Easter Sunday 2026 falls on 5 April. The four-day weekend — Good Friday to Easter Monday — is consistently one of the highest revenue periods of the year for the pub and restaurant trade, behind only Christmas and, in licensed venues, St Patrick's Day for wet sales. Unlike Christmas, the lead time is shorter and the planning window is tighter. Four to five weeks is standard. If you haven't started yet, you need to move now.
The Commercial Case
Easter weekend generates premium-priced covers across all four days. Sunday lunch in particular commands above-average spend — guests are in celebration mode, group bookings are common, and the combination of spring produce and event-driven appetite means attachment rates on starters, desserts and wine are higher than a standard Sunday.
The operational challenge is kitchen capacity across a sustained four-day stretch. The dishes below are designed with that in mind — things that can be prepped once and served across multiple services without quality degradation.
Good Friday: Push the Fish
Good Friday is the one day in the calendar where fish dishes have genuine cultural resonance beyond specialist restaurants. A Good Friday fish special works even in venues that don't typically run fish as a lead dish. Battered haddock, whole roasted bream, smoked haddock chowder — all are appropriate anchors.
If you're running our beer-battered haddock recipe, Good Friday is its natural home. Supplement it with a smoked fish chowder for tables who want something lighter, and a properly made prawn cocktail as a retro starter. The nostalgia factor on a prawn cocktail for Easter is real and consistent — run it as a seasonal special, not a permanent fixture.
Easter Saturday: Brunch and Afternoon Trade
Saturday is the most underexploited day of the Easter weekend. A brunch service from 10am–2pm taps into the relaxed mood of guests who have arrived the night before or are making a day of it. Eggs are the natural anchor — hot cross bun French toast, smoked salmon and scrambled eggs on soda bread, eggs Benedict with ham.
Afternoon tea with hot cross bun bread and butter pudding or a hot cross bun scone hybrid makes strong margin on kitchen quiet hours. It also works for the family market with children off school.
Easter Sunday: The Main Event
This is Sunday lunch at premium pricing. Build the menu around British spring produce.
1. Spring lamb shoulder (served as a sharer for two) The centrepiece. Slow-braised bone-in shoulder, rosemary jus, served in the tray at the table. This is a theatre dish that justifies a £32–£38 per-person price point as a sharer. Prep Sunday morning, braise for 4.5 hours, carve at the table. Full recipe on The Mise.
2. Roasted rump of lamb with minted pea purée An à la carte alternative to the shoulder for solo diners. Rump is faster to cook, portions cleanly and sits better on a busy service pass than a shared shoulder. Minted pea purée is seasonal, fast and high-GP.
3. Spring vegetable risotto (vegetarian anchor) Asparagus, pea, broad bean and parmesan risotto. A risotto is the right vegetarian anchor for Easter — it's celebratory, seasonal and doesn't feel like an afterthought. Cook to order or batch and finish to order using the stir-and-finish method.
4. Sea bream en papillote with spring herbs and butter A lighter fish option for Sunday lunch. Sea bream fillets wrapped with lemon, herbs and butter, baked in paper parcels. Each parcel is made in advance and finishes in the oven in 12 minutes. Good theatre when opened at the table.
5. Hot cross bun bread and butter pudding The definitive Easter dessert. Individual portions batch-baked Saturday and reheated to order. Serve with clotted cream or vanilla ice cream. High GP, zero technique required in service. Full recipe on The Mise.
Easter Monday: Reduce and Clear
Monday is typically slower than Sunday but still meaningfully above a standard Monday. Run a reduced menu using Sunday's prep. A roast lamb and vegetable soup from Sunday's braising liquor costs almost nothing to produce and sells well as a lunch special. Hot cross bun pudding carries over. Keep the team small.
Pricing for Easter
Easter commands a premium. A £35–£45 set menu for two or three courses on Easter Sunday is standard and accepted by guests. À la carte mains in the £20–£28 range are appropriate for a mainstream pub restaurant. Don't be shy about pricing up — guests have already committed to the occasion by the time they book.
What's in Season
Spring 2026 produce to build around:
- March–April: Jersey Royals (from late April), forced rhubarb, purple sprouting broccoli, spring onions, watercress
- Early asparagus: English asparagus begins end of April (limited). French asparagus available March–April on import.
- Lamb: Welsh and Scottish spring lamb at its best from late March through May
- Sea bream: Available year-round but well-priced in spring