Most of the food had been donated by Rotorua organisations and people, she said.
"It's been amazing. Every year their generosity just gets better and better."
A total of 100 volunteers helped out during the day, doing everything from serving food to hosting a table - many giving up time with their own families.
One volunteer, who did not want to be named, was helping out alongside her brother. She said they had recently lost their mum, so "didn't want to sit around the house being morbid and sad".
"There's always someone worse off than us," she said. "A lot of these people wouldn't have a [Christmas] meal if they didn't come here."
While mainly for locals, there were also a handful of tourists who were welcomed to the party.
Young Dutch travellers Frederik Meulman and Kirsten Van Caspel were standing in the parking lot calling their families back home when a volunteer invited them in.
With no other plans, they were soon making new friends while enjoying a typical Kiwi Christmas lunch.
"I feel so much love here, it's great. It's really open," Mr Meulman said.
The pair had been in Rotorua just two days and said it hadn't really felt like Christmas, despite their attempts to decorate their campervan.
"Now actually it does feel like Christmas," Ms Van Caspel said.
