We’ve partnered with Island House to offer an exclusive four-day tropical, culinary-led getaway guest starring chef David Moyle, who’ll work alongside the House’s own Kimie Uemoto to champion local seafood and produce.
Here’s what to expect…
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 Pinetree’s 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. And it is an experience. Private chef Kimie Uemoto brings a refined Japanese sensibility to the kitchen, while on-site hosts Anna and Alex cater to whim: cocktails shaken to taste, snorkels and bikes delivered on cue, artisan pantry staples and curated spirits – Cape Grim vodka, Tequila Ocho and small-batch natural wines – stocked and refreshed with aplomb.
The week’s itinerary will see us embark on a four-day culinary immersion with chef David Moyle (formerly of Melbourne’s Longsong and Franklin in Hobart) and Uemoto. Moyle, deeply tanned and barefoot in the North House kitchen, moves with purpose to a soundtrack of tropical beats. The bench is lined with Japanese knives, herb snips and bowls of just-picked produce – eggplant, cucumber, okra, daikon – each in its own stage of ferment, salt cure or pickle.
This morning’s harvest came from the nursery garden beside The Lord Howe Island Brewery: Dutch glasshouses with trellised tomatoes, salad greens, mushrooms and baby Kentia palms. “So many kitchen gardens are actually just a smattering of herbs,” says Moyle. “But this one feeds the brewery’s pizza restaurant and has the scale to service the community. As soon as I get on this site and walk around I can write a menu in 10 minutes. It’s my happy place.”
Tonight’s dinner – five courses, paired with sake and low-intervention wines – will showcase the island’s bounty. Flexibility is key. “Sometimes a bit of process and a bit of flex is fun,” says Moyle. “We’re not challenging people’s palettes here – it’s supposed to be comforting as well.”
Just a two-hour hop from Sydney, it feels more remote, and provisions only arrive every 10 days by barge. The rest is sourced from sea and soil. Moyle brings his own rare stash: caperberries, Indonesian pepper, a cherished packet of rice from Nozawa. “One of my obsessions is rice,” he laughs. “I love the Japanese sensibility and consideration for ingredients – treating ingredients individually is a beautiful thing. The intention is for it to be deeply enjoyable.”
Fishing is a fundamental part of life here, and a sacred one. Thirty per cent of the surrounding marine park is protected, and the rest yields sustainably: kingfish, skipjack, tuna, trevally. On a morning run out to the reef aboard the 37-foot Lulewie, we fish with Uemoto’s husband, Hiro – chef, diver, fish-whisperer. “Fishing with Hiro made me more appreciative of the process,” says Moyle. “You’re in nature, watching nature, you’re in awe of its power. I don’t take taking lives lightly.” We return with a 16-kilogram kingfish – destined to be served four ways that evening.
Fish might be the main event, but there’s a rarer treat: Lord Howe lamb. Raised and processed by the Gower family, it’s a hyper-local protein you can only eat here. “That kind of access to meat doesn’t really happen anymore.” explains Moyle. Immersive culinary travel is having its moment – ceramics in Sicily, foraging in Sweden – but this feels different. This is elemental, intimate, and undeniably luxurious. “Privacy is a big thing,” says Maxwell. “Being truly with the people you’ve chosen to holiday with.”
Designed for languid days, the pavilions open out to decks and lawns made for shared meals and long afternoons. “I love the consideration around everything here – considered design is key,” says Moyle. For the acclaimed chef, this collaboration with Island House was a natural fit. Food, design, and the sea – woven together in a place that feels both untouched and wildly alive. His fiancée, Georgie Davidson, once lived on the island, and he followed her here. “Lord Howe is the perfect combination of adventure and luxury,” he says. “I grew up on National Geographic and Tintin. It feels like that here – this is frontier sort of stuff.”
GT x Island House Culinary Retreat: Itinerary
Day 1
Arrival & Elemental Beginnings
As the light softens, the retreat opens with an aperitivo on the dining room deck, featuring drinks infused with native botanicals and elegant small bites. Dinner is a collaborative expression from chefs Kimie Uemoto and David Moyle – a dialogue between precision and fire, restraint and wildness. Poured alongside: rare sake from Black Market Sake and Ruinart Champagne.
Day 2
Sea Harvest & Botanical Walks
The morning begins aboard the Lulewei, exploring the outer reef with David Moyle. Guests snorkel, line-fish and gather what the sea offers – yielding ingredients that will later anchor the menu. Upon return, a guided walk with naturalist Ian Hutton reveals the island’s endemic flora – native botanicals, edible species and the quiet magic of the island’s ecological history. The evening unfolds with a sea-led menu by Moyle, showcasing the catch – fresh, fire-charred, cured and preserved.
Day 3
Soil, Smoke & Shared Tables
The morning is spent at The Nursery, the island’s thriving grow site and sister business. Guests tour, taste and learn about the island’s seasonal produce and how it’s grown. A fermenting and preserving workshop with Uemoto and Moyle follows, exploring Japanese and fire-based techniques: miso, marinades, salt cures and smoke. Lunch is taken under the trees, a casual feast built from the previous 24 hours’ catch and harvest. In the afternoon, guests are invited to co-curate the evening’s menu alongside the chefs – a creative and inclusive conversation about ingredients, mood and place. Dinner is a quiet, refined affair: Kimie Uemoto’s solo expression, thoughtful and deeply seasonal.
Day 4
Fire, Farewell & the Last Taste of Salt
The final morning is slow. A breakfast of teas, fruit and fresh pastries leads into a long, lingering lunch. Guests gather one last time for a collaborative farewell meal by Uemoto and Moyle, celebrating everything that has been harvested, preserved, and transformed. Guests depart with full bellies, windswept hair, and a gift of house-made pantry staples – a tangible reminder of the island’s generous spirit.
$11,160 per bedroom (max. occupancy 2 people), including all meals and activities. To book, email [email protected]
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