After years of keen anticipation, One New Zealand Stadium at Te Kaha has well and truly arrived in the spotlight. A shining new icon of Christchurch, the stadium is delivering plenty of thrills on the pitch and equal amounts of delicious food off it.

A city that knows its food

News of Ōtautahi Christchurch’s vibrant culinary scene has echoed across the country in recent years, and with good reason. Local eateries have been raising the bar, with the likes of Riverside Market becoming a popular hub for hungry Cantabrians and visitors alike. Cantabrians, the message is clear, appreciate quality food and drink.

Never has that been more apparent than at Te Kaha, where the grandeur of the design is matched by a befitting culinary experience. Built to host 30,000 people for sporting events and 37,000 for concerts, the stadium offers a more refined and altogether more appetising take on the food and beverage experience usually found at a venue of this size.

Out with the beige, in with the bold

Gone are the days of anaemic-looking pottles of fries and floppy hotdogs. Bold, big flavours have taken their place, served by local vendors with renowned fare. Bacon Bros Burgers, Black Burger, Arbour Woodfired Pizza, Fush, Sheffield Pies, Smokey T’s, Little Fish Co, Korea House Chicken, Papa’s Hot Dogs, Pedro’s Lamb and Co-Lab all feature, and with sushi, ice cream, gourmet burgers, fried chicken and the classic pie added to the mix, anyone in search of quality eating will not be disappointed.

Most of these vendors sit around the level one concourse, which keeps everything within easy reach of the crowd and cuts down on long treks and queues.

The commercial kitchen behind the concourse

Behind the stalls, a sizable production kitchen and storage facility on the western ground floor acts as the central point for receiving all products. Venues Ōtautahi, the event and culinary services company that operates the stadium, is responsible for all kitchen operations, for catering the many large-scale functions held here away from the big events, and for servicing every premium hospitality area.

The ability to serve big crowds over a short space of time makes this kitchen an asset, allowing event planning to take place with 100% confidence in the quality, quantity and rapidity of the food on offer.

Creating facilities fit for purpose on this scale was no mean feat. Craig Cunningham, Project Lead for Wildfire Commercial Kitchens & Bars, worked tirelessly alongside his team to make sure the fit-out was match fit. He believes it is the largest project of its kind in New Zealand’s history. “Eden Park was close, but still not on this scale. That (installation) was just one and a half stands, not a full build like this one was,” he says.

Designing a stadium commercial kitchen around the operator

For Caroline Harvie-Teare, Chief Executive of Venues Ōtautahi, the key was “having the operator embedded early in the design process.”

“It was incredibly important for us that the kitchen and food service design reflected how we actually operate,” says Harvie-Teare. “From our perspective, it was wonderful to work with Wildfire throughout the course of design and construction. They listened, adapted, and ensured our key operational ways of working were embedded into the design.”

Wildfire Project Manager Matt Spillane agrees that the size of the project made it both interesting and challenging.

“The sheer scale of the job and how far apart the different kitchen areas were from each other made it quite an interesting scope,” says Spillane. “Watching the site change from the early stages of construction to a finished stadium was just awe-inspiring.”

Buying early, storing smart

Installation began in mid 2024, and by the end of 2025 everything was on site, in place and ready for commissioning. With work of this scale, nothing could be left to chance. “Timeframe and budget were huge drivers in this project,” says Cunningham. “This meant we had to be buying early and storing until the site was ready.”

“We managed this from a warehouse on the outskirts of town and delivered to site as each area was ready for us. Having local support really assisted in the phase – Moffat was a big help during scoping and fit-out and have been equally valuable with equipment training too.”

That training mattered as much as the equipment itself. “This staff training was vital, especially around the Tagliavini Oven, Metos kettles and the Waldorf Jump,” says Cunningham. “Everyone needed peace of mind that the food goes out to the highest standard.”

In the kitchen: electric kitchen equipment, built for scale

Moffat’s equipment was fully put to the test when the stadium hosted Super Rugby Pacific Super Round over ANZAC weekend, a three-day event that drew more than 73,000 spectators. The brief behind it was non-negotiable, and it prompted a new approach to a stadium staple.

“It all had to be electric – we couldn’t specify anything gas,” Cunningham says. “With this in mind, Moffat then created a fan-focused electric fryer specifically for the volume of product required.”

The Waldorf cooking lineup is the heart of the kitchen: 51 Waldorf electric fryers, which certainly prevent any soggy chip catastrophes, 16 Waldorf electric griddles of varying sizes, 7 Waldorf electric cooktops and 2 Waldorf multi-pans. Alongside it sit 12 Convotherm combi steam ovens, 17 chip scuttles, 4 Rancilio coffee machines and a 60-litre Bear Varimixer. Add a range of bench tops, Metos Viking kettles, an OEM double tunnel pizza oven and a Tagliavini bakery rack oven and prover, and the picture of a fully equipped, fully electric kitchen is complete.

Moving all of it was a feat in itself. Matt Spillane, who described the project as “logistically challenging”, recalls the difficulty of shifting equipment around such a large site. “Moving the equipment and materials around the stadium, craned between floors and up and down lifts and stairs was always tricky,” he says. “We ended up with zero damage to any of the equipment, which is a credit to the way the product was packaged and dispatched.”

“The Moffat team were excellent to deal with, from technicians right through to management. Help was only a phone call away if needed,” he says.

A matchwinner for the city

The work has paid off.  The inaugural Super Rugby Pacific Super Round in April brought the city to life, with fans filling hotels, restaurants and bars across Christchurch over the course of that first big tournament.

Visitor members and bed nights exceeded expectations, giving the new stadium a strong start as a host venue. With reviews excitedly proclaiming “stadiyum”, Christchurch’s culinary reputation continues to score big.

For Harvie-Teare, the collaborative approach reflected the project as a whole.

“As an event and venue management company with our own in-house catering, we needed a facility that supported efficiency, sustainability and scale from day one,” she says. “With Wildfire’s expertise and Moffat’s industry-leading technology we have delivered a truly future-focused facility.”

At a glance

• Venue: One New Zealand Stadium at Te Kaha, Ōtautahi Christchurch
• Capacity: 30,000 (sport), 37,000 (concerts)
• Operator: Venues Ōtautahi
• Fit-out partner: Wildfire Commercial Kitchens & Bars
• Installation: mid 2024 to end of 2025
• Brief: fully electric, no gas
• Equipment: 51x Waldorf electric fryers, 16x Waldorf electric griddles, 12x Convotherm combi steam ovens, 7x Waldorf electric cooktops, 2x Waldorf multi-pans, 17x Waldorf chip scuttles, 4x Rancilio coffee machines, 1x 60-litre Bear Varimixer, Metos Viking kettles, OEM double tunnel pizza oven, Tagliavini bakery rack oven and prover

• Super Rugby Pacific Super Round: over ANZAC weekend, three days, 73,000+ spectators

Planning a large-scale kitchen fit-out? Contact our team to talk about equipment for your next project, from scoping through to staff training.