Tanoshi Christchurch brings the Japanese izakaya idea to Cashel Street, close to Riverside Market. The restaurant opens for both lunch and dinner, taking table bookings while retaining some space for walk-ins, so it can suit a planned group meal or a spontaneous stop in the central city. Its menu is deliberately broad: ramen and bento provide self-contained meals, while tapas, gyoza and teppan-grilled dishes invite sharing. Sake and okonomiyaki reinforce the Japanese focus without making the experience feel formal.
Ramen is one of the clearest routes through the menu. The shoyu bowl combines clear broth and egg noodles with pork belly, egg, mung beans, spring onion and nori. Tantan ramen changes the emphasis to spicy minced pork and bok choy, while a prawn version adds crisp seafood and fried shallots. Vegan diners are not limited to a stripped-back substitute: tantan and miso bowls use vegetable, kelp and shiitake broth, then build character with soy mince, greens, corn, chilli or nori.
The tapas section works best as a sequence of contrasting plates. Beef tataki is served rare with roasted garlic flakes and ponzu soy; salmon aburi brings flame-seared Ōra King salmon together with buttered citrus soy. Banbanji keeps shredded chicken cool with mung beans and sesame dressing, while tonkatsu offers crisp pork with a smoky savoury sauce. Pork or vegetable gyoza, chicken tempura and other fried dishes add familiar textures, making it easy to combine raw, seared, chilled and crisp preparations at one table.
Donburi gives diners another way to make a complete meal, with salmon, chicken and vegetable rice bowls sitting between the ramen and sharing plates. That range is useful for mixed groups: one person can concentrate on a noodle bowl, another can choose rice, and the centre of the table can still collect gyoza and tapas. Larger parties can arrange bookings directly with the restaurant, while smaller groups have both reservations and walk-in seating. Tanoshi's strength is this flexibility, delivered without blurring its Japanese identity.
Address: 93 Cashel Street, Christchurch Central City, Christchurch 8011, New Zealand
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