A spotlight on sustainability: Bundobust

With deep roots in the Indian street-food culinary circuit, Bundobust has captured hearts with its rich flavours, perfectly executed traditional dishes, and fantastically filling combos. Opening up shop way back in 2014, the North of England was about to be welcomed to the flavours of Indian street-food, served up with an icy cold beer alongside it.

With vibrant, fresh pops of colour, and an excitable team behind them, the Bundobust brand was born, and they never looked back. Since then, they’ve branched into their own brewery, creating modern beers brewed on-site at their Manchester Oxford Street restaurant, as well as introducing Indo-Chinese cuisine to the menu.

These days, signature dishes include:

• Vada Pav: A Mumbai street-food staple, Bundobust’s Vada Pav is a delectable combination of spiced potato dumplings served in a soft bread bun, accompanied by tangy chutneys and crunchy green chilies.
• Okra Fries: Crispy, golden-brown okra fries seasoned with spices, providing a delightful crunch with every bite.
• Bhel Puri: A refreshing mix of puffed rice, chopped vegetables, tangy tamarind sauce, and crunchy sev (fried chickpea noodles), Bhel Puri is a flavour explosion that captures the essence of Indian street-food.
• Bundo Chaat: Layers of samosa pastry stuffed between a chickpea, potato, onion, sev, and chilli sauce mixture. Served cool with yoghurt and tamarind chutney.

You can’t forget to add a side of their buttery, flaky puri bread for dipping and mopping purposes.

We could go on about Bundobust’s expansive mouth-watering menu (and we certainly have before), but it’s their sustainability practices that are the latest and greatest thing to come from the restaurant. Now, finally, forged as a beacon of successful casual dining in the North, as well as becoming a critically acclaimed and widely regarded game-changing operation, Bundobust is changing their focus to how they can run as sustainably and green as possible.

To start, beers are brewed on a small scale, using only the best ingredients, cutting out the carbon footprint of the need for a middle-man and relying on large-scale brewery operations.

It’s also hard to ignore the cultural traditions of Indian street-food and the connection to vegetarianism. Bundobust’s street-food roots allow them to offer more vegetarian dishes than usual, as well as the option to request a majority of the menu as vegan dishes when you order. Less meat and seafood on the menu means they can cut down their impact on methane production and overfishing concerns.

Bundobust’s signature sustainability feature, however, is their Vegware dishware.

A sure sign that you’re about to tuck into a delicious dish is their white disposable plates and bowls, made from bagasse – a reclaimed sugarcane that is completely compostable. Using once-use compostable Vegware eliminates Bundobust’s need for an industrial dishwasher and non-recyclable tableware, meaning they’ve life-hacked their way into minimising their water and energy usage.

Though still operating as a small-business, they’ve managed to create a ripple effect in their sustainability efforts. Inspiring other Manchester venues to follow their plastic-free ethos as part of Manchester’s Plastic-free Pledge in 2019, they’re highlighting the small changes that make a big difference. Your drink may not come with a biodegradable straw, but they’re on the counter if you do choose to use one – using biodegradable products doesn’t mean Bundobust are not conscious of excessive usage. You can certainly feel the passion behind their sustainability efforts in all of the little things.

You already know Bundobust is serving up some of the most delicious Indian fare in the North of England, and now you can dine with peace of mind that you’re doing your part to heal the planet, bit by bit.

You’ll find Bundobust in Liverpool, Leeds, Manchester’s Piccadilly, Manchester’s Oxford Street, and Birmingham.