Luke Mangan exploring ways to take Sydney’s ‘long lunch’ to New York

A week after it was revealed the NRL planned to take over Vegas, one of Australia’s top chefs has announced he wants to shut down a major street in New York City and give them a taste of Down Under.

Chef Luke Mangan has his eyes on NYC. Picture: Richard Walker

An ambitious plan to shut down part of New York’s famous Fifth Avenue to promote Australian food and wine is underway, with top chef Luke Mangan exploring ways to take Sydney’s “long lunch” to the Big Apple.

It comes after the roaring success of the “Open for Lunch” event in December, where George Street was shut down for thousands of diners to spend an afternoon for a long lunch from some of Sydney’s best chefs.

Mr Mangan wants to take the event global, gathering chefs from around Australia to showcase the best culinary experiences our country has to offer.

According to the plans, which are in their early stages, a marquee event to promote Australian food and wine would for August or September would line up with the US summer.

Tourism Australia has committed to meeting with Mr Mangan in a bid to get the New York event off the ground.

The Long Lunch event in George Street was a massive hit in December. Picture: Richard Dobson

“I like to aim big, so I would like to think that we could close off a section of Fifth Avenue for a lunch experience that we did very similar (to what we did) down George Street,” he said.

Mr Mangan is now seeking to get the project funded through existing tourism budgets, like from Tourism Australia.

New York City better brace for a taste of Australia.

“There’s a few more button’s I’ve got to push and hopefully all the dots join,” he said.

A Tourism Australia spokesman said the body was “always open” to looking at new ways to attract new visitors.

“Our food and wine is one of our greatest assets and, along with our incredible tourism experiences and stunning scenery, is a major factor behind international travellers choosing Australia over other destinations,” the spokesman said.

A NSW government spokesman said that holding another “Open for Lunch” event in Sydney this year was still under consideration.

Originally published as Luke Mangan exploring ways to take Sydney’s ‘long lunch’ to New York