Little India Spitfire Square is part of the nationwide Little India restaurant group, located within the Spitfire Complex just next to Christchurch Airport. The restaurant is themed within a colonial style vintage train, giving it a cosy, warm ambience with the bustling feel of a train carriage travelling through the Indian countryside. Its location right by the airport makes it a convenient stop for a relaxed sit-down meal or a quick takeaway on the way to or from a flight, with plenty of car parking available in the surrounding complex.
Little India is a family business founded by Sukhi and Joanna Gill in Dunedin in 1991. What began as a few Indian dishes added to the menu of a fish and chip shop grew into a dedicated Indian restaurant after Sukhi trained at a family friend's restaurant in Australia. The recipes served across all Little India locations, including Spitfire Square, trace back to the kitchen of Sukhi's grandmother, Premjit Kaur Gill, who personally trained every one of Little India's head chefs in her own kitchen in Chandigarh, Punjab. The restaurant is fully licensed, though it does not operate as BYO wine.
Just next to Christchurch Airport, inside the Spitfire Complex, Little India Spitfire Square offers a dining experience with a distinctive twist: the restaurant is themed within a colonial style vintage train. Step inside and the space evokes the bustling feel of a train carriage travelling through the Indian countryside, paired with a cosy, warm atmosphere that makes it feel like a destination in its own right rather than just a quick stop near the terminal.
Little India traces its origins back to 1991, when Sukhi and Joanna Gill founded the very first restaurant in Dunedin. The story began modestly — Sukhi's parents were visiting from India, and he decided to add a few Indian dishes to the menu of the fish and chip shop he was running at the time. The response was immediate: queues formed down the street, and a single electric stove struggled to keep up with demand. Recognising the appetite for authentic Indian food, Joanna, a chef, and Sukhi, an accountant, made the decision to open a dedicated Indian restaurant. Sukhi first trained at a family friend's restaurant in Australia before returning to New Zealand to open what would become the first Little India.
What makes the food at Little India distinct is where the recipes come from. Every dish served across the group's locations, including here at Spitfire Square, follows recipes passed down from Sukhi's grandmother, Premjit Kaur Gill. She trained every one of Little India's head chefs personally, in her own kitchen in Chandigarh, the capital of Punjab in North India — giving the restaurant's cooking a direct link back to home-style Punjabi tradition rather than a generic take on Indian cuisine.
The Spitfire Square location's position next to Christchurch Airport makes it a practical choice for travellers and locals alike. Whether it's a relaxed meal before a flight, a welcome-home dinner, or a takeaway grabbed on the way past, the restaurant's setting in the vibrant, fast-changing Spitfire Complex means there's always something happening nearby. Plenty of car parking is available, removing one of the usual frustrations of dining near an airport.
Little India Spitfire Square is fully licensed, so diners can order wine, beer or other drinks with their meal directly from the restaurant — it is worth noting the venue does not operate as BYO wine, so guests should plan to order from the in-house selection rather than bringing their own bottle.
Spitfire Square is one of several Little India restaurants now operating across New Zealand, with sister locations in Auckland, Palmerston North, Nelson, Christchurch Merivale, Timaru and Dunedin. Despite the growth from a single Dunedin restaurant to a nationwide presence, the business remains family-run, and diners can also join the Little India loyalty app to collect points, access specials, and book a table at any location, order takeaway, or arrange delivery all in one place.
For anyone travelling through Christchurch Airport or looking for a memorable dining setting paired with recipes rooted in generations of Punjabi home cooking, Little India Spitfire Square offers both convenience and a genuine sense of story behind the menu.