Travel: Noosa Heads wows with Peter Kuruvita's restaurant, Alba

A two-hour flight from Melbourne gets you to the Sunshine Coast, home to the best Aussie beaches, pristine hinterland and the seaside drawcard of Noosa,  a snappy 30-minute drive from the airport.

The resort and foodie lifestyle of Noosa has long centred around Hastings Street and main beach – a popular spot for families to hire shades and enjoy a day in the sun – but it’s a 10-minute drive inland where we base ourselves for three days within a private residential estate that truly shows us why more people are heading north.

Our two-storey apartment at Lakeside Rise in Noosa Heads comes with all the modern finishing touches, including local and Danish furniture.

A large balcony that overlooks Lake Weyba is the perfect place to watch epic sunsets and enjoy the coastal breezes.

All rooms come with air-con, and the kitchen’s state-of-the-art electronic Miele cooking appliances make you want to whip up a meal or two.

The apartment is just the place for those wanting less chaos and more unwinding time. The modern three-bedroom, three-bathroom apartment has multiple TVs, an en suite with a bath plus two balconies on each level, making it an escape within an escape for parents travelling with children.

Access to the pool is a great second option after a day at the beach.

Victorians will love the access to celebrity chef, restaurateur and SBS TV cooking show host Peter Kuruvita, who moved on from his Noosa Beach House restaurant a year ago to open ALBA by Kuruvita in this even ritzier end of town.

At ALBA, Kuruvita fuses his Sri Lankan heritage with a contemporary dining vision. He has written two cookbooks, run restaurants in Fiji and Sydney, and relocated to Lakeview Rise because the desire the elevate the foodie experience this far up north has long been on his agenda.

Whether you want to go to ALBA for the tasting menu with matching wines or try the vegetarian banquet, you can’t go past the black-pepper king prawns wrapped in lashings of coconut, paneer and curry leaves, Sri Lankan snapper curry (a popular must-have) and the North Queensland mango kulfi for a palate reset.

Oysters and French chardonnay made a perfect arrival for us, while the kids can eat for $15.

ALBA is open six days a week with a gorgeous providore on site where you can stock up on the best local and international wines, cheese, salumi (cut to your liking) and fresh loaves of bread baked daily. It’s a hit with the locals, too.

You can also buy meals from your apartment via QR codes if you wish to eat in the comfort of your home.

Kuruvita sources beef from the Darling Downs, while professional fisherman Dave is on speed-dial to talk about his catch of the day. We enjoyed locally caught snapper during our stay, while cobia, tuna and pearl perch also make the specials menu when available.

“People that visit Noosa from Melbourne come to expect a certain level of food sophistication,” Kuruvita says.

“But for us, it always had to be about quality, service and value for money. The locals love us for it, too.

“While the modern Asian explosion in cuisine has happened on the Sunshine Coast, I’m all about fusing my Sri Lankan heritage with modern dishes – nobody is doing that here.

“But it means you can’t be complacent. People want diversity on their plate and a reason to come back time and again.”

Kuruvita also hosts cooking classes, taking you on a journey from Sri Lankan to Mexican and French cooking. It’s intimate and a peek inside his culinary genius with tips on how to take the recipes from his commercial kitchen to your own. They sell out fast, and bookings are now open for March.

Waking up to the sound of chatty kookaburras and cockatoos reminds us we have swapped the noise of inner-city Melbourne’s tram grid for a quintessential Queensland soundtrack.

A hinterland track bike ride backs onto the property and is easy to access. This is how you spend a holiday for a total reset.

If you fancy a year-round luxury resort lifestyle, you could be in luck. The Queensland RSL Art Union auction draw 403 is giving away two apartments at Lakeview Rise, Noosa Heads, with all money raised going towards helping retired veterans.

The total prize value is $6.3 million – including a dining experience in the new abode for eight family and friends hosted by Kuruvita himself.