Whether you’re a fan of culinary cross-pollination or just loaded nachos/fries/[insert substrate here], you’ll leave this gustatory lineage story with a growling stomach. And if you’re lucky enough to live near a place that serves sizzlers? Well, you’ll just have to try to beat me there.

About ten minutes after we put in our order, I hear a loud hiss and crackle, and there’s so much smoke coming off the dish coming out from the kitchen that I can barely see what it is. The sizzler looks like a plate of loaded french fries, except much more complicated. At its base, I see rotini and penne pasta mixed in a bright red sauce, like penne alla vodka, but mixed with grilled onions, bell peppers and paneer. On top of that sits two large samosas, green chutney, thinly sliced cabbage and carrots and shredded cheese. It’s all served on a sizzling hot platter in the shape of Nandi, a Hindu sacred cow.