Gui
Gui caught my attention because it offered a baked Alaska and prime rib. What I did not realize was that this restaurant had some folks with a track record of good Korean foods. Chef Sung Chul Shim comes from Kochi and Mari. Pastry chef, Sarah Smith, comes from many fine kitchens including Le Bernardin and Le Rock. The reservation was very easy to reserve for a 5:15 PM dinner on a Friday night. The restaurant is located on the second floor, but you check in on the first floor.
Ambiance & Service
As you ascend to the second floor by stairs, the vibe changes. You see a bunch of dry aged meat right in front of you to express how serious they are about the dry aging process of their steaks.
The first floor is the bar, which was rather timid when we went. The second floor has a ton of tables, and I can see if and when this restaurant were to get popular, it should be lively with a lot of energy.
The music is not too loud, and you can have decent conversations with both your servers and your table. The food came out very quick, as we were in and out within an hour and fifteen minutes.
The service was very good, as the waiter listened to what we were looking for in our journey. They made the right recommendations, and they weren’t greedy about it like some of our more recent restaurant experiences in past weeks.
Food
The Hotline ($20) came with Truman vodka, Mizu Shochu green tea, Chinola passion fruit liqueur, pistachio green tea orgeat, lemon essence, and Fever-tree club soda. My partner enjoyed this, but I did not. There was something about this that had some clashing going on.
The Gargantua - Pantagruel Syrah ($22) came from Bergström, Oregon, 2020. This was a bold, but smooth syrah that was neither too oaky nor extracted. The dark fruit notes were juicy and paired well with the prime rib.
The Hwe Muchim ($21) came with hamachi (yellowtail), papaya salad, and leche de tigre. This was similar to a yellowtail ceviche. They served it with about 5 slices of yellowtail, and placed them on top of the papaya salad. The dressing from leche de tigre was very good as it had a nice, clean, and refreshing hit of lime and flavors.
The USDA Prime Rib ($79 per serving) came 10 oz with a shio kombu and koji crust, horseradish cream, and Hibiki au jus. The steak was pre-sliced as shown in pictures. The flavors of the steak were phenomenal. It has some slight Korean flavors, as if it had some light glaze on it before it was served. The crust was very good. Even though I’m not a fan of fat in general, this one was actually quite delectable, especially dipped with either the horseradish cream or the au jus. The au jus was very flavorful. Unlike La Tete d’Or, this prime rib was much better tasting in flavor. Keep in mind that we just ordered 1 serving, which was enough for 2 people with all the other sides.
The Kimchi Wagyu Fried Rice ($32) came with wagyu beef, kimchi, bacon, and fried egg. This was very delicious because the flavors of the beef and bacon really complemented the kimchi. This was really easy to finish with the prime rib.
The Baked Alaska ($21) came with yuzu mousse, almonds, citrus, and pink peppercorn. This did not come lit up with flames, but it trended towards more citrus due to the yuzu mousse than expected. The flavors overall were pretty good. I did not taste the peppercorn much. When ranking this versus all the other baked Alaskas, I think this is probably above average for me.
The Black & White Mousse ($19) came with ssamjang, caramel, chocolate, and vanilla foam. The caramel and chocolate definitely had a very interesting flavor to it. You can taste very subtly the ssamjang. Other than that, there was not much spice to it. The mousse was very balanced in sweetness and salt.
Final Verdict
Gui steakhouse is one of those Theater District restaurants where we wouldn’t hesitate to come back for a dinner. The price is not too expensive compared to other restaurants in the area, and the flavors are pretty much on point to my expectations. It has a slight Korean seasoning touch to it, which separates it just a little bit from the rest of the American steakhouse pack.
Yelp Jabs
While I understand they just opened, I should not be able to visibly tell. Cords running along the staircase, elevator out of service. It felt like they should have did a soft launch before truly opening to the public… The temperature of our steaks was lukewarm at best and truly lacked flavor, in my opinion. The sides were very underwhelming - fries gave fast food vibes, which shocked me.
Unfortunately for many restaurants, it takes some time for them to get acclimated. Whether it’s a soft launch or a hard launch, it doesn’t really matter. This restaurant is a few weeks old, so naturally, they will still be clearing and figuring their identity out as they get into more of a swing of things. Most steaks in other places aren’t going to be coming out super hot unless it’s similar to the Peter Luger style. The fries are just … fries.
I really enjoyed the prime rib (although i wish it had been served hotter) served with a great horseradish cream sauce
Our prime rib was also served “lukewarm”, but it’s no different than almost any steak place in the city. I’m not sure where and why recent Yelpers and Elitists were expecting this to be super hot. Maybe the restaurant can keep the plates hot to help remediate this concern.
Revisions
- Mar 21, 2025 - Initial revision.