Arbour Woodfired Pizza

Arbour Woodfired Pizza grew out of Lyttelton’s post-quake community as a much-loved pop-up before returning as one of the first fully commercial rebuilds in the township. Today, it operates as a neighbourhood gathering place rooted in care for people, land, and place. Sustainability at Arbour is practical and embedded rather than performative. The menu is built around local, seasonal ingredients sourced from producers they know and trust, with organic produce used where it aligns naturally. Plant-forward pizzas sit alongside select animal products chosen for provenance and welfare, including buffalo mozzarella from Wairiri Buffalo and organic soil-grown microgreens from Little Stem. The wood-fired oven is fuelled by reclaimed logs supplied through co-owner Ra Hancox-Hammer’s arborist business, The Tree People, creating a rare closed-loop system that links hospitality and land care. Compostable packaging is supplied by Christchurch-based Frankly Packaging, and waste minimisation is prioritised across kitchen operations. Inside, Arbour’s identity is inseparable from its space — a clear-roofed glasshouse filled with living plants, featuring a bar built from a 120-year-old Lyttelton fishing boat. The atmosphere reflects its purpose: food as connection, hospitality as stewardship, and pizza as a shared, joyful ritual. Inspired by the Food Made Good Standard, Arbour supports fair wages, high-welfare producers, local breweries and wineries, and community fundraisers. It is a restaurant shaped not by trends, but by relationships — to growers, makers, whenua, and the people who gather there.