The best Chinese restaurants in Blenheim serve four fairly distinct occasions, and the town is small enough that most people end up using all of them. There is a sit down restaurant for a table booking and a shared banquet, a roast and smorgasbord operation for a fast hot meal, a noodle bar for a single dish, and a suburban takeaway for the Friday night drive home. Chinese takeaways in Blenheim are also where a lot of the town’s Thai, Malaysian and Japanese dishes turn up, since most of these kitchens cook across several Asian cuisines rather than one.
1Bamboo Garden
Bamboo Garden sits at 31 Maxwell Road and is the full restaurant option, set up for booking a table and eating in as much as for takeaway. The menu runs across Chinese, Thai and Japanese, so a group that cannot agree can still order from one kitchen, and the sizzling plate dishes are the ones the restaurant puts forward most. There is a set dinner arrangement for shared eating, an online ordering system on their own site, and a second Bamboo Garden noodle bar operating out at Showgrounds Village.
Services
- Dine in with table bookings
- Takeaway and online ordering
- Sizzling plate dishes
- Chinese set dinners for sharing
- Thai and Japanese dishes alongside the Chinese menu
Highlights
- Set up as a sit down restaurant rather than a takeaway counter
- Runs its own online ordering site as well as delivery platforms
- Second site trading as Bamboo Garden Noodle Bar at Showgrounds Village
- Rated 4.7 from around 180 Uber Eats reviews
Location & Contact
Name: Bamboo Garden
Address: 31 Maxwell Road, Blenheim 7201
Phone: 03 579 1118
Website: bamboogarden.co.nz
2Master Roasts & Master Oriental
Master Roasts has traded from 24 Scott Street in Blenheim Central since at least 2014 pairing roast meals with a Chinese smorgasbord. That combination makes it the option when a group wants both a roast dinner and Chinese from the same counter, and the smorgasbord format means you can see what you are getting before you commit. Pricing sits at the budget end and the food is available through the day rather than only at dinner.
Services
- Chinese smorgasbord
- Roast meals
- Takeaway
- Delivery through Uber Eats and Delivereasy
Highlights
- Roast meals and Chinese served from the same kitchen
- Smorgasbord format, so you choose by sight rather than off a menu
- Trading on Scott Street since at least 2014
Location & Contact
Name: Master Roasts & Master Oriental
Address: 24 Scott Street, Blenheim Central, Blenheim 7201
3Noodle Canteen Blenheim
Noodle Canteen is at 79 Queen Street in the centre of town, opening from 11am, so it covers Chinese at lunchtime rather than dinner only. The menu is built around single serve wok tossed and soup noodles, from satay chicken and Hokkien mee through to seafood combination and chow mein, so it suits one person eating alone better than a shared banquet does. Phone orders are taken directly and it is on the main delivery platforms.
Services
- Wok tossed noodles
- Soup based noodles
- Rice dishes
- Phone ordering and takeaway
- Delivery through Uber Eats, DoorDash and Delivereasy
Highlights
- Opens from 11am, so it covers lunch as well as dinner
- Single serve portions rather than shared banquet dishes
- Central at 79 Queen Street
- Rated 4.7 from around 210 Uber Eats reviews
Location & Contact
Name: Noodle Canteen Blenheim
Address: 79 Queen Street, Blenheim Central, Blenheim 7201
Phone: 03 577 8873
4Springlands Takeaways
Springlands Takeaways works out of 11 Boyce Street in the Springlands area, west of the centre, combining Chinese dishes with a fish and chip shop. For households where not everyone wants the same thing that is genuinely useful, since one order can cover both. Hours are tight, running 4:30pm to 8pm seven days, so it is a dinner operation only. Being out of the town centre also means parking is straightforward, which the central options cannot always offer.
Services
- Chinese takeaway dishes
- Fish and chips
- Burgers and fried takeaway
Highlights
- Chinese and fish and chips ordered together from one counter
- Open seven days, 4:30pm to 8pm
- Springlands location with easier parking than the town centre
Location & Contact
Name: Springlands Takeaways
Address: 11 Boyce Street, Springlands, Blenheim 7201
Phone: 03 578 9444
Website: springlandstakeaways.com
Chinese Restaurants in Blenheim at a Glance
| Business | Highlight |
|---|---|
| Bamboo Garden | Set up as a sit down restaurant rather than a takeaway counter |
| Master Roasts & Master Oriental | Roast meals and Chinese served from the same kitchen |
| Noodle Canteen Blenheim | Opens from 11am, so it covers lunch as well as dinner |
| Springlands Takeaways | Chinese and fish and chips ordered together from one counter |
How to Choose a Chinese Restaurant in Blenheim
- Decide first whether you are sitting down or taking away. Only one of these is set up as a restaurant with table service; the rest are counters built around takeaway and delivery.
- For a group, look for set dinners or a smorgasbord. Both work out simpler than everyone ordering separately, and shared dishes are how most Chinese menus are designed to be eaten.
- Check the hours before you leave. Several of these are dinner only, and one closes at 8pm, which catches out anyone finishing work late.
- If you want Chinese at lunchtime, the options narrow considerably. Look for the places opening from 11am rather than 4pm.
- Ordering direct from the restaurant’s own site usually costs less than a delivery platform, since the platform commission is built into the menu price.
- For dietary requirements, ring the kitchen rather than relying on a delivery app listing. Shared woks and fryers make cross contact a real question that only the kitchen can answer.
Frequently Asked Questions About Chinese Restaurants in Blenheim
Where can I get Chinese food in Blenheim?
The main options are spread around town: Maxwell Road, Scott Street and Queen Street in and near the centre, and Boyce Street out in Springlands. All four are within a short drive of central Blenheim, so the choice usually comes down to what you feel like eating rather than distance.
Is there a Chinese restaurant in Blenheim you can sit down in?
Yes. Bamboo Garden on Maxwell Road takes table bookings and is set up for dining in, including shared set dinners. Most of the other Chinese options in town are takeaway counters with limited or no seating.
What time do Chinese takeaways in Blenheim open?
It varies more than people expect. Noodle Canteen opens from 11am and covers lunch, while Springlands Takeaways runs 4:30pm to 8pm and is dinner only. If you want Chinese in the middle of the day, check before driving.
Can I get Chinese food delivered in Blenheim?
Yes. Uber Eats, DoorDash and Delivereasy all operate in Blenheim and carry several of these kitchens. Ordering direct from a restaurant’s own website or by phone is usually cheaper, since delivery platform commission gets built into the listed prices.
Do Blenheim Chinese restaurants serve other Asian food?
Commonly, yes. Several of these kitchens cook Thai and Japanese dishes alongside the Chinese menu, which is typical of smaller New Zealand towns where one kitchen covers what several would in a city. If you specifically want Thai or Japanese, there are dedicated restaurants for both in Blenheim as well.
Which is better for a group, a set dinner or a smorgasbord?
A set dinner arrives as courses chosen by the kitchen and suits a table that wants to sit and eat together over time. A smorgasbord suits fussier groups and anyone who wants to see the food first. For a large family with mixed tastes, the smorgasbord tends to cause fewer arguments.
How We Chose the Best Chinese Restaurants in Blenheim
Every business in this guide was found by searching for chinese restaurants in Blenheim, then checked against its own website. Names, addresses and phone numbers are taken from the business’s own site rather than a directory feed, so what you see here is what they publish themselves. We also check that each one is actually based in or genuinely serving Blenheim, rather than a national operator running a local landing page. A business with no website of its own is not listed, because there is no primary source to verify it against.