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Nearly everything chef Sungchul Shim touches turns to gold. Or, in this case, Michelin gold, as Mari and Kochi have consistently ranked in the Guide (as well as achieving high marks on ours). He hopes his latest, Gui Steakhouse, will follow suit.
Debuting in the Theater District in February of 2025, Gui Steakhouse feels like a classic steakhouse imbued with chef Shim's Korean heritage. The experience starts on the ground floor with Bar 92. With its oolong-infused and baijiu-based cocktail menu, the bar serves as its own standalone hang, pre- or post-theater, or an adequate middle ground if members of your party are running late. The host will shoot you up to the second floor via elevator once your entire party has arrived, and then, once the bell dings, the doors will open to a row of fridges that glow with steaks of various ages—signaling your arrival to the main event.
The interior channels sophistication over stuffiness, pleasing the eye with curved blue-ish green leather banquettes, shoji screens and a soft glow of hovering globe lights. Found in touches around the main room and a fixture of the bar downstairs, the iridescent mother-of-pearl inlays sourced from Korea add an elegance to it all. If you happen to sit near the open kitchen, it's easy to catch the steady figure of chef Shim in the stark white light, hard at work.
Classic fixtures of the steakhouse experience remain here, be it oyster towers, caviar service and, naturally, steak. But unlike the others who simply hawk butter and meat, Shim's steakhouse adds a touch of Korean flair. Mignonette is stirred with makgeolli and head-on shrimps in the Mala Gambas are baked in a Sichuan peppercorn sauce. The USDA prime rib is rubbed in shio kombu and koji before being grilled over wood and Bijangtan (traditional Korean charcoal), resulting in a crust with a tell-tale bit of funk. Fill the table with a few shareables, such as the bubbling Sundubu Jjigae with brisket in a chili-slicked sauce, or the kimchi Wagyu fried rice, featuring a fried egg that begs to be stirred alongside juicy cuts of prime beef.
Catching an afternoon matinee? The steakhouse offers a filling lunch special that we would recommend after the show, lest you wish to fall asleep during your three-hour showing of Wicked. There is a three-course express lunch, priced at $48, where you could mix and match salmon tartares and umeboshi-dressed Caesars with steak frites or branzino. Or you could opt for the equally fitting sotbap set, which comes with a steaming bowl of rice, banchan, soup, and your choice of main, such as soy-marinated salmon ($25) and kimchi wagyu fried rice ($23). The soondubu jjiage is the star of the bunch, joyfully red and bubbling with translucent slices of Wagyu and soft, jiggly bits of silken tofu, with just enough heat that'll make your ears pop. But if even more meat is needed (you are at a steakhouse after all), order the jjiage and galbi combo ($35) for charred and fatty morsels right off the bone.