At abc kitchens, the food feels grounded in confidence. Nothing arrives at the table overly complicated or trying too hard. Vegetables glow with color. Seafood feels clean and carefully crafted. Ingredients are treated with enough restraint that you can actually taste where they came from. It’s the kind of cooking that feels deeply connected to the people and places behind it. That approach is central to the work of Executive Chef Ayaka Guido.
Chef Ayaka leads the kitchen with a style that reflects the larger philosophy of abc kitchens: ingredient-first cooking rooted in seasonality, sustainability, and care. Her food balances refinement with warmth, creating dishes that feel thoughtful without becoming precious. There’s a calm precision to the menu that allows ingredients to hold the spotlight rather than burying them beneath technique.
That mindset fits naturally within the world of abc kitchens, where sustainability has long been part of the restaurant’s identity. The restaurant group prioritizes environmentally conscious sourcing, non-GMO produce whenever possible, responsible land usage, and partnerships with farms and purveyors committed to cleaner food systems. It’s a philosophy built around understanding not just what ends up on the plate, but how it got there in the first place.
You can feel that awareness throughout the dining experience. Seasonal vegetables arrive layered with texture and spice. Seafood feels bright and carefully sourced. The menu moves fluidly between raw bar offerings, market-driven plates, wood-fired cooking, and globally inspired flavors without ever losing its sense of balance. The room itself mirrors that feeling. Warm woods, natural light, crowded tables, and food designed to slow people down enough to actually experience it. For Chef Ayaka, that connection between food and environment extends beyond the walls of the restaurant.
Chef Ayaka Guido brings more than 17 years of kitchen experience to abc kitchens, with a career shaped by some of New York City’s most respected restaurants. Before leading the kitchen at abc kitchens, she worked across the Jean-Georges restaurant group, helped open the Tin Building, and spent time cooking at Per Se, where perfection and discipline became foundational to her style.
Her approach balances technical refinement with a deep respect for seasonal ingredients, resulting in food that makes an impact. Influenced by a love of shared dining experiences and bold global flavors, Chef Ayaka’s cooking reflects both fine dining training and a genuine warmth that makes the food at abc kitchens feel approachable, energetic, and deeply connected to New York.
Through abc kitchens’ partnership with Billion Oyster Project, oyster shells collected at the restaurant are recycled and returned to New York Harbor, where they become the foundation for new oyster reefs. What begins as a meal eventually becomes part of the harbor again—helping rebuild habitat, support marine life, and restore one of the most important ecological systems in New York City.
It’s a partnership that feels aligned with the spirit of the restaurant itself. At abc kitchens, sustainability feels embedded into the culture of the space. It’s present in the sourcing, the cooking, the atmosphere, and the decisions happening behind the scenes every day led by Chef Ayaka. Chef Ayaka’s cooking carries that same energy. Precise but approachable and beautiful without excess. Deeply connected to the ingredients, the seasons, and the larger systems that make food possible in the first place.
Want to eat with Chef Ayaka? Book a reservation now!
A thriving reef cluster, building habitat for generations
