From balcony beers to vintage VHS, this is your ultimate guide to Lyttelton. Discover the best places to eat, drink, dance and explore.
There are places you visit, and then there are places you fall in love with. Ōhinehou Lyttelton is firmly the latter. Wrapped around a working harbour and cocooned by the Port Hills, this historic port town feels like its own little universe — creative yet masculine, progressive without being urban, and deeply community-minded in the best possible way.
Whether you’re visiting for a weekend, passing through from Christchurch, or building an entire trip around it, these are the places we keep returning to — the spots that capture the town’s spirit and make us fall a little bit more in love each time.
SUPER
This standout restaurant in Ōhinehou brings bold flavour and creativity to the port town’s dining scene. The lighting is low, the atmosphere dark and moody, minimalist house music hums in the background, and every design choice feels deliberate — edited, refined, confident. This is not accidental dining.
The menu leans into Japanese–Māori fusion. Start with the rewena — genuinely the star of the night — served warm with nori and black garlic butter that you’ll still be thinking about days later. The butter-roasted fish bao is supreme comfort food, soft and rich without being heavy, while the pork gyoza are dangerously moreish. The pork belly arrives rendered to absolute perfection — all crisp edges and melt-in-the-mouth richness.
The cocktail list deserves its own applause. Expect clever twists on classics: Long Island Iced Teas infused with peach, espresso martinis elevated with caramel miso. SUPER isn’t just one of the best meals in Lyttelton — it’s a statement about how good the town’s food scene has become.
Dead Video
If you were born in the seventies, eighties or nineties — or if you simply understand the joy of physical media — Dead Video is non-negotiable. In fact, it may well be the only store in Aotearoa with such an extensive VHS collection, proudly and unapologetically lining the shelves.
But that’s just the beginning. This is a shrine to pop culture past: action figures, trading cards, cult sci-fi and fantasy tributes, retro games, figurines and childhood touchstones you didn’t even realise you missed until they’re suddenly in your hands. It’s joyful, chaotic and deeply comforting.
I can never visit Lyttelton without stopping here — and neither should you. Dead Video perfectly encapsulates the town’s creative spirit: unpretentious, nostalgic, and completely committed to the things it loves.
Wunderbar
Lyttelton is spoiled when it comes to bars. Civil & Naval offers a welcoming local vibe and excellent food from a tiny kitchen. Eruption Brewing impresses with beers brewed on site (their porters are exceptional), spread across three levels, including an epic rooftop, and hosts everything from open mics to comedy nights. Loons brings in touring bands from around the country.
And yet — none of them quite compare to Wunderbar.
This is, without exaggeration, my favourite bar in New Zealand. You enter by climbing an outdoor staircase to a balcony that delivers the most spectacular bar view I’ve ever seen: Lyttelton Harbour stretching out below you, impossibly beautiful in both daylight and after dark. It’s perfect for a summer afternoon beer, but somehow becomes even more magical once the sun sets and the harbour lights flicker on.
Inside, Wunderbar is a love letter to Berlin nightlife — grungy, art-filled, and endlessly visually stimulating. The iconic doll’s head lampshades glow above the bar, casting a slightly spooky, utterly iconic light over a superb drinks list. Local craft beers flow freely (Cassels is my go-to), and the cocktail menu is genuinely top-tier.
Dance with strangers, play pool or foosball with international seafarers, sink into booths with board games — or just head back out to that balcony for yarns and another round. Check the website for gig listings and do not, under any circumstances, skip this place!
Port Noise Festival
On Saturday 21 February, Port Noise music festival returns for its fourth year, and with it comes the single biggest night on Lyttelton’s cultural calendar. One ticket unlocks every venue, every performance, and the full atmosphere of the port’s most glorious party.
The 2026 line-up is stacked: Aaki, Die! Die! Die!, HTRK (AUS), Jim White & Marisa Anderson (AUS/USA), Tina Disco (AUS), Roy Montgomery & Company, Georgia Knight, Fazed on a Pony, and many more. Genres blur and collide — indie, experimental, electronic, punk — all spilling out across multiple venues as the town comes alive.
And while Saturday is the main event, the energy builds throughout the week with additional arts programming, performances and pop-up happenings around town. Port Noise doesn’t just showcase Lyttelton’s creative soul — it amplifies it.
Lyttelton Coffee Company
Arriving in Lyttelton on a Saturday morning and heading straight to Lyttelton Coffee Company feels like the definition of Kiwi cool. A DJ spins chilled, atmospheric beats from the window, dogs lounge happily at their owners’ feet, and the whole town seems to funnel through for caffeine before hitting the farmers’ market.
Grab a seat on the expansive balcony, settle in at the beautifully crafted native wood tables, and order the house standard: a triple shot. Yes — triple. And somehow, miraculously, there’s not a hint of bitterness. Just smooth, perfectly roasted goodness, all served in a relaxed, buzzing harbourside setting. It’s the perfect place to begin a day of wandering — or to accidentally lose an entire morning.
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Lyttelton Farmers Market
Every Saturday morning, London Street transforms into one of the South Island’s most vibrant markets. Locals and visitors alike gather for fresh produce, artisanal bread, flowers, handmade goods and gourmet treats, all set to live music and harbour views.
Do not miss the buffalo mozzarella that is used to top the stunning pizzas offered at local favourite restaurants Arbour and Bomba. This is the kind of market where you come for one thing and leave with five — plus a coffee in hand and a conversation with someone you’ve never met before.
Christchurch Gondola
One of the most charming elements of this port town is how it’s cocooned by the stunning Port Hills — and the best way to appreciate that is from above. A short drive away, the Christchurch Gondola ascends Mount Cavendish, delivering sweeping 360-degree views across Lyttelton Harbour, Christchurch city, the Canterbury Plains and the Southern Alps.
At the summit, you’ll find walking tracks and Red Rock Café, plus lots of info on the region’s natural and cultural history. It’s an unbeatable way to orient yourself and appreciate this majestic little port town.
