No.4 Bar & Restaurant is a wonderfully unassuming neighbourhood gastropub on Mansfield Avenue in the heart of Merivale, Christchurch. Trading since 2004, it has quietly become a local fixture — the kind of place where service is welcoming, regulars hold loyalty cards, and first-timers get pointed here by nearby hosts and return the favour by recommending it onward. The house promise is simple: exceptionally good beer, food and great stories, served every day from 11am until late (Christmas Day is the only closure). The kitchen covers all bases — small plates like chicken liver parfait, crispy cauliflower and deep fried pickles, No.4 classics such as the smash burger and beer battered fish & chips, tacos, hearty set-menu mains, and puddings led by a sticky date pudding with orange caramel and honeycomb. If the table can't decide, the renowned Plank platter settles it: a huge shared board of wings, calamari, scotch eggs, sambal prawns, cured salmon, cheeses, dips and more. Behind the bar there are plenty of tap beers, fine wines and bartenders happy to mix cocktails — the espresso martini is a house calling card. A full weekly programme keeps things lively: Monday quiz, Tuesday wings, Wednesday wines, Thursday prosecco, Friday espresso marts and Heineken pints, and a live band every Sunday from 3–6pm. No.4 is dog friendly, has a kid's menu, and its private function areas — managed by a dedicated functions team with set menus and finger-food packages — make it a popular spot for celebrations, day or night.
On Mansfield Avenue in the heart of Merivale, No.4 Bar & Restaurant has been holding down its corner of Christchurch's neighbourhood dining scene since 2004. It's a wonderfully unassuming gastropub — the kind of place that doesn't shout for attention but earns fierce loyalty anyway. Regulars call it their go-to restaurant; visitors staying nearby get sent there by their hosts and leave planning a return trip. Long-time loyalty card holders put it down to two things: genuinely fantastic service and a menu that never disappoints.
The kitchen runs deep. Start with small plates built for sharing — chicken liver parfait with fig & pear chutney, crispy cauliflower with herb & chilli crumb, deep fried pickles with blue cheese sauce, calamari, or cured salmon with a beetroot and gin cure. Move on to No.4 classics: the double-patty smash burger with house burger sauce and hand-cut fries, beer battered fish & chips with mushie peas, a crumbed fish sando, or the No4 pie with mash and gravy. There are tacos (pulled lamb or beer battered fish), proper set-menu mains like wagyu banger & mash, prawn risotto, beef cheek papardelle and a 200g fillet steak, plus puddings — the sticky date pudding with orange caramel, vanilla ice cream and honeycomb is the house standard.
And then there's The Plank. When a table simply can't decide, this is the legendary answer: a sprawling shared board loaded with BBQ chicken wings, calamari, chicken liver parfait, deep fried pickles, crispy cauliflower, scotch eggs, banger, sambal prawns, cured salmon, cured meats, falafel bites, cheese, kumara wedges, marinated olives, house dips and breads. It's renowned for good reason, and it powers plenty of celebrations.
One dish has achieved near-mythical status among returning customers: the chicken schnitzel with bacon salsa and polenta chips. As one devotee put it, every trip to Christchurch includes a visit, and every visit ends with the same order. It's that kind of place — people plan their weekends around it.
Drinks are a serious business here: plenty of tap beers, fine wines, and bartenders happy to whip up something special. The espresso martini is a house calling card with a Friday slot all its own, while wine lovers get Wednesdays, prosecco owns Thursdays, and Heineken pints see out the working week. The full calendar runs Monday quiz, Tuesday wings, Wednesday wines, Thursday prosecco, Friday espresso marts and Heineken pints, and a live band every Sunday from 3–6pm. Sunday mornings have their fans too — reviewers have praised the eggs benedict with bacon and a proper full breakfast.
No.4 opens every day from 11am until late, closing only for Christmas Day, so it covers long lunches, pre-dinner drinks, dinner and everything after. Expect it to be busy — on warm Saturday nights tables are gone by 5:45pm — though the restaurant side is noticeably quieter than the buzzy bar out front.
For groups, there are private function areas to hire for the day or night, managed by a dedicated functions team from first enquiry to last drink. Set menus run from two to three courses across several price points, plus finger-food packages built around platters. On beverages you can run a cash bar, a capped bar tab, or a mix of both. The Private Library space offers AUX and HDMI so guests can play their own music, and birthday cakes are welcome — the team will store, cut and serve yours for a small per-cake fee.
No.4 is dog friendly, keeps a kid's menu for younger guests, and has 12 on-site parking spaces, with more parking next door on weekdays after 6pm, on weekends and on public holidays. A taxi stand sits just outside the front door, and gift vouchers are available for anyone you'd like to introduce to the place. Two decades in, the formula still holds: exceptionally good beer, food and great stories — whether you're there for schnitzel, a Plank, quiz night or the Sunday session.