Christchurch guide
Christchurch's Michelin Guide restaurants
The Michelin Guide reached New Zealand for the first time in June 2026, and Ōtautahi came out of it well. These are the Christchurch restaurants that made the inaugural guide — two with a Michelin Star, a strong run of Bib Gourmands (the guide's nod to the best value going), and several more in the Selected list.
The city's two Stars sit at opposite ends of it: Inati in the central city, and Tussock Hill, an organic vineyard restaurant perched up in the Cashmere hills. The Bib Gourmands spread from the laneways off High and Lichfield Streets out to Merivale and the beach at Sumner.
It's a young guide and the list will move, but as a snapshot of where the city's kitchens stand right now it's a fine place to start. Most take bookings — and the Stars in particular are worth planning ahead for.
The picks
- 01Tussock Hill · Restaurant · Cashmere★ Michelin Star
Christchurch's Michelin Star — a family-run organic vineyard restaurant up on the Port Hills, with sweeping views over the city and its own wines poured…
- 02INATI · Restaurant · Central City★ Michelin Star
A chef's-table degustation in the central city — a tight, theatrical tasting menu of inventive, beautifully plated small courses.
- 03The Athens Yacht Club · Restaurant · Central CityBib Gourmand
Greek in the city, despite the name — a taverna doing souvlaki, meze and the rest with a bit of character.
- 04Londo · Restaurant · MerivaleBib Gourmand
Cuisine's 2025 Casual Restaurant of the Year — a Merivale wine bar and restaurant doing a hyper-seasonal, foraged South Island menu of shared plates.
- 05A'mano · Restaurant · Central CityBib Gourmand
Handmade Italian on Lichfield Street — the name means ‘by hand’, and it shows in the pasta, focaccia and sourdough pizza made fresh daily.
- 06Gatherings · Restaurant · MerivaleBib Gourmand
New Zealand's first natural-wine restaurant — an intimate room a short walk from the CBD, plating organic veg, kaimoana and wild food alongside a serious…
- 07ROCA · Restaurant · Central CityBib Gourmand
Mediterranean cooking over fire and smoke, one floor up on Oxford Terrace by the river.
- 08Odeon · Restaurant · Central CityBib Gourmand
A Bib Gourmand room off New Regent Street doing shared plates with a Mediterranean and Middle Eastern lean — Akaroa salmon, Lumina lamb, a monthly ‘Just Feed…
- 09Earl · Restaurant · Central CityBib Gourmand
A food-led wine bar on Lichfield Street bringing relaxed fine dining — produce-driven plates, a smart wine list, and a sense of occasion without the starch.
- 10Fire And Slice Woodfired Pizzeria · Restaurant · SumnerBib Gourmand
Woodfired pizza in Sumner from Pal Singh's team — it all starts with the dough, topped with fresh, mostly-local Canterbury ingredients.
- 11Soul Quarter · Restaurant · Central CityBib Gourmand
Tucked into Stranges Lane off High Street, a contemporary kitchen pulling from Louisiana, French and Latin flavours — steak tartare, twelve-hour short rib, a…
- 12Hugo · Restaurant · Central CityMichelin Selected
The Warring Group's modern French bistro upstairs at The Terrace, looking over the Avon and the punts — marble counter, a deep French wine list, cocktails to…
- 13Miro · Restaurant · Central CityMichelin Selected
Refined dining in a 1934 heritage building, with a riverside terrace and a pair of open fires for the cold months.
- 14Bessie · Restaurant · Central CityMichelin Selected
A St Asaph Street meat specialist — cuts dry-aged at least 45 days in-house, then seared in a charcoal oven at 250°C.
- 15Cellar Door · Bar · Central CityMichelin Selected
The Arts Centre's wine bar and an award-winner — a deep, well-chosen list poured in a heritage stone room off the cloisters.
Keep exploring
Common questions
- Which Christchurch restaurants have a Michelin Star?
- Two, both awarded one star in the inaugural Michelin Guide New Zealand 2026: Inati in the central city, and Tussock Hill, an organic vineyard restaurant up in the Cashmere hills.
- What's the difference between a Star, a Bib Gourmand and Selected?
- A Michelin Star marks exceptional cooking; a Bib Gourmand is the guide's nod to great food at a gentler price; and 'Selected' means the inspectors rated it worth a place in the guide. Christchurch has all three — the selection includes Tussock Hill, INATI, The Athens Yacht Club, Londo, A'mano.
- Where are Christchurch's Michelin restaurants?
- Most cluster through the central city — the laneways off High and Lichfield Streets and along The Terrace by the river — with a couple out in Merivale, one at the beach in Sumner, and the Cashmere Star, Tussock Hill, up on the hills. The map shows each one.