Christmas One Dish Wonders

We love a good Christmas sarnie but this is the time of year where anything goes, and not just between two slices of bread. Every Christmas, London restaurants and foodies go all out to make the best festive specials they can, so we’ve rounded our faves of the season so far.

Poppies’ Deep-Fried Mince Pies

It’s a Christmas tradition for Poppies to batter and deep fry a festive food item – they’ve done Quality Street, brussel sprouts and Fererro Rocher chocs in the past – and this year it’s the turn of mince pies. Batter AND pastry? That’s how you do Christmas.

Available at Poppies Soho until 25th December 2023


Bun House’s Santa’s Gift Sack Buns

Bun House always do great seasonal specials and its Christmas offering is no different. This year it’s a three-in-one bun, with a red velvet Santa gift sack containing golden gingerbread & salted caramel, dark chocolate & orange, and White Rabbit candy cream buns, with sticky toffee caramel or condensed buttermilk sauce for dipping.

Available to eat in at Bun House from 8th December and collect from 10th December


Fortitude Bakehouse’s Christmas Trifle Pudding Buns

If your only complaint about trifle is that it isn’t portable, then you’ll be very pleased to hear that Fortitude Bakehouse has remedied that with the creation of the Christmas Trifle Pudding Bun. Sprinkles, cream, cherries….it’s more Christmassy than Santa’s workshop.

Available at Fortitude Bakehouse now


Blacklock’s Christmas Burger

Blacklock’s Christmas burger has returned for 2023 and it’s had a slight makeover courtesy of the Blacklock City team. It’s got a Camembert-stuffed pork patty, pulled turkey in gravy, crispy smoked bacon and spiced cranberry ketchup stuffed into a brioche bun. Yes please.

Available at all Blacklock sites now


Chin Chin’s Christmas Tree Baked Alaska

What do you get when you cover chocolate cake, hazelnut ice cream and cherries in meringue? Chin Chin’s Christmas tree baked Alaska, that’s what. This spesh is available only at Chin Chin’s Soho site, another TREEmendous addition to the menu right?

Available at Chin Chin Soho until 24th December 2023


Chick’n’Sours x The Cheese Bar’s Festive Fromage Frenzy

It’s getting cheesy over at Chick’n’Sours this Christmas as the chicken shop has teamed up with The Cheese Bar for a festive fromage frenzy. A crispy CNS chicken thigh has been dusted in seaweed crack, topped with TCB’s raclette and a cranberry, chilli & yuzu sauce, and sandwiched in a toasted bun.

Available at both Chick’n’Sours sites now


Daddy Bao’s Turkey Kiev Bao

Tooting’s Daddy Bao is putting a South East Asian spin on all your festive faves. It’s Christmas set menu includes a turkey kiev bao with red cabbage pickle and cranberry chilli mayo, crispy sprouts with miso butter, and kimchi roast potatoes with whipped tofu.

Available at Daddy Bao now


Doh-Hut’s Mulled Wine Jam Doughnuts

Not content with making one festive flavour, the Doh’hut crew have done three, hitting all the ingredients we love at this time of year. There’s a mulled wine jam one, a Bailey’s cheesecake one and a Terry’s chocolate orange one, so do the sensible thing and a get a box of three.

Available at Doh’hut until the end of December 2023


Bone Daddies’ Christmas Cock Cock Ramen

A roast in a ramen? Bone Daddies is doing it with its Christmas Cock Cock special. The BD chicken broth is the base, topped with Christmas fried chicken, pigs-in-blankets, stuffing, pickled red cabbage, umeboshi cranberry sauce, spring onion, noodles, and a Yorkshire pudding – because it just ain’t a roast without one.

Available at all Bone Daddies locations until 2nd January 2024


GAIL’s Christmas Croissant

GAIL’s is giving the croissant a Christmas makeover and boy is it good. Oozy Baron Bigod cheese stuffed inside a buttery spiced croissant dough – we’ll take a whole tray please.

Available at GAIL’s now


Poon’s Turkey & Chinese Chestnut Wontons

Amy Poon is putting a Chinese twist on turkey this festive season with new wontons at her pop-up Wontoneria at Carousel’s No. 23 Charlotte Street space. Available in bowls of five, the wontons will be filled with turkey thigh, Chinese chestnuts, goji berry, ginger and wood ear mushrooms.

Available at Poon’s Wontoneria from 5th December 2023


Tonkotsu’s Christmas Spiced Duck Mazesoba Ramen

Tonkostu is getting into the spirit with a new seasonal spiced duck leg ramen. Made with lardo-enriched pork broth, topped with a Christmas-spiced glazed duck leg, special wide-cut noodles, pickled radish, pomegranate seeds, crispy onions and a Clarence Court egg yolk, this warming and fragrant bowl has come just in time for colder months.

