If you haven't heard of Bundobust, this collection of restaurants in the North of England bring together two of life's simple pleasures: a curry and a beer. For nearly a decade, the brand has been serving up Indian street food and the best from local craft breweries in the likes of Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool.
The Birmingham branch has a beer hall vibe with long tables for communal-style dining and drinking. The space is large, light and lofty, with high ceilings and exposed pipework, pendant lighting and beer brewing equipment. The overall feel is relaxed with an industrial-cool vibe - the perfect place for enjoying a few drinks with your mates.
The concept is devised by Mayur Patel and Marko Husak, two friends and self-confessed Bradford boys, who between them tick off boxes as a chef with generations of Indian food heritage, and a pioneering craft beer bar owner. Both the food and drinks menus complement each other, so to start with you'll find the beer snacks, such as Far Far which are colourful rice puffs dusted with a special blend of spices, spicy nuts and papads and kichu, a mix of flavoured poppadom with onions, pickle and chilli.
Across the larger dishes you'll notice some South Asian takes on American classics like Bhaji Butty, which is like a burger but with a Bhaji patty, smothered with salad and chutneys, or the Vada Pav, which is a deep-fried mashed potato ball in a bun with red and green chutney. In other news, the Paneer Kadai with simmering Paneer cheese in a rich sauce is one to check out, as is the Gobi Manchurian, which is an Indo-Chinese mash-up with cauliflower and mushroom pakoras.
Beer wise, expect an expertly-curated selection of craft brews specifically chosen for their relevance to the area, so ask your server for their thoughts on what to choose.