Sambol

I have no sense of direction. Forget about getting lost in the rainforest or in a blizzard while trying to save the sheep—I nearly drove off a pier in Santa Cruz. Don’t laugh. It was dark. I got lost in Dallas with GPS, and even the non-navigationally impaired will admit that MapQuest can be misleading. Or, maybe, you are already well-versed with the labyrinth known as Yankee Doodle Road and its winding side roads, and thus need no precautionary advisories. The whole point is not to be afraid: Go to Sambol. It’s a very nice Indian place serving the loveliest of black lentil dal, called “makani,” for $8.95. A better option might be biryani with chicken, lamb, or vegetables ($10.99–$14.99), served with basmati rice. There are also some Sri Lankan options, such as appam or “hoppers”—rice flour baskets with a fried egg inside that you fill with vegetable or chicken curry ($9.95–10.95)—and the tangy-tasting stellar seeni sambal onion chutney. Wash it all down with excellent Madras coffee and, if you are like me, you will be so pleased that you won’t care how you get back to Kansas. PS: Sambol has a lunch buffet, and there’s a pet store next door.

1260 Town Center Dr., Eagan, 651-688-8686