I have a confession to make: I am not a foodie. I eat mainly for sustenance, and the joy of my day does not hinge on food. Even so, in the late evening at the end of a 12-hour working day in the lab, I find it difficult to think of anything other than food. I am like any other organism in nature. I need energy for my survival, and unlike my hoverflies, I cannot subsist solely on pollen and sugar! On these nights, my stomach often leads me to a small family-run, street-side eatery that serves home-cooked South Indian food in the traditional style of Tamil Nadu (pronounced Thuh-mil Nah-doo), which is the state where my parents grew up. I greet the Tamilian owners, have a seat and prepare for a unique culinary experience.
The owners of the Tamil eatery immediately know my order every time they see me because I always ask for the same dish: dosa (pronounced dhoh-suh) with chutney. Dosas are crispy, savory crepes that I eat with my hands, and chutney is the sauce into which I dip pieces of dosa. The food is as inexpensive as it is tasty. One dosa costs only 20 rupees, or $0.29!
