It is a fact universally acknowledged that a Bong loves her maach bhaat, although it may or may not be true all the time. Bengali cuisine is as diverse as Rabindranath's poetry and a Bong's favourite food can range from biryani—albeit with the ritual boiled potato and egg and unquestionably mutton—to aloo posto, which to explain to the uninitiated, is potatoes cooked in a paste of poppy seeds. But we bear the reputation of being compulsive fish and rice eaters, whether one is or isn't, with much grace in our interaction with all our Non-Bong friends, much like the bored smiles we crack at cracks about our tendency to eat everything — tea, water, alcohol.