Fine dining, without the Hastings St traffic: New Noosa hotspot
A restaurant opposite the Noosa River is just the spot for a chilled-out summer lunch.
QWeekend
Don't miss out on the headlines from QWeekend. Followed categories will be added to My News.
We’re in Noosa in high summer calmly eating lunch. How can this be, you ask. Surely driving into the obscenely attractive seaside mecca just after Christmas is an exercise in extreme aggravation brought on by traffic jams and parking trauma.
Well, we avoided Hastings St for a start, that would be asking for trouble, and headed for Noosaville, with its tree-lined riverfront busy but far less hectic. We’re at Lanai, on the corner of Gympie Tce and Thomas St, on the site once occupied by David Rayner’s lauded Thomas Corner Eatery.
“Packed to the rafters”: TV chef draws big crowds with flashy new restaurant
Brisbane’s top 30 best restaurants named
The largely white decor sets up a smart-casual, coastal feel created with tasselled umbrellas and cushion-backed banquettes in the street-level outdoors section and, in the upstairs main dining area, a clean ambience accented with mint green chairs and tan highlights including floral displays.
Brass cutlery, linen napkins and chunky, appealing ceramic serving ware helps build the vibe in the busy 60-seater. We’re perched on stools at a bench upstairs, with views over the passing parade and the glistening waters of the Noosa River through the trees across the road, fanned by a light breeze on a stinking hot day.
A dozen cocktails are on offer and Noosa Sling, a mix of Never Never Gin, bitter orange, cherry, pineapple and lime ($19) in a tall glass turns out to be a refreshing scene setter.
The drinks list is well thought out with a boysenberry, strawberry gum and vodka seltzer available by the glass or carafe, and 14 by-the-glass wines, most also available in small or large pours or carafe. The bottle list then keeps it laid-back with headings such as chardy, Aussie skins, pink and crisp, fresh and white, and well-versed staff able to assist with selections.
The restaurant opened last year, with the menu designed to keep that laid-back feeling going. It begins with a “peckish” section comprising oysters, a prawn sanga, potato bombes, lamb skewers, fried zucchini flowers and the like, suitable for starters or inveterate grazers who could work their way through the lot.
“Something light” follows and includes Mooloolaba prawns in a steamed bun or a Moreton Bay bug roll before a roll call of three “larger dishes”.
The set menu at $89pp offers a large range of dishes and appears to be good value.
The sanga ($14) arrives as two discs of soft white bread filled with a couple of large prawns, thin slices of pickled onion, a taro crisp and lemon myrtle mayo for a fine beginning and then we share Phoebe’s spanner crab nori roll ($22) with the thinnest omelette exterior, a nori lining, daikon and wakame which arrives cut into six with an orange miso sauce, although I preferred the freshness of it on its own.
We also share a “larger dish” and a Moreton Bay bug roll ($34). More like a traditional main course size, the larger dishes are a half chicken, a wagyu petite shoulder and catch of the day, in this case barramundi ($41), topped with “native” bearnaise sauce, blinged up with salt bush, capers and finger lime, which is really delicious. With the roll, the bun is brioche and it’s simply filled with a good amount of bug meat, Mary Rose sauce, butter lettuce and pickled onion.
A side of hot and sour cucumber slices with mint, merlot vinegar, chilli oil, creamed sesame and fried shallots ($14) is also fresh and interesting.
Desserts largely keep it tropical with donuts filled with coconut custard, bombe alaska with mango as the star, a confection of dragonfruit and passionfruit sorbet and a chocolate tart for diehard chocolate aficionados.
It’s a very enjoyable lunch, a combination of chilled ambience, light, not overly complex food with enough twists to capture interest and service that is well above average from a team of engaged staff.
LANAI
1/201 Gympie Tce, Noosaville
lanainoosa.com.au
Open
Wed-Sat noon-9pm, Sun 11.30am-4pm
Must try
Fish of the day with native bearnaise sauce
Verdict
Food
Ambience
Service
Value
Overall
The Qweekend stories you just couldn’t get enough of in 2024
From a TV star’s shock career pivot to the untold story of an Olympian’s secret disability, these are the incredible tales our readers couldn’t pull themselves away from.
Celebrity favourite cafe opens new beachside sibling
One of Queensland’s most loved cafes, with Margot Robbie and Orlando Bloom as customers, is set to welcome a sister eatery just in time for the summer holidays.