The desire to dine out this Christmas has been so popular, only extremely limited spaces are still available.

More Kiwis than ever are opting to take their traditional family feast outside of the house this Christmas and let someone else take care of it all, the country's top chefs say.

The trend stems from a desire to relax rather than "slave over a hot stove", combined with today's city-dweller lifestyle offering minimal space to prepare bulk meals or host large groups at home, says chef Sean Connolly.

"Everyone works so hard during the year that come Christmas time they want to relax and treat themselves", the executive chef of four restaurants across Australia and NZ told Stuff.

"For many people, the planning and cooking time for Christmas dinner can be quite stressful, and so heading out is an attractive option.

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"Not everyone enjoys slaving over a hot stove.

"It also means no one has to clean up."

Connolly admits to seeing a shift in dining habits over the past five to ten years, and puts the increased appetite to eat out down to our time-poor lifestyle and the increase in inner-city living.

"We're busier than ever before, so finding the time to prepare meals - especially for large groups - has become harder.

"People living in larger cities are often residing in smaller quarters, apartments and flats with small kitchens and not a lot of room for hosting, so the idea to eat out is a logical one."

Vince Patena, manager of Hector's Restaurant at The Heritage Hotel says diners have never been more organised to eat out on Christmas Day.

"Two years ago I was stressed two weeks out from Christmas because we didn't have many bookings for lunch," he said.

"Whereas now, we're fully booked for Christmas lunch in October, two months out!"