Columbia Restaurants That Will Be Open On Christmas 2018

COLUMBIA, MD — Nationally, eateries are welcoming holiday diners who would rather skip the shopping, cooking and cleanup on Christmas. If you prefer to dine out for the holiday, there are several restaurants that will do all the heavy lifting for you in Columbia.

Restaurant reservation service OpenTable found that Christmas and New Year’s saw profits increase by 40 to 50 percent compared to a typical day, according to Eater.com.

The food website found that restaurants served almost twice as many meals on Christmas Eve and more than three times as many meals on New Year’s Eve in comparison with the average day.

Here are some restaurants in Columbia open for Christmas:

• Koto Sake Japanese Steak House, 6410 Freetown Road
• Rudy's Mediterranean Grill, 7185 Columbia Gateway Drive, Columbia
• TGI FRIDAYS, 8330 Benson Dr, Columbia
• Starbucks, 6365 Dobbin Road, at Columbia Crossing; open 6 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Starbucks, 5400 Lynx Lane, at Wilde Lake Village Center; open 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Offers.com also provided the following list of restaurants open nationwide on Christmas 2018:

Boston Market: Select locations will be open Christmas Day (see participating locations) and serving a special Christmas Day menu.

Hard Rock Cafe: Most locations are open on Christmas Day, until as late as 11 p.m. Check your location’s hours.

IHOP: Many 24-hour locations will be open on Christmas, but hours vary by location. Check out this year’s seasonal Grinch menu.

Macaroni Grill: Open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Christmas Eve and 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. Christmas Day.

McCormick & Schmick’s: Hours vary by locations, but many will be open Christmas Day. See participating locations. Reservations are recommended.

McDonald’s: Hours (and whether they’re open at all) vary widely by franchise, so call ahead. Expect hours to be reduced for locations that are open. Note that locations inside Walmarts will be closed, as Walmart is closed on Christmas.

Morton’s the Steakhouse: Reservations required for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day dining.

Old Country Buffet: Open 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Christmas Eve and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Christmas Day and serving a special Christmas menu.

Panda Express: Some — but not all — Panda Express locations will be open on Christmas Day. This varies by restaurant, as many are independently owned. So call ahead.

Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse: Open on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and serving the full menu. Reservations required.

Starbucks: Many locations stay open for limited hours on Christmas, so you can get your pre-Christmas party buzz. But not all locations will be open, so call ahead. Note that Starbucks locations inside Target will be closed, as Target is closed Christmas Day.

Waffle House: Known for being open 24/7 and 365 days a year, Waffle House is also open on Christmas.

Do you know of others? Add them in the comments so we can put them on the list.

These restaurants in and around Columbia and taking reservations on OpenTable:

• Rudy's Mediterranean Grill, 7185 Columbia Gateway Drive, Columbia
• TGI FRIDAYS, 8330 Benson Dr, Columbia
• The White Oak Tavern, 10030 Baltimore National Pike, Ellicott City
• David's - Live! Casino & Hotel, 7002 Arundel Mills Circle, Hanover
• George Martin's Grillfire, The Hotel at Arundel Preserve, 7793 Arundel Mills Blvd, Hanover
• The Prime Rib at Live! Casino & Hotel, 7002 Arundel Mills Circle, Hanover
• Ram's Head, 8600 Foundry Street, Savage

Note: The restaurants above were taking reservations as of this posting. Patch cannot guarantee that some restaurants have not been booked.

Patch national staffer Dan Hampton contributed to this report.

Image via Shutterstock.