SPOON+ AT SANDERSON

EVEN if you love cooking, preparing the Christmas Day blow-out can be an unrewarding experience. Perhaps this should be the year when you go out for the Christmas meal? Before dismissing the idea out of hand as untraditional, consider the advantages.

Picture yourself just before meal time in your best gear drinking a glass of champagne, no mopping the brow with an old tea-towel and frantically checking the to-do list. Then, everyone around the table could eat and drink what they want.

But the best bit comes when everyone has finished. Instead of embarking on the washing-up you simply leave the work for the restaurant.

The minimalist restaurant offers a restrained foil to the Sanderson Hotel's quirky extravagance - but this is the perfect place for a lavish celebration. You get three courses for £70 per person (£25 for children), and the marinated goose is a seasonal speciality straight from legendary chef Alain Ducasse Berners Street, W1, 020 7300 1400.

THE CINNAMON CLUB

For those whose yuletide attitude verges on the "bah! humbug!" side, try masala goose instead. The Cinnamon Club offers various twists on usual dishes, including a starter of Keralan lobster soup with brandy, and Christmas pudding with cardamom and cinnamon custard. Trimmings are replaced with spicy alternatives, and you're welcomed to your table with an unusual Saffron Bellini. Three courses cost just £65 per head. 30 Great Smith Street, SW1, 020 7222 2555.

GORDON RAMSAY AT CLARIDGE'S

This outpost of Gordon's empire is the capital's starriest dining room and the food deserves all its serious plaudits. You get four courses for a fairly modest £90 per head - swap the turkey for Gloucestershire pork belly with aubergine caviare, and be sure to sample the speciality pudding, decadent Valrhona chocolate fondant and malt ice cream. Claridge's, Brook Street, W1, 020 7499 0099.