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Christmas

From present ideas to party food, find all your Christmas inspiration here.

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Original poster

Eating out on Christmas Day..

50 replies

AtAt · 10/10/2015 16:42

This year, it will be 3 year old ds, dh and I for Christmas day. We are most likely going to cook, but a small part of me is tempted with going out for Christmas lunch.
Has anyone done this, and if so can you recommend somewhere in East London? (I.E. a chain restaurant maybe) Thanks!

OP posts:

NotMyChashkaChai · 10/10/2015 21:51

We did it when dd was exactly 2 weeks old. She slept all the way through the meal and it was just what we needed at that time! However now she's a toddler we always stay home for Christmas now.

LittleFishBigOcean · 11/10/2015 08:36

We've been considering going out. DD is 3 and she loves her food and sits really well when we go out, and we'd take some little toys with us.

Dp only gets Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day off (if he's lucky) so we thought we'd get more time for us as a family if we went out.

Sameoldiggi · 11/10/2015 18:28

I am going to a hotel for the first time. Sick of cooking for hours and having the kids not eat it. We have a tiny home and have to eat in the same room the dcs are playing with all their toys. I think it will be great, but who knows? If it's a disaster it can be a one-off.

PesoPenguin · 11/10/2015 18:43

We don't go out for dinner on Christmas Day as, whenever we've had Christmas meals out, it hasn't been the same. What we do do though, to avoid the whole spending most of the morning in the kitchen, is have our Christmas dinner at tea time ( so about 6pm). That way, we can enjoy the morning and get cooking during the afternoon lull and still have something to look forward to. Last year, while cooking, I had a sneaky look on fb (I know, I know) and there were loads of posts saying, "It's all over for another year," but we still had a lovely meal to look forward too.

Dowser · 16/10/2015 07:32

Only time I've eaten Xmas lunch in a restaurant was in Florida and it was fantastic and about £20 with mimosas . Here unless you pay top dollar I expect it Tobe pub grub with lots of crackers , hats and a huge bill at the end of it.

I'm not keen on the idea to be honest.

Sameoldiggi · 16/10/2015 23:54

Well you have to expect to pay a lot on Christmas Day. I certainly don't expect to be eating "pub food" as it isn't a pub, or even close. In fact I'm a bit worried that the dcs and us will lower the tone a bit.

OldBeanbagz · 16/10/2015 23:59

I've only done it once in this country and the experience was appalling. Very average food served in a dismally decorated room (my inlaws had picked their local pub).

I would have preferred to stay in with an M&S ready meal!

shadowfax07 · 17/10/2015 13:09

Our local hotel is charged £62 per head for Christmas lunch this year. M&S are charging £60 for their 'Family favourite' deal for six.

(A lot of our lunch may be coming from M&S this year )

Buttercupsandaisies · 17/10/2015 13:18

We ate out last year and loved it! So much more relaxing (and we normally visit relatives so it's not like we cook anyway!). It just felt more special..we spend many Sunday roast days at home so I can't think of nothing worse than being in all day! Most lunch slots are small anyway, we were only out 1-4:30pm so just missed all the messy bits!

Isthereeverarightime1 · 17/10/2015 14:21

We do it every year now, started a few years back. Apart from one year the food has been fantastic and we typically pay about £50 per head and less for the kids. For us it makes more sense for us to go out, we all have small kitchens and I hate cooking so we all decided to eat out X mas day and then we all get together after for presents and nibbles into the eve!

We are West Sussex area and try to find the local independent pubs rather than chains we went to a chain restaurant last year and there was no atmosphere and the food was crap as was the service but this year we have chosen a local ish pub to us which serves amazing food service is great and they go all out with Christmas decorations so we are really looking forward to it! It's nice not having to spend the whole day cooking and washing up and all the buying and pre planning.

