I sometimes wonder if I was born as an Indian rather than belonging to a particular region because of my love for good food from every corner in India. The food that completely lifts my mood up is Fish Fry and fresh river water Fish Curry in mustard gravy (I am not a Bengali or have any ancestral connections to Bengal), the drink I enjoy the most is fresh Madras Filter Coffee and chilled coconut water, again having no connection to Southern Part of India.
The best home-made meal I have ever had (of course apart from the food cooked by mom) was an Onam Feast on banana leaf where I ate at least a kilo of rice with 5 course of various curries/chutneys and curd, though my staple daily food is roti and sabzi as a north Indian. The best non-veg I have ever had was not at the famous Kareem’s in Delhi or Bade Miyan at Mumbai but at a small restaurant called Sheesh Mahal en-route to Mahabaleshwar.
Whether it is the rich local Rajasthani meal at Chowki Dani, Jaipur or the amazing sea food, omelets and the local desert called “Bibinca” in Goa, I feel elated to be staying in the nation of spices where each region has such varied cuisines and such endless delicacies to offer and wonder if food can ever be a source for national integration! :)
