Photo: Tessa Belle Dillman
Baizy Keflay ↑
Restaurateur, Lower East Side
What did you do at Indochine?
I was a server, starting in 2005, for like seven years. I was known as the girl with the head wrap. That was my signature look.
Has much changed about this place since you left?
The staff now is just younger and hotter. Every generation has a different vibe. I would like to say that when I was working here, we had the most fun. We were wild girls. We were not just pretty. We were all characters.
It seems like people love working here.
I’ve worked in many restaurants, but Indochine was a place that allowed me to be myself. It never leaves you, wherever you go. I opened a restaurant in the Theater District recently. A customer walked in, and he was like, “Oh my God, aren’t you the Indochine girl?”
Hailey Rose
Server and model, Noho
Virginia W. Alleyne
Server, Upper East Side
Gale Scott
DJ and student, Chelsea
What’s it like to run into co-workers you haven’t seen in a while?
Everyone looks so beautiful. Everyone is glowing. Their eyes are sparkly.
Samuel Alfiler
General manager and actor, Los Angeles, California
What do you remember about managing this place?
It’s fucking hard because there’s a legacy to uphold. You have to put on a smile when everything underneath is burning. It’s something I draw on now that I’m an actor.
Tasha Henry
Actor, Astoria
Diana Lannes
Photographer, Los Angeles, California
Huy Chi Le
Restaurateur, Kensington
Rahel Ghebremichael
Model, Lower East Side
What’s the dress code?
Chic.
Sakae Ishikawa
Video editor, East Village
Richard Serpica
Handyman, Bay Ridge
Iman Jazmin Brown
Model, actor, and maître d’, Los Angeles, California
Any good stories from working here?
Every time anyone meets me, they say, “Oh, Iman, like David Bowie’s wife.” She’s a regular here. One time, we’re in the bathroom together. She’s washing her hands, and I’m like, “Hi, Iman. I’m Iman. Every single time I meet someone, they mention you.” She looks at me and says, “Okay. Yeah, whatever you say, lady in the bathroom!”
Eligha Ojok Weiss
Model and EMT, Bedford
Emily Wallace
Beverage director, Noho
Did you have a favorite night on the job?
One Sunday, my friend and I were working a double shift. This lovely gentleman came in with his son and asked for a mezcal-rinsed vodka martini. Then he promptly tipped us a thousand dollars.
Dylan Thompson
Maître d’, Bushwick
Angélique Renarde
Multidisciplinary artist, Bedford-Stuyvesant
Taviana Dansby
Freelance architect and server, Bedford-Stuyvesant
What’s it like meeting former staff?
We treat them almost better than celebrities because you see celebrities here and it doesn’t really surprise you. But when someone who hasn’t been here in a decade or two comes in, that’s when we freak out.
Blaire Spicer
Event director, Bushwick
Photographs by Tessa Belle Dillman
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If you prefer to read in print, you can also find this article in the August 24, 2026, issue of
New York Magazine.
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If you prefer to read in print, you can also find this article in the August 24, 2026, issue of
New York Magazine.