Crossing the border at this time of the year feels like a risky undertaking. Will Queensland plates attract derision from Blues rugby league fans as the annual State of Origin series kicks off?

Amazingly, the feat of travelling to Cabarita Beach, 20km south of the border, and 110km south of Brisbane, was achieved without incident. And once in the environs of the chic boutique Halcyon Hotel, the thought of interstate sports rivalry seems as remote as the prospect of a controversy-free Trump presidency.

Since the hotel’s in-house dining room, Paper Daisy, opened in 2015, head chef Ben Devlin has created a destination restaurant with an audience far wider than the small coastal town and guests from the hotel’s 21 beautiful but expensive rooms.

The hotel is beachside, and the restaurant has ocean glimpses from some tables and the bar, while others have a view of the adjacent pool. The decor is an eclectic blend of bare boards, wooden tables, wicker chairs, paintings and Instagram-worthy arrangements of fruit, flowers and objects.

Devlin, who grew up in Byron Bay and spent two years in the kitchen of renowned restaurant Noma in Copenhagen, then three at Esquire in Brisbane before his sea change, has forged his own style of cuisine from regional produce that seems just right for the location.

Dinner is $95 for three courses, $110 for four, with the price including slices of fresh house-made sourdough accompanied by pots of goat curd kefir and wattleseed and macadamia butter, as well as a starter of hot, savoury doughnut strips and two vegetable dishes with the main courses.

Lunch is a two/three course choice ($75/$95) or the bar menu offers options for those seeking a lighter meal such as the king prawn sandwich with avocado and potato crisps ($20) or pippis with semolina pasta, native pepper and macadamia oil ($30).

An entree of coal-roasted fish sets the tone: there’s no tricked-up presentation, it’s simply a lusciously fresh fillet adorned with pops of finger lime and curry leaves. Similarly, the hot smoked mackerel is a flavoursome melange of salted mushrooms cooked in beef fat and flecked with onion rings.

A real surprise package is the glazed lamb, which arrives hidden beneath a blanket of paper-thin slices of ash-roasted turnip spiked with sunflower seeds and capers. It looks unappealing but is one of the dishes of the year. Tender, caramelised pork neck textured with a layer of buckwheat and with a scoop of tamarillo paste and grilled endive is also decent but seems workmanlike by comparison. The shared sides of roasted cauliflower and a salad of finely sliced cabbage offer textural contrast and round out the dishes.

Desserts make sure you get your daily servings of fruit and are not oversweet. A grilled apple and fennel tart is terrific while caramelised banana, with pecans and a funky sourdough starter ice cream is a similarly strong finale.

Service is adept if not particularly personalised, with different staff delivering various dishes. Success means bookings are pretty much essential and are for two-hour periods. A Visa and Mastercard surcharge has also been added to bills.

But the food is a constant: well-conceived and executed and consistent in its singular vision. It’s well worth a cross-border incursion.

This review originally appeared on couriermail.com.au.