New Delhi, June 27 -- Bengali mothers are adept at coaxing their children into eating every part of the fish. "Chew the heads, they're good for you", "eat the tel (innards), they are delicious", "don't discard the skins, they have good fats", and so on. "My mother cooks macher tel like a mishmash with vegetables, and it's something I cannot have enough of even today," says head chef Avinandan Kundu, who reimagines his mother's recipe in the form of dolma, the stuffed leaf parcels believed to have originated during the Ottoman times, at Sienna in Kolkata. The restaurant, known for its playful approach to Bengal's diverse food culture, offers small plates and bar bites featuring fish and meat offal.

to-tail eating as a culinary practice tr...