Christmas Dinner – Animae
James Tran
Animae
Chef Tara Monsod’s Christmas Eve menu boasts Filipino flavors with specials like ginger chicken congee, halibut cha ca, and kabocha squash. For dessert, save room for their Mostra Coffee Chocolate Mousse Bar or the Five-Spice Apple Financier. $115 per person, reservations recommended.
969 Pacific Highway, Embarcadero
Christmas Dinner – Arlo
Arlo
Enjoy some of chef Josh Mouzakes’s favorite dishes and holiday classics for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day dining. The menu will include plates like air-dried Christmas goose and a tapas trio to share. Start your meal with a festive cocktail, like their spiked brown butter eggnog, and round out the evening with a sweet treat.
500 Hotel Circle North, Mission Valley
Christmas Dinner – Bleu Boheme
Bleu Bohème
The French restaurant will offer guests a three-course prix fixe dinner to enjoy on Christmas Eve, with entrée options including braised beef short rib, duck confit, salmon, vegetarian ravioli, and more. But first, start the evening with their Canneberge cocktail, made with French gin, cranberry juice, lime, cranberry bitters, and simple syrup. $68 per person, reservations required.
4090 Adams Avenue, Kensington
Callie
Celebrate Christmas Eve at Callie with Travis Swikard’s five-course Mediterranean feast. Dishes include octopus, cacio e pepe risotto, prime rib, and pancetta-wrapped quail. For an extra-special touch, you can add Russian osetra caviar to your dinner. Guests will also be sent home with freshly baked chocolate chip cookies—the restaurant is donating $1 from every cookie sale to Feeding San Diego during the entire month of December. Walk-in diners can enjoy an à la carte menu at the bar. $85 for adults, $35 for children 10 and under, reservations required.
1195 Island Avenue, East Village
Christmas Dinner – Hotel Del
The Crown Room
The Del’s famous Crown Room is welcoming guests again for a festive Christmas Eve and Christmas Day buffet. Dine on traditional dishes and new culinary twists among the iconic hotel’s over-the-top holiday decor. Also, be sure to tour their newly reopened and restored lobby, featuring a two-story tree completely decked out in lights, ornaments, and wreaths. $175 for adults, $75 for children, reservations encouraged.
1500 Orange Avenue, Coronado
Ember & Rye
At the Park Hyatt Aviara, Ember & Rye is hosting a family-style feast for Christmas Day. Diners will enjoy snacks made to share, individual salads, main entrées like Chilean sea bass and prime rib, and a mix of sides to split among the table (sherry-glazed mushrooms, grilled carrots, mashed potatoes). For dessert, you can choose from a white chocolate buche de noël, a chocolate mousse, or a twist on carrot cake. $125 per person, reservations encouraged.
7447 Batiquitos Drive, Carlsbad
Greenfinch
Estancia’s Greenfinch Restaurant will be serving an à la carte Christmas Eve dinner overlooking their garden courtyard with a menu of prime tomahawk steak, diver scallops, saffron corn soup, and more. Or, stop in for their Christmas brunch to order bananas Foster French toast, crab cake eggs Benedict, and other breakfast classics. Reservations recommended.
9700 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla
Herb & Sea
Herb & Sea has crafted a bright, coastal holiday menu with dishes like parsnip and celery root soup, whipped burrata toast, and a roasted chicken for the main meal. Pair the entrée with sides like polenta, winter greens, and crispy potatoes. There are also vegetarian and pescatarian options, including a curry roasted celery root entrée. Served Christmas Eve. $84 for adults, $34 for children, reservations recommended.
131 West D Street, Encinitas
Jrdn
Chef Stephen Gage is serving up a three-course menu of traditional holiday dishes with a contemporary twist this Christmas, including a half duck with a cider reduction and winter catch with root vegetable caponata. End your meal with a Christmas trifle (white chocolate, lemon chiffon cake, raspberry Melba sauce, peppermint bark) by pastry chef Christian Molle. Reservations encouraged.
723 Felspar Street, Pacific Beach
Kettner Exchange
Gather with friends or family at Kettner Exchange’s five-course Christmas Eve dinner. The menu will include dishes like duck confit and roasted Alaskan black cod, desserts, and an option to add on wine pairings curated by beverage director Claire Sexton. $125 per person, $40 per person for wine pairings, reservations required.
2001 Kettner Boulevard, Little Italy
Lionfish
Make room for an indulgent meal this Christmas Eve at Lionfish. Chef JoJo Ruiz is featuring a wagyu fillet steak and lobster entrée served with creamed horsey spinach puree and potato gratin. Then, end the night on a sweet note with a bite of their chocolate yule log for dessert.
435 Fifth Avenue, Gaslamp
The Med
Visit La Jolla’s Pink Lady hotel for a Christmas Eve or Christmas Day dinner at The Med. The three-course holiday menu will include smoked ham, butternut risotto, beef tenderloin, and more. $95 per person, reservations recommended.
