Dum Biryani

I got out of the car, just about to enter my favorite Thai place, but the "Dum Biryani" sign outside the neighboring restaurant was just too inviting to be rejected. I ventured inside, saw a cash register and three people talking about the Biryani. "I know I'm not supposed to lavish praise on my own food, but the Biryani here is really the best I've had. I wouldn't make such a claim if I didn't believe it", said one man in Urdu.

The biryani indeed lived up to the talk. The raita having run out, I asked one of the people emerging from the cooks' area, and one of the three at the front if I could have another cup.

He came up to me and plainly said, "I don't work here". He then sat at the table beside mine and started eating his own biryani with his wife and child.