People of South Asian Cuisine
New York’s Hardest Table Serves Village Tamil Food
Semma’s Vijay Kumar took Natham farm cooking to a Michelin star, a James Beard, and the Times No. 1 slot without milding the menu down.
September 30, 2026
Section
Culture
Diaspora stories, identity, and modern South Asian hospitality essays.
Featured
People of South Asian Cuisine
Asia’s No. 1 Restaurant Was a Bangkok Emoji Counter
Gaggan Anand’s progressive Indian room stacked five Asia’s 50 Best No. 1 finishes, survived a 2019 reboot, and left later tasting menus a permission structure.
September 30, 2026
People of South Asian Cuisine
Taste the Nation Put Immigrant Cooks in Charge of the Story
After Top Chef, Padma Lakshmi moved the microphone so diaspora cooks, not “discovery” media, explained American food.
September 30, 2026
People of South Asian Cuisine
How Vikas Khanna Became the Indian Chef America Could Name
Junoon, MasterChef India, Bungalow, TIME 100: the climb that made “Indian chef” a job with a public name.
September 30, 2026
Culture
Indian Regional Cuisines Explained
North, South, East, West, Northeast, and Central cooking differ by grain, fat, sourness, and heat. Here is a working atlas for diners and home cooks.
August 19, 2026
Culture
A PBS Series Is Finally Filming South Asian America Outside the Coasts
Spice Road Season 2 sends Rupak Ginn through Midwest kitchens from Indienne to Amar Pizza, treating heartland Desi food as American food.
July 25, 2026
People of South Asian Cuisine
Darjeeling Express Turned Auntie Skill Into a Payable Kitchen
Asma Khan’s all-women London room pays South Asian home-cook skill as chef work, and treats open sightlines as labor policy.
September 30, 2026
Culture
The Auntie Food Business Model
Home kitchens, WhatsApp orders, and the informal economy that feeds diaspora neighborhoods.
July 22, 2026
Culture
Why 'Indian Food' Is the Wrong Menu Category
Restaurant taxonomy flattens regions — and what diners lose when everything becomes curry.
July 22, 2026
Spice Desk
Spice Literacy: How to Read a South Asian Kitchen
Culture, history, region, memory, and taste from pantry to spice box
July 4, 2026
All in Culture
Reader Masala Dabba
Reader Masala Dabba: What's in Slot Seven?
A recurring prompt — what your seventh spice slot reveals about how you cook.
July 15, 2026
Culture
South Asian Potluck: What Should You Bring?
Avoid the third tray of paneer by answering five questions about the guest list.
January 5, 2026
Culture
Second-Generation Hosting: New Tables, Old Logic
How diaspora millennials adapt thali pacing, potluck rules, and festival guest lists.
July 23, 2026
Culture
Restaurant Families: Who Actually Runs the Kitchen
The split between front-of-house story and back-of-house labor in South Asian restaurants abroad.
July 23, 2026