When India and Pakistan meet in the Cricket World Cup, opposing fans will have a favorite dish in common

Chicken biryani at the Royale Restaurant & Bar in Carle Place, New York. Marco Postigo Storel for NPR hide caption

The most anticipated game of the Cricket World Cup may be the Pakistan-India game on Sunday. The nations are bitter rivals, and their cricket teams rarely meet. There is one thing their fans do agree on, though: Biryani is the best thing to eat at a cricket match. The rice dish is a favorite all over the Indian subcontinent. Each culture has its own way of preparing biryani, but the desi restaurants in the area around the World Cup stadium in East Meadow, N.Y., are used to serving up multiple styles.

Each of the three biryani shops closest to the stadium in Eisenhower Park has halal meat, restricted beef options and a range of vegetarian dishes. But the most popular item on all three restaurant menus is the biryani.

Fans arrive for the Sri Lanka versus South Africa Cricket World Cup match at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium at Eisenhower Park, N.Y., on June 3. Marco Postigo Storel for NPR hide caption

Biryani became associated with cricket partly because of the sport's format. The oldest version of the game lasts five days. Fans eat multiple meals from early morning until evening. The breaks in the play are even named after mealtimes. The World Cup format is much shorter, about as long as a baseball game. But in any format of cricket, there's a long pause before each play. It's the perfect amount of time to scoop meat, rice, yogurt and other condiments onto a spoon.

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There are over 35 kinds of biryanis across the Indian subcontinent, with each city offering varying flavors. Like cricket, the Indo-Pak rivalry plays out over biryani as well. Vegetarian biryani is more popular in India, along with chicken and mutton — but not beef, which most Hindus avoid. In Pakistan, meat biryani is more common — but never pork, which is forbidden in Islam.