From informal outdoor eating to the finest of island dining, Lord Howe Island has a variety of offerings to satisfy every craving.

Not taking up too much space on the map, the remote UNESCO World Heritage-listed paradise that is Lord Howe Island might not have a huge number of eating establishments to choose from, but what it lacks in quantity it certainly makes up for in the quality and diversity of its fare.

Here’s a list of the best – from pop-up gourmet picnics to Lord Howe Island restaurants and cafes to keep you fueled in between activities.

The Shortlist

Best fine dining – Capella Restaurant
Best casual eats – Lord Howe Island Brewery
Best outdoor – Benny’s Fish Truck
Best date spot – The Crooked Post

1. Capella Restaurant

If you like your fine dining paired with premium views, the choice must be Capella Restaurant housed within Capella Lodge – though you’ll need to be a guest at the luxury resort to dine at its restaurant. While drinking in superb views of Mounts Gower and Lidgbird, you’ll dine on exquisite dishes from a menu that changes daily. Curated by Capella’s executive chef Dennis Tierney, expect starters like watermelon salad served with pistachio, pomegranate, rosewater, labneh and nasturtium; mains such as local kingfish with gai lan, green chilli with yuzu emulsion and salmon roe; and deserts like chocolate, caramel and peanut wrapped in a parcel of puffed rice.

• Cuisine: Modern Australian
• Average price: $$$$ – $$$$$
• Atmosphere: Relaxed elegance
• Review: 5/5
• Location: Capella Lodge, Lagoon Road

2. Anchorage

This restaurant’s style is elegant casual, and the food reflects this as well, with executive chef David Chlumsky having worked at some of Sydney’s finest dining institutions such as Otto, Quay and Longrain.

Expect modern Australian cuisine, complemented by plenty of locally caught fish and locally grown fruits and vegetables, plus artisan sourdough, Turkish bread, pies, cakes and pastries, all baked on site daily. Open from your morning flat white and avocado on toast through to your post-dinner lemon cheesecake and digestif, this restaurant located just a few steps from the golden shores of Lagoon Beach, hits the mark for every meal, seven days a week. A perennially popular option on the island, it’s best to book ahead at Anchorage for dinner.

• Cuisine: Modern Australian
• Average price: $$
• Atmosphere: Casual
• Review: 4/5
• Location: The Anchorage, Ned’s Beach Road

3. The Crooked Post

If you’re looking for somewhere special to take your significant other or to meet others in a fun, modern small bar setting, The Crooked Post Bar is the perfect place. With ocean views through the pines from the veranda of the beautifully preserved historic house in which it is set, this small contemporary bar offers live music, island-inspired cocktails and delicious bites including pizzas and mezze plates. Open daily for lunch while dinner is served on Sunday and Monday nights.

• Cuisine: Modern Australian
• Average price: $$ – $$$
• Atmosphere: Intimate, relaxed
• Location: The Crooked Post, Ned’s Beach Road

4. Lord Howe Island Brewery

If there’s any food and beverage that tastes better outdoors, it’s got to be wood-fired pizza, and beer. Lord Howe Island Brewery does them perfectly, often adding some live music into the mix. Lagers and pale ales are brewed onsite using island botanicals, while ingredients for the pizza toppings are plucked from the brewery’s glasshouse. Ever popular with a local crowd and tucked down a dirt track among the Kentia palms, this is the spot to plonk yourself down at a table in the afternoon and soak up island vibes.

• Cuisine: Modern Australian
• Average price: $$
• Atmosphere: Casual
• Review: 4/5
• Location: Lord Howe Island Brewery

5. Love Lord Howe

Seeing as you’re visiting one of the world’s most beautiful UNESCO World Heritage-listed islands, it’s worth considering eating outdoors to make the most of Lord Howe’s natural surrounds.

While not a brick-and-mortar establishment, Love Lord Howe can set the perfect scene with their award-winning picnic pop-ups. Whether it’s at a secluded beach or beneath the pines, founder Danielle will choose the best location on the day, dictated by the weather conditions. With low picnic table, cushions, blankets, cutlery, crockery and gourmet platter and drinks, everything is ready and waiting for you to just turn up and enjoy. And the best thing is there’s no packing up afterwards.

