Ep23 — Bundobust Crank it up a Notch

Ever since I first tried the vibrant, deliciously spiced food at its original Leeds site back in 2014, I have been besotted with Bundobust. It’s 100% vegetarian/vegan menu changed my preconceptions of what a modern Indian restaurant offering could look like. Especially one with such a focus on craft beer—which is more often associated with food such as American barbecue (and its many regional variants) or other meat-focused fare. 

Although it was definitely the eclectic beer offering that first drew me in—and has made me something of a regular—Bundobust helped me understand, and get excited about regional variances in traditional Indian cuisine. A few years ago I probably wouldn’t have been able to tell you what bhel puri was, or about the delights of the (now albeit somewhat ubiquitous) vada pav. But now this style of cuisine feels familiar, and comforting. Perfectly at home in the lively, modern surroundings Bundobust has set it within. 

But Bundobust founders Mayur Patel and Marko Husak are not content with operating just three successful restaurants. Venues that have received seriously high acclaim in the national press. In 2021 they’re expanding by opening their own brewery, which is housed in a soon to open fourth site on Manchester’s busy Oxford Street. For the past eight months, recently hired head brewer Dan Hocking has been toiling away on a brand new brewing system, fine tuning recipes which finally saw the light at the end of June 2021. 

I was delighted to have the opportunity to catch up with Mayur, Marko and Dan, and find out why they’ve decided to move into this direction. It was also the perfect opportunity to dig into the origins of the restaurant, as well as ask a few questions about the bigger picture, such as the gentrification of Indian food, and where Bundobust sees itself in relation to that. We also dig into the beers themselves, and where the restaurant sees itself going in the future. 

Here’s a couple of links to pieces mentioned in this episode:

Jaega Wise talking about sexism in the drinks industry for BBC Radio 4’s The Food Programme

Zarina Muhammad’s article “I Hate Dishoom” for The White Pube