The best London festive dishes from around the world

From brussel-sprout bao to turkey tacos, Samuel Fishwick has a guide to the capital’s diverse takes on festive feasting
A lot on your plate: Bao’s turkey bun, cocktails at Jikoni and Wahaca’s tacos all offer a global twist on Christmas

Like snowflakes, no two Christmases are alike. The traditional staples – turkey, mince pies and enough tinsel to be seen from space – often overlap yet this city also boasts Christmas tacos, turkey gumbo and sweet bao buns.

It’s a festive smörgåsbord (yes, we have those too). At some point you will want to escape the family nest to celebrate with your friends. Fortunately, restaurant doors are almost always open.

Eastern rising

At Cantonese-style Bun House on Greek Street Christmas means a black sesame bun, inspired by unusually named co-founder Z Peffley. Also in Soho, at Bao, Taiwanese trio Erchen Chang, Shing Tat Chung and Wai Ting Chung have created two Christmas dishes in bao form, starting with the traditional turkey bun and finishing with a panettone ice cream.

Meanwhile, Fah Sundravorakul has launched pop-up Mookrata on Shaftesbury Avenue, where diners cook together. Drawing on Korean, Thai and Chinese traditions, you sit around a hot broth, adding flavours from pork belly to black pepper beef.

Turkey bao

Italian Job

“Christmas in Italy is all about gathering friends and family and feasting banquet style,” says Jack Beer, chef and owner at Deptford hotspot Marcella. Roast guinea fowl is served with polenta, pancetta and chestnuts as an alternative to turkey.

Italian restaurant Ritorno in Chelsea serves a panettone tart with cinnamon and apple cream, and hot chocolate sauce, while Radio Alice in Hoxton Square is serving a Christmas pizza featuring cranberry sauce and brussel sprouts on a soft, sourdough base.

In Spain the Christmas menu is furiously regional,” says Brindisa founder Monika Linton, who has a suckling pig feasting menu for eight at Brindisa Rupert Street. “Christmas is a time for jamon, incredible cheeses and lots of turron (nougat).”

A Middle East feast

At Bala Baya in Southwark, run by Yotam Ottolenghi protégé Eran Tibi, dig into Tel Aviv-style Minced Babka, a fiery alternative to minced pies, with cream, blood orange and flaming brandy. Cook for Syria has a pop-up café on Monmouth Street with a mighty selection of mezze, while The Good Egg has baba ganoush with pomegranate and cherry babka.

Currying favour

Neil Rankin has his own hot take on Christmas at his restaurants: curry feasting menus. Mountains of mutton rolls, mixed pakoras and crab beignets are followed by a plate such as Dashi chip shop chicken or smoked goat leg and pulled confit shoulder. Save room for red curry duck or green curry fish, and finish with a chocolate and turmeric torte.

Fay Maschler's 50 favourite restaurants in London

1/50

American hustle

Nobody does turkey like the Americans. Red Rooster in Shoreditch is serving a taste of Harlem: a rotisserie turkey breast with leg confit stuffing and buttermilk mash. At Plaquemine Lock in Islington, Jacob Kenedy has created a Gumbo Ya-Ya inspired by his roots in New Orleans using leftover turkey, seafood, jalapeño peppers, and smoked sausage.

Peru beauty

Expect the gamey flavours of an English Christmas alongside Peruvian ingredients at Marin Morales’ Exotica Christmas at Ceviche. Share a Woodlands pigeon dish, seared Lancashire woodland squab pigeon, squash and quinoa risotto, roasted squash purée and guava fruit sauce.

Mexican wave

Mexican restaurant Corazón is serving a festive “turkey mole” dish special: braised turkey thigh, mole coloradito (red mole from Oaxaca), maple glazed carrots and sesame. The Wahaca restaurant chain is sticking to tacos, not turkeys, with beef shin subtly spiced with anise, cinnamon and smoked salmon tostadas.

Sub-continental drift

At Gunpowder in Spitalfields, a whole stuffed ghee roast quail with winter vegetables is served. Elsewhere , pick up delicious wafts of Dishoom’s Turkey Raan, a whole tender turkey leg cooked slowly over a day. Trishna in Marylebone offers goose seekh kebab, while at Jikoni in Marylebone try pomegranate quail with chestnut and maftoul, washed down with a pomegranate negroni, and followed by a salted caramel creme patisserie edible Christmas wreath. Mmaftoul

Matfoul at Jikoni

It’s all Greek...

Suvlaki on Brick Lane celebrates lesser known regional dishes. “The slow roasted chicken stuffed with celery, leek, lamb, pork and beef is a traditional dish from the village where my mother grew up,” says founder Irene Margariti.

Scandi chic

For Nordic dining, head to Aquavit in St James’s Market for three types of pickled herring: mustard, Vendace roe and sour cream and Brantevik. According to head chef Henrik Ritzen, it’s traditional to eat these with shots of Aquavit, potatoes and strong cheese, such as Västerbotten.

Best of British

Carousel in Marylebone has a residency with Ollie Templeton. Dishes include raw Isle of Mull scallops, turnips and sea buckthorn, and “Woof-grilled Venison, Pomegranate and Caramelised Onion.” It’s sourced from Jamie Oliver’s charity Jamie’s Farm, which helps disadvantaged young people learn about farming.