Although Columbus famously "discovered" India by landing at Lexington and Concord and proudly ringing the Liberty Bell, the actual location of India remains a mystery. Today's Groupon offers the best lead the world has had in centuries: for $18, you get $40 worth of Indian fare at Anarkali Indian Restaurant, an authentic eatery specializing in Bengal- and Northern India–based dishes. Today's deal is good for dinner, dine-in, or carry-out, but it is not valid for lunch.

Since 1983, Anarkali has been serving plates every day of the year without fail. Like the mail service, steaming envelopes filled with meat or vegetables, called samosas ($2.95), arrive to awaken the senses come rain, shine, or bootlegged rainshine. For a lighter option, the Anarkali salad ($5.95) mixes greens with mushrooms, paneer, cilantro, flour crisps, rice puffs, and tamarind dressing. Main events include the coconut-curry-soaked chicken ($11.95–$20.95) and the shrimp tikka ($15.95–$22.95), served with tomatoes and sautéed in masala gravy. Dinner entrees all come with soup, rice, and hot tea or coffee and can be ordered mild, medium, hot, very hot, or a level of hotness beyond words that can only be expressed with a cartoon of the sun eating a coyote.

Reviews

Anarkali made CityVoter's Top 5 Indian Restaurants list in 2008. Yelpers give Anarkali 3.5 stars on average, and Citysearchers give it a four-star average:

• The service was great, which sometimes can lack at some Indian restaurants. – Tanbrown3, Citysearch
• Finally, this past weekend I went there with a friend and I was amazed at how good this restaurant was...The Chicken Tikka Masala was excellent and Shrimp Vindaloo was simply superb. – LivingstonH, Citysearch
• I am a regular customer of Anarkali and I have to say that their food is absolutely delicious. They are very friendly and accommodating to the needs of their customers. – elewis402, Citysearch