Where To Spend Burns Night In London This Year
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1 month ago
Celebrate Scotland's National Bard at these London restaurants
Robert Burns, Scotland’s national poet, is maybe best known as the author of Auld Lang Syne – but you might recognise his Address To A Haggis if you have ever celebrated Burns Night. This celebration of the Romantic writer takes place every year on his birthday, 25 January, and you don’t need to be Scottish (or in Scotland) to partake, as plenty of London venues will mark the occasion. This year, you can expect traditional suppers as well as tasty fusion takes on Burns Night (haggis nargisi kofta, for starters). Plus, as the date lands on a Sunday this year, there are plenty of dinners that take place earlier in the week, allowing you ample time to wear off whisky hangovers.
What is Burns Night?
Burns Night is a celebration of the life of 18th-century Scottish poet Robert Burns. It was initially organised as a memorial by family and friends after he died back in 1796, but over the years it has merged into a nationwide affair, taking place on his birthday, 25 January, each year.
Burns is considered to be a pioneer of the Romantic movement, and after his death he became a source of inspiration to the founders of both liberalism and socialism. His iconic poem and song, Auld Lang Syne, is sung at Hogmanay, while Scots Wha Hae was considered Scotland’s unofficial national anthem for many years.
This Year’s Best Burns Night Suppers To Book Now
Quo Vadis x FKA Black Axe Mangal
Quo Vadis – the raucous restaurant and member’s club that in a former life was Karl Marx’s home, and in another a brothel – is collaborating with FKA Black Axe Mangal for a special Burns Night supper club. Its promise is ‘the unexpected, and haggis’, with a menu that includes not only classics like haggis and clapshot, but also mapo tofu with suckling pig. The night ends with a party in the member’s club so call off any plans for the next day…
When? Friday 23 January
Where? Quo Vadis, 26-29 Dean St, London W1D 3LL
BOOK: £90, including appetiser, three course feasting menu and welcome drink. sevenrooms.com
Grill At The Dorchester
The Grill at the Dorchester reopened its dining room in September, under the helm of new executive and head chefs Martyn Nail and Jacob Downs. Its Burns Night promises to be a proper celtic feast and the first of its kind from Nail and Downs. Its three course set menu is made up of an array of Scottish traditional dishes – not least, rumpledethumps, neeps and tatties – and you’ll enjoy a Glenturret whisky cocktail at the start of the night.
When? Sunday 25 January
Where? Grill at the Dorchester, 53 Park Lane, Mayfair, London W1K 1QA
BOOK: £90 including welcome cocktail. dorchestercollection.com
Mount St Restaurant
Mount St. Restaurant
Mayfair’s Mount St Restaurant is a total special occasion restaurant and its Burns Night menu is no exception, offering an elevated take on the classics. Beyond haggis (served in this case in a pie with venison), the four course menu offer includes seared Orkney scallops with Cullen skink, Isle of Mull cheddar with oatcakes plus heather honeycomb, and finishes on rhubarb and stem ginger tipsy lairds. If you’re somehow still peckish after, the Audley Public House below will be serving Haggis sausage rolls.
When? Monday 19 January to Sunday 25 January
Where? Mount St Restaurant, 41-43 Mount Street, Mayfair, London, W1K 2RX
BOOK: £130 per person (minimum two people). sevenrooms.com
Giacco’s x Emily Skimming
Rotating guest chef space Giacco’s will be steered by Emily Skimming (head of pastry, Morchella) for Burns Night, alongside current chef-in-residence Josh Dalloway. Skimming will call on her Glaswegian heritage and present a Scottish-Iberian menu – think whisky babas – served family-style.
When? Sunday 25 January
Where? Giacco’s 176 Blackstock Rd, London N5 1HA
BOOK: £45. opentable.co.uk
Brigadiers
Brigadiers London
For those who want to celebrate Burns Night, without the whisky impacting the following Monday, Brigadiers is hosting its event on Friday 23 and Saturday 24 January (meaning you can stay out a little later). The restaurant typically serves up Indian BBQ food, so you can expect a non-traditional take on tradition, including haggis nargisi kofta and Shahi highlands venison biryani, served alongside a Caledonian whisky flight.
When? Friday 23 January and Saturday 24 January
Where? Brigadiers, 1-5 Bloomberg Arcade, London EC4N 8AR
BOOK: £85 for feast menu, additional £20 for whisky flight. brigadierslondon.com
The Wolseley & Wolseley City
The Wolseley (and its city outpost) promises dinner and a show in its own iteration of the Burns Night supper. Expect to enjoy a hearty plate of haggis, neeps and tatties with a whisky-infused cream sauce to the tune of bagpipes; they’ll be bringing in the London Scottish Pipes and Drums – in striking Hodden Grey Tartan – to skirl a tune. A bespoke cocktail menu, including Alloway Sours and Bobby Burns, tops the evening off.
When? Sunday 25 January
Where? The Wolseley, 160 Piccadilly, London, W1J 9EB; The Wolseley City, 68 King William St, London EC4N 7HR
BOOK: thewolseley.com; thewolseleycity.com
The Pelican
The Pelican
The Pelican’s take on Burns Night is a more intimate affair taking place in its private dining room. A limited number of guests will sample a four-course menu that features haggis croquettes as well as cullen skink and Scottish venison with crushed turnip and mash. The night has sweet accompaniment in the form of poem reading, bagpipes, and traditional Scottish folk music, while your meal’s sweet accompaniment is a wine and whisky pairing.
When? Sunday 25 January
Where? The Pelican, 45 All Saints Rd, London W11 1HE
BOOK: £75. thepelicanw11.com
Langans
Langan’s Brasserie
Langan’s Brasserie brings the land of lochs and glens to Mayfair with a one-night-only menu. Start the evening with a complimentary tot of The Glenturret 14 Year Old Peated before embarking on a journey that will take you from Scottish-inspired canapés to classic mains such as haggis, neeps and tatties, braised venison as well as skate with brown butter mash. The evening culminates in a theatrical reading of Address to a Haggis, per tradition, and bagpipe melodies.
When? Sunday 25 January
Where? Langan’s Brasserie, Stratton St, London W1J 8LB
BOOK: £100. langansbrasserie.com
Scott’s Richmond
Scott’s Richmond
Celebrate Burns Night by the Thames at the picturesque Scott’s Richmond, in partnership with The Singleton of Dufftown. At its third annual Burns Night dinner, there will be welcome cocktails, whisky drams, three courses, toasts and a ceremonial cutting of the haggis. Its main course sounds hearty – and isn’t haggis – it’s a fillet of venison with slo-braised shin, glazed heritage carrot, kale and venison sauce. A Singleton whisky treacle tart closes out the night, to boot.
When? Sunday 25 January
Where? Scott’s Richmond, 4 Whittaker Ave, Richmond TW9 1EH
BOOK: £95. scotts-richmond.com
