Private Dining Rooms In London West End For Office Christmas Parties

Office Christmas Party Venues In London’s West End.

Following on from our last blog, Christmas Parties in The City, it’s time to move slightly more central to the West End of London, and see what’s on offer there over the holiday season.

The venues that scatter this part of town are perhaps less “corporate” and more “confetti”. The West End of course is known for its slightly more colourful nightlife, with its venues placed around various theatres, nightclubs and market squares. There’s nothing to say you can’t embrace this ambiance for your office Christmas do. If you’re trying to please staff that work in the entertainment industry, media or indeed a bar or restaurant, the West End is sure to serve up what they want. However, if you’re a troupe of fellow office-based colleagues, what better time than the Christmas party season to leave the beige lights of The City and venture toward the pinks and reds of the West End.

Kicking off the array of venues is the truly one of a kind Ice Bar, on Heddon Street. This place is ridiculously suitable for the time of year, given that it’s made of frozen water. The water’s from the Torne River to be precise, and is the building block for the tables, stools and even the glasses. Forget the ice rinks that pop up around the capital at Christmas – instead, gather your colleagues, bust out your favourite gillets, mittens and thermal trappers and head to Ice Bar for a truly unique festive party. The venue totally embodies the aura of the season, with its chilly decor and its private rooms, aptly named the Moose, Wolf and Reindeer rooms. The rooms can be combined to house a 270 person standing party, or sectioned off to host smaller events. Christmastime sees the venue bask in all its icy glory, with sparkling snowy garlands running around the perimeter of the ceilings and giant baubles draping here and there. The Moose dining room boasts bricks and beams for a “cabin in the forest” feel, the Reindeer Lounge allows you to party in comfort with its plush array of scattered cushions and the Wolf Bar is contemporary winter at its most imaginative.

Off Shaftesbury Avenue, right in the heart of the district, is Grace. Again, this venue comes into its own during the festive period. It has its main bar area, and then 4 private rooms and even a terrace restaurant (possibly not appropriate for the time of year but perhaps so for the more daring). Its flat white room, Milk, is one of the two clubs within the building, and Cocoa, the second nightspot, stuns with its chocolatey ambiance. For dinner, sit under low hanging ornate bird cages, on rich damask dining chairs, or behind a crisp white curtain, away from the hubbub of the main venue. When dinner’s done, join the party in the club, for a night in one of Soho’s best spots.

Soho House is always a favourite amongst trendy professionals in London. It’s a private members club but areas of it can be used by those who aren’t PMs. For example, the 19/21 restaurant is a favourite to anyone who has frequented it. Christmastime offers up menus with all the seasonal trimmings. Groups of up to 15 guests can enjoy the Christmas Set Menu available throughout the day for £35 per person. Groups of 15-42 can choose between two different three course “Bring Me Food” menus served family style on large platters to share. For the bigger office gathering, the House Basement is an ideal space to host private drinks for up to 80 guests. The bar and DJ will provide all the entertainment required, and you’ll probably feel a desire to become a member after a night there.

Inamo on Wardour Street is an experience to behold at any time of the year. However, Christmas is that tad bit extra special, when this futuristic diner takes its utopian style and festives it up. Throughout the year, the eatery offers you a dinner to remember, with its interactive table cloths, chef cams and electronic ordering service. At Christmas, the venue provides you with the same experience, but with a few added extras to boot. There’s the chance to add cocktail mixing, sushi making and sake tasting to your 4 course dinner. On top of this, there’s the option to add a personalised interactive table cloth to your guests tables, a DJ can be included, there’s a canapé option and a special plumb liquor fizz reception if you want one at the start of the event. Delicacies on the menu include black cod, honeyed duck and mango salmon.

As well as its lunch party menu and its dinner party menu, Gauthier Soho offers its decadent “Le Grand Menu de Noel” this winter. This 9 course £135 per person meal is definitely one to indulge in if you and your group are looking for a night out in Soho but are not planning on hitting the dance floors of the district afterwards. Chances are, you won’t be able to move. But isn’t that what Christmas is all about? On this menu you’ll sample pigeon, spiced lobster, duck with port jelly, Saint-Nectaire Fermier and rum with brown sugar bananas. All to be completed (if you can manage them) with traditional mince pies. The Hidden Room, the Games Room, and le Petit Salon all play host to more intimate gatherings, but for a 40 person office do, grab le Grand Salon and enjoy refined Christmastime dining in the capital at its best.

Along the road on Brewer Street, is Hix. This is a vibrant venue – slightly cramped but incredibly exclusive. Hidden behind large wooden window-less doors off the unsuspecting sidewalk of Brewer Street, this place is golden, orange and bronze, embodying a warmth that will pluck you from the wintry streets of London and into a party atmosphere. The downstairs bar is awash with pockets of seating for you to sit and try the array of cocktails on offer. Your party can then make their way upstairs to the restaurant and enjoy one of the first grouses of the season.

Of course, after the party’s done, the West End will entice you all to explore the many, many late-night clubs that will all be bound to have Christmas drinks offers going across December. The choice is the yours as to whether you’re going to march off into the night with your colleagues, or whether it’s more sensible to, at that point, call it a night.