The cost for us compared to what we would spend on buying all the food etc was not that different so it's something we will be doing from now on

Isthereeverarightime1 · 17/10/2015 14:29

Actually I think year is costing more as there is a lot more included so it's working out £67 per adult head and kids £20 they place we are going to have offered to cook the kids something different if they didn't want X mas dinner and my partner loved a particular pudding we had there a few weeks ago which wasn't on the X mas menu but they have agreed to make him this pudding instead of the other choices! They have been very accommodating.
I agree that some other places won't be as good but I believe for £67 per head is good value for what we will get on the day

Snossidge · 17/10/2015 14:35

We did it one year at a pub, I think it worked out £125 for me, DP, and two toddlers. Booze was on top. It was lovely! We had Christmas morning at home, walked down to the pub for 1ish, had a lovely meal, went home in time for the kids to play a bit then into bed, then me and DP had the evening to relax - no clearing up to do.

SpanglesGalloway · 18/10/2015 13:10

We alternate Christmases so one year with dh family one year with mine. 2 years ago it was just me dh and mil and we went out for a meal.. It was nice but afterwards she met up with her girlfriends and we went to our best friends house who had all their family so we didn't miss out

This year again it's the turn of us to have it with dh family. I'll be 37w pregnant. Mil refuses to do it. Sil quite rightly has done her fair share of Christmas dinner so declined to host and so again were going out. A bigger party of us this time so will be fun and suits me as ill be big and won't want to feel obliged to help cook clean etc. But it's not my ideal. I would have liked it just me and DH at home!

Bored12345 · 18/10/2015 15:27

We did this when DC were 3 and 1 as we felt we should spread it with ILs but they aren't up to cooking and were terrible cooks when they were well enough but also they wouldn't want is cooking in their kitchen, and actually it worked well as we paid for it as our present to them so killed two birds with one stone. Ended up at a chain - loch fyne - as left too late to book a countrysidey pub - and was great. Nice food and fun staff and no pressure.
It's not what I would choose over nice home cooked meal but was better than eating at theirs.

mumtoone84 · 19/10/2015 07:00

We went out a few years ago. Word mistake ever. Agree with other posters.. Just didn't feel like Christmas :(

mumtoone84 · 19/10/2015 07:00

Word = worst

Iggi999 · 19/10/2015 10:15

Good grief some of your Christmasses must be massively centred around the meal! For me it wouldn't feel much like Christmas if I had to go to someone else's house, for example, but many do this happily every year. I'd like it to feel a little less like the Christmasses I often spend in and out of the kitchen making food I don't particularly like and which takes up way too much of the day!

IHaveBrilloHair · 19/10/2015 15:57

I love cooking Iggi, and cook whatever I want.

Iggi999 · 19/10/2015 16:40

I like it too, there are just so many expectations around what is cooked on Xmas day, especially if other relatives are involved!

IHaveBrilloHair · 19/10/2015 17:06

There's just me and 14yr old DD who humours me when it comes to cooking, and doesn't care so long as there is food.
Buffet Christmas day with a whole tongue as the centrepiece, cassoulet another day, homecooked Indian based around a lamb shoulder, seafood meal, Chinese takeaway and steak pie for New year's day.
The rest for the two weeks is help yourself from the massively stocked fridge and cupboards.

KwikQ · 19/10/2015 17:09

We've done it a few times, in a couple of nice gastropubs in north London.

Other than having no leftovers, I've always enjoyed it (although not with toddlers or children who won't sit at the table for a couple of hours...there was one very stressful year because of that ).

Other pain was having to pay for a cab home because we wanted to drink.

It was relaxing, though. I'd do it again.

Anywhere decent will most likely be booked up by now, though, in all honesty.

EvansOvalPiesYumYum · 19/10/2015 17:18

We did it once, when our DC were very little, with DP's whole family.

Never again!! It was shambolic from start to finish and the food was awful. Staff clearly didn't want to be working on Christmas Day. Put me off completely from ever wanting to do it again.

I enjoy cooking Christmas (late) lunch. Bottle of wine by my side, aromas of various yummy things.

Home for me, every time.

Chippednailvarnish · 19/10/2015 17:24

We go out every year and we love it. Walk to the local pub eat, drink and be merry and then don't wash up!

Iggi999 · 19/10/2015 17:27

That sounds impressive, brillohair!

IHaveBrilloHair · 19/10/2015 17:31

Cooking is my hobby, I adore spending time in the kitchen, and I don't have to impress anyone so it's stress free.
I don't cook for others as it may go wrong or they'd hate my unusual food and I'd cry.
I don't do desserts or baking either, crap at both so they are bought.

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