Christchurch's Asian dining scene

Lunchtime cafes suddenly launched evening sittings. Suburban and village restaurants that once survived on a trickle of customers found themselves with packed tables night after night for doing nothing more than simply being open.

This determination to continue eating in restaurants in the face of a disaster isn’t frivolous or some form of denial. More, it underlines how important dining out is to us, showing how a meal with friends and family – where we can reconnect, bond and share enjoyment and support over food – can be an essential part of coping with wider troubles.

Business has been good for the city’s Asian restaurants, already well attuned to this bustling, noisy, informal and family-focused style of eating out.

Some highly rated city Asian restaurants have been lost, but others have picked themselves up and reopened in other suburbs. In doing so, they have joined the small family-run Asian restaurants that were there all along.

Many were jewels waiting to be discovered, run by families who hand the kitchen and waiting duties down through the generations. They cook authentic, high-quality food for their own highly critical ethnic communities.

This isn’t Asian-via-Europe or the US. It is the real deal, with the likes of yum cha that can be rated against that of Hong Kong, rather than that of another New Zealand town.

Some restaurants look a little shabby on the outside and utilitarian on the inner. They may well be tucked in an unfashionable spot. But regular and knowledgeable diners know exactly where to head, seeking out particular dishes at the spot that has mastered them best. Subtle differences and treatments are everything; sauces are analysed; freshness, quality and value are always critical.

At this level, it becomes eating out within a community in an intimate setting. It is the new Christchurch, and a wonderful silver lining.

ADDINGTON
North and South Gourmet



As with all the best Chinese restaurants, North and South Gourmet is full of bustle, noise and customers of all ages. There’s little standing on ceremony, but the frenetic yum cha lunches are a treat, with dishes flying out of the kitchen and on to the big lazy Susans. Among the evening dishes, a standout is the whole steamed blue cod.
300 Lincoln Rd, ph: 03-339 8887

RICCARTON
@Tonys



Since 1999, Riccarton’s @Tony’s has had a strong fan base of those who like the cut and slash of teppanyaki service. Just after the February quake, a second restaurant with an identical menu and approach was opened in Ferrymead to join the busy Riccarton Rd site as a “mini-chain”. It’s paid off, as diners starved of their inner-city haunts have flocked to suburban settings. While the teppanyaki plate is a drawcard, a full list of Japanese dishes is offered, including the @Tony’s signature dish – “spicy sashimi tempura sushi roll”.
85 Riccarton Rd, ph: 03-341 6608; 2 Waterman Pl, Ferrymead, ph: 03-348 5644, at-tonys.co.nz

Benjarong Thai Cuisine
This is the place to find an excellent authentic pad Thai, as well as finesse with vegetarian dishes. If you are looking for spectacle, the chef’s special gai ob pu kao fai sees a volcano of a whole chicken marinated with herbs set alight at the table.
111 Riccarton Rd, ph: 03-963 6603, benjarongthaicuisine.co.nz

Buddha Stix



This restaurant, which also has a branch in Wellington, covers a variety of Asian cuisines – a bit like a greatest hits of the continent – so a table of diners can mix and match Thai, Vietnamese and Chinese, if the urge occurs. The vegetarian options are strong, and a particularly good starter is the tasty fried pork balls, made with deservedly “secret” spices.
74 Riccarton Rd, ph: 03-961 1704, buddhastix.co.nz

Red Bowl
This Chinese restaurant opened in the light industrial area of Mandeville St in 2010. In keeping with its location, Red Bowl’s approach to food is modern – the vegetables are crisp and the sauces lighter than tradition dictates, meaning the meat gets a chance to show its flavour. The crispy roast duck is a highlight.
57 Mandeville St, ph: 03-348 3688