1132 Prospect Street, La Jolla
Mister A’s
Sweeping views of the city and a decadent dinner are what’s on the menu this holiday season at Mister A’s. Christmas Eve guests can enjoy options like prime rib, beef chateaubriand, and Maine lobster tail for their entrees, and a variety of sweet selections for dessert. For Christmas Day, osso buco and Maine scallops are available, as well as more unique dessert options. Starts at $95.50 per person, reservations recommended.
2550 Fifth Avenue, Bankers Hill
Christmas Dinner – The Plot
Erik Baldwin
The Plot
Schedule a plant-based pickup meal this holiday from The Plot. The restaurant will be offering a full Christmas dinner to go with items including rosemary sage stuffing, maple roasted carrots and squash, and garlic herb potatoes. Orders must be placed by December 22 and picked up on December 24 between 12 p.m. and 5 p.m. $45 per person, reservations required.
1733 South Coast Highway, Oceanside
The Pony Room
Treat yourself and your loved ones to a Christmas buffet at The Pony Room at Rancho Valencia Resort and Spa. On the big day, you can make the rounds at the many stations, including seafood, cheese and charcuterie, pasta, and a special kids’ buffet for the little ones (pigs in a blanket, mac and cheese). Throughout the meal, you can enjoy live music, carolers, cookie-making stations, and even horsedrawn carriage rides around the property. Prefer to stay home? You can create a customizable takeout option full of holiday classics, sides, and pies. $165 for adults, $55 for kids 4–11, free for kids three and under, reservations encouraged.
5921 Valencia Circle, Rancho Santa Fe
Ranch 45
Find something for everyone in your family through Ranch 45’s holiday pickup menu, which is fully customizable and served à la carte. You can take your pick from mains like prime rib, smoked turkey legs, and smoked Cornish game hen; round out the meal with side plates of smashed potatoes and thyme-roasted rainbow carrots, then be sure to order one of their housemade pies for a sweet finish. Orders must be placed by December 19 at 4 p.m.
512 Via de la Valle, Solana Beach
Sally’s Fish House & Bar
Toast to the holidays by the sea at Sally’s Fish House & Bar at the Manchester Grand Hyatt. Their Christmas dinner includes prime rib, jumbo prawns, and craft cocktails like the Rudolph, made with You & Yours gin. $52 per person, not including drinks.
1 Market Place, Embarcadero
Serẽa
Celebrate Christmas Eve beside the sea at The Del’s Serẽa Coastal Cuisine. On the agenda is a three-course prix fixe menu with scallop crudo, prime rib roast, and a cranberry mousse dome to finish. $120 for adults, $45 for children; reservations required.
1500 Orange Avenue, Coronado
Christmas Dinner – Shake and Muddle
Shake & Muddle
Chula Vista’s Shake & Muddle will be serving guests a three-course menu for Christmas Eve, with highlights including New York strip steak and crab. For $12, you can add festive cocktail pairings to your meal: Order the Stumbling Santa, made with Godiva chocolate liqueur, Stolichnaya vanilla vodka, peppermint schnapps, and strawberry puree. $75 per person, reservations are recommended.
303 H Street, Chula Vista
Smokey & the Brisket
Ditch the classic holiday feast this year and get some barbecue instead. Smokey & the Brisket is offering a Christmas dinner pickup option to feed six to 10 people. The package includes one pound of smoked prime brisket, two pounds of smoked pork, two rotisserie chickens, mashed potatoes, coleslaw, and their signature Smokey’s Salad. $150 per dinner package, reservations required.
5465 Lake Murray Boulevard, La Mesa
Valentina
Stop in for a prix fixe Christmas Eve menu at Valentina, Leucadia’s European-inspired wine bar. The three-course dinner will include global dishes like Spanish sashimi, mulard duck breast, and tomaquet Iberico (Iberian tomato) paired with sommelier-selected wines. $79 per person, reservations required.
810 North Coast Highway 101, Leucadia
Vistal Bar + Restaurant
The InterContinental’s waterfront restaurant is offering a set holiday menu on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Entrées range from a smoked holiday pork chop to a roasted parsnip fondant, and dessert options include a gingerbread trifle and a chocolate tart. Enhance your experience by adding on wine pairings for $35. $75 for adults, $35 for children under 12, reservations recommended.
901 Bayfront Court, Embarcadero
Waverly
pend the day exploring Cardiff before settling down to a five-course holiday menu at Waverly. On Christmas Eve, the restaurant will be serving a dinner including crispy potatoes to start and braised short rib as your main course. $125 per person, reservations recommended.
2005 San Elijo Avenue, Cardiff
20|Twenty
The Westin Carlsbad Resort’s signature restaurant is offering a festive prix fixe menu on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Courses include a fall salad made with compressed pear, candied walnuts, and an apple ginger vinaigrette; a traditional beef Wellington; and bread pudding served with chocolate sauce for dessert. $98 per person, reservations recommended.
5480 Grand Pacific Drive, Carlsbad
