Ask Neel Kajale about his first meal of the day and you’ll get a surprising answer: there isn’t one, at least, not really.
As chef de cuisine of Adda, the Unapologetic Foods restaurant that traded its Long Island City canteen digs for a polished East Village dining room, Kajale spends his days tasting rather than eating, be that sauces, proteins, garnishes, and whatever else his cooks put in front of him from the moment he walks in around 1 p.m.
“People often have this perception that chefs are constantly eating,” Kajale said. “The reality is quite the opposite. By the time service is over, all we want is one simple, comforting meal.”
For Kajale, often he finds joy in that simplicity with a plate of grilled chicken or fish with dal and rice, eaten late at night, which hasn’t changed much since he broke into hospitality in India.
The Mumbai-born chef came up through the Institute of Hotel Management in Mumbai and the Culinary Institute of America before landing at Eleven Madison Park. He then joined Dhamaka as a sous chef and worked his way up to running the kitchen. Now at Adda, Kajale helped shape the restaurant’s headline act: a butter chicken experience smoked tableside, built around house-churned butters, Maine tomatoes, and chicken from a cooperative of Amish farms in Lancaster County.
We caught up with Kajale to hear where he eats after a long shift, where he takes visitors from Mumbai, and why he believes Indian food — not just regional Indian food — is finally having its moment.
On Indian Food’s Moment
Kajale pushes back on the framing that regional Indian food is having a moment. To him, it’s bigger than that. “I think Indian food as a whole is finally having its moment — and it’s about time,” he said. “For far too long, Indian food was pushed into this category of ‘ethnic cuisine,’ a label I’ve never liked.”
He credits the Unapologetic Foods team with helping shift that, cooking Indian food with confidence and integrity rather than diluting it to fit outdated expectations of a late-night, post-drinking curry-house. The city is rapidly turning into an epicenter for some of the best Indian restaurants in the world, and the trajectory reminds him of another cuisine’s arc.
“What Japanese food did in New York 20 years ago is what Indian food is doing now. It’s becoming a cuisine that people actively seek out.”
The Butter Chicken Experience at Adda
“The whole philosophy behind Adda is reinterpreting and reimagining the classics,” Kajale said. “We take a familiar dish, completely break it apart, and then put it back together in a way that’s exciting, while preserving its integrity.”
Butter chicken, a dish nearly every Indian restaurant in New York serves, was the obvious candidate. Kajale and chef Chintan Pandya kept asking themselves how to change the butter chicken game — and landed on tableside smoking, not as theater but as a way to walk guests through every component, from tastings of the house-made butters to the stories behind the ingredients. Just don’t ask him which combination to order.
“I always tell guests that it’s their butter chicken experience,” he said. “Every pairing changes the flavor in a subtle way, so no two experiences are exactly alike. It’s not my butter chicken, it’s theirs.” 107 1st Ave., East Village, addanyc.com
A More Forgiving Diner Than You’d Expect
You might assume a chef who trained at Eleven Madison Park and ran the kitchen at Dhamaka would be the toughest guest in the room. Kajale says it’s the opposite. “When you’ve spent enough time in professional kitchens, you know exactly what’s happening behind the scenes,” he said. “You appreciate the effort before you critique the outcome.”
“Chefs are often assumed to be the toughest guests in the dining room, but in my experience, it’s usually the opposite. The more time you spend in kitchens, the more grace you extend to the people working in them.”
An After-Service Smash Burger
Kajale noted he works better on an empty stomach, a conscious choice, since he’s tasting all through service anyway. After the last ticket, it’s a different story. A late slice on First Avenue always hits, or dumplings and dim sum if anything’s still open.
But one spot rises to the top: the flagship 7th Street Burger, right across the street from Adda. “A double smash burger — especially the jalapeño smash — is always hard to resist,” he said. 91 E. 7th St., East Village, 7thstreetburger.com
Rezdôra and Cote
“New York is one of those cities where you can have some of the best versions of almost any cuisine,” Kajale said. So when friends or family visit from Mumbai, the pick depends on the craving.
