A selection of rather nice festive menus

Who hasn’t had that awful feeling of sitting down, stomach pleasantly a-rumble, only to have those stirrings of gastric yearning turn to icy needles of dread upon having a cheap paper crown plonked on your bonce and reading the awful incantation’prawn cocktail; turkey with all the trimmings; Christmas pudding; mince pies and coffee’ on a holly-trimmed menu?

European Christmas market breaks with thetrainline.com

Let’s face it, the majority of London’s  Ã¢â‚¬ËœChristmas Markets’ are grim excuses for the real spirit of festive commerce felt throughout Europe’s more traditional town squares. £50 for a night spent shivering in a mock chalet scoffing lukewarm bratwursts and glugging glogg? No thank you. We’ll get a cheap deal off thetrainline.com and pop off to one of these destinations instead.

Corrigans Mayfair

The bill was approximately £65.00 each, but that was a la carte with fabulous wines by the glass, so all in all, not bad for fine dining. There were a few’faces’ there, but it would be indiscrete to mention them (even though I really want to!) because I would imagine celebs choose this place for its discretion and unpretentious approach. Now, who am I to sabotage that?

Camino Monumento

Spanish food is now easily enjoyed in a number of London tapas bars and cafes, but Camino has already put its mark on the City with a distinctive brand of gourmet Spanish food and a top wine list. The’Camino’it aims to travel is the link between the different regions of Spain which each have their own specialities and tastes

Paxton & Whitfield’s festive cheeseboard picks

Please God let this be the year the death knell sounds for those tawdry selection boxes holding a grotesque assemblage of shrink-wrapped specimens nefariously studded with’fruit du jour’ or muddled with metallic herbage. This year we kindly offer you  Paxton & Whitfield’s expert selection, and the opportunity to redeem your own cheeseboard. Seize it with both hands.