ABC Kitchen Chef Ayaka Guido’s Favorite Spots for Dining Out with Friends
Where do chefs go and, more importantly, where do they love to eat? In Resy Regulars, we ask Resy chefs to tell us where they’re regulars.
In this edition, we’re chatting with Ayaka Guido, the new chef de cuisine at abc kitchen by Jean-Georges, who joined the restaurant in July. For the past six years, Guido has worked at Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s restaurants throughout the city. She helped open the Tin Building and cooked at Public Kitchen (now closed) and in between, she was a sous chef at Per Se. Now that she’s helming abc kitchen, she’s focused on showcasing seasonal vegetables in fun, shareable plates.
On her time off — Sundays and Mondays, as well as late nights during the week — she seeks out restaurants ideal for sharing dishes with friends. That means cilantro-loaded carrot salads, “sweating-out-of-your-eyeballs” spicy larb, and maybe even 15 bottles or so of Champagne for dinner. Everything goes. There’s just one rule: “We can never order the same thing,” Guido says. “That way, we can all try other things. That’s the deal with my husband and my friends.”
Here are a few of her favorite group dining spots, in her own words.
More Resy Regulars
1. Buvette NYC
West Village
You know how you can’t really eat anywhere from 12 noon to 4 p.m.? This is kind of our go-to spot in the middle of the day to get a bottle of Crémant from Albert Mann. My friends and I love it so much I had to have it at my wedding.
We always get this shredded carrot salad that has a lot of cilantro in it. And they marinate it just enough so it’s still crunchy; it has all the right textures, and it’s not this soggy wet salad. You wouldn’t think you need a carrot salad, but you do.
I also love a classic dish like steak tartare. I think they keep it so simple. They don’t play around with it too much. It’s true to what it is. You’re gonna get a pickle. You’re gonna get some capers. You’re gonna get a little egg yolk. They keep it natural.
2. Ugly Baby
Carroll Gardens
If I could, I’d try to go to Ugly Baby at least three times a month. I love the place so much because it’s loud and vibrant. I like going there because I don’t really know how to cook Thai cuisine. So, for me, it’s really enjoyable to eat because I don’t know how to do it myself.
The whole fried sea bream there is literally one of the best dishes in New York City. It’s always consistent. The texture of the fish is so crispy on the outside, and so moist on the inside. It’s marinated in a turmeric ginger sauce, and they serve the cheek, the eyeballs, everything. You get all the goods and get to pick at it. The fun part of it for me is being able to eat with my hands and being able to eat the whole fish. Everyone fights over what part of the fish they want. I’ve definitely had to fight for the cheek on the fish. And that’s always the most fun part.
Every time we go to Ugly Baby, they’re always changing up the menu, so we have a different variation of a curry or a larb or other stuff that I’m still learning about. The spiciness depends on the dish you get. The duck larb salad is really spicy, but it’s not just chiles that burn your mouth off. It has so much flavor and depth. As you keep eating, it’s like a roller coaster of flavors, but you’re still sweating out of your eyeballs at the same time and you can still taste everything, so it’s great. I’d have that with a bottle of Grüner Veltliner. The high acidity works so well with the spicy food.
Walk-ins only.
3. Long Island Bar
Cobble Hill
You will definitely see me every Sunday at Long Island Bar. It’s also a great meeting-my-friends-after-work spot. We go maybe three times a week. They have a great burger that we really love. You can order a double or single patty. They put in a bacon wheel. It’s bacon that’s been pinwheeled, basically. It’s caramelized and crispy. And then when you eat your burger, you have it with every bite instead of pulling that one strip of bacon out. It’s pretty genius.
And their cocktails are really good. I’ll start with a Gibson, then a Negroni, and then Champagne. We always sit at the bar. We really never sit at the table. It’s just relaxing and a great way to decompress after work. Everyone’s so friendly there.
Walk-ins only.
4. Wu’s Wonton King
Chinatown
Wu’s Wonton King is always a big hit for whenever we’re doing birthday celebrations or anniversaries. We have a steady menu that we always order there. We normally go as a group of eight, and we order 20 things.
Everyone goes for the king crab. The crab is fun, and it’s delicious. They cook it three different ways. First, they come out with the crab and it’s bigger than me, and I know I’m a tiny human being, but still. You do your photos with it, and then they take it back to the kitchen. They split the legs and steam them with garlic and ginger. For the second round, they fry the other parts of the crab in a batter, and you break them open and get your hands messy. In the third round, you choose if you want the crab to be with noodles or the golden fried rice. I always get the rice, and mix that with all the guts from the head. So, you get to have the crab three different ways. It’s always a showstopper.
There’s also this Dungeness crab. They fry the whole crab all the way, so you have to break it open. When they fry it, all that moisture goes inside, and it’s super juicy. And they put this batter on the outside, on the leg, the body, everything.
We’re really big fans of the famous aromatic chicken. You get a whole chicken, and they must roast it, then crisp up the skin in a wok or something. It has all the garnishes, like crispy garlic, crispy shallot, and it’s herbaceous with scallions. It’s always crispy, moist, and delicious every time you get it, and it’s very fun to share.
Then there’s the house squid, which is fried. They have this house shrimp that’s fried in its shell, and it has all this crispy ginger and garlic on top of it. It’s all crumbled in there. (The same garnish is on the fried squid.) You get to peel the shells off. And inside, it’s so moist and has all the flavor still within it. I’m obsessed with them.
There’s the golden rice, and I’m a big fan because there are nuggets of sweetness throughout. There are raisins in it. And then there are also dried, cured egg yolks in it that are salty. And the wonton soup is always a classic. It’s a great thing to share with everyone. The wonton has a thin wrapper, and the broth is so pure and hearty. When you take that bite, it takes over your whole body, like ‘OK, I’m ready.’ We always start with that as the amuse to get into the rest of the dinner.
And Wu’s is BYOB so when you are with a bunch of industry friends, it gets pretty, pretty hectic. I think the last time we were there for my birthday, we might have had 15 bottles of Champagne and a magnum.
Call (212) 477-1112 to make a reservation for a group of five or more.
Editor’s Note: The king crab dish generally comes out to approximately $600, and the Dungeness crab usually sells for $28 per pound.
abc kitchen by Jean-Georges is open daily for lunch and dinner.
Follow Ayaka Guido on Instagram.
Caroline Shin is a Flushing, Queens-bred food journalist, and founder of the Cooking with Granny video and workshop series spotlighting immigrant grandmothers. Watch her award-winning show on YouTube, and follow her on Instagram. Follow Resy, too.