For Italian, “it’s Rezdôra, full stop”. His unforgettable order is the limited white truffle pasta the kitchen runs when winter truffles are in house. “It’s buttered noodles with white truffles on steroids. That’s how I look at it!” Rezdôra: 27 E. 20th St., Flatiron, rezdora.nyc
For a shared, celebratory meal, Kajale points to Cote’s Butcher’s Feast — one of his favorite meals in the city. He steers first-timers toward the dry-aged ribeye and the marinated short rib galbi.
“You get to experience a variety of cuts, all grilled with incredible precision right at the table,” he said. “It’s interactive, delicious, and just a great way to share a meal with family or friends.” Cote: 16 W. 22nd St., Flatiron, cotenyc.com
Japanese Food at Odo
On his day off, Kajale craves anything but Indian food, be that Sichuan, Thai, Italian, Japanese. When it’s Chongqing-style fried chicken, he heads to Han Dynasty. But the meal that’s stuck with him most recently is Odo, the two-Michelin star kaiseki spot tucked behind a hidden entrance in Flatiron.
“It was one of the best Japanese meals I’ve had in a long time,” said the chef. Crafted by chef Hiroki Odo, the tasting menu moves through a series of precise, seasonal courses, and a few stood out to Kajale in particular: the A5 wagyu, served with salt and a special pepper; the uni with tofu and chawanmushi, the Japanese savory egg custard; and the black sea bass sashimi. It’s the kind of meticulous, ingredient-forward cooking a chef notices — restrained where it counts, with nothing extra on the plate. 17 W. 20th St., Flatiron, odo.nyc
Razza, a New Jersey Pizza Destination
Ask Kajale where to find the best pizza in New York and he doesn’t hesitate — though his answer crosses the river.
“Like Pete Wells famously said, the best pizza in New York City is in Jersey City. I’d have to agree. For me, it’s Razza.” He’s been a fan of Dan Richer’s Jersey City pizzeria for years, and the appeal comes down to fundamentals done right.
“The dough is incredibly light and airy, the ingredients are exceptional, and every topping feels thoughtfully chosen,” he said. His order is the Santo, which layers Italian sausage, tomato, cheese, and chili oil into a combination he calls “just fantastic.”
But he’s quick to add that pizza, more than most foods, is about context. “If it’s 1 a.m. and you’re starving after service, a great New York dollar slice can taste just as satisfying,” he said. “I’m not precious about pizza. Sometimes the best slice is simply the one that’s in front of you when you’re hungry.” 275 Grove St., Jersey City, razzanj.com
Caffè Panna
Kajale doesn’t have much of a sweet tooth — with one exception. “If I’m in the mood for dessert, it’s almost always ice cream. I love Caffè Panna. It’s absolutely worth the wait.”
His order runs classic. “No pun intended, but I’m very ‘vanilla’ when it comes to my ice cream flavors,” he said. “The hallmark of a good ice cream parlor is how well they do their classics like vanilla and chocolate, and Caffè Panna does justice to those.” Morgenstern’s earns an honorable mention, too. 77 Irving Place, Gramercy Park, caffepanna.com
Eleven Madison Park and Naks
For milestones, Kajale’s first choice is his alma mater. “If you let the team at Eleven Madison Park know you’re celebrating something meaningful, they’ll go above and beyond,” he said. “I don’t think anyone makes guests feel as special as they do.” Eleven Madison Park: 11 Madison Ave., Flatiron, elevenmadisonpark.com
He’ll also cop to a family bias: Naks, where chef Eric Valdez, his former boss at Dhamaka, is “cooking some of the best food in the city. I hope more people get to experience how special that restaurant is.” Naks: 201 1st Ave., East Village, naks.nyc
What’s Next: Indo-Chinese
At Adda, the mission stays the same: reinterpret the classics without reinventing for reinvention’s sake. Beyond it, Kajale has his eye on the cuisine he grew up eating.
“Indo-Chinese is my favorite cuisine in the world,” he said. “New York is the perfect city for it. People here already love Chinese food, and they already love Indian food. Indo-Chinese sits beautifully between those two worlds, yet it’s still largely misunderstood or underrepresented. I think New York is ready for it, and I’d love to be part of telling that story.”
