Restaurateur brings Mediterranean to the city

Wednesday, 4 October 2023

Roca restaurant and bar is in the premises that formerly houses Viaduct on The Terrace in central Christchurch.

A new restaurant on The Terrace has brought Mediterranean dining to the city.

Christchurch restaurateur David Warring opened Roca last month, replacing Viaduct on Oxford Tce.

It’s Warring’s fifth bar and restaurant in the city, adding to Mexicano’s, The Dirty Land (TDL), Monarch Cocktail Bar and King of Snake.

He compared Roca to King of Snake with its “mid-century feel … but a little bit moodier”.

The Mediterranean themed restaurant has furnishings from France, Italy and the UK, but the chairs and stools were designed by owners David and Jennifer Warring, and made locally.

“There’s something unique and special about all of [the bars], but there’s something about Roca I just feel at home in.”

The Mediterranean-themed restaurant was Warring’s way of bringing dining experiences he’d enjoyed from around the world to New Zealand, “and something I don’t think we’ve seen in Christchurch yet”.

“There’s some fantastic restaurants in Christchurch but the style of food at Roca was something I felt wasn’t being represented.”

The fare includes homemade flatbreads, za’atar seasoning paired with burrata and fennel jam, lamb manti, and French vintage caviar.

The fare includes homemade sourdough flatbreads, Middle Eastern za’atar seasoning paired with burrata and fennel jam, lamb manti - which Warring described as a “pasta dumpling with a soft lamb filling” - wagyu tartine and for “something a little different” - vintage caviar.

“It’s the real deal, sturgeon caviar out of France, for people who want to really have something special. It’s probably for occasions only, it’s not cheap - I certainly won’t be eating it every day.”

Roca was six months in the making, Warring said, due to the furnishings being imported from around Europe, including bespoke wallpaper and velvet from France, marble from Italy and light fittings from the United Kingdom.

The Warrings own several restaurants and bars in Christchurch, including Mexicano’s, TDL, Monarch and King of Snake.

But some of the most important features were made locally - the chairs and stools were designed by Warring and his wife, Jennifer.

“We wanted all the seating positions to be comfortable and something you could luxuriate and spend time in.

“We’re not trying to create a stuffy dining room; it’s the place to come and relax and enjoy but also have that level of cuisine that’s right at the top.”

The name of the restaurant was taken from the Spanish word for rock, which Warring said “speaks to the central feature of the room” - a big marble counter-top.

“It’s designed to be sat at, and for watching the theatre of chefs cooking over open flames, or bartenders making drinks.”

Out on the balcony, astroturf had been laid and fairy lights installed to “warm it up, make it feel romantic and fun”, Warring said.

Looking out over the Avon river, it was “almost as if you’re sitting on the riverbank … it’s quite beautiful”.