It’s easy to take for granted the main benefit of winter: your body is more camouflaged than usual. Once spring arrives on the avenues, coats peel away to reveal pouchy bellies and jiggling thighs. So if you haven’t by February, it’s time you indulged in the most surpassingly indulgent of heart-attack snacks, while you can still pack another fleshy layer under that sweater.

I can only be talking about poutine. If there’s a reason to love Canada, it’s because they thought of packing a styrofoam cup with freshly-cut fries, layering in cheese curds, and topping it with extremely thick, scalding hot chicken gravy. The potatoes absorb the salty gravy while remaining slightly crisp at the ends, and the curd gobs soften, especially in the melty center of the bowl, and squeak a little in your teeth. For optimal poutine enjoyment, it’s best to find someplace that imports the cheese curds and gravy from Canada, such as Pommes Frites in the East Village; otherwise you may be getting lousy diner-version cheesy fries. Don’t plan to do much of anything afterward except curl up in front of the TV, holding your engorged tummy.

Gourmet poutine: Sheep Station and Inn LW12 on NYTimes.com

Poutine, $4.50 for a small at Pommes Frites, 123 Second Ave. at 7th St.
11:30 am-1:00am open til 3:30am Fri and Sat