38th street between 7th and Broadway is a fairly typical, generic midtown-Manhattan block. A Cava here, a Dig Inn there, a behemoth parking garage, a Crunch Fitness… and then you come to a massive photorealistic mural of an Asian woman in a cheongsam with a sultry finger held to her lips, peeling back a red velvet curtain. That image adorns the facade of Sei Less, the restaurant where on any given night you might stumble upon French soccer star Kylian Mbappe and Celtic guard Jaylen Brown exchanging workout tips, rapper Fabolous splitting chicken satay with his kids, or New York City Mayor Eric Adams celebrating a French Montana album release. The shushing geisha is a classic image communicating privacy—Sei Less’s chief promise.
It’s the ideal spot for someone with a relatively high public profile—a rapper, basketball player, a music industry exec—who wants to get a bite to eat, but nothing overwhelmingly fancy. A place that’s a good time, but not a whole thing. A place where privacy is guaranteed, but maybe you’ll also get a flick or two off. And most importantly, the vibes: the vibes are essential.
Sei Less is is Dara Mirjahangiry and George Karavias’ glitzy, timely, Asian Fusion-flavored answer to a void that has existed in the wake of the pandemic. In a few short months after its January 15 opening, the restaurant has become a favorite among a select slice of the sports and entertainment world, a junction where elite athletes, rappers, entertainment execs meet, a clubhouse to the stars.
The Sei Less restaurant exterior on 38th street.Courtesy of Sei Less.
Walking through the restaurant is as visual as it is gustatory. In the lobby, beyond the beckoning mural, one is confronted with actual velvet curtains and once you step past them, a small neon sign bearing a mission statement of sorts, “I’M HERE FOR A GOOD TIME, not a long time —Drake.” Up a curving staircase, past the maitre d’ podium, is the first section of the large dining area. On the left are a bank of five tables, , while on the right is an expansive, handsomely stocked bar with large floral arrangements positioned on either end. The far wall sports a keyhole mural; this one with a crouching tiger emerging from it.
Off the left of this main dining hall is, perhaps, Sei Less’s key feature—the largest of three private rooms that important clientele are able to call ahead and reserve for privacy. This particular room seats about 20, and, in February, it was one of the many stops the artist formerly known as Kanye West made during a night out on the town in celebration of his then-girlfriend Julia Fox’s birthday. After taking in a Broadway show and grabbing drinks at Lucien, Ye and Fox shuttled up to Sei Less where friends 2 Chainz and Fabulous were already dining. Former Def Jam president, Kevin Liles, who was also there that night, told me that the room was where Ye previewed a still-in-progress version of Donda 2.
Mirjahangiry and Karavias are stalwarts of the New York nightlife and hospitality world who have been building towards something like Sei Less for years. Mirjahangiry, a New Jersey native and child of Iranian immigrants, originally worked in real estate, selling mortgages. Following the 2008 housing market crash, he made the switch to hospitality, secured a job at a popular Upper East Side Asian fusion restaurant, and soon found that his black book was filling up with names like Kevin Durant and French Montana. Born and raised in Brooklyn’s Bensonhurst neighborhood, Karavias got his first taste of nightlife as a teen promoting parties for his uncle’s club in Queens. He’s been in the business since, working as a promoter for many years before starting his own company, Dream Hospitality Group. These days, you can find him throwing parties with 50 Cent and DaBaby in Mykonos.
Jordan Coley
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