Vijay Kumar
Chef Vijay Kumar
Executive Chef and Partner Semma
In 2021 Vijay Kumar packed up from San Francisco, where he was working as a chef, to travel cross country to New York City and work with restaurateurs Roni Mazumdar and Chef Chintan Pandya whose Unapologetic Foods group is known for presenting Indian food honestly and authentically. In October of that year the trio opened Semma, serving heritage Southern Indian cuisine inspired by Chef Vijay’s upbringing. To date Chef Vijay and Semma have received world-wide critical acclaim including Vijay being the winner of the prestigious James Beard Foundation award Best Chef New York State 2025 and placed as the #1 restaurant of the year on The New York Times Top 100 Restaurants in New York list. Upon its debut Semma was named a Top Ten Best New Restaurant in America by Bon Appetit; Esquire; and as one of the Top 50 Restaurants of the Year by The New York Times. In 2022 Semma was awarded a Michelin star, an honor it has held every year since, making it the only Indian restaurant in New York City with that recognition.
Vijay grew up in the humblest of settings on a family farm in a small town near Madurai, located in the Southern part of India. The eldest of three children, Vijay helped his mother and grandmother in farming and cooking. It was this childhood upbringing where his passion for fresh ingredients and cooking arose.
