Chelsea Thanksgiving Dinner Plus Short Ribs: Cadogan Arms

The Cadogan Arms, the Chelsea public house at 298 King's Road, London SW3 5UG, is putting on a one-day Thanksgiving spread on Thursday 26 November 2026, and it is the London pick for a table that cannot agree on turkey. The £100 per person feast puts both a roast turkey crown and slow-roast short ribs in the middle of the table, served family style to share, and the price includes one whiskey cocktail on arrival. It is a three-course meal of snacks, mains and dessert, and the pub serves it for this single day only.

The meal starts with a selection of snacks rather than a plated starter. There is a smoked ham Scotch egg with a cornflake crumb and apple butter mustard, a warm smoked trout dip with everything bagel crostini, a fried Brussels sprout Caesar with crispy pancetta, and a cranberry, baked brie and sage toast. The mix of British pub cooking and American references is deliberate: Scotch egg next to bagel seasoning, Caesar next to cranberry.

The welcome whiskey cocktail arrives with the snacks, and it is included in the £100. Anyone who wants more to drink can order from the regular bar list. The pub's own house drinks include the Cadogan House Martini with Boatyard vodka and Cocchi Extra Dry vermouth at £14, and an Irish coffee made with Glendalough Double Barrel whiskey, Origin coffee and double cream at £12, which works well after pie.

For the main event the kitchen sends out both a roast turkey crown and slow-roast short ribs to every table, so there is no choosing between them. Around them come green bean casserole, baked sweet potato with marshmallow, mac and cheese, corn maque choux, the Louisiana sweetcorn dish, roast potatoes and gravy. The sweet potato with marshmallow is the side most London restaurants leave out, and here it is on the standard menu.

Vegetarians get their own version of the feast at the same price. Instead of meat there is a wild mushroom, leek and chestnut pot pie with the same sides, and the snacks change to pimento cheese arancini, a roast squash toast with ricotta, sage, pumpkin seeds and brown butter, the Brussels sprout Caesar and the cranberry and brie toast. Dessert is pecan pie with vanilla whipped cream and an Oreo cheesecake.

The pub's menus carry the line EST. 1838, and the site's history goes back further. The Cadogan Arms says The Rose and Crown first opened on this site in the 1600s, and its private events room on the lower-ground floor is named The Rose Room after it. The pub describes itself as a much-loved Chelsea institution, with a food offering focused on provenance, seasonality and traceability and the best of British produce.

The everyday menu shows the style. The Cadogan ham, egg and chips with spiced pineapple ketchup costs £28, beer-battered fish and chips with mushy peas £26, and a chicken, ham and leek pie with mashed potatoes £27. From the grill, a 350g ribeye is £45.50. Carlingford oysters cost £4.75 each or £27 for six, and on Mondays the pub runs all-you-can-eat oysters along with free corkage for diners.

If you want to come back on the weekend after Thanksgiving, the regular dessert list is a calmer way to see the pub. Sticky toffee pudding with Cornish clotted cream and a chocolate and peanut butter tart with raspberry jam ice cream are £12 each, and a 10-year-old Graham's tawny port is £11 for 100ml, served in the bar or at a table.

For large groups or office celebrations, the Rose Room downstairs is available through the events team, and the pub also handles weddings, given its position a short walk from Chelsea Old Town Hall. A discretionary 15% service charge is added to the bill, which takes the feast to £115 per person before extra drinks.

The menu asks guests to speak to their server about allergies. That matters on this menu, which uses pecans, chestnuts, brie, pancetta and smoked fish across the courses. The pub also adds an optional £1 to bills for unlimited still or sparkling Belu filtered water, a charity scheme, and it offers an Invisible Crumble for £5, a dessert that is pure donation to Hospitality Action.

The Cadogan Arms sits on the busy middle stretch of King's Road, so a walk before a dinner booking is easy. Chelsea Old Town Hall is close by, and heading east along King's Road brings you to Duke of York Square and the Saatchi Gallery near Sloane Square, a good stop for anyone visiting London who wants an hour of art before the turkey.

Heading south from King's Road through the side streets brings you to the Chelsea Embankment and the Thames, where Albert Bridge is lit after dark. On a cold November evening a short loop to the river and back gives everyone an appetite for short ribs, and the pub's Irish coffee or a whiskey from the bar is a fine way to warm up afterwards.

The Cadogan Arms is at 298 King's Road, London SW3 5UG. The pub is open Monday to Wednesday 12pm to 11pm, Thursday 12pm to midnight, Friday 12pm to 1am, Saturday 11:30am to 1am and Sunday 11:30am to 10pm. The Thanksgiving feast is £100 per person on Thursday 26 November 2026 only, all dishes served family style, with one whiskey cocktail included.

The vegetarian Thanksgiving menu is the same price and includes the same whiskey cocktail. Prices on all of the pub's menus include VAT. If Thanksgiving is booked out, the pub has already published its Christmas Day menu, with a lobster and crab vol-au-vent, confit turkey leg and Christmas pudding, and its festive party bookings are open for the season.