• Cuisine: Modern Australian
• Average price: $$$$
• Atmosphere: Casual
• Location: Location TBA on the day

6. Thompsons General Store

Going strong since 1925, this general store purveys all the everyday essentials you might need, as well as a few extras, from souvenirs and fishing supplies to fresh bread and fruit. But it’s the takeaway service that has visitors rapt with its specialty coffee and gourmet rolls, a popular choice. While there are options for veggies, you’ll also find prawn burgers, chicken burgers, and the classic beef, beetroot and egg. Add on a cold beer and hot chips and eat your lunch under the shade of the palm trees outside, watching the world go by. If burgers aren’t your thing, then opt for the fish and chips, sandwiches or ready-to-go salads instead.

• Cuisine: Takeaway
• Average price: $
• Atmosphere: Casual
• Location: Thompson’s Store, Ned’s Beach Road

7. Arajilla Restaurant

Like Capella Lodge’s Restaurant, Arajilla Restaurant has a seasonal menu that changes daily, and you’ll also need to be a staying guest at the resort to eat at this fine dining restaurant.

Arajilla boasts its own kitchen garden, which supplies the restaurant with organic veggies and herbs, while line-caught fish are brought in fresh from the island’s waters.

Artisan cheeses and pasture-fed meats are sourced from the mainland. And the experienced in-house chefs bake their own bread. As a result, the artfully plated dishes sing with freshness and vibrancy. Dinner might include lamb breast terrine with feta ravioli, crispy fried capers and romesco sauce for starters, sesame-crusted kingfish with a baby corn and miso broth for main, and a tonka bean bavarois for dessert. But even breakfast is a cut above (think miso-cured trout corn fritters with Japanese mustard greens, yuzu dressing and a poached egg). Moreover, the kitchen can accommodate all kinds of diners with dietaries, from vegans to celiacs.

• Cuisine: Modern Australian
• Average price: $$$$
• Atmosphere: Relaxed elegance
• Location: Arajilla Retreat, Old Settlement Beach

8. Driftwood Bar and Restaurant

Driftwood Bar and Restaurant might have only opened a few years ago but it’s quickly become a local favourite with its delicious food, intimate feel, warm local service and wonderfully nostalgic island decor and memorabilia. The restaurant located at Ocean View Apartments specialises in Asian inspired dishes with a focus on locally caught fish and seafood. The wahoo ceviche with chilli, lime, coconut and tobiko, and coconut fish curry is especially good, mopped up with some freshly fried roti.

• Cuisine: Asian fusion
• Average price: $$$
• Atmosphere: Intimate, relaxed
• Review: 4/5
• Location: Ocean View Apartments, 1 Ocean View Drive

9. Benny’s Fish Truck

While not a restaurant as such, Benny’s Fish Truck is reputed to serve the best fish and chips in Australia, and is where you’ll find some of the tastiest and freshest seafood on the island. Often parked in front of the jetty near the centre of town, stroll down as the sun begins to set and take a seat on the grassed area like the locals do to enjoy the likes of kingfish sashimi, sesame-crusted yellowfin tuna or the good old, battered catch of the day.

• Cuisine: Takeaway
• Average price: $
• Atmosphere: Casual
• Review: 5/5
• Location: Jetty, Ocean View Drive or TBA

10. Coral Cafe

You need to time it right at Coral Cafe. While the restaurant housed within the Lord Howe Island Museum is open daily for breakfast and lunch, it’s only open for dinner three nights a week.

This cosy and reasonably priced cafe has simple yet hearty breakfast and lunch options (think egg and bacon rolls, milkshakes, hamburgers, sandwiches, wraps and cakes).

Come dusk, a more sophisticated offering takes hold: dine on prawn and chilli linguine, grilled local kingfish, as well as the occasional Malaysian special.

• Cuisine: Australian
• Average price: $-$$
• Atmosphere: Casual
• Location: Lord Howe Island Museum and Visitor Centre, Middle Road

11. Lord Howe Island Bowling Club

There’s a limited menu at this Lord Howe institution, popular with locals and families, so choose your night wisely. Some nights pizzas are on special; some nights the chef spotlights the humble pie; and others still have a wider ranging traditional Aussie pub menu, plus a few more island-specific nods, such as grilled blue-eye trevalla, or kingfish sashimi. Similar to any kind of bowls club or RSL back on the mainland, this isn’t the place to go for glamour and haute cuisine: instead, come for a glass of wine, a good time and a hearty feed.

• Cuisine: Classic Australian
• Average price: $
• Atmosphere: Casual
• Location: Bowling Club, 1 Lagoon Rd

Originally written by Chloe Cann with updates by Bonita Grima

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