Gori Delivers Luxurious Omakase Experience at Anto Korean Steakhouse

Jan 22

Jan 22 Gori Delivers Luxurious Omakase Experience at Anto Korean Steakhouse

Perched on the 2nd floor of Anto Korean Steakhouse in Midtown East, Gori is a 10 course omakase experience from the imaginative mind of Executive Chef Jeong Muk Kim that changes daily. Before Gori, Chef Jeong-Muk was Executive Chef at MYOMI in Seoul where the restaurant received a Michelin star during his tenure there. Now Chef Jeong-Muk uses his skills providing an unique experience to diners at Gori.

We began our dining experience with cocktails instead of opting for the wine pairing, since the Ginger Sour and Spicy Margarita sounded too good to pass up. Both cocktails had an innovative twist, the Ginger Sour with Hanrabong honey and the Spicy Margarita with gochujang and purple carrot.

While sipping on our cocktails, we were presented with the ingredients for our meal in a Cartier box! Talk about a luxurious dining experience. This presentation really set the tone for the level of quality and service we received over the course of the evening. Our first course was a Truffle Mushroom Pancake, more of a taco than a pancake, the flavors of umami were really prominent due to the mushroom and truffle. Moving then to a more fresh and seafood forward bite, the Dungeness Crab course had uni right on top and the memorable presentation on a crab shell.

One of my favorite dishes, the Lettuce Wrapped Pork Belly, was wrapped up like a present with rich and hearty flavors of pork in a small bite.

Everything was prepared either at the back table like a surgery, where the staff used tweezers to place the accoutrements in a very precise manner, or right in front of you on the grills or with a torch, like with the Freshwater Eel dish.

The eel was another filling dish thanks to the tri-color rice and perilla seed glaze. Then liquid nitrogen created another table-side show with the Hamachi Mulwhe dish. My favorite dish of the night was the Hudson Valley Aged Duck, presented to the table before being cut up into individual portions. It was served with actual caramel and after having that savory and sweet preparation, I never want to have it another way! The Cornish Hen noodle soup was a perfect palate cleanser and appropriately warm dish for the season. The hen and abalone made it an elevated version of a chicken noodle soup.

The Korean Beef Wagyu was cooked perfectly and did not disappoint. The last savory dish, Uni Bapsang, was presented before being prepared into the highest quality rice dish you’ve ever had with Hokkaido uni, pickled ramp and banchan. By the end of the dinner, you are pretty full but you have to save room for the dessert. The Semifreddo was not only beautiful, but the flavors melded perfectly together.

Gori is perfect for a date, a business dinner, or to impress family members who are in from out of town, but always for an occasion as it’s that special. I cannot sing the praises of this dinner experience enough. For more information or to make a reservation of your own, please visit https://www.anto.com/reservations/.