Waterside

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Waterside Where great food meets the lake! Enjoy our spectacular lake & mountain views! Catering lunch, dinner and anything in between.
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We are the perfect place to enjoy superb food, tasty beverages and great service as you soak up our relaxing atmosphere. At Waterside youโ€™ll soon discover our reputation for great casual dining and delicious meals to meet everybodyโ€™s needs. Our dishes are made daily by Taupoโ€™s top Chefs using only the finest ingredients. Enjoy our breathtaking views of Lake Taupo; while you enjoy being looked after by our friendly staff, try one of our creative Cocktails or unique Freakshakes. Sunny outdoor dining in summer and a fireplace to keep you warm in the winter.

๐Ž๐ฉ๐ž๐ง ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ค๐Ÿ๐š๐ฌ๐ญ ๐Ÿฅ“ Weโ€™re back open with our usual hours!While youโ€™re here, have a look at out our beautiful new floor....
21/10/2026

๐Ž๐ฉ๐ž๐ง ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ค๐Ÿ๐š๐ฌ๐ญ ๐Ÿฅ“
Weโ€™re back open with our usual hours!

While youโ€™re here, have a look at out our beautiful new floor. Sheโ€™s so warm and inviting!

Our bar is still a WIP (work in progress), but itโ€™s coming along! Check out our story if you want a lil peakโ€ฆ ๐Ÿ‘€

Thank you for your continued patience and support while we continue upgrades. ๐Ÿฅฐ

๐๐ก๐š๐ฌ๐ž ๐Ÿ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐Œ๐ข๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐’.๐Ž.๐! (๐’๐š๐ฏ๐ž ๐Ž๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐š๐ซ) ๐Ÿ’ช๐ŸผThankfully thereโ€™s no full closures this time! Weโ€™ll have to skip breakfast u...
18/10/2026

๐๐ก๐š๐ฌ๐ž ๐Ÿ ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐Œ๐ข๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐’.๐Ž.๐! (๐’๐š๐ฏ๐ž ๐Ž๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐š๐ซ) ๐Ÿ’ช๐Ÿผ

Thankfully thereโ€™s no full closures this time! Weโ€™ll have to skip breakfast until Thursday and open at 11am though. Brunch? ๐Ÿ˜‚

There will be tradies working around the Tongariro entrance, so please use our lakefront entrance instead. To be honest, itโ€™s our fancy entrance anyway, and youโ€™re all top tier soooโ€ฆ ๐Ÿ’…๐Ÿผ

What are the upgrades this time you ask? Stay tuned. ๐Ÿ˜‰

๐ŸŽƒ๐Ÿงก ๐‡๐š๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฐ๐ž๐ž๐ง ๐…๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ค๐ž ๐Ÿงก๐ŸŽƒTrick or treat? Definitely treat! Althoughโ€ฆ nothing is more terrifying than a barbie pink rasp...
30/09/2026

๐ŸŽƒ๐Ÿงก ๐‡๐š๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฐ๐ž๐ž๐ง ๐…๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ค๐ž ๐Ÿงก๐ŸŽƒ
Trick or treat? Definitely treat!

Althoughโ€ฆ nothing is more terrifying than a barbie pink raspberry milkshakeโ€ฆ or so a little boy told usโ€ฆ.

Weโ€™ve topped it with choc ice cream, and a non poisonous (as evident of our remaining living staff) choc cupcake. Gummy eyes and brains are totally not from any staff member of ours.

A terrifyingly cute lil ghostly marshmallow defends this Freakshake in conjunction with a uhhโ€ฆ is that a spider on the straw? Maybe heโ€™s friendly and wants to shareโ€ฆ

โ€ฆor maybe itโ€™s a trick and a treat after all.
Available until Halloween. ๐Ÿ˜‰

๐Ÿ“ Lakefront Corner. 3 Tongariro St, Taupo.
๐Ÿ“– Book Online (or walk-in): www.waterside.
co.nz/bookings

๐€๐ญ๐ญ๐ž๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐Œ๐จ๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ง๐  ๐™๐จ๐ฆ๐›๐ข๐ž๐ฌโ€ฆ ๐ŸงŸโ€โ™€๏ธ โ˜•๏ธ We wonโ€™t judge your morning breath.We wonโ€™t judge your puffy eyes.We wonโ€™t judge your...
14/09/2026

๐€๐ญ๐ญ๐ž๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐Œ๐จ๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ง๐  ๐™๐จ๐ฆ๐›๐ข๐ž๐ฌโ€ฆ ๐ŸงŸโ€โ™€๏ธ โ˜•๏ธ
We wonโ€™t judge your morning breath.
We wonโ€™t judge your puffy eyes.
We wonโ€™t judge your slowness.

