How NYC's only Michelin-starred Indian restaurant serves 200 people from a tiny kitchen

Insider

At Semma in Manhattan’s West Village, executive chef Vijay Kumar and his team of 35 work in sync each night to deliver New York City’s only Michelin-starred Indian dining experience. Between grinding spices, slow-cooking curries, and perfecting their signature gunpowder dosa, you’ll see everything it takes to prep and execute a full-service dinner for more than 200 guests from a kitchen the size of a studio apartment.

Transcript

00:00There are more than 400 Indian restaurants in New York City.

00:04But Sema is the only one that has a Michelin star.

00:07It's 3 p.m. in Manhattan's West Village.

00:10And in just two hours, 15 kitchen staff will serve more than 200 people

00:15from a kitchen the size of a studio apartment.

00:18And Chef Vijay Kumar is in charge of it all.

00:22During the service, the kitchen is, it feels very intense.

00:26I mean, things may go wrong. Nothing is predictable.

00:27The goal is every single day, every single day,

00:31that comes from the kitchen is as perfect as possible.

00:33And we are trying for the best.

00:36You're about to see everything it takes to run a full service

00:38at one of New York's busiest kitchens.

00:41And as usual, it's a packed house.

00:53Sema is a restaurant where it serves food that's been eaten

00:56in the rural part of Tamil Nadu, another part of southern India,

00:59which is cooked apologetically.

01:01A few hours before service, the kitchen's already hard at work.

01:05Some dishes need hours of slow cooking to build flavor.

01:09And every detail has to be perfect.

01:11In a Michelin-starred kitchen this small,

01:14consistency comes from making everything from scratch,

01:17by hand, every day.

01:19All right, so this is where the most magic happens.

01:22They cook almost like five to six dishes at the same time.

01:26As you can see, all the big parts.

01:27They're cooking beef over there.

01:29They're cooking biryani right here and the two other dishes.

01:31It's all happening at the same time.

01:34So this is Chef Rajesh.

01:36He's like my cousin.

01:37He's been following me Jody for more than a decade.

01:40Every place we work, we always work together.

01:43So he does all the curry and same thing.

01:45So he's literally like my family right here.

01:46The modest size of Sema's kitchen makes a tough job even tougher.

01:58But somehow, the team makes it work.

02:01It doesn't run on fancy equipment,

02:03just well-worn burners and muscle memory.

02:06Everyone knows exactly where they need to be.

02:09I mean, as you can see, this is very challenging.

02:11They cook like five or six dishes at the same time, a big part.

02:14I mean, they have to make sure, like, you know, they don't burn anything.

02:17They have the right amount of spices.

02:19And they, you know, there's a lot of factor that goes into cooking, as you know.

02:23Like, so they have to stay really, really focused.

02:26Out of this tight space comes Sema's signature dish, the gunpowder dosa.

02:31It takes precision and timing to get right.

02:34But the dosa master makes it look easy.

02:37It's second nature for him, which makes him essential to the kitchen.

02:40This is Chef Raj.

02:44We call him dosa master, and he also cooks some of the curries.

02:47He cooks, like, at least 100, 100 to 150 dosas a night.

02:53This is Jose.

02:54Jose will be making, like, tons and tons of dumplings.

02:56There's a dish called paniaram.

02:58So that's the one he makes the paniaram the whole night,

03:00and he takes care of other props, too.

03:02Like, he makes the potatoes for dosas,

03:03and he does other kind of props and everything for the service.

03:05This is Marcos.

03:08This is Cesar.

03:09So I have to tell you a very interesting story about these two.

03:12So they used to be a dishwasher before.

03:14So they asked me, approached me, like,

03:15Chef, is there any way that I can be a prep cook?

03:17I can be in the kitchen?

03:18Like, you know, I was like, I love this.

03:20When someone, you know, asks me, like, you know,

03:21they want to grow, they want to learn,

03:23I really want them to give an opportunity.

03:25Like, I saw the pie in the eyes, like, you know,

03:27they really want to learn.

03:28So I just gave them an opportunity to be a prep cook,

03:31and then they're actually working on the line right now.

03:33Marcos, he is actually taking over the line

03:35when I'm not in the kitchen.

03:36Can you leave this?

03:37Like, you know, this is what food does.

03:39As long as if you have, like, you know, interest,

03:41and, you know, if you have a dedication,

03:43everybody can do it.

03:44Like, you know, you don't have to have

03:45a highly trained chef in the kitchen

03:48to produce good food.

03:49So I think the most important thing you have

03:50is a good heart and dedication

03:52and seriousness and sincerity.

03:56All right, it's almost 3.30 now.

03:57The front of the house team just started arriving.

03:59They started sitting on the tables for the service.

04:01There are only 65 seats in the restaurant,

04:04and tonight, 172 reservations on the books.

04:08We just get booked, like, two weeks in advance.

04:10Every single day, we have about, like,

04:121,300 to 1,400 people on the notify list.

