbyÂ’s 18 years living and working in both Hanoi and Saigon. House of Ho pork belly House of Ho will be running several festive menus through until mid-January. Groups sized 6 – 100 can book a banquet style sharing menu starting from £36 for the Mistle Ho menu, and £45 for the Chinn-gle Bells menu. Dishes include pho cuon rice noodle rolls with grass-fed Angus fillet; crispy Vietnamese 7 spice marinated squid and apple-smoked pork belly. SUSHISAMBA, Bishopsgate Located on the top three floors of Heron Tower, SUSHISAMBA blends Japanese, Brazilian and Peruvian cuisine. SUSHISAMBA Celebrate Christmas in this unique environment with a special selection of festive dishes in addition to the signature menu, throughout December. Highlights include lobster taquitos, honey orange glazed picanha and Robata suckling pig anticuchos. And donÂ’t miss the aptly-named Santa rolls (butterfish, tempura avocado, tempura flake, kanpyo, red currant fruit, tofu powder, aji Amarillo and sweet soy sauce). Read up on these exceptional restaurants yourself. Just head to www.americanexpress.co.uk/tripadvisor and connect your American Express Card to unlock the content and offers.

Paul Johnson

Paul Johnson is Editor of A Luxury Travel Blog and has worked in the travel industry for more than 30 years. He is Winner of the Innovations in Travel ‘Best Travel Influencer’ Award from WIRED magazine. In addition to other awards, the blog has also been voted “one of the world’s best travel blogs” and “best for luxury” by The Daily Telegraph.

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5 Comments

  1. These look like some of the best Christmas menus I’ve ever seen. What amazing dining venues, I would love to visit any one of them for the holidays

  2. Galvin, absolutely – loved it there when I had a client supper there. And Mr P raves about the Cinnamon Club which is too close to his office for comfort! Shall have to investigate these others!

  3. I buy everything I can with my Amex card with a DD set up to pay it off each month so I don’t pay any interest while collecting Avios’miles’. I had no idea you could link your card to Trip Advisor though. (But first I need a bite to eat after looking at all these delicious photos!)

  4. Delectable, decadent and absolutely delightful! Though I don’t think I could possibly forgo my Christmas pudding, I will have to try out some of these delicacies this season. Thank you for the inspiration and happy holidays!

  5. All of those dishes look amazing Paul, although I have to admit, at this point I am a bit holidayed out! I had no idea that there was a connection with Trip Advisor and American Express. I will look into that for my 2015 travels. Thanks for the tip.

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