Where is Lotus Thai Restaurant located?

137 Tongariro Street, Taupo 3330, New Zealand.

Do you offer lunch specials?

Yes — lunch specials run Tuesday to Saturday.

Is there takeaway and online ordering?

Yes — the restaurant offers both dine-in and takeaway, and orders can be placed online.

Are there vegetarian and gluten-free options?

Yes. There are dedicated vegetarian entrees and mains, and gluten-free dishes such as satay, tom yum, tom kha, pad thai and the banana leaf seafood basket are flagged on the menu.

Do you cater for groups?

Group bookings are welcome, and reservations can be made in advance.

Lotus Thai Restaurant

Name: Lotus Thai Restaurant
Address: 137 Tongariro Street, Taupo 3330, New Zealand, Taupō, Taupo, NZ
Telephone: 07-3769497
Price range: $
Rating: 4.5

restaurant — Taupō · Taupo

About Lotus Thai Restaurant

Lotus Thai Restaurant brings the authentic flavours of Thailand to 137 Tongariro Street in Taupo. The kitchen is led by an award-winning chef who balances the five essential Thai flavours — salty, sweet, spicy, sour and creamy — across a menu that ranges from mild to seriously hot. Staff dressed in traditional Thai attire greet locals and visitors alike, adding to the welcoming, cultural atmosphere the restaurant is known for.

The menu is extensive: classic entrees like spring rolls, satay skewers and money bags; tom yum and tom kha soups; Thai-style salads; six curries from green to massaman; stir-fries across chicken, beef, pork, lamb, duck and seafood; a dedicated crispy pork section; pad thai and Thai fried rice; and a full vegetarian range with its own entrees and mains. Gluten-free dishes are flagged throughout, and heat levels are noted on the menu so you can order to your taste.

Lunch specials run Tuesday to Saturday, with lunch served 12:00–2:00 PM and dinner 5:00–9:30 PM; the restaurant is closed on Mondays. Lotus Thai is fully licensed with BYO welcome (wine only), caters for group bookings, and offers both dine-in and takeaway, with online ordering available for easy pick-up.

Lotus Thai Taupo: Authentic Thai Cuisine on Tongariro Street

Lotus Thai Restaurant sits on Tongariro Street in the heart of Taupo, and everything about it is built around the idea that guides Thai cooking: a great dish holds five flavours in balance — salty, sweet, spicy, sour and creamy. The kitchen is led by an award-winning chef, and the menu stretches from gentle, mild dishes to serious heat, so everyone at the table can eat at their own pace. Staff greet locals and visitors in traditional Thai attire, creating the cultural, welcoming environment the team describes. It is a bold claim to call yourself Taupo's number one for Thai — this is a restaurant that works to earn it, plate by plate.

Balance in Every Bowl

The five-flavour philosophy shows up in how the menu is written. Nearly every dish carries a heat guide — mild, medium or hot — so you know what you are ordering before it lands. Tom Kha arrives as a creamy coconut milk soup with mushrooms and coriander, while Tom Yum is its fiery sibling, hot and sour on the same comforting base. Naturally gluten-free dishes such as the chicken satay, Thai fish cakes, both soups and the pad thai are flagged clearly, and a full vegetarian section runs from spring rolls and deep-fried tofu through to mains cooked in green, panang or red curry, so plant-based diners have real choices rather than an afterthought.

A Menu That Covers All of Thailand

The menu is genuinely wide. Start with money bags filled with minced prawns, pork and water chestnuts, grilled scallop skewers with pineapple and sweet chilli, or the combination platter of the first four entrees. Soups and Thai-style salads follow — laab gai with minced chicken, mint and ground rice, or a cold roasted duck salad in the naam tok style.

Six curries anchor the list: green, red, panang, massaman, yellow and choo chee, each available with your choice of chicken, beef, pork fillet, lamb, duck, prawn, seafood or crispy pork. Stir-fries run the same spectrum, from chicken with cashew nuts to lamb with basil, and a dedicated crispy pork section is built around rich pork belly. Seafood lovers can order sweet chilli fish — crisp snapper topped with chilli tamarind sauce and kaffir lime leaves — or mixed seafood red curry steamed in a banana leaf basket. Pad Thai, Lotus's own spicy basil noodles and Thai fried rices round things out, with steamed jasmine, coconut or sticky rice alongside.

Lunch Specials, BYO and Easy Nights In

Lunch specials run Tuesday to Saturday, with service split into two sittings: lunch from 12:00 to 2:00 PM and dinner from 5:00 to 9:30 PM. The restaurant closes on Mondays, so plan midweek lunches and weekend dinners accordingly.

