At Drāvida, chef Aarthi Sampath explores the Indian diaspora — and finds a home in the East Village

Interview and photos by Stacie Joy 

Chef-owner Aarthi Sampath opened Drāvida at 211 First Ave. in late May, bringing together dishes inspired by Indian and South Asian communities worldwide. 

The restaurant is Sampath's first venture as an owner after some 15 years working as a chef. She's also a familiar face to Food Network viewers, having appeared on "Chopped" and "Beat Bobby Flay." 

Sampath, who moved to the East Village this past year, describes Drāvida as a love letter to the South Asian diaspora — shaped by years of travel, research and encounters with people whose families have roots in India but whose food traditions developed elsewhere.

We talked with her about opening her first restaurant, finding a home in the East Village, accommodating diners with dietary restrictions and what happens when a dish unexpectedly goes viral. 

How did you come to open Drāvida? 

I've been a chef for the last 15-ish years, since I came to the U.S.

Living in New York City, such a melting pot, I don't think I would have met as many people from the South Asian diaspora as I did here. You meet someone from Guyana whose grandparents were from India, or someone who's Malaysian-Indian because their ancestors left home for trade reasons. That's what inspired me. 

I kept working on the concept and traveling to different countries to explore the South Asian and Indian diaspora. What it really means is looking at what happened when Indians and South Asians left their home countries, whether for trade or as indentured workers. The spice trade created so much diversity around the world. That's the food we explore. 

Drāvida is a love letter to South Asians who live in New York. I met a South African Indian here! I don't think I would have met them anywhere else unless I visited South Africa. 

I wrote a rough draft of the concept in 2018 and started pitching it to investors. Everyone seemed to say it was too unique, too different. They'd ask, "Why don't you just do something that's tested, like a normal Indian restaurant?" 

But I didn't want to. Despite so many no's, I wanted to keep my motivation high. 

Eventually, I became a partner with CookUnity, the meal-delivery platform, and that helped me get the restaurant. That's how I was able to do it on my own. 

What made you choose the East Village? 

As a young cook, I worked on 23rd Street and 29th Street, near Broadway, and the East Village was one of the only places open late at night. We'd finish work at 11 or 11:30 p.m., and I felt like I belonged here. It reminded me of Mumbai because there's so much food, so much culture. 

Now that I've been living here for the last six months, I feel like this is community. I never felt that on the Upper West Side, where I was living at the time. I was a struggling cook, but I could always find something inspiring here, whether it was the best pizza slice, an excellent cookie or dessert, or amazing Chinese food. 

It was inspiring to see something new crop up in the East Village and feel like it was accepted. I'd walk from Second Avenue to First Avenue to Avenue A and B, sometimes late at night to get a nice cocktail. Even if I didn't have any money, I could feel alive just walking around. I felt like I was part of these parties, even if I wasn't.

How did you find this particular space? 

When I started looking for restaurants, I wanted to be in the East Village. 

The concept was so unique that I couldn't imagine seeing Drāvida anywhere else and people being interested in it. I looked at several locations, but when I walked into this space and saw the wood-fired ovens, I felt a sense of calm. [Ed note: Luzzo's was in this space until 2022.]

This was the first place I walked out of and immediately asked for a quote. Maybe it was the goodwill of the previous place. It could be a lot of factors. I believe in that. 

The wood-fired ovens were important because we're living in a world with so much AI and automation. We're even talking about robotics in kitchens! I thought it would be nice to go back in time and cook food from the start of it all, which is just fire. 

How many restaurants in New York get to do that? And I didn't know anything about how to open a restaurant.

You recently opened a downstairs speakeasy, Jam & Jaggery. Tell us about it. 

We've been open for several weeks, on Fridays and Saturdays for now. We'll eventually extend to other days. 

I met a mixologist from Brooklyn who's a partner in a bar called Mr. Mellow. I asked if he could help us. We only do low-ABV drinks, so I wanted really nice cocktails using lower-alcohol spirits and liqueurs. 

He's done a wonderful job, and the response has been great.

Is the drink menu different from upstairs?

Yes, it's separate. The upstairs drinks are more chef-inspired and seasonal. We just changed the menu for fall. We have a persimmon colada and a nice fall chai. We use chilies and make a spicy lemonade.

Downstairs is quieter, more of a speakeasy atmosphere, with spirit-forward drinks. But everything ties into the diaspora. We use spices, herbs and teas from different parts of the world.

How do you accommodate diners who are vegan, vegetarian or have food allergies or other dietary restrictions? 

We had someone come in who couldn't eat dairy, ginger or garlic because of religious dietary restrictions. We said, "Don't worry, just give us a little time." And we made her ramen without those ingredients, from scratch. 

I come from a hotel background. I've always thought we just have to make it happen. Even if we can give someone only one or two options, we should. She was almost in tears. She said that every restaurant she goes to in New York tells her they don't have anything for her, but we'd just made something. 

I don't have allergies, but I can't imagine what it would be like to live with one and not be able to eat so many things. We train our team to be considerate and come to the kitchen. We always try to make something. 

We have one dish with nuts, and we avoid peanuts and seed oils. I try to eliminate a lot of allergens myself so it's easier for us to work around restrictions. If there's a gluten allergy, maybe gluten is just one element of a dish. We can take it off and substitute something else.

What's been the best-selling dish so far? 

It's the blue crab curry ramen. Someone came in, ate it and posted about it online. It went viral. 

We realized we didn't want to make more than a certain number because the quality would start declining. The noodles are made from scratch. 

We also really like the crab we use and don't want to substitute another kind. There's a limited supply of jumbo lump crabmeat. So that's definitely the most popular dish. 

My personal favorites are the lobster and the lamb chops. Those are probably my top two of all time. 

But it's hard to choose because I love the crab ramen, too, and the chicken tikka masala. We put so much thought and time into testing every dish. I love them all!

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Drāvida is at 211 First Ave., between 12th Street and 13th Street. Find more information on the Drāvida website and Instagram.