(Last updated: March 22, 2026)
This is the final installment in my “Elaine Series”, which reviews 8 Taipa restaurants recommended by born and bred local resident, Elaine. A certified foodie in her early 20’s, she has the Taipa dining scene cased, and it’s my hope that we uncover a few hidden gems together here, that only Macau people know about. Next up? More Thai in Taipa village!
Tuk Tuk starts with the right two letters, because TT can transition into Tourist Trap remarkably easily.
Look, it’s pretty simple with these joints: they put a million things on the menu and hope 6 of them turn out good. The rest are just window dressing, empty carbs for visitors in Taipa Village who’ve ventured into the wrong place.
On my one and only visit, Tuk Tuk batted about .500, which is about as much as you can expect.
Starting with the bad, the Salmon Tom Yum Soup ($99) felt more like a hot pot that just sat there boiling and boiling while I fished out shrimp and random pieces of whatever was floating around. It was certainly spicy, but everything inside tasted the same. 2 stars
The Papaya Salad ($78) needed to be colder, wetter and considerably sharper. The crunch was there, but a proper som tam should wake you up. This one barely disturbed me. 2.5 stars
The Green Curry Chicken ($68) was thin and watery. Green curry should cling to the spoon and coat the rice; this one ran straight off both. A travesty. 1.5 stars
The Tom Yum Goong Soup ($83) was much better. Sour, salty and fragrant, with enough heat to make itself known without flattening everything else. This is clearly the soup to order. 4 stars
The Breaded Mussel Chicken Yellow Curry ($83) hit like a heavyweight champ. Deep, powerful and packed with flavour, the thick sauce carried serious spice and made the watery green curry look even worse. The party finally started. 4.5 stars
The Plaa Luay Suan ($168) was slightly dry and nowhere near as good as versions I’ve eaten in Thailand. The sauce dragged it across the finish line, but only just. 3.5 stars
Sides of rice cost $12 and Tuk Tuk’s various juices and sodas run around $40.
Beyond the hit-or-miss food, the whole dining experience was lacklustre. Everything arrived at once, which I always detest. Just as you started one dish, the next was landing on the table. The kitchen simply kept the assembly line moving and hoped to clock out early.
In the end, three dishes were good and three were bad. That’s your three stars right there.
Very up and very down, Tuk Tuk is one big crapshoot. I’ll be down the road at Chiang Rai instead.
Other “Elaine Series” restaurants
-Loja de Sopa Fitas (叠记咖喱面食): 0 stars. No English menu = no use to us, plus noodles nothing special.
-Kam Lei (金利食店): 1 star. Maybe better than Loja de Sopa Fitas, maybe not. English menus, but more ordinary noodles.
–Xiao Sheng Xuan Japanese Ramen: 2.5 stars
–Duckling: 3 stars
–Hei Lin Cafe: 4 stars
–Chiang Rai 5 stars
–Rest Yangon: 4 stars
