Punjabi Dhaba

There’s an off-kilter charm to this tiny Inman Square dhaba (“truckstop”), the kind of counter-service joint that serves its food on institutional stainless-steel compartmented trays and blasts Bollywood videos from aging TVs with tinny speakers. PUNJABI DHABA’s customers don’t come for the ambiance, but the heaping plates (well, trays) of fresh, piercingly seasoned Northern Indian fare at ridiculously affordable prices. You can gorge yourself on a two-curry platter (chicken and vegetable) with two fulkas (pieces of flatbread), a crisp samosa, chutneys, raita, and a mound of rice for $8. If only more American roadside restaurants were so good, cheap, and tasty.

PUNJABI DHABA | 225 Hampshire Street, Cambridge | 617.547.8272 | royalbharatinc.com