Lotus Thai is fully licensed and also welcomes BYO — wine only — which makes it an easy pick for a long dinner with friends. Group bookings are a stated specialty, and reservations can be made ahead. If you would rather eat at home or down by the lake, the kitchen does a steady takeaway trade, and orders can be placed through the online ordering system.

Whether you are a Taupo local who has been coming for years or a visitor passing through on the way to the lake, Lotus Thai offers a complete Thai experience: a menu that runs mild to incendiary, a kitchen that takes balance seriously, and a warm, traditionally dressed welcome at the door.

Signature items

Pad Thai
Tom Yum
Green Curry
Crispy Pork & Basil
Sweet Chilli Fish
Massaman Curry

Duck & Garlic — Stir-fried roast duck with a garlic and pepper sauce.
Duck & Basil — Roast duck with fresh chilli, bamboo strips, onion and basil leaves.
Duck & Cashew Nuts — Roast duck stir-fried with sweet chilli paste and cashew nuts.
Duck with Chilli — Roast duck with bamboo shoot, mushrooms, onion and fresh chilli.

Lamb

Lamb & Garlic — Sautéed lamb rump with pepper sauce on steamed vegetables.
Lamb & Basil — Stir-fried lamb rump with fresh chilli, beans, capsicum and basil leaves.
Lamb with Chilli — Lamb rump with fresh chilli, beans, baby corn, mushrooms and bamboo shoots.

Pork

Pork & Garlic — Pork fillet stir-fried with garlic and pepper sauce and coriander.
Pork & Basil — Pork fillet with fresh chilli, bamboo shoots, capsicum and basil leaves.
Pork & Cashew Nuts — Pork fillet stir-fried with sweet chilli paste, onion and cashew nuts.
Pork & Ginger — Pork fillet with fresh ginger, mushrooms and spring onion.
Sweet & Sour Pork — Thai-style sweet and sour sauce with cucumber, pineapple and tomatoes.
Pork Curry Paste — Pork fillet with red curry paste, coconut cream and vegetables.

Soup

Tom Yum (Gluten Free) — Hot and sour Thai soup with mushrooms and coriander; chicken or prawn/seafood.
Tom Kha (Gluten Free) — Spicy coconut milk soup with mushrooms and coriander; chicken or prawn/seafood.
Noodle Soup — Mild noodle soup with a choice of beef or pork.

Curry

Green Curry — Rich coconut milk curry with bamboo shoot and basil; choose your meat or seafood.
Red Curry — Red curry with rich coconut cream, bamboo shoots and basil; choice of meat or seafood.
Panang Curry — Creamy coconut sauce with green beans, kaffir lime and crushed peanut; choice of protein.
Massaman Curry — Braised in a medium-spicy sauce with potatoes and cashew nuts; choice of protein.
Yellow Curry — Mild yellow curry with onion and potato; choice of meat or seafood.
Choo Chee Curry — Thick red curry sauce with peas, cherry tomatoes and kaffir lime leaf; choice of protein.

Salad

Chicken Salad (Laab Gai) — Hot, gluten-free minced chicken salad with Thai dressing, onion, mint, ground rice and dried chilli.
Beef Salad (Yum Nuer) — Grilled beef rump with Thai dressing, onion, celery leaves, tomato and cucumber.
Roasted Duck Salad (Naam Tok Ped) — Hot Thai-style roast duck salad with onion, mint and dried chilli, served cold.
Seafood Salad (Naam Tok Talay) — Hot deep-fried battered mixed seafood with Thai salad sauce, onion and mint.
Lotus Salad — Mild house salad of fresh vegetables, tofu and egg with peanut sauce.
Crispy Pork Salad — Medium-hot Thai-style salad with crispy pork, Thai herbs and coriander, served cold.

Entree

Spring Rolls — Crisp rolls filled with cabbage, carrot, celery and vermicelli noodles.
Curry Puffs — Minced chicken with onion, potato and curry paste wrapped in puff pastry.
Prawn on Toast — Minced prawns delicately spiced on toast with Thai-style sweet sauce.
Satay (Gluten Free) — Skewers of grilled chicken satay with a peanut sauce.
Steamed Pork Dim Sim — Steamed minced pork in rice pastry topped with fried garlic.
Thai Fish Cake (Gluten Free) — Minced fish mixed with curry paste and Thai herbs.
Thai Prawn Cake — Minced prawn with Thai herbs and curry paste, served with plum sauce.
Money Bags — Wrapped parcels of minced prawns, pork and water chestnuts.
Grilled Scallops — Marinated scallops with capsicum, onion and pineapple on a skewer, sweet chilli sauce.
Prawn Wrap — Marinated prawns wrapped in noodles with plum sauce.
Combination — A platter of entree numbers 1–4 for one person.
Roti Bread — Suggested side of flaky roti bread.

