Those who wish to gorge on Easter Sunday, but would prefer to do without the effort of shopping and cooking, might instead prefer to book one of London’s dining rooms.
Across town are numerous dining pubs and restaurants offering special Easter menus. Others will be serving Sunday lunch as they always do — tried and tested, ready for action.
Here are ten venues well suited to celebrations with family and friends. Lamb? Yes, most likely, although there’s plenty more besides. Happy Easter — and remember to book up as early as possible.
The Ritz
Most will need an excuse to splash out at The Ritz — by no means an inexpensive place to dine — and Easter might well be the reason wanted. On Easter Sunday, the Mayfair hotel is serving a three-course menu alongside live entertainment, and boasts a menu of native lobster, Dorset crab, and Suffolk lamb with Roscoff onions and mint. Spencer Metzger, head chef here, has a talent clear in every plate of food.
150 Piccadilly, W1J 9BR, theritzlondon.com
The Hare & Billet
The Hare & Billet on Blackheath is out of the way for many, which might explain why its exceptional Sunday roasts go a little under the radar. But every weekend the pub, with views of a duck pond and the towers of Canary Wharf, serves the likes of porchetta and vegan Wellington — one of the best meat-free lunches in town — with all the trimmings. Prepare for enormous Yorkshire puddings.
1a Hare and Billet Road, SE3 0RB, hareandbillet.com
Benares
The upmarket Indian restaurant Benares will be dishing up alternative Easter feasts on Sunday, with a menu featuring slow-cooked spiced lamb leg; seafood xec xec, a traditional crab curry from Goa; and nargisi kofta, a sort of Indian riff on a Scotch egg, made with mutton. The cocktails might also provide suitable indulgence at the Mayfair hangout.
12a Berkeley Square, W1J 6BS,benaresrestaurant.com
Aquavit
The Scandi restaurant Aquavit will be putting on Easter fare with a Nordic twist. Head chef Jonas Karlsson, inspired by spring, has created a special dish of slow-roasted lamb shank with lamb jus, sautéed wild garlic, young carrots and crispy Hasselback potatoes. It will be available alongside restaurant classics such as the Swedish meatballs with lingonberries, pickled cucumber and mash. An Easter dessert, the Arctic Bird’s Nest, features an “egg” made from goat’s cheese parfait in a “nest” made from a honey tuile.
1 St James's Market, SW1Y 4QQ, aquavitrestaurants.com
Cinnamon Club
Executive chef Vivek Singh has put together an Easter menu inspired by the Indian regions of Goa, Maharashtra, Kerala, and Mangalore. Starters include okra filled with peanut and jaggery, and tandoori salmon with dill and mustard. Later, there’s a choice between masala chicken, or spinach malai kofta with morels. For dessert? A Simnel cake, Western indeed, thought this one is flavoured with spices from the Malabar coast and comes with cinnamon ice cream.
The Old Westminster Library, Great Smith Street, SW1P 3BU, cinnamonclub.com
Lisboeta
Lisboeta, Nuno Mendes’ homage to Portuguese cuisine, will be serving a special Easter menu. The slow-baked lamb shoulder, marinated for 48 hours with white wine and fermented peppers, is the clear star, while the grilled cabbage, with a white bean stew, must not be overlooked. Both come with spring greens and crushed potatoes, and the pastel de natas would make for a good Easter sweet course.
30 Charlotte Street, W1T 2NG, lisboeta.co.uk
The Chelsea Pig
Close to the King’s Road is the Chelsea Pig, a neighbourhood pub serving west London’s thirsty types. This year, there will be a feasting dish of lamb — a leg to share between four. Elsewhere on the menu is pita bread with whipped feta, honey and pine nuts; rabbit terrine; and duck with morels and pickled walnuts. The pub boasts a lavish Victorian dining room, vast windows and a sweeping bar, and so those hankering for a cosy, firelit Easter will enjoy the vibe.
35 Old Church Street, SW3 5BS,thechelseapig.co.uk
The Colony Grill
The Colony Grill is one of London’s most beautiful dining rooms, full of opulence and considered service in transatlantic surrounds. It would be a glamorous place to celebrate Easter, and the menu is a refined but fun affair. First up might be a New York shrimp cocktail, or smoked salmon served simply. A stuffed saddle of lamb brings seasonality — Jersey royals, peas, and broad beans alongside — else a dry-aged sirloin with all the trimmings would satisfy the seasonally hungry.
8 Balderton Street, W1K 6TF, colonygrillroom.com
Eataly
The Italian export Eataly brought its upmarket grill restaurant Terra to London in 2021, and a host of special Easter dishes will be available over the celebratory weekend. Start with white and green asparagus, poached eggs and parmesan fondue, before Welsh lamb with rainbow carrots and minted baby potatoes. Those searching for an alternative treat to traditional chocolate would welcome peanut parfait egg filled with a banana and chocolate ganache cream.
135 Bishopsgate, EC2M 3YD, eataly.co.uk/restaurants
Blacklock
There aren’t so many roasts worth going out for (though this list makes a good start). Too often the potatoes aren’t crispy, the meat overcooked or sparse or both, the vegetables covered in unnecessary honey. Blacklock gets it all right: big, juicy slabs of meat are worth every penny, and Easter is the perfect opportunity to tuck in. At Blacklock, Sunday lunch is lavish, with billowing Yorkshire puddings alongside seasonal veg and exceptionally rich gravy.