Available at all Tonkotsu sites until 1st January 2024


Polo Bar’s 24-hour Christmas Dinner

Polo Bar is famously open round the clock and this year, they’re serving up Christmas dinner round the clock too. Get a classic Christmas roast with all of the trimmings – you can even add on bottomless Yorkshire puddings – any time of the day or night. That’ll sort out the festive hangovers for sure.

Available at Polo Bar now


DE NADAS’ Turkeynada

Last year empanaderia DE NADAS brought us the Brusselnada and for this festive season, we’re getting the Turkeynada – roast turkey, caramelised leeks, cranberry sauce and sage wrapped in pastry. Get them individually or as a whole box.

Available at both DE NADAS locations from 1st – 31st December 2023


Kricket’s Christmas Pudding Kulfi

Finish off a feast at Kricket (don’t miss the chestnut and garam masala butter kulcha topped with cranberries and sage) with a Christmas pudding kulfi, featuring Christmas pud folded into the frozen treat and arrack, fig and sugared almonds on the side.

Available at all Kricket locations now


Crosstown’s Festive Doughnuts

Crosstown is baking three new flavours this Christmas. There’s the vegan Ginger, Blackberry & Pear, with vegan sourdough covered in a pear & ginger glaze, filled with blackberry, pear & ginger compote, topped with pear puree, and finished with vanilla & candied ginger crumble. For chocoholics, there’s the Gianduja Chocolate & Hazelnut, with a gianduja ganache sandwiched between chocolate cake dough and topped with chocolate glaze, hazelnut nibs and gold shimmer. And for fans of the classics, the vegan Month Blanc doughnut is made with spiced vegan dough, filled with a warm chestnut custard, coated in a cream cheese and chestnut glaze and finished with vegan meringue.

Available at Crosstown now


Pastaio x I’ll Have What She’s Having’s Festive Pasta

Soho pasta spot Pastaio is teaming up with Hannah Crosbie and Sophie Wyburd, aka hosts of the I’ll Have What She’s Having podcast, for a festive pasta and wine pairing. Sophie’s created a mezze maniche pasta dish with sausage, pancetta & chestnut in a white wine & sage sauce, topped with rosemary pangrattato, and Hannah’s picked a Fontodi Chianti Classico to pair with it. For every plate of pasta sold, £1 will be donated to Refuge.

Available at Pastaio Soho now


Burger & Beyond’s Xmas Tots

There are tater tots and then there are Burger & Beyond’s Xmas Tots. Loaded with sausage stuffing, red cabbage, sage, cheese curds, pickles and bone marrow gravy, it’s basically like a side of Christmas dinner, and we like that.

Available at all Burger & Beyond sites now


Dishoom’s Turkey Raan Bun

Dishoom’s turkey raan is back on the menu this festive season, offering a spiced-up take on the classic bird. Turkey leg, prepared raan-style and slow-cooked, is shredded and stuffed into a brioche bun with cranberry mayo, spinach, red onions and brie, with Dishoom slaw, salli crisp-chips and deep-fried green chillies on the side.

Available at all Dishoom sites now


Crust Bros’ Festive Pizzas

Crust Bros is doing not one but two festive pizzas this year, inspired by two key parts of Christmas dinner – potatoes and a cheeseboard. The Double Carbs at Xmas pizza features mozzarella, Italian sausage, provolone and purple potato creme, while the Hot Cheeseboard pizza is topped with mozzarella, parmesan, gorgonzola, pear, walnut and scotch bonnet chilli. If you’ve still got room after that, tuck into the ultimate Italian hybrid pud, the panettimisu.

Available at Crust Bros from 28th November 2023 – 8th January 2024


Gelupo’s Toasted Brioche con Gelato

Gelupo has turned into a cosy ski lodge for winter and that means lots of seasonal treats on the menu. As well as vin brule, boozy hot chocolates and limoncello toddies, you can get any of the gelateria’s flavours, like pistachio, hazelnut, caramel & gingerbread, and panettone, pressed inside a soft Sicilian brioche and toasted for the ultimate ice cream sandwich.

Available at Gelupo until 7th January 2024


The Breakfast Club’s Navidad Rancheros

Get your festive flavours in with the first meal of the day by hitting up The Breakfast Club for this twist on huevos rancheros. It’s got sage & onion buttermilk fried turkey with cranberry & ginger ragu, tortilla with melted brie, pickled red cabbage, pico de gallo, tater tots and deep-fried sage leaves – and yes, you’ll probably need to go back to bed afterwards.

Available at all The Breakfast Club locations until 31st December 2023


I Am Döner’s Christmas Kebab

If you like your Christmas dinners to be portable, then this festive kebab from I Am Döner fits the bill. Honey & sage roast turkey, roast potatoes, shredded sprouts, crispy parsnips, red cabbage, root veg, cranberries and turkey gravy have all been wrapped up so you can eat it on the move.

Available at I Am Döner’s Chalk Farm location until 31st December 2023

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