Chef Luke Nguyen is a champion - and now he has the certificate to prove it.

Luke Nguyen in a scene from his SBS television series Luke Nguyen's Vietnam.

According to the local newspaper Fairfield Advance, Fairfield Council has named him Local Champion for using his public profile to promote Cabramatta as a vibrant and culturally-rich destination for people across Australia.

``It’s fantastic, I’m very honoured,’’ Nguyen said.

``I was raised there, lived around there, worked around there, pretty much spent all my time there as a child it’s home.

``Coming back as an adult you really get to realise the different cultures, its diversity and its food in particular is just amazing and the people are just fantastic.’’

Nguyen opened the award-winning Red Lantern Vietnamese Restaurant in Surry Hills with his brother-in-law Mark Jensen and his sister Pauline.

Together, they wrote the bestselling cookbook Secrets of the Red Lantern, detailing the family’s experience as refugees.

Nguyen’s latest book, The Songs of Sapa: Stories and Recipes from Vietnam, comes with a complementary SBS television series which was filmed in Vietnam.

He is now setting up the Little Lantern Foundation in Vietnam to teach street kids hospitality and give them the opportunity to run a commercial kitchen.

``I spend a lot of time in Vietnam working, so when I come back to my home in Surry Hills now I’m craving that food, that 24-hour environment, so I go back to Cabramatta,’’ he said.

``You can pretty much have a degustation menu at 10 different restaurants for less than 20 bucks it’s incredible.

``I’ve had it so sweet here. I do look at myself and I’m so lucky, I work bloody hard, but geez ...’’

So what’s on the Australia Day menu for Nguyen?

``I guess I’ve got to throw some lamb on the barbecue, which has been an Australia Day thing for me for the last couple of years.’’