Extras

Steamed Jasmine Rice — Fragrant steamed jasmine rice, per portion.
Steamed Coconut Rice — Creamy coconut steamed rice, per portion.
Steamed Sticky Rice — Thai sticky rice, per portion.
Steamed Noodle — Plain steamed noodles, per portion.
Steamed Vegetables — Steamed seasonal vegetables, per portion.

Chicken

Chicken & Basil — Stir-fried sliced chicken with fresh chilli, bamboo strips and basil leaves.
Chicken & Ginger — Stir-fried chicken with fresh ginger, mushrooms, onion and spring onion.
Chicken & Cashew Nuts — Stir-fried chicken with chilli paste, onion, spring onion and cashew nuts.
BBQ Chicken — Grilled marinated half chicken with herbs and sweet chilli sauce.
Chicken Curry Paste — Chicken stir-fried with red curry paste, coconut cream and vegetables.
Chicken Satay Sauce — Chicken stir-fried with satay sauce, peanut and vegetables.

Seafood

Garlic and Pepper — Stir-fried with garlic leek, coriander and pepper sauce; prawn, fish, scallops or seafood.
Cashew Nuts — Stir-fried with chilli paste, onion, celery, spring onion and cashew nuts.
Sweet & Sour — Thai sweet and sour sauce stir-fried with vegetables.
Banana Leave Basket (Gluten Free) — Thai red curry with mixed seafood and vegetables, steamed in a banana leaf.
Sweet Chilli Fish — Crisp whole snapper topped with chilli tamarind sauce and kaffir lime leaves; fillet or whole.

Crispy Pork

Crispy Pork & Garlic — Stir-fried with garlic and pepper sauce and coriander.
Crispy Pork & Basil — Pork belly with fresh chilli, bamboo shoots, capsicum and basil leaves.
Crispy Pork & Cashew Nuts — Pork belly with sweet chilli paste, onion and cashew nuts.
Crispy Pork Curry Paste — Pork belly with red curry paste, coconut cream and vegetables.

Noodle & Rice

Pad Thai (Gluten Free) — Stir-fried noodles with bean sprouts in tamarind sauce; chicken, prawn or crispy pork.
Lotus Noodles — Spicy stir-fried rice noodles with chicken, basil leaves and fresh chilli.
Chicken Fried-Rice — Thai-style fried rice with chicken and mixed vegetables.
Crispy Pork Fried-Rice — Fried rice with crispy pork and mixed vegetables.
Pineapple Fried-Rice — Fried rice with shrimps, pineapple, cashew nuts and raisins.

Vegetarian Main

Tofu & Vegetables Stir-Fried — Seasonal vegetables stir-fried in a light soya sauce.
Tofu & Vegetables Choo Chee — Vegetables in a warm red curry with tofu and cashew nuts.
Tofu & Vegetables Cashew Nuts — Tofu and vegetables with chilli paste, cashews and sweet chilli sauce.
Tofu & Vegetables Curry — Vegetables in green, panang or red curry with tofu.

Vegetarian Entree

Spring Rolls — Spring rolls filled with cabbage, carrot, celery and vermicelli noodles.
Vegetables Deep-Fried — Deep-fried vegetables in rice flour batter with sweet chilli sauce.
Tofu Deep-Fried — Deep-fried fresh tofu with peanut sauce, sweet chilli sauce and crushed peanuts.

Frequently asked questions

Where is Lotus Thai Restaurant located?: 137 Tongariro Street, Taupo 3330, New Zealand.
What are the opening hours?: Lunch is served 12:00–2:00 PM and dinner 5:00–9:30 PM. The restaurant is closed on Mondays.
Do you offer lunch specials?: Yes — lunch specials run Tuesday to Saturday.
Can I bring my own wine?: Lotus Thai is fully licensed and also welcomes BYO, wine only.
Is there takeaway and online ordering?: Yes — the restaurant offers both dine-in and takeaway, and orders can be placed online.
Are there vegetarian and gluten-free options?: Yes. There are dedicated vegetarian entrees and mains, and gluten-free dishes such as satay, tom yum, tom kha, pad thai and the banana leaf seafood basket are flagged on the menu.
Do you cater for groups?: Group bookings are welcome, and reservations can be made in advance.

Tips

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{"body":"Service is split: lunch 12:00–2:00 PM, then dinner 5:00–9:30 PM.","title":"Two sittings"}
{"body":"Fully licensed, and BYO is welcome for wine only.","title":"BYO wine"}
{"body":"Takeaway is available, and you can order online for easy pick-up.","title":"Order ahead"}
{"body":"Dishes range mild to hot, with the heat level noted on the menu — choose to suit your table.","title":"Pick your heat"}

Good to know

{"dietary":"Gluten-free dishes flagged on the menu; dedicated vegetarian entrees and mains; heat level (mild/med/hot) noted per dish."}