Gov. Phil Murphy and Mayor Ras Baraka met with Amazon representatives Tuesday to discuss where in Newark it could move its HQ2 headquarters if it did, in fact, choose the Garden State as its new home base, individuals briefed on the matter told NJ Advance Media.

Other leaders also attended the meetings, the sources said, including former Newark mayor and current U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., and businessman and philanthropist Ray Chambers.

Murphy, Baraka, Chambers and prominent Newark leaders also attended a dinner Tuesday night with the Amazon team at Mompou -- a well-known tapas and wine bar in Newark, a person involved with the Amazon visit said.

The meetings in Newark come as Amazon considers where to move its new headquarters. Newark is one of 20 finalist cities.

When asked about the meeting during an event in Montclair on Thursday, Murphy declined to say whether it happened or to provide any details.

"We're gonna respect the process they've (Amazon) laid out, so I'm not gonna speak to anything specific," Murphy told reporters.

"We're a long way from the goal line. We're one of 20. But I love what Newark's putting forward," he said.

In a statement, Aisha Glover, president and CEO of the Newark Community Economic Development Corporation, confirmed the HQ2 team was in the city.

"The purpose of that meeting was to fine-tune elements included in our pitch and give a first-hand look at the city we hope will be chosen for their second national headquarters," Glover said. "We will make no comment on the views and reactions of the Amazon team in order to respect the integrity of their selection process."

The company has visited other locations on its finalist list over the past month, including in Virginia, Washington D.C. and Philadelphia.

"Amazon is working with each HQ2 candidate city to dive deeper on their proposals and share additional information about the company's plans. We're excited to visit each location and talk about how HQ2 could benefit our employees and the local community," the company said in a statement.

Amazon representatives were supposed to visit Newark last month, but had to cancel because of bad weather.

Newark submitted its bid last fall. Many early reports did not rank the city in the list of those likely to become finalists. But in January, Amazon announced the city had made the cut.

"Newark boasts a highly-educated workforce, robust transportation systems, and thriving technology networks that provide many strategic benefits to companies that call our city home. Our meetings earlier this week with Amazon leadership brought these and many other advantages Newark offers to light," Booker said in a statement.

The current Newark Amazon deal would give the company up to $7 billion in tax credits for relocating to Newark -- an incentive that dwarfs the next largest package offered to a company in the state.

That's the $390 million given to Ameream LLC and Meadow Amusement in 2013 to develop the retail and entertainment American Dream complex. It's been under construction for 10 years.

In return for the tax breaks in New Jersey, Amazon said it would create as many as 50,000 jobs with an average compensation of $100,000 for its new headquarters. But those numbers are contingent upon how many people it transfers from its Seattle office.

Despite the hype over the Newark offer, analysts have predicted the company will most likely land elsewhere. D.C. or Virginia are both likely picks given Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos' relationship to the area. (He owns The Washington Post).

NJ Advance Media staff writer Brent Johnson contributed to this report.

Erin Banco may be reached at ebanco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @ErinBanco. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Karen Yi may be reached at kyi@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @karen_yi or on Facebook.