04:14Doors won't open until 5 p.m.,

04:16but outside, a line has already formed.

04:19Each guest is hoping for one of 12 walk-in bar seats.

04:23By mid-afternoon, the kitchen is in full swing.

04:26Prep's nearly done, but no one slows down.

04:29It's a full house tonight,

04:31and every station has to be ready

04:32for the moment orders start rolling in.

04:37All right, gentlemen, let's go.

04:40The first wave hits fast,

04:42with starters, breads,

04:43and the dish almost everyone orders.

04:46That's 210, dosa?

04:48Yeah.

04:49Once the dosa grill starts,

04:51it does not stop.

04:54Batter hits hot steel.

04:55A lace edge forms,

04:58and a shower of spiced podi,

04:59known as gunpowder,

05:01finishes the dish.

05:02You know, Indians from other part of India,

05:04they think that, you know,

05:05southern Indian food is only about

05:07either idli or dosas, right?

05:08So we just wanted to break the barrier.

05:10We didn't want to put dosa on the menu,

05:12but now the dosa is one of

05:14the most signature dishes on the menu now.

05:17At peak service,

05:18the crew moves dozens of these

05:20every few minutes.

05:21While the dosa station keeps firing,

05:33the next wave of dishes hits the line.

05:36Guys, B10, please.

05:37Scallops.

05:38Take the whole tray.

05:39The plate is hot.

05:41Guys, 201 mushroom,

05:42207 prawns.

05:45As orders build,

05:46a few of Sema's staples

05:47start showing up on tickets.

05:49Roadside khalan is one of them.

05:51Spiced wild mushrooms

05:52finished with fennel,

05:54coriander,

05:54and a few hand-placed flowers.

05:56Simple to eat,

05:58but tricky to plate.

05:59All right, guys.

05:59206 mushroom, please.

06:01206, sir.

06:03Guys, poriel,

06:04205 to poriel.

06:05205 to poriel, please.

06:07Okay, it's two beef.

06:08101, 303.

06:12Marcus, I need to come here

06:13for a few minutes.

06:14Help me out.

06:15By 6 o'clock,

06:16the kitchen is running flat out.

06:18Tickets are piling high,

06:19but nothing stalls.

06:21As one dish is plated,

06:22the next is already firing.

06:24Guys, one more lamb chum.

06:26Okay, the four pieces of lamb chum

06:27goes to 101, please.

06:29101.

06:31Lobster solo 302.

06:33The parada's coming up.

06:36The plate is very hard, guys.

06:37Very good.

06:37Very, very hard.

06:39104, 304.

06:41Oh, it's kind of a little crazy.

06:44Guys, I need more.

06:45I need some help.

06:48Okay.

06:50Eggplant, cooker ice.

06:51101, eggplant, cooker ice.

06:52101.

06:52And 102, eggplant, cooker ice.

06:55101, 102.

06:56101, eggplant, cooker ice.

06:58102, eggplant, cooker ice.

07:0015 cooks, shoulder to shoulder,

07:02moving as one team.

07:04There's no extra space

07:06and no wasted motion.

07:08Their pace never slows,

07:09but Vijay still watches each plate

07:11to make sure every detail is perfect.

07:13Uh-oh.

07:15Fix it, fix it.

07:16It fell down.

07:18You know it's going to fall, right?

07:19You have to look for a space

07:20that doesn't fall right here.

07:21Look at it.

07:24Lamb chops coming up now.

07:27Jessica.

07:28The fish goes to 102, please.

07:30Fish, 102.

07:32Yeah, can you take one lamb chops

07:33to 206?

07:36It's been a long time, though.

07:37I saw him just pick one a little bit.

07:38206, yeah.

07:39One dish leaves the kitchen

07:41in limited numbers.

07:43A Dungeness crab feast for two,

07:45inspired by chef's childhood.

07:47It's locally sourced,

07:49labor-intensive,

07:50and must be ordered in advance.

07:52So it finds its way

07:53to just five tables each night.

07:56Particularly in Tamil Nadu,

07:57we make really good crab masala.

08:00And every single one is saying

08:01that this is one of the best crab I've ever had.

08:03I'm not bugging it.

08:03It's from the guests.

08:04Sorry.

08:06All right, now it's...

08:07Things are getting clear now.

08:10That means it's almost done.

08:12So, good.

08:13That was a little intense.

08:16For a few hours every night,

08:18Sema runs at full speed.

08:21Then, as the last order's clear,

08:23the volume drops,

08:24and the team exhale.

08:26Good job, guys.

08:27Let's go.

08:28There you go.

08:28Yay!

08:30Good job.

08:31From this tiny kitchen

08:32comes a huge reputation,

08:34and a nightly sprint

08:36ends how it began.

08:37Back to prep.

08:39As the chefs prepare

08:40to do it all again tomorrow.

08:42With or without a Michelin star,

08:44their standard is the same.

08:46Make every plate count.

08:49There's two of some, please.

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