๐™’๐™šโ€™๐™ก๐™ก ๐™๐™š๐™ก๐™ฅ ๐™ช๐™ฃ๐™ฏ๐™ค๐™ข๐™—๐™ž๐™›๐™ฎ ๐™ฎ๐™ค๐™ช! ๐Ÿง‘๐Ÿผโ€๐Ÿณ
Hot coffee and a tasty breakfast served with a smile plastered on our faces despite your zombie state. Youโ€™ll leave resembling a somewhat human being*. โœจ

9am-11am, Daily.
*๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ด๐˜ถ๐˜ญ๐˜ต๐˜ด ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜บ ๐˜ท๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜บ.

๐Ÿ“ Lakefront Corner. 3 Tongariro St, Taupo.
๐Ÿ“– Breakfast Menu: www.waterside.co.nz/breakfast/

๐Ÿงก ๐‰๐š๐Ÿ๐Ÿ๐š ๐…๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ค๐ž ๐ŸงกJaffa milkshake (not even kidding!), topped with orange choc ice cream, a choc donut, jaffa biscuits...
01/09/2026

๐Ÿงก ๐‰๐š๐Ÿ๐Ÿ๐š ๐…๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ค๐ž ๐Ÿงก

Jaffa milkshake (not even kidding!), topped with orange choc ice cream, a choc donut, jaffa biscuits, jaffas, choc mousse, and drizzled with chocolate sauce.

Available until the end of September... ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

๐Ÿ“ Lakefront Corner. 3 Tongariro St, Taupo.
๐Ÿ“– Book Online (or walk-in): www.waterside.
co.nz/bookings

๐‚๐ฅ๐จ๐ฌ๐ž๐ ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ซ๐ž ๐ซ๐ž๐ง๐จ๐ฏ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌโ€ฆ ๐Ÿ”จ Weโ€™ll be back on Thursday! I suppose you want the tea? ๐Ÿซ– Itโ€™s not a hot tea, itโ€™s more li...
17/08/2026

๐‚๐ฅ๐จ๐ฌ๐ž๐ ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ซ๐ž ๐ซ๐ž๐ง๐จ๐ฏ๐š๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌโ€ฆ ๐Ÿ”จ
Weโ€™ll be back on Thursday!

I suppose you want the tea? ๐Ÿซ–
Itโ€™s not a hot tea, itโ€™s more like a forgotten tea.

Have you everโ€ฆ uhhโ€ฆ been around to our bar area? ๐Ÿ‘€ We mostly direct you the other way, or send you up to The Deck.

Thereโ€™s a reason for that...
Itโ€™s reaaaaally sad. ๐Ÿ˜‚๐Ÿ™ˆ

But with our renewed lease we can do something about that! So Phase 1 of Mission S.O.B (Save Our Bar) is commencingโ€ฆ๐Ÿซก

Oh, you hate the acronym? You should be thankful itโ€™s not S.O.B.E.R ๐Ÿ˜โœŒ๐Ÿป

๐ŸŒ๐๐š๐ง๐จ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ๐ž๐ž ๐…๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ค๐ž ๐ŸŒBanana milkshake, topped with banana butterscotch ice cream, banoffee cake, banana caramel chocola...
01/08/2026

๐ŸŒ๐๐š๐ง๐จ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ๐ž๐ž ๐…๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ค๐ž ๐ŸŒ

Banana milkshake, topped with banana butterscotch ice cream, banoffee cake, banana caramel chocolate, fresh banana, cream, and drizzled with caramel sauce.

Available until the end of Augustโ€ฆ ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

๐Ÿ“Lakefront Corner. 3 Tongariro St, Taupล.
๐Ÿ“– Book Online (or walk-in): www.waterside.co.nz/bookings

๐Ÿญ๐‹๐จ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐…๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ค๐ž ๐Ÿญ Bubblegum milkshake, topped with goody gum drop ice cream, lolly cake, wafers, lollies, sprinkles, f...
04/07/2026

๐Ÿญ๐‹๐จ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐…๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ค๐ฌ๐ก๐š๐ค๐ž ๐Ÿญ

Bubblegum milkshake, topped with goody gum drop ice cream, lolly cake, wafers, lollies, sprinkles, fresh cream and drizzled with raspberry sauce.

