Indian street food favourite Bundobust has given its menu an Indo-Chinese lift with a host of exciting new specials.
Four new dishes have just launched at the Leeds-born restaurant, as Bundobust celebrate the historic culinary craze of crossing Chinese cooking styles with classic Indian spices and vegetables, reports The Manc.
Inspired by the fiery fusion of Indian and Chinese flavours that began in Kolkata and swept worldwide, the new specials are informed by the cuisine’s hybrid origins - with a special Bundobust twist.
Image: The Manc Group
Think salt and pepper okra fries, 'prawn' gobi toast (deep-fried garlic and ginger minced cauliflower sesame soldiers served with a Coconut Korma dipping sauce), hakka noodles and battered tofu pakoras in a spicy sauce.
The Bundobust take on Kolkata’s key Indo- Chinese dishe, named after the Hakka-speaking Chinese immigrants that established India’s first Chinatown, promises soy-sauce coated Indo-Chinese spiced noodles with red and green peppers, cabbage and mushrooms.
Meanwhile the new tofu dish - a big first for Bundobust - offers a modern Chinese re-imagining of the classic Chennai Hotel Buhari 1965 recipe, served in a sauce rich with Chinese Five Spice, curry leaves, garlic and mustard seeds.
The Leeds-born indie eatery will serve the special menu starting from Monday 18 July from their restaurant on Mill Hill, just outside Leeds Train Station, as well as their venues further afield in Manchester and beyond.
All four specials can be ordered alongside existing Bundobust staples and are best enjoyed with Bundobust’s very own beers - served exclusively in their restaurants via the Bundobust Brewery.
Beer fans are encouraged to try the house-brewed Bundobust coriander lager, masala chai porter and tropical pale ale, all of which have been designed to complement Bundobust's dishes.
Feature image - The Manc Group
Eats
Sheffield restaurant crowned one of the best local restaurants in Britain for 2026
The Good Food Guide has just released its list of the 100 best local restaurants in Britain – and one in Sheffield has made the list.
The latest edition of the Best 100 Local Restaurants list celebrates the very best venues that are loved by their communities.
A team of reviewers and inspectors scour the country to find the best of the best, and this year a beloved Sheffield restaurant has earned its rightful place back on the list.
The Orange Bird over in Hillsborough is an award-winning South African restaurant that may be small in size, but the flavours coming out of the kitchen are anything but.
Images: The Sheff
The Orange Bird has become one of the city’s biggest word-of-mouth food spots, with locals flocking there for its bold, modern South African-inspired cooking and seriously impressive braai dishes.
And if you’ve ever tried getting a reservation, you’ll already know just how in-demand this place has become.
Run by Anne Horner and Matthew Duggan-Jones, The Orange Bird has built a loyal following thanks to its vibrant menu packed with smoky, fire-cooked flavours, quality local ingredients, and dishes made for sharing around the table.
Images: The Sheff
But don't just take our word for it, here's what the Good Food Guide said: "The Hillsborough district of Sheffield is home to Matthew Duggan-Jones' homage to his South African heritage, in which the braai barbecue is a long-standing social tradition.
"Behind the Orange Bird’s dark-hued facade, there is always the infectious feeling of a party going on – 'it’s consistently delicious, exciting and inviting,' notes one local."
The Orange Bird was placed at number 54, which we think is pretty good going.
You can read the full list by the Good Food Guide here.
Read more: The Hillsborough restaurant redefining bold South African flavours in Sheffield
Featured image - The Sheff
Eats
Leeds restaurant crowned one of the best local restaurants in Britain just three months after opening
Clementine Hall
The Good Food Guide has just released its list of the 100 best local restaurants in Britain – and three Leeds spots have made the list.
The latest edition of the Best 100 Local Restaurants list celebrates the very best venues that are loved by their communities.
A team of reviewers and inspectors scour the country to find the best of the best, and this year three restaurants in Leeds have earned themselves a place on the numbered list.
One in particular has been included just three months after opening.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
The Smithfield opened in April taking over the old Reliance space on North Street, and it's safe to say they had very big shoes to fill.
But they have done with ease, celebrating Yorkshire produce to a crowd that are overjoyed to see the space being brought back to life.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Here's what the Good Food Guide had to say after awarding The Smithfield with 80th place: "Opening in one of the city’s most hallowed restaurant sites was always going to invite comparison. In its day, the Reliance was a much-loved neighbourhood haunt that became the gateway drug for a generation of Leeds foodies, and a return to its burgundy paint job was a statement of intent from its new owners.
"Head chef James Donovan's CV includes Clerkenwell's Rochelle Canteen, and you don't have to do much dusting to see the Fergus and Margot Henderson's nose-to-tail fingerprints: pig's head, ox heart, hogget, and a meritocratic approach to the menu with produce leading the way – occasionally nudged along by a well-timed dollop of gribiche or a slick of bisque."
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Elsewhere on the list, it won't come as a surprise to see that the ever-so-brilliant Bavette has been crowned in 16th place. Described as a "convivial neighbourhood bistro in the northerly suburb of Horsforth" that perfectly exudes a "Franco-Yorkshire alliance".
And lastly for Leeds, the ultra-cool Empire Cafe takes spot 31 where "owners Sam Pullan and Nicole Deighton have done a grand job here, rekindling the nostalgia while making the place feel emphatically of the moment, 'high-class yet down-to-earth'."
It's a trio of great wins for Leeds' foodie scene, and you can read the full list here.
The Hoot -
19th July 2022 
