Lady Chu owner Nahji Chu responds with temporary tape art to construction struggles

The outspoken name behind one of Australia’s most famous takeaways has caused a stir with her artistic response to noisy construction near her restaurant.

Street art created by owner of Lady Chu, Nahji Chu, on a construction site wall outside her restaurant in Potts Point. Picture: Instagram.

Colourful Sydney restaurateur Nahji Chu, owner of Potts Point Vietnamese eatery Lady Chu, has taken to social media with a cheeky artistic response to ongoing construction works near her business.

The hospitality boss erected large-scale masking tape creations – depicting palm trees, construction workers, and a tongue-in-cheek specials board – over the course of a week on construction site hoardings, only to see the creative designs removed.

Development and hospitality group Iris Capital won approval from the Central Sydney Planning Committee in mid-2021 to transform the former site of the iconic Bourbon and Beefsteak pub and Les Girls nightclub into a $65 million up-market hotel and apartment block.

Now construction is impacting restaurants, shops and cafes with drilling and congestion.

Ms Chu first shared her so-called ‘masking tape art’ on March 4, when an image of chalk specials – including a dish called “Peking F***” listed for $250 – scrawled on the black scaffolding of the building was posted on the Lady Chu Instagram account.

Street art shared by Lady Chu owner Nahji Chu on Instagram. Picture: Instagram.

A construction worker removing Ms Chu’s additions to the hoarding.

A caption under one of the posts called Ms Chu the “new BANKSY in the neighbourhood”, in reference to the world renown street artist.

Ms Chu said she began decorating the black walls with her own art out of frustration at the noise pollution impacting her outdoor dining business.

“I come from a background of adversity and turning negatives into positives comes part and parcel for me,” she said.

The colourful hospitality figure built a thriving business off the back of her popular Miss Chu Vietnamese tuckshop chain which had eight locations in Sydney and Melbourne, plus an outlet in London, before being placed into administration in 2014.

Ms Chu returned with Roslyn Ave restaurant Lady Chu in late 2021.

She said the City of Sydney’s creative hoardings program outlines developers with construction sites in “high traffic areas” must cover their hoardings in art by a living Australian artist or historical images relevant to the area.

Entrepreneur and restaurant owner Nahji Chu. Picture: supplied.

Construction at the Darlinghurst Rd site.

“Some people call me a cantankerous dragon lady, they’re what I call the Potts Point whingers,” Ms Chu said. “And then 95 per cent of the people just love and champion what I do.

“They think it’s fantastic. It’s also fun; it’s something that the community can get involved in and respond to.”

A City of Sydney spokeswoman said its hoarding artworks policy allows for developers to choose hoardings to be decorated with bespoke artwork, using a selection of commissioned artworks or historic images.

“In this circumstance the developer has advised the City of Sydney it has chosen to use historical images, which will be installed soon,” she said.

Iris Capital declined to comment.