Christmas Fishmongers

Smoked salmon is the traditional Christmas fish, popular not just for its flavour, but for the ease of preparation, and the fact that it won't go off during the festive period. Families enjoy slices of smoked salmon with lemon and pepper as a warm-up to their main course - but now there's so much choice available in London, many people are opting for fresh fish as the centre-point of their Christmas meals.

Covent Garden Fishmongers

37 Turnham Green Terrace, London, W4 1RG
Rather confusingly, this quality fish shop is not located anywhere near Covent Garden. Sustainability is the watchword for this longstanding local retail and wholesale favourite in Turnham Green, and everything here is impeccably sourced. Christmas shoppers may be more excited by the labour-saving options available, which include ready-made fish soup and first-class potted shrimp and crab. The chatty owner is always helpful and will point you in the direction of anything in his stock he regards as particularly fine.

Covent Garden Fishmongers - Information

Walter Purkis and Sons

17 The Broadway, London, N8 8DU
The century-old smokehouse at the rear of Walter Purkis provides excellent, and reasonably priced, smoked salmon to both branches (the other is in Muswell Hill) of this family fishmonger. It's the salmon that creates queues every Christmas, but if you're after something a bit more unusual, a twice-weekly delivery brings in shellfish and exotic fish from Europe, and they also get daily supplies of quality fresh fish from Billingsgate Market and fishmongers around the UK. It's worth noting that if you buy a salmon from the shop, they include the free loan of a salmon kettle to help you cook it...

Walter Purkis and Sons - Information

The Fish Shop at Kensington Place

201 Kensington Church Street, London, W8 7LX
This tidy little fishmongers attached to a restaurant has the largest and most impressive items of its stock on view, so if you're planning whole seabass or salmon for a Christmas meal, you'll be able to check out the options immediately. If fillets and fruits de mer are on your shopping list, ask the (always helpful) staff and they can usually find what you're after in one of the many fridges and compartments that allows the Fish Shop to offer a selection quite out of proportion to its size. It's also possible to get some of the restaurant's signature dishes pre-prepared to take home and cook. Choosy Kensington foodies – including the River Cafe's Ruth Rodgers – are the main customers, and so standards have to be kept extremely high.

The Fish Shop at Kensington Place - Information

Chelsea Fishmonger

10 Cale Street, London, SW3 3QU
The Chelsea Fishmonger is a labour of love for Rex Goldsmith who has been in the fish trade since he was 13 years old. Rex and his team have made a name for themselves by offering the freshest and highest quality fish and shellfish. With a focus on sustainable fishing, cod is line caught in Icelandic waters, where stocks are at safe levels, and wild sea bass are commonly hook and line caught of the south or south west coast. The Chelsea shop, situated on Chelsea Green just off the Kings Road, is a traditional open fronted shop and has been a fishmonger for around 100 years.

More info: Chelsea Fishmonger Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube