Neha Biriyani Private Limited

We are based in the Guindy Industrial Estate at D6. If you know this part of Chennai, you know it’s full of workshops and small factories. Neha Biriyani Private Limited fits right in because we’re basically a big kitchen geared towards making large amounts of food. The 600032 area is always humming with the sound of machinery and trucks. Our day starts really early, way before the sun is up, because biriyani takes time to cook properly. We have these massive pots and we use a lot of firewood or big gas burners. It gets incredibly hot in the kitchen, especially during the middle of the day. Our staff is mostly men who have been doing this for years. They don’t need recipes; they just know how much spice to throw in by habit. We don't have a fancy dining room with air conditioning. It’s more of a functional space where the food is prepared and then sent out to various spots or served to the local workers. There’s always a bit of a mess with rice husks or onion peels, but we try to keep it as clean as a busy kitchen can be. We aren't trying to be fancy or win any awards. We just want to make sure the food tastes right and there’s enough of it for the lunch rush. It’s hard work, but it’s what we do.