Island flavours

As Gourmet Traveller and Island House partner to present an exclusive culinary retreat on Lord Howe Island, ELIZA O'HARE joins chefs David Moyle and Kimie Uemoto for a first taste.

- 

LANDING ON LORD HOWE ISLAND'S infamously short runway is like dropping into another world. As the Dash 8's propellers slow, I'm glued to my phone, capturing the shadowy majesty of Mount Gower - a prehistoric monolith swathed in cloud and cloaked in forest moss.

I was told it might be the most beautiful place on Earth and I'm beginning to believe it. Sapphire water laps at stretches of bleached sand. Jurassic-green paddocks spill into palm groves. The island's palette - intense, saturated, surreal - is like a fever dream rendered in Kodachrome.

I'm here for a culinary retreat at Island House, the ultra-private escape setting the standard for barefoot luxury. While icons like Capella Lodge and Pinetrees have long set the bar, Island House is cut from rarer cloth.

A five-minute drive from the airstrip - through the rustle of Kentia palms - and we arrive. Set between forest and reef, the property is a design-lover's fantasy: two interconnected pavilions housing four bedrooms, sleeping a total of eight guests, in keeping with the island's strict 400-person cap.

Inside, it's all clean lines and quiet luxury: original mid-century modern furnishings sourced in Copenhagen and Kyoto, copper soaking tubs, oak doors and dark timber floors. “The curation is an extension of the journey Dad and I have taken,” says Tim Maxwell, who co-created the retreat with his father Michael. “The Danes have an interesting perspective on dining and incredible entertaining pieces, like flatware, bar carts and cocktail hardware.” Little gestures that lift the experience.