Punjabi Grocery and Deli

We didn't realize it at the time, but it's clear from the pictures that we're somewhat ashamed of the homeliness of the dishes we selected from Punjabi Grocery & Deli, a (you guessed it) Punjabi takeway and bodega on the Lower East Side. Golly, we hadn't realized we were so shallow, and we certainly didn't feel shallow as we made carb shovels out of the roti and plowed through the curries with spinach, potatoes, and chickpeas as well as dal. Still, the truth is that the stars of this particular show were the warped pakoras, fried vegetable nibblets that showed, again and again, that while beauty might belong to the beholder, the belly judges using a different set of criteria.