Bio

Executive chef and founder of the KG-NY Group, Kurt Gutenbrunner is the proprietor of an impressive and ever growing portfolio of top rated New York City restaurants including Michelin-Starred Wallsé, Café Sabarsky, Blaue Gans, The Upholstery Store, Café Kristall.

The Austrian born culinary icon grew up in the small village of Wallsee, located on the Danube River just 80 miles outside of Vienna. At age 14, Gutenbrunner recognized his passion for food and enrolled in a professional program at a hotel and restaurant school, obtaining a degree in culinary arts in two years.

During Kurt's training, he spent his summers in the Wachau Valley learning about the wine making process, where he gained an appreciation of the interplay between food and wine. The wines of the Wachau Valley are heavily featured in his restaurants today.

Kurt’s first kitchen position was an apprenticeship at the Hotel Richard Löwenherz in the heart of Austrian wine country. He later worked at Crans Montan in Switzerland’s Wallis Valley before heading to Vienna to work for Chef Werner Matt at the Rotisserie Prinz Eugen. Under Matt, a dedicated chef frequently credited with developing modern Austrian cuisine, Gutenbrunner helped earn the restaurant its first Michelin star.