On top of traditional turkey and roasts, try a pine-fresh selection of festive menus prepared by restaurants you wouldn’t have thought of booking for your Christmas lunch or dinner this year.

1. Sugarhall

This upbeat rum and grill on Amoy Street will be offering a four-course Christmas set menu ($88++) during dinner for five days in December. It starts with complimentary cornbread and an heirloom tomato and burrata salad, followed by your choice of mains: Mangalica Pork Chop, Swordfish Steak or Black Onyx Sirloin. You can’t leave without a tipple at Sugarhall so top up $50++ to your meal for a drinks pairing that includes a glass of prosecco, a sweet Santa’s Aperitivo, Sugarhall’s spiced apple rum mule and your pick between a traditional rum eggnog or sous vide spiced warm mulled wine to accompany a Christmas pudding. Note that Sugarhall is closed on Sunday, 21 Dec 2015. When: 19 to 24 Dec 2015 For Reservations: Call 9732 5607

2. FORT by Maison Ikkoku

Recently opened FORT by Maison Ikkoku will be hosting its first ever Christmas dinner with a three-course festive menu, priced at $38++ per person and an additional $20++ for a cocktail pairing of two festive cocktails. It begins with a surprise starter of the day followed by Holiday Turkey where turkey breast medallions are cooked sous-vide style and infused with truffles and dash of cinnamon, paired with a Santa Red cocktail. To end off, Executive Chef and Master Mixologist Ethan’s skills truly shine through his dessert – a creamy Martell Cordon Bleu Lavender Crème Brûlée paired with a second cocktail, The Snowman, where spice rum meets butter popcorn, hazelnut and milk for a perfect finish. You can also add on ala carte dishes, such as their signature spicy maguro hand-roll, The Fort (4 pcs $18/ 8 pcs $28, pictured). When: 20 Nov to 31 Dec 2015 For reservations: Call 6336 0507 Christmas Stocking Bonus: Starting December, FORT by Maison Ikkoku’s 12-course Omakase menu will be available for just $68++ per person.

3. Mitzo

This Christmas, Mitzo will be serving up a two-day festive set menu ($148++ per person, $228++ per person – with free flow of champagne, cocktails, wines and beer) like no other. Instead of a traditional turkey, this modern Cantonese restaurant presents a Wok Fried Truffle Lobster as its star protein, alongside other highlights like Pumpkin Pork Rib with Pacific Clam and King Oyster Mushroom. Your sweet ending arrives most dramatically with the dance of dry ice to reveal a glass teapot filled with Chilled Cream of Pumpkin with Purple Yeast Sago topped with Ice Cream and Cranberry Wine Puff. When: 24 and 25 Dec 2015 For reservations: Call 6603 8855 or email rsvn@mitzo.sg. Christmas Stocking Bonus: For a limited time only till 1 Jan 2016, are Mitzo’s dessert-styled cocktails such as Mystique Pearl served with homemade tiramisu and Copper Royale topped with truffle air foam.

4. Hide Yamamoto

Festive indulgence takes on a whole new level over at Hide Yamamoto, which is now offering an extravagant 10-course menu for lunch and dinner till Christmas Day. The damage – $450++ per pax. Besides Chef Hide Yamamoto’s signature “Chawanmushi” Black Truffle Egg Flan with Fresh Sea Urchin and Snow Crab, you can expect other dishes such as Abalone Steak, Grilled Lobster with Sea Urchin Sauce and Japanese Wagyu, all of which fuses the best Japanese ingredients with European culinary influences and techniques. When: 1 to 25 Dec 2015 For reservations: Call 6688 7098

5. Angelina

Angelina may be known for its signature hot chocolate and other sweet treats, but there’s no stopping this elegant tearoom from giving us a taste of rustic French fare come Christmas time. Three ($60++) and four-course ($70++) menus will be available, with indulgent starters like Pan Seared Foie Gras and Roasted Winter Squash & Ginger Soup with Scallop and Caviar. For mains, we recommend going for the Baked Angus Beef au poivre (pictured), which is coated with loosely crushed pepper and accompanied with a classic forest mushroom fricassée. Note that the four-course set available on 24 and 25 Dec requires advance bookings. When: 1 to 31 Dec 2015 (3-course set), 24 & 25 Dec 2015 (4-course set) For reservations: Call 6384 0481 or email enquiry-angelina@reglobal.sg

6. The Black Swan

More than a convenient Christmas meal for those working in the CBD, The Black Swan’s festive lunch set menu lets you enjoy a 2-course set for $42++ and a 3-course for $48++ per person. Tempting appetisers include Smoked Beef Tartare and Alaskan Snow Crab, while the selection of mains consist of dishes like Braised Wagyu Beef Cheeks and Pan Roasted Barramundi with sautéed clams and bacon dashi. Finish off with a Ginger Pumpkin Pudding with toffee and vanilla ice cream or before heading back to the office full of Christmas glee. When: Now till 31 Dec, except 25 Dec For reservations: Book on Chope (below 16 guests) or email enquiry@theblackswan.com.sg Christmas Stocking Bonus: Four-course festive prix fixe menus and a Christmas eve dinner menu are also available.

