This was published 1 year ago
Chef Luke Mangan to open a restaurant in one of the Sydney Harbour Bridge's pylons
Luke's Table at the Pylon Lookout restaurant will launch to the public on November 17.
For the first time in its 99-year lifespan, the Sydney Harbour Bridge will open a 20-seat restaurant in its south-east pylon.
Celebrity chef and restaurateur Luke Mangan will make history as the first chef to oversee the lofty dining experience, which will cost diners $295.
Luke's Table at the Pylon Lookout restaurant has already sold out of its first round of booking dates (November 17—December 22) since going on sale on Thursday.
Guests are restricted to one wine per course to adhere to safety requirements, with Penfolds' signature Grange among the mix.
"We are ecstatic to be partnering with BridgeClimb to create such a memorable experience at such a special location that Australians have not seen before," said Mangan.
"This unique restaurant concept is a fantastic way for us to continue to showcase the food and hospitality that the team is renowned for."
So what does the nearly-$300 price tag get you?
A maximum of 20 diners will be seated around a communal table set up on the pylon lookout's wrap-around deck, 87 metres above the harbour.
The experience begins with a welcome mocktail and guided tour of the Pylon Museum, as guests make their way up the 200 steps to the lookout.
A glass of champagne and canapes kick off the culinary proceedings. The main event is a three-course dinner with matching Penfold wines, served up alongside rare views of the bridge, Opera House and city skyline.
Guests are restricted to one wine per course, in order to adhere to the safety requirements of the Pylon Lookout and Museum, with Penfolds' signature Grange among the mix.
Mangan's restaurant team will serve up such dishes as Hiramasa kingfish sashimi with sesame dashi dressing and yuzu compressed pear, and beef fillet with mushroom puree, braised onions, asparagus and fig.
Mangan first approached BridgeClimb with the dining concept two years earlier. Since then, the project has been hampered by COVID-related delays and red tape around the use of the historic pylon.
Luke's Table has just announced another round of booking dates, with dinner services every Thursday and Friday night between January 19 and March 3, 2023.
BridgeClimb's chief executive Deb Zimmer said the culinary collaboration was an example of how two industries can innovate to offer a world-first dining experience.
"I am delighted to be working with Luke, a leader of the hospitality industry who passionately supports both industries' road to recovery," Zimmer said.
It's the latest in a string of 'firsts' for the famous bridge. In 2020, BridgeClimb began letting climbers scale the entire length of the bridge for the first time in its history, part of a wider bid to appeal to the domestic market during pandemic border closures.
The company later went on to introduce the Burrawa Climb, a summit climb hosted by First Nations guides and telling Aboriginal stories, as a one-off attraction during the 2021 Sydney Festival. The experience has gone on to become a permanent BridgeClimb fixture, running on the last Saturday of every month.
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