Available until the end of Julyโ€ฆ ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

๐Ÿ“Lakefront Corner. 3 Tongariro St, Taupล.
๐Ÿ“– Book Online (or walk-in): www.waterside.co.nz/bookings

๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐จ๐ฉ๐ž๐ง!  ๐Ÿฅ‚๐Ÿพ Our incredible staff have polished every glass, reset every table, and dusted every surface .Our Chefโ€™s...
01/07/2026

๐–๐ž ๐š๐ซ๐ž ๐จ๐ฉ๐ž๐ง! ๐Ÿฅ‚๐Ÿพ
Our incredible staff have polished every glass, reset every table, and dusted every surface .

Our Chefโ€™s are busy preparing food, and we are presently running a limited menu, with our full menu expected to be operational by dinner.

You will notice when you come in that we are still working on upgrades; this will be an ongoing process with majority of the upgrades taking place outside operational hours.

Thank you so much for your patience and understanding, we look forward to welcoming you back! ๐Ÿคฉ

๐†๐จ๐จ๐๐›๐ฒ๐ž ๐œ๐š๐ซ๐ฉ๐ž๐ญ! ๐Ÿ‘‹๐Ÿผ I know what youโ€™re thinking, itโ€™s a restaurant, why would you even lay carpet in the first place!?๐˜๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ...
29/06/2026

๐†๐จ๐จ๐๐›๐ฒ๐ž ๐œ๐š๐ซ๐ฉ๐ž๐ญ! ๐Ÿ‘‹๐Ÿผ
I know what youโ€™re thinking, itโ€™s a restaurant, why would you even lay carpet in the first place!?

๐˜๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ ๐˜ข๐˜ฃ๐˜ฐ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜จ๐˜ช๐˜ค ๐˜ฃ๐˜ถ๐˜ด, ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆโ€™๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ ๐˜จ๐˜ฐ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ข ๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜บ ๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ๐˜ด๐˜ด๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏโ€ฆ ๐ŸšŒ ๐Ÿ’จ

Once upon a time two young adults whose only experience in hospitality was fast food, decided to yolo on a restaurantโ€ฆ ๐Ÿซช๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ

Perhaps they were a little too optimistic, because the first few years were quite the learning curve.

During their third Summer, something strange happened at the restaurant. The floor downstairs, which was a nostalgic terracotta tile, turned into a bouncy castle. ๐Ÿฐ

It appeared the glue had given up, which caused the tiles to lift, yet still remain grouted together. Imagine the tiles moving like a wave as you walkedโ€ฆ ๐ŸŒŠ (Not ideal when youโ€™re carrying food btw!)

The ones closest to the door decided theyโ€™d had enough being part of the great tile wave, and smashed themselves to pieces.

One of the owners, a self proclaimed builder, electrician, plumber, mechanic and anything else you can possibly think of, looked at the floor and decided โ€˜๐˜ ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ค๐˜ฌ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ ๐˜ค๐˜ข๐˜ฏ ๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ๐˜ฐโ€™.

Well, turns out confidence and a can do attitude gets you pretty far, because he did in fact tile the entrance. (See the โ€˜beautifulโ€™ black tiles in the photo below. Just donโ€™t look too closelyโ€ฆ ๐Ÿคก)

The owners both knew it was a short term bandaid, but had no money to fix, so they rode out the tile wave until the end of Summer while looking for a solution.

That solution? ๐˜พ๐™–๐™ง๐™ฅ๐™š๐™ฉ.
It was quick to install and all they could afford. In fact, they couldnโ€™t even afford the installers to remove the tiles. One night after close, they stayed in the restaurant until 4am lifting tile, after tile, after tile, until they were all removedโ€ฆ ๐Ÿซฉ

The next day, the carpet was installed.

โ€ฆAnd that, our lovely customers, is why we have had carpet the last 10 years! ๐Ÿคฃ

Address

3-5 Tongariro Street
Taupo
3330

Opening Hours

Monday 11am - 10pm
Tuesday 11am - 10pm
Wednesday 11am - 10pm
Thursday 11am - 10pm
Friday 11am - 10pm
Saturday 11am - 10pm
Sunday 11am - 10pm

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