I’ve walked past the signs outside advertising their “$1 happy hour” many times, so I had to drop in and see for myself. My verdict is that it pays to be picky at Maharaja.

The restaurant is divided into two sections: a standard-looking Indian restaurant in front, and a dim, dark lounge in the rear, where no Indian employees were to be found. The lounge’s decor is straight hipster dive bar.

The Happy Hour specials were indeed cheap: $1 for your choice of naan, veggie samosa, some sort of pakora, and tandoori chicken ($2 well drink purchase required). Given the decor and the exceedingly low prices, conventional wisdom dictates choosing the well-fried options, but we didn’t, and the chicken came out undercooked. Lesson learned – don’t expect a lot from $1 happy hour food.