Dinner at Aria, the dining room overlooking the the Opera House, is one of Sydney's bucket-list items. A few bays over, LuMi is another aspirational fine diner melding Italian and Asian influences in a water-front location. Now the two head chefs of these lauded establishments are coming together for a snack safari on Monday 7 December. Aria head chef Joel Bickford and LuMi head chef Federico Zanellato are going to be playing a double bill for Aria x LuMi, presenting an 8-course menu for $250 a head. Often the snack-sized dishes are where chefs can flex their creativity so prepare to sample yellowfin tuna tartare with oyster crackling, and coral trout with honeydew melon, cucumber and wasabi.
There are only 90 seats for this high-end cheffing co-lab, and the two-hour dining sessions will be staggered from 5.30pm until late. If you aren't afraid of a little vino on a school night you can opt in for the $130 a head wine pairing too.
Getting to all of Sydney's fine dining institutions takes a lot of time and a significant investment, but this evening lets you tick off two in one shot. Plus, you'll get more access to the chefs themselves than you'd get during regular service, so it sounds kind of like being in an episode of Chef's Table, one where you get to do the eating, too.