New York’s Only Indian Restaurant With A Michelin Star Reclaims Its Crown Again – News18

Last Updated:December 10, 2024, 5:12 PM IST

For another year, Chef Vijaya Kumar’s South Indian restaurant in New York, Semma, has maintained its Michelin star.

Chef Vijaya Kumar’s Michelin-starred South Indian restaurant, Semma, in New York City, has once again retained its prestigious Michelin star, showcasing the enduring excellence of Indian cuisine on a global stage. Securing a Michelin star is a remarkable achievement that demands consistent brilliance in food, service, and ambience. Celebrating the accomplishment, food critic Vir Sanghvi extended his congratulations to the chef and his team on X (formerly Twitter).

“Congratulations to the amazing Chef Vijay for retaining his Michelin star for Semma in New York. Congratulations also to Chintan Pandya & Roni Mazumdar who run the group behind Semma,” food critic Sanghvi said.

Taking to Instagram, even Semma shared a post about the big news. “We’re thrilled and honoured to announce that @semmanyc has retained its Michelin Star for a second year!”

Who Is Chef Vijaya Kumar?

Natham, a tiny hamlet in Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, is where chef Vijaya Kumar was born and grew up. He enrolled in and completed a culinary program in Tiruchy in 2001. He owned and ran the Dosa and Rasa restaurants in San Francisco. Before it was shut down in 2015, the latter was awarded a Michelin Star. He worked with Chintan Pandya and Roni Mazumdar of Unapologetic Foods, a restaurant chain that owns a few Indian restaurants in New York City.

Vijaya Kumar was immediately drawn to Unapologetic Foods and sought to build a restaurant serving real South Indian cuisine that wasn’t tamed for the New York audience.

The menu at Semma, a Chettinad eatery that means ‘awesome,’ includes dishes from Kumar’s early years that highlight Tamil Nadu’s microregional cuisines. Within a year of opening, the restaurant’s first Michelin star was awarded.

“My grandmother lived in a remote area near Natham. People used to cook and eat nathai there, which many in the urban landscape find absurd. During my vacations, we used to sit in paddy fields and relish the flavourful nathai pirattal, enjoying the picturesque view,” in an interview, chef Vijaya Kumar told DTNext.

Specialities like Kudal Varuval (goat’s guts or intestine) and Naithai Pirattal (snail curry), which are not typically found in mainstream south Indian cuisine, are served at the well-known restaurant.