7. The Lighthouse

Get pampered with mouthwatering Italian dishes like Lobster and Asparagus Casserole, Taglierini Pasta with Truffle (pictured) and house baked Panettone with dark chocolate sauce, hazelnut ice cream and crispy raspberry atop The Fullerton Hotel at The Lighthouse as you ease into the festive season this month. The four-course dinner is priced at $158* and on top of that, a special five-course set is available on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day for $198*, inclusive of a glass of bubbly. When: Now till 30 Dec 2015 (4-course dinner), 24 & 25 Dec 2015 (5-course dinner) For Reservations: Call 6877 8989 or email festive@fullertonhotel.com Christmas Stocking Bonus: Italian Family Christmas Semi Buffet will also be available on Christmas Day

8. Salt Grill & Sky Bar

This Christmas, be lifted up (56 storeys high) for Salt Grill & Sky Bar’s exclusive three-course dinner set menu ($180++). Start off with a glass of mocktail or cocktail, before ordering a Cold Seafood Platter to share. Then, follow up with Christmas classics like Honey Mustard Ham with a caramalized pineapple, Pepper Roasted Beef or a vegeterian option of Gnocchi with Sweet Potato, before your dessert finale ensues with Luke’s Christmas Pudding with Brandy Sauce or a Chocolate Log Cake there’s no going wrong with. Top up $59++ and a sommelier will pair your meal with three glasses of wines. When: 24 to 25 Dec 2015 For Reservations: Book on www.saltgrill.com, call 6592 5118 or email info@saltgrill.com

9. Keyaki

It’s always a good time to indulge in authentic Japanese fare, even at Christmas. At Keyaki, Master Chef Hiroshi Ishii has prepared a special eight-course Christmas dinner menu ($220 per set), which features premium seasonal ingredients that are directly imported from Japan. Highlights include grilled dishes like Abalone with snow crab and scallop, Wagyu Beef with Mushroom Sauce, Lobster with Cheese, as well as three kinds of sushi and tuna belly. Let’s not forget that perfect finish to any Japanese meal – Mochi Ice Cream with musk melon and red bean paste. When: 24 to 27 Dec 2015 For reservations: Call 6826 8240 or email celebrate.sin@panpacific.com

10. MEATliquor SIN

Joining in the festive fun, UK’s famous burger chain, MEATliquor SIN, launched a Christmas menu late last month. Pretty much the best of Christmas between two buns, the XXXmas Burger ($21) is stacked well with a winning combination of pork sausage, stuffing patty, sliced roast turkey, crispy bacon, cranberry sauce and a whole lot of gravy. To complement your burger, a side of Xmac & Cheese ($15) made with six different cheeses, is also available together with cocktail creations like Gingerbread Gin Sour ($19) and Merry Milk Punch ($19). When: Now till 24 Dec 2015 For reservations: Book on Chope

11. Sopra Cucina

If you’ve not heard of Sopra Cucina, then the Christmas season gives you a good excuse to check out this hidden gem in Orchard. Specializing in Sardinian cuisine, the restaurant will be offering a three-course set dinner ($99+ per person) exclusively available for three days in December. The menu includes an Italian classic dish of lobster meat and mesclun salad – Insalata Di Aragosta, Honey Chipotle Glazed Turkey Breast, served with asparagus wrapped in pancetta, deep-fried mushroom and cranberry sauce, as well as a traditional Pannetone Bread Pudding drizzled with vanilla sauce. The set includes one glass of prosecco. When: 24 to 26 Dec 2015, dinner only For reservations: Call 6737 3253

12. Oxwell & Co.

For a British-style Christmas dinner, Oxwell & Co on Club Street gives you the flexibility between a ‘Fabulous Feast’ ($110 per pax, min 3 people), a traditional ala carte three-course dinner ($85 per pax) and canapé packages ($60 to $80 per pax, min 20 people) if you’re hosting a larger and more casual party. The ‘Fabulous Feast’ is customizable with a selection of savoury snacks, starters and mains like Pork Scratchings, Spiced Crispy Corn, Spiced Duck Rillette, Slow-Roast Kurobuta Pork Belly and Oven Roasted Irish Salmon. Each main course comes with a choice of two sides like Duck Fat Roast Poatoes and Butter Roasted Sweet Carrots and finishes with an Orange and Ginger Cake for dessert, which is also available in the three-course a la carte dinner. When: To be updated For reservations: Visit www.oxwellandco.com or email farid@oxwellandco.com.

Written by Peh Yi Wen Top image: Salt Grill & Sky Bar