The verdict: fake meat never did taste so good, even to non-vegans.
Vegetarians and vegans in Leeds are likely to be aware of the culinary masterminds at Bundobust. Widely regarded as a game changing and critically acclaimed enterprise within the independent food and drink industry, Bundobust has forged itself as a beacon of successful casual dining in the North since opening its doors in Leeds back in 2014.
Now, in an era where meat substitutes taste just as good as their vegan alternatives, the Indian Street Food company have collaborated with Meatless Farm to inject meaty-tasting dishes to their plant-based menu.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Inspired by its Gujarati roots, the Bundobust offering has always been 100% vegetarian, with around two thirds of the menu completely plant-based but this partnership marks the restaurant’s first venture into meat substitutes with Meatless Farm’s plant-based chicken and meatless mince allowing the Bundo team to explore more traditionally meat-focused Indian dishes.
The only way to try the full menu is the Bundo Does Meat Combo for Two, available for just £31. As meat-eaters and vegetarians, The Hoot Leeds' team took on the sharing platter to give our two pence to see if we could tell which meat was being replicated by each dish.
The Keema Matar was a standout favourite. The iconic mince and pea combination is a plant-based deeply flavoured spiced curry, cooked in a classic, dry-fry Karai style with cinnamon, bay leaf, onion, and chilli- delicious wrapped in Puri.
The plant-based butter chicken was also well received. The vegan spin on the decadent, creamy classic with Meatless Farm’s new chicken has all the rich, tomatoey goodness of traditional butter chicken with plant-based kick of chilli and fenugreek, just without any real meat.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
We'd like to take this space to shoutout the onion bhajis at Bundobust- they're crispy on the outside, soft on the inside and every crumb tastes of an incredible fusion of spices. Dare we say they're the best we've found in Leeds so far?
Paired with Mushroom Pilau Rice, a simple dish of mushrooms, cumin, and lemon with classic basmati rice and Puri, we'd happily taste any of the Bundos Does Meat combo instead of our classic meat or cheese fuelled curry orders. There's not the same food coma feel- you're still left full, but refreshingly so rather than making you feel tired.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Although refreshing post-meal feeling might have something to do with the Brut Luxe, a special vegan 0.5% brew made with Nelson Sauvin hops and white oak on a lager base, and that upon sampling didn't make us feel like we were missing out on actual booze.
If you want a completely soft drink to wash down your Bundo's meat, there's plenty of those to choose from too. Including the Cloudwater Soda’s Spiced Fruit Chaat, a low-cal adult soft drink made with mango, pineapple, passion fruit, and Mosaic hops or Bundo’s Vegan Chai, a comforting blend of oat milk, massala and sugar – plant-based, gluten-free and delicious.
When speaking about the new menu, Mayur Patel, Co-Founder at Bundobust, said: "These specials are something we’ve been working on for months. We experimented with a selection of meat substitutes, and Meatless Farm products lent themselves best to Indian food. Both Bundobust and Meatless Farm are Leeds born businesses focusing on meat-free offerings, so it made sense to work together on these new limited edition specials.”
Meanwhile, Co-Founder Marko Husak, said: “These dishes are different to our usual Gujarati influenced menu. It was so much fun working with our Chef’s using their regional expertise and heritage to create some more traditional curry house dishes.”
Image: The Hoot Leeds
The menu is available for a limited time only, so make sure you make the most of Veganuary and use it as an excuse to taste the famous Bundo flavours in a whole new way. For more information, including how to book at their Leeds restaurant, you can find more information on their website.
A renowned brewery have announced that they will be taking over the reigns of a popular craft beer bottle shop in Ilkley.
Fuggle & Golding opened in 2015 on Leeds road in Ilkley and quickly grew a loyal following with locals and visitors alike.
Sadly they announced last month that their last day of trading would be Saturday 28 February, news which was met with huge disappointment.
However this is no longer the case, as Horsforth Brewery is set to reopen the venue on Wednesday. Hooray!
Announcing the welcomed news to Instagram, Horsforth Brewery wrote: "When we saw they were going to close we were determined to not lose another great venue from the local beer scene.
"We owe a massive thank you to George and the landlord for getting a deal across the line in quick order.
"We’re going to take a few days to put our stamp on the place and then we will be open on Wednesday!"
"Obviously we will be stocking our beers here but as anyone who knows will know, we love the beer scene so we will continue to have a good amount of guest beer on as well. We’ll even been joining in with the biggest beer launches from around the country.
"Want to know the best news? We’re doing this solo. No outside interests, no investors, no debt. In the current climate being able to organically grow like this is so so hard and it’s thanks to all our team that we’ve been able to do this.
"We’ve always been determined to grow our business in a healthy and sustainable way; it may have (absolutely has) been tough over the years but we’ve got ourselves in a position to take us to the next level in a sustainable way."
British Pie Week 2026 – all the best places to find a pie in and around Leeds
Clementine Hall
Sweet, savoury, filled or plain: pies are a staple in the British diet.
It's the best week of the year...it's British Pie Week, not that we need much of an excuse to celebrate that flaky, buttery, melt-in-your-mouth pastry, but we're taking all the excuses we can this week to embrace all things pie related.
We've rounded up al our favourite spots to grab a pie, as a lunchtime snack or on the go in the city centre - so take your pick, whatever the occasion.
Dave's Pies and Ales
Kirkstall Road, Burley | Open from 5pm
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Dave's Pies and Ales is locally known as the smallest pub in Leeds - and whilst the menu and seating area might be teeny, what it does do, it does well.
Choose from a range of pies and peas with classic ales on tap to choose from inside this micropub 12-11pm every day of the week.
Whitelocks Ale House
Turk's Head Yard, just off Briggate | Kitchen open from 12pm
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Whitelocks is known in Leeds for its Sunday Roasts, warm fire and homely pub ambience- but their pies are the unsung heroes on the menu.
The beef and ale pie is made from Yorkshire Meat Co. beef, a Wetherby-based supplier that brings beef from the likes of Tancred Grange Farm in Richmond to Leeds. This one is served with chunky chips and sautéed seasonal veg, seat by the fireplace optional.
Pieminister
Duncan Street, Leeds city centre | Open from 12pm
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Available as a Sunday roast, bottomless brunch or just a plain old (but beautifully presented) pie and mash, Pieminister is famous for its pies for all the right reasons. On the shelves in your local supermarkets and available as a sit-down scran on Boar Lane, Pieminister is a place where pies are guaranteed to make up the majority of the menu options.
Finer Pleasures
Multiple locations
If you don't know about Josh at Finer Pleasures, then you're seriously missing out. Josh is somewhat of a pie-oneer (sorry), and is the master of creating weird and wonderful pie creations from lasagna pies to gammon, egg and pineapple pork pies.
You can find him over in Crossgates most Wednesdays, but you're best bet is to keep an eye on his socials for the best chance on bagging one of his pies. Trust us, they're like gold dust.
Wilsons Butchers
Austhorpe Road, Cross Gates | Open from 7.30am
Image: Wilsons Butchers
Located in Armley, Morley and Pontfract - Wilsons Pies and Pasties is a small indie chain from Wilsons Butchers and crowned champions of the Yorkshire Small Pork Pie Championships.
At lunch time, the shops offer a true Yorkshire delicacy of pie and mushy pies with optional (but essential) mint sauce. All Wilsons pies and pasties are made using locally sourced produce in Garforth, so these a true Leeds pies, and well worth sampling.
Sophie Smith -
14th January 2022 
