The Elmwood Trading Co is a restaurant and bar on Normans Road in Strowan, Christchurch, and one of the city's friendliest and most enjoyable suburban taverns. Its motto says it plainly: eat, drink, play. Open every day from 10am, it offers a warm, welcoming atmosphere built around its local community, and it has the recognition to show for it, having been named 'Best Local' at the 2022 hospitality awards alongside 'Excellence in Gaming'. The kitchen runs seasonal menus across lunch, dinner, snacks and kids, with a drinks list that goes from beer on tap to espresso martinis.
What really sets the weekly rhythm apart is the regular specials calendar: a burger with a house beer on Mondays, pizza-and-pint trivia from 6.30pm on Tuesdays, porterhouse steak night on Wednesdays, and a Thursday club night with wings, ribs, Chase the Ace and meat raffles. Fridays bring blue cod and chips with crate bottles from 4-7pm, Saturdays feature jug specials and a free summer BBQ from 5.30pm, and Sundays round things out with lamb roasts, an antipasto platter served with a bottle of house wine, and kids meals that include dessert.
Beyond the day-to-day, The Elmwood is a genuine hub for functions and events, with function spaces, generous share platters and set menus for groups, plus a popular quiz night fundraiser format. A loyalty club rewards regulars, gift cards are available online, and new weekly events are always being posted on the venue's social channels.
On Normans Road in Strowan, a leafy corner of Christchurch, The Elmwood Trading Co has built its reputation on being exactly what its name suggests: a local. It describes itself as one of the city's friendliest and most enjoyable suburban taverns, and its motto — eat, drink, play — sums up the three reasons people come through the door. The venue opens every day from 10am, and as the team likes to say, there is always something going on.
The wider industry has noticed, too. The Elmwood was named 'Best Local' at the 2022 hospitality awards and also took out 'Excellence in Gaming' the same year — recognition of a venue that works hard both at hospitality and at giving its community somewhere to gather.
Rather than relying on a single big night, The Elmwood spreads the good cheer across the week with a regular specials schedule. Mondays are 'Mad Monday', pairing a burger with a house beer. Tuesday is trivia night, where pizza and a pint come with a quiz that kicks off at 6.30pm. Wednesday belongs to the steak lovers, and Thursday is club night — wings by the dozen and ribs by the kilo, alongside Chase the Ace, meat raffles, jug specials and the social club.
Fridays bring the classic Kiwi pairing of blue cod and chips, with crate bottles available from 4-7pm. Saturdays are for sport, with jug specials through the middle of the day and, during summer, a free BBQ from 5.30pm. Sunday rounds out the week with Steinlager Supercold all day, lamb roasts, an antipasto platter served with a bottle of house wine, and kids meals that include dessert.
The everyday menus are updated seasonally and cover all bases: a lunch menu, a dinner menu, a snack menu for grazing alongside a drink, a dedicated kids menu, and even a retirement lunch menu. The drinks list runs from beer on tap to espresso martinis.
For groups, the function menus are built around sharing. The grazing platter loads the table with pork ribs, chicken wings, onion rings, Krensky's, breads and dips, pickles and olives, while the aptly named Boss Platter scales things up with cheerios, chicken tenders, jalapeno bites and fries for six to eight people. There is an antipasto platter with cold meats, smoked salmon, cheese and marinated mussels, a simpler bar basket of samosas, spring rolls and fries, assorted savouries by the fifty-piece platter, pizza selections, and fries or wedges. Set menus of two or three courses, and a retirement lunch with or without dessert, cater for bigger tables with a minimum of 10 people.
Beyond the weekly calendar, The Elmwood positions itself as the venue for the community's bigger moments. There are dedicated function spaces to view and book, full function menus, and a quiz night fundraiser format that groups can use to raise money for a cause. A loyalty club rewards the regulars, gift cards can be bought online for easy gifting, and the team keeps an active presence on Facebook and Instagram, where upcoming events are posted.
The Elmwood Trading Co sits at 1 Normans Road, Strowan, Christchurch, and opens every day from 10am. Bookings can be made online or by phoning (03) 355 5345, and current menus are available on the website, with Google reviews collected for anyone wanting a second opinion. Whether it is a Tuesday quiz, a Friday feed of fish and chips, a Sunday lamb roast with the family, or a function for a whole crowd, the formula stays the same: eat, drink and play at your local.