Vegetarians are also catered for.Christopher's18 Wellington Street, London WC2 (0171-240 4222)On Thursday they will be serving a traditional classical Thanksgiving lunch of turkey with all the trimmings. It has floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the water, and a large terrace and sunken courtyard with a desert rock garden.Both and Montana are putting on a special Thanksgiving menu at pounds 24.95 for dinner and pounds 15.95 for lunch.Their traditional Thanksgiving menu with a twist includes guava, and glazed turkey with blue-corn and chorizo stuffing. Canyon Riverside, Surrey TW10 (0181-948 2944) This superbly located restaurant is right on the Thames (boat trips can be organised from Chelsea and Westminster to the landing stage immediately in front of the restaurant). Kevin Finch is also opening a private dining club in Westminster at the beginning of next year, but this time the cuisine will be New England."I think there's a growing interest in all kinds of American food - as with American wines."People are coming back from America and realising that there are quite different regional cuisines in existence and they want to try them here," he explains.Montana, 125/129 Dawes Rd, London SW6 (0171-385 9500).

"I always thought that the kind of colourful and bold-flavoured food that they were serving in America would be particularly attractive to British people."It certainly seems to be the case. Montana has been joined by Cactus Blue in Fulham - run by Maxwells Restaurants, who also run Navajo Joe.Another Montana is also due to open in Highgate in February, although it's not just south-western American cuisine that's gaining in popularity in the capital. Similarly, Kevin Finch opened Montana after working in the States. Christopher Gilmour set up Christopher's in Covent Garden because he wanted to offer the kind of cuisine he'd been used to eating while working in Chicago. But with Thanksgiving looming, there's a growing number of places in the UK offering something a little finer than the ubiquitous quarter pounder or ribs.

Banana leaf-wrapped king snapper, Merida clam broth and pasilla-dusted root- vegetable pastada are the kinds of dishes offered at Canyon (right), a new restaurant in Richmond, Surrey, that's run by the same people who already operate the critically acclaimed Montana and Dakota restaurants in the capital. The trend for south-western American cuisine started in the US in the late 1980s and was introduced here by Brits returning from working abroad. Mention American food and most people automatically conjure up images of burgers and Tex-Mex. Though presented as something of an axe heroine, Deborah Coleman shows on Where Blue Begins (Blind Pig) that she has interesting songs to add to her tasty licks, while Rory Block's Confessions of a Blues Singer (Rounder) cements her reputation as an interpreter of the down-home style to rival the likes of John Hammond.. "What Love Is" (EmArcy), is at the Blackheath Halls.On the blues side, notable recordings make up for a lack of live appearances, with a brace of albums by female artists worthy of attention.

And on Friday, Guy Barker, whose pure-toned trumpet has graced recent recordings by Van Morrison and Georgie Fame as well as his own recent effort. Perhaps that could mean a long-term or even permanent improvement in access and what's on offer for visitors to London," says Mr Hammond.Sadly, the one notable location that is, arguably, the mother of all pearls is not included: after a decade of dereliction, the once-mighty County Hall has fragmented into an aquarium, two hotels and a branch of McDonald's.Maybe the new London mayor could do something about it.You can contact String of Pearls at 1 Hobhouse Court, Suffolk Street, London SW1Y 4HH (0171-665 1540), or consult the website that was launched this week: www.stringofpearls .uk. London Weekend Television's uncompromisingly 20th century cuboid is included, as is the yet-to-be- built Millennium Bridge between St Paul's and the new Tate Gallery at Bankside.For glimpses into the past, the Public Record Office promises an exhibition of the Domesday Book, while the Royal Courts of Justice will stage re- enactments of the "Penn & Mead" trial, which established the rights of jurors.As has happened with Open House - the Europe-wide unlocking of normally closed doors each autumn - some properties might actually acquire a taste for showing themselves off."Some of the Pearls are saying that if they have a good experience, they may extend the idea. So the outstanding collections of the Imperial War Museum and National Portrait Gallery in Trafalgar both count as Pearls.Neither does a structure have to be old.