Chats Bar & Cafe is a cosy, welcoming bar and cafe at 251 QE II Shopping Centre in New Brighton, Christchurch. It has grown into a local favourite by keeping things simple: good food, well-made coffee, a well-stocked bar and friendly service, whether you're in for a quick bite, a casual meetup or a leisurely meal.
The menu covers cafe and bar classics from brunch through to late. Think avocado on toast topped with feta and herbs, eggs benedict with creamy hollandaise, a beef burger with fries, lamb shank and a much-praised Sunday roast, alongside bar snacks, small plates, dessert and late-night food.
On the drinks side, the beer selection, coffee and wine list are all highlights, with cocktails, spirits and happy-hour drinks and food adding to the appeal. Live music, sport on screen and a lively Tuesday quiz night give the casual, cosy room plenty of atmosphere, and there's outdoor seating when you want fresh air.
Practicalities are easy too: the venue accepts reservations, welcomes groups and solo diners, offers wheelchair-accessible parking, entrance, seating and toilet, and takes credit cards, debit cards and NFC mobile payments. Free street parking and a free parking lot sit right at the shopping centre.
Chats Bar & Cafe occupies a handy spot in the QE II Shopping Centre in New Brighton, Christchurch, and has settled into the role every neighbourhood hopes for: the reliable local. Part cafe, part bar, it moves easily with the day. Mornings belong to coffee and brunch, afternoons to quick bites and catch-ups, and evenings to beer, wine and a kitchen that keeps serving until late. Doors open from 9:00 AM Tuesday to Saturday (10:00 AM on Mondays and Sundays), and the lights stay on until 11:00 PM every day of the week.
The cafe's own telling of its story is simple: it set out to create a space where people could gather, share good food and feel welcome, and it has grown into a local favourite on the strength of attentive service and a warm, vibrant room. Reviews back that up. 'The staff are always so friendly, and the food quality is top-notch every time,' one visitor wrote. Another regular calls it a go-to spot 'for a great coffee and a meal that never disappoints.'
The kitchen leans into comforting cafe and bar classics done properly. At breakfast and brunch, the avocado on toast is a standout — creamy avocado on crispy toast, finished with a sprinkle of feta and herbs — while the eggs benedict delivers perfectly poached eggs on a toasted muffin under creamy hollandaise. Come lunch or dinner, the beef burger with fries is the must-try: a juicy patty, fresh salad and a tangy sauce. For something heartier, the lamb shank has earned its fans, and the Sunday roast is quietly becoming a fixture — reviewers describe it as 'absolutely amazing and good value.' Around the edges there are bar snacks, small plates, desserts and late-night food, so a drink never has to go solo.
Chats doubles down on the drinks side. The beer selection and wine list are singled out as highlights, coffee gets top marks, and the on-site bar mixes cocktails and pours spirits. Happy hour brings drinks and food deals, and live music and big sporting moments on screen give the room a pulse beyond the menu. Tuesday nights, one reviewer found, belong to quiz night and 'a great bunch of locals' — they ordered the food basket and a lamb shank, had drinks in hand immediately, and were fed within about ten to eighteen minutes of walking in.
The vibe is casual and cosy — modern but relaxed, with comfortable seating that works just as well for a solo coffee, a business lunch or a long table of friends. Groups are a natural fit and reservations are accepted, there's outdoor seating when the sun's out, and table service and dine-in run throughout. Solo diners are explicitly looked after too; settling in at Chats with a flat white and a book is a completely normal way to spend an hour.
Logistics are easy. Free street parking and a free parking lot serve the QE II Shopping Centre site, and the venue is wheelchair-accessible from car park to entrance, seating and toilet. Payments are modern — credit cards, debit cards and NFC mobile payments all work. Being inside the shopping centre also makes it a natural pit stop for shoppers and anyone spending the day in New Brighton.
Whether you come for the coffee, stay for the burger and return for the roast, Chats Bar & Cafe does the simple things well. It's less a destination restaurant than the kind of place a neighbourhood measures itself by — and New Brighton seems glad to have it.