If ever there were a year to give yourself the day off and indulge in a Christmas dinner prepared for you by an amazing chef, surely 2020 is it. Your gathering will most likely be smaller than usual and tinged with some sadness that you can’t celebrate the holidays with more loved ones. So change it up, let the experts do the hard work, and use all the time you save in the kitchen to connect by phone or video with the people you miss most in your life. Optional extra: have a bottle or two of festive fizz on hand to toast as you talk.
Belgard Kitchen
Just two of you this year? Belgard Kitchen is offering a tasty-sounding turkey two ways (stuffed and rolled breast, confit legs) with gravy, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, and other sides, and a salted caramel apple crumble for dessert.
Fairmont Pacific Rim
A luxury holiday dinner available for pickup on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day with a choice of centrepiece—beef Wellington or salmon—served with a selection of sides, fixings, and dessert for four to six people. Upgrade the menu with a choice of enhancements that include truffle mac and cheese and an artisanal charcuterie and farmhouse cheese board. Order by noon on December 18.
Potluck Hawker Eatery
Did you say, “What about crab?” Then chef Justin Cheung is speaking your language. The Cambie Street eatery has created a selection of crab feasts (for two to four people) running throughout the weekends of December. Flavour options for your crustacea include salted egg yolk, white pepper uni, and chili crab, served with golden buns and a variety of sides—caramelized Brussels sprouts, gado gado, seafood nasi goreng, and the signature char kway teow.
Juke Fried Chicken
Anyone gluten-free in your household? Juke’s festive feast for four fits the bill nicely, with the popular turducken (rolled turkey, duck, and chicken) as the main event. Sides include jalapeño cornbread, scalloped potatoes, and leek and sausage stuffing. Available December 22 and 23 (ingredients will hold for three days after pickup) and must be ordered by noon on December 15.
Minami
Minami Japanese restaurant’s festive offerings run throughout the month of December, with a variety of deluxe bento boxes, including individual options for those spending the holidays alone. For larger groups (four to six), the five-tier Holiday Bento is a decadent blowout that includes a 28-piece sushi tier, aburi beef carpaccio, goma-ae, ebi fritters, a selection of desserts, and more. Individual bentos can be ordered through December 30 via phone, Tock, or Uber Eats, while the Holiday Bento requires one-day advance notice via phone or Tock.
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