In a social media post made byKirwee Tavern this morning, officials said police wanted to speak to anyone who had seen or heard something between 6pm on Thursday and 9.30am on Friday.
"To the person/people who risked their lives last night to loot the chiller of approx $8-10k worth of beers/wines/RTDs etc you are scum!"
More than 950 people have shared the post, with many saying the incident was devastating for the community.
Two fire trucks and a tanker attended the fire but due to the size of the blaze - which was visible from Kirwee Fire Station - the local crew immediately called for extra backup, escalating the fire to a third alarm.
At the peak 16 appliances and about 60 firefighters from Kirwee, Darfield, Coalgate, Rolleston, Sheffield, West Melton, Christchurch Central and Wigram were sent to battle the fire.
If you have any information about the robbery, please contact Rolleston Police.