GT Prime Will Close as Boka Splits With Chef Giuseppe Tentori

Boka Restaurant Group is again making news with the announcement that after eight years they’re closing GT Prime. The New Year’s Eve closure of the River North steakhouse also marks the end of an 18-year partnership between Boka and award-winning chef Giuseppe Tentori. Tentori is best known around Chicago for GT Fish & Oyster, his River North seafood restaurant that lasted 12 years, from 2011 to 2023, in River North.

The chef turned his attention toward red meat in 2016, but instead of serving up huge slabs of meat, GT Prime brought a gentle touch to the genre with steak flights of select meats presented with a more artful presentation compared to the traditional brazen American steakhouses. Tentori arrived in America as a teen from Milan, Italy, and worked in the suburbs — in Highland Park — before moving to Salt Lake City, Utah. He returned to Chicago and worked at Charlie Trotter’s for nine years, two of which he served as the esteemed restaurant’s sous chef.

He joined Boka in 2007, and it was during his time that the Lincoln Park restaurant began its streak of consecutive Michelin-star ratings, a stretch that began in 2010. Earlier in the week, Boka announced that it was opening a pizzeria in GT Fish & Oyster’s former space. Likewise, they’re planning to open a new restaurant at GT Prime later next summer.

“We accomplished successful projects with Giuseppe over 18 years and we will be eternally grateful for all he brought to the table,” Boka co-founder Rob Katz says in a news release. “We wish Giuseppe the very best in his future endeavors.”

The split also leaves a void for Boka’s catering arm, one that will be filled by Chef Tony Quartaro. Quartaro, who has experience at Balena and Formento’s, will now lead the catering operation. He currently runs Gemma Foods, a pasta manufacturer in West Town.

When reached on Wednesday afternoon, Tentori texted that he wasn’t ready to reveal his exact plans, but that he wasn’t retiring and that he “loves what he’s doing.” On Tuesday night at a reception for the Jean Banchet Awards, host Michael Muser of Ever joked about Tentori’s age. The underlying message was that Tentori has long been a mentor in Chicago and that he wasn’t going anywhere.

Stay tuned for more details on Tentori’s next move and Boka’s plans for the GT Prime space.

GT Prime, 707 N. Wells Street, last service will be Tuesday, December 31; an unnamed Boka project will replace the restaurant and is scheduled for a summer debut