Christmas Day is the hard one. Book it first
Most London restaurants shut on Christmas Day, the Tube doesn't run, and the places that do open are full long before December. Sort the 25th before anything else. The most dependable answer is The Dorchester on Park Lane, which is serving Christmas Day lunch in three of its dining rooms this season.
Christmas Eve and Christmas Day
The Dorchester's festive programme runs from November into January. On Christmas Day, The Grill serves five courses, The Promenade does lunch or dinner cooked under culinary director Martyn Nail, and Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, with its three Michelin stars, serves six courses with wines. There's a Chef's Table sitting for a small group too, and for a private family lunch the Holford and Orchid rooms can be booked with a menu built round your party. Christmas Eve dinner runs in the same rooms. Prices aren't on the hotel's festive page, so ask when you enquire and expect a deposit. From Mayfair it's a walk rather than a cab, which matters a lot on a day with no Tube.
The Wolseley on Piccadilly opens on Christmas Day, though its Christmas page already says that sitting is fully booked and points you to its sister, The Delaunay on the Aldwych. Book The Delaunay the moment your dates are fixed.
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve at The Delaunay is the most relaxed in this guide: the usual à la carte and all-day menus stay on and a live jazz trio plays from 9pm until late, so it's a proper night out with no fixed-price gala menu.
For a bigger night, The Dorchester again has the widest choice, with six courses in The Grill, two seatings at Alain Ducasse, an evening party with dinner in The Promenade, and live music and a countdown in the Vesper Bar. The Chef's Table group gets champagne and canapés in the wine vault. Book by October if you can, since the set-menu rooms go first.
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The rest of the week
Rules, at 35 Maiden Lane in Covent Garden, was opened by Thomas Rule in 1798 and calls itself the oldest restaurant in London. It does traditional British cooking and game, and December sits right in the middle of the game season, so this is the week to order it. It's a short walk from the Covent Garden and Strand theatres, which makes it the obvious dinner before or after a show during the Christmas run; book through its online system well ahead for any evening from 15 to 23 December.
For the office party or a family group, Atul Kochhar's Kanishka, at 17-19 Maddox Street off Regent Street, has private dining for 8 to 100. Its pan-Indian cooking suits a table where not everyone wants turkey twice in one week. It's shut on Sundays, but weekend brunch runs on Fridays and Saturdays and is a gentler way to see colleagues in the run-up to Christmas.
For Boxing Day and New Year's Day, Duck & Waffle on the 40th floor of 110 Bishopsgate is open 24 hours a day and takes bookings up to two months ahead, which makes it the obvious breakfast if you're out late on the 31st. Call to confirm holiday hours before you go. If you're cooking over Christmas, Borough Market is where to shop, but its opening times shift over the festive period and on bank holidays, so check the week before rather than rolling up on Christmas Eve.
With no Tube on the 25th, where you stay matters more than on any other day of the year. A typical West End apartment has a hundred and fifty-odd food businesses within a few minutes' walk; in Pimlico it's more like a dozen, and far fewer of those will open on Christmas Day. If you want to walk to lunch, stay in Mayfair or the West End, or book somewhere with a kitchen and cook.
Food hygiene ratings for the places in this guide
Official fact Food Standards Agency Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, checked 23 September 2026. 5 is the top rating.
| Name | Registered address | Rating | Inspected |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Wolseley | 157-160 Piccadilly, W1J 9EA | 5 | May 2025 |
| The Delaunay | 55 Aldwych, WC2B 4BB | 5 | Jun 2025 |
| Rules | 34-35 Maiden Lane, WC2E 7LB | 4 | Nov 2025 |
| Kanishka | 17-19 Maddox Street, W1S 2QH | 5 | Oct 2025 |
| Duck & Waffle | 110 Bishopsgate, EC2N 4AY | 5 | Nov 2025 |