Cellar Door - award winning wine bar

Exceptional wine & local food at the Cellar Door, Christchurch

Cellar Door is an award-winning wine bar and restaurant in a beautiful heritage building right in the central city.

Known for its signature tasting flights of wine, Cellar Door is also home to a serious wine list, as shown by Wine Spectator magazine’s “Best of” Award of Excellence in its restaurant awards for 2024, 2025 and 2026.

None of this means Cellar Door is fussy or pretentious. Owner Tim Ogle knows his audience and loves to make people laugh. “If you’re the special occasion place, people will only come in once a year. We want people to feel as if they can come in two or three times a week, and it doesn’t have to be for that special dinner, it can just be because they’ve got an hour and fancy a glass of wine with some cheese to match it.”

The wine flights are tasting portions of four different wines to try alongside each other for comparison. Tim and his team have curated more than a dozen wine tasting “flights”, each showing differences in grape variety, winemaking style, region and other themes. But this is not a quiz, and the witty titles for the flights make that clear.

“Four Shades of Gris” adds a spicy tone to a selection of pinot gris, and a flight of sparkling wines called “Let’s Get Fizzical” nods to the 1980s Olivia Newton-John classic song. To get a taste of some of the key wines from the local Waipara wine region don’t miss “How Many Dudes You Know Grow Like This?”, a twist on the chorus from the famous-in-Christchurch anthem “Not Many” from local rapper Scribe.

Guardians of a historic site

Cellar Door’s location in the historic Arts Centre Te Matatiki Toi Ora is a special one for visitors and locals alike. Sitting in the South Quad of the Gothic Revival buildings of the former Canterbury University School of Art, it is next to both the Observatory Hotel, the Lumiere movie theatre and the Arts Centre's Great Hall, making it ideal for people popping in for a pre- or post-event drink as well as for hotel guests.

Tim mentions one couple staying at The Observatory who dropped in for a quick drink, booked for dinner that night and then came back for the next three nights.

The location is also significant for locals as the site of Annie’s Wine Bar for 21 years, meaning two generations of locals enjoyed celebrations or had their first wine tasting there, and they still pop in to reminisce over a glass of wine.

Tim loves these opportunities to tell stories, saying,

As a natural storyteller, Tim also sees the wine flights as telling a story. He points out the flight descriptions don't have any tasting notes, as that is up to the guest to discover for themselves. Instead, “it’s all about the provenance, where the wines come from, who made them, why they're there and why they fit together as a set.”

Pairing local food with wine

At Cellar Door, the goal is to pair food and wine to showcase both. Tim says his brief to the chefs is “wine-friendly food, so what that means for us is French, Spanish and Italian-influenced food with local ingredients.”

Head chef Zak Osborne says he starts with the food. “Each season, we look at what’s local and what’s around, and I’ll take an idea to Tim, and he says, ‘this would go great with this wine’.” Mickey Goodman, the front-of-house manager, adds that because New Zealand produces a wide variety of grape varietals well, they can always find a wine that pairs with whatever is on the menu. And because Cellar Door hires staff from around the world who are often in New Zealand to work a grape harvest, “we've got a lot of very knowledgeable wine staff Tim has curated over the years that have that ability to do that pairing.”

Zak says his “favourite thing we have on the menu at the moment is the Akaroa King salmon crudo. It’s gorgeous. It’s using real seasonal produce, and there's a bit of vanilla in there, which isn’t something people expect. We add radishes, cucumbers and grapefruit. It works well with so many wines, but the Boneline Pink Noise rose pairing has been a hit, and it's cool that they’re both local products.”

Another favourite local product is Lovat venison, produced from the deer raised on open pastures in North Canterbury, in a natural, free-range environment without the use of hormones or steroids. The farmer also sells his venison at the Lyttelton Farmers’ Market on Saturdays.

The art of wine and of hospitality

Cellar Door has won many international awards for its extensive wine list, which covers 22 pages and showcases great wine from around the world as well as New Zealand.

But you don’t have to be a wine lover to love Cellar Door. The beautiful space is filled with fine art in association with Christchurch gallerist Jonathan Smart, because as Tim says, “being here in the Arts Centre we are surrounded by art, and the reason why Cellar Door is here is because great wine is art.”

Whether you visit for the great location, the historic building, the art, the wine or the food, Cellar Door is a locals’ favourite because of the manaakitanga — the care and hospitality — the staff show to every visitor through the door.

Your questions from this article answered:

What is Wine Spectator magazine's "Best of" Award of Excellence?

It is a prestigious global recognition that honours the world's most exceptional restaurant wine lists. To earn the "Best of" designation, a venue must pass a rigorous international judging process. It requires an extensive, highly curated selection (typically 350 or more wines), outstanding depth across multiple vintages, and excellent breadth across different wine-growing regions worldwide.

Can you buy Akaroa salmon to cook at home?

Yes, you can buy fresh Akaroa King salmon directly to enjoy at home. Sustainably farm-raised on the Banks Peninsula, it can be ordered online for home delivery or purchased fresh from their dedicated factory shop in Wigram, Christchurch (open Monday through Saturday).

For a unique local experience, whole salmon can also be bought straight from the harvest at the Wainui Wharf on Sunday and Wednesday afternoons, and fresh portions are regularly stocked at premium supermarkets and specialty fishmongers across the city.

Can you buy Lovat venison to cook at home?

Yes, you can buy Lovat venison directly to enjoy at home. Either from the farmer at the Lyttelton Farmers’ Market on Saturday mornings or online, where you can order a wide range of cuts — including medallions, steaks, and gourmet venison sausages — directly from the Lovat Downs website for home delivery across New Zealand.

What is a wine tasting "flight" at Cellar Door, and how does it work?

A wine flight at Cellar Door consists of tasting portions of four different wines served together so you can compare them.

The team has curated over a dozen themed flights focusing on specific grape varieties, winemaking styles, or regions. They are designed to be fun and approachable — complete with witty, pop-culture names — and focus on the story and provenance of the wine.

Where is Cellar Door located, and what is the vibe?

Cellar Door is located in the central city of Christchurch, inside the historic South Quad of the Gothic Revival buildings at the Arts Centre (Te Matatiki Toi Ora).

Despite being an award-winning venue housed in a stunning heritage building filled with art, the vibe is entirely casual and welcoming. It is designed to be a place where you can pop in multiple times a week for a quick glass of wine and cheese, not just a 'once-a-year' special occasion spot.

What kind of food does Cellar Door serve?

Cellar Door serves wine-friendly, European-influenced cuisine (drawing inspiration from French, Spanish, and Italian cooking) made with fresh, local ingredients.

Signature regional dishes include the Akaroa King salmon crudo and hormone-free Lovat venison from North Canterbury.

Do I need to be a wine expert to enjoy Cellar Door?

Not at all. Cellar Door prides itself on manaakitanga (warm hospitality and care) and keeping things unpretentious.

While they have an extensive, award-winning 22-page wine list and highly knowledgeable international staff to help guide you, the experience is built around discovery, storytelling, and having a laugh.