Westminster spent more than £14,000 last year trying to find the best duck to serve at Christmas
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Any penny-pinching among the great British public is not reflected in the extravagant festive dining available at parliament this Christmas. Yuletide fare served up to MPs and Lords at Westminster includes turkey, mushroom and smoked pancetta ballotine with wild boar stuffing, a caviar substitute made from smoked herring, and a confit duck leg.
Many of the dishes are cheaper than a pub lunch. For example, a roast turkey breast with sage, sausage and onion stuffing, cranberry sauce, turkey gravy and pig in blanket costs £5.20. A turkey roast with all the trimmings at the Fuller’s Red Lion pub, which lies a short walk from parliament, costs £22.95.
The most expensive dish across the various Commons catering outlets is the chargrilled sirloin steak with roasted king oyster mushroom, green beans, French fries and roasted garlic and parsley butter. The hearty meal is on the Members’ Dining Room menu, costing £24.25.
The House of Commons said that prices are benchmarked and the catering facilities are open to parliamentary staff and other passholders. The Christmas 2024 menus have been published as newly emerged figures show that more than £14,500 was spent sourcing various types of duck meat for exquisite dishes at the Commons’ catering facilities last year.
Duck meat is again on the menu this Christmas — with one of the dishes being a confit leg with bean cassoulet and green cabbage. The dish was available in the Members’ Tea Room, where MPs catch up on Westminster gossip over food and drink. The venue is open to current and former MPs, as well as some parliamentary staff.
