Pincode Bungalow is celebrity chef Kunal Kapur’s newest venture in Goa and the restaurant pays an ode to the places that we closely associate with our identity. Located at Vagator Beach, the space is inspired by the chef’s experiences of growing up in Delhi. In conversation with Outlook Traveller Eats, Chef Kapur shared stories from the capital, bits of nostalgia, and much more.
“Had life left it to parents, I would have probably been sitting in a glass cabin, handling files and attending meetings as a banker or a chartered accountant,” laughs celebrity chef, restaurateur, and author Chef Kunal Kapur.
Fortunately for us, he chose hotel management, spent years in kitchens across the country and the world, failed numerous times, but rose again and reached where he is today. Like most people who aspire to be chefs, Chef Kunal Kapur started his journey as a curious, young cook. Recalling one of his earliest learnings about why food tasted differently in different cities, he said, “My ustaad, who taught me to make Hyderabadi Biryani, had never been to Hyderabad. But when I visited the city and tasted the dish at its source, I learnt a lot about food and flavour.”
From that day to now, the revelation has shaped a lot of who he has become as a chef. Cooking is no longer about reproducing recipes but about chasing authenticity, paying homage to history, serving memory, and telling the stories that give the dish its identity.
For someone who once joined hotel management almost as if taking a chance upon fate, Kapur’s journey as a chef has been defined by a constant willingness to question, travel, unlearn, and relearn. And that’s what makes his food so comforting and close to home.
Behind the on-screen fame and many restaurants is still the same old novice who boarded a train to taste the “real” version of a dish he thought he already knew.
The Idea Behind Pincode Bungalow, Goa
Set inside a nearly 193-year-old Portuguese-style bungalow, Pincode Bungalow feels less like a typical dining destination and more like a lived-in home—one that tells stories of life and food.
Talking about where the distinct name finds its origins, Kapur says, “There were no Google Maps when we were growing up. An area’s PIN code was essential to communicate, travel, and identify where one came from.”
Today, while digital navigation has made addresses almost redundant, the concept of a pin code still evokes something rather intimate and familiar. It represents a place, a neighbourhood, an identity. And just as the name suggests, Pincode Bungalow stands as an amalgamation of everything that makes home, home: be it through food, the feeling of comfort, or just the kind of space you find yourself in.
Kapur also recognises pincodes as markers of food memories in his own life. Just as Delhi 6 immediately brings to mind the legendary lanes of Paranthe Wali Gali, each place in India has dishes inseparable from its geography. This precise philosophy, which ties food to place and memory, forms the emotional backbone of the restaurant.
When Kapur first encountered the bungalow, it was far from the warm, lively restaurant they’ve made it has become today. However, the fact that it was old and lived in gave it many possibilities.
Today, guests enter through wide lawns and leafy patios, moving through small, more intimately designed rooms before arriving at the larger dining area and the open backyard. And the sense of space feels quintessentially Goan.
Pincode offers three different kinds of spaces to diners: Indiroom, which is a coffee bar made for laid-back evenings, Baar Bar, a retro-Bollywood-inspired music room and cocktail bar, and the Glass House, the main dining area at Pincode.
“Certain places make the same sandwich taste different depending on where you eat it—at an airport, in your house, or inside a beautiful bungalow. The energy of the space changes the experience of the food, which is exactly what makes the experience of eating food here different from eating it somewhere else,” he says. Just like the experience of eating Hyderabadi biryani in Hyderabad could never compare to eating it anywhere else, eating comfort food where it feels most at home is incomparable.
The Story of Food at Pincode Bungalow
The best part about Pincode Bungalow is that the food itself is autobiographical. For fans of Kunal Kapur’s brilliant work in the culinary industry, it’s a treat to know that the menu doesn’t simply represent regions across India; it’s, in fact, trinkets of the many moments and culinary discoveries that have shaped Kapur’s life and identity as a chef.
When asked what kind of dishes would define his own pin code, the first thing that came to mind was chaat. “As a kid growing up in Delhi, if I finished my homework properly and was well-behaved, my mother would give me an extra five rupees. The next time I could be found running straight to eat chaat,” he said.
You can find a lot of Kapur’s childhood obsessions on the menu at Pincode.
“Every Sunday morning, my father would make a weekly visit to a small shop in Ramesh Nagar to bring pippe-wale chole and kulche for the entire family, and we would pair it with homemade lassi,” recalls Chef Kapur. To bring that memory to life, he has attempted to recreate those same flavours at the restaurant.
Another sentimental addition is a dessert inspired by his grandmother: doodh wali bread (milk-soaked white bread). Growing up in a joint family, Kapur remembers winter evenings spent tucked under rajaai (quilts) after playing outside, while his grandmother served bowls of warm milk with slices of bread, nuts, and tutti-frutti. “We were four kids, and every week she’d make it for us. I have tried to replicate the dish, and every time I try it, it reminds me of the evenings spent with her,” he added.
While memory plays a large role in shaping the menu, Kapur’s decades of travel and professional experience inform the kitchen’s technical side. From early training in Bengaluru and Chennai to working across different regions, those experiences often resurface unexpectedly during menu creation.
One example is mutton chops with Inji Puli, inspired by a sauce he first encountered while training in South India when he was only 19 years old. “Inji means ginger, Puli means tamarind. That sauce stuck with me for years. When we were designing the Pincode menu, it suddenly came back to my mind,” he said. Today, the dish featuring slow-braised lamb chops coated in a sweet-tangy sauce is among his personal favourites.
And hence, despite realising the vitality of creativity, Kapur draws clear boundaries around authenticity. “If I make dal makhani or butter chicken, I don’t play around with it at all. I keep it exactly as it should be,” he said. Innovation, he believes, should be subtle rather than overwhelming.
Innovation appears in playful reinterpretations such as a spiral potato chaat served with aam panna and passion fruit chutneys, or a tandoori avocado, where the fruit is marinated and cooked in a tandoor. The aim isn’t to reinvent Indian cuisine entirely but to subtly reframe familiar flavours without shocking the diner too much.
In Goa—where many venues focus primarily on nightlife—Kapur deliberately positioned Pincode as a restaurant where food takes centre stage. “It’s somewhere you can come as you are, be yourself, and just enjoy the vibe,” he says.
From Delhi to The Rest of the World: Kapur’s Journey As a Chef
While the chef has a Michelin-recognised space and several others up his sleeve today, there’s a lot more where that came from.
After earning his bachelor’s degree, Kapur found himself at a crossroads. “I joined Hotel Management thinking I’ll try it for a year. If it works, great. If not, I’ll go back and become a CA,” he recalls.
But the kitchen had other plans.
According to Kapur, culinary school gave him far more than just his passion. During his first year, he learnt the joy of expressing himself fully. As a shy student who rarely spoke up in public, he found confidence and a sense of belonging amid the clang of pans and the synchronous melody of service.
However, Chef Kapur insists that real education for anyone trying to master the culinary world only happens outside the kitchen and the classroom. “Travel,” he says, “changes everything.”
Recalling the biryani story, he claims that the revelation sparked a curiosity that has guided him ever since. If Hyderabad had so many variations of biryani, what about Lucknow? Kerala? Kolkata? Every region must have its own interpretation—not just of biryani, but of every dish. This opened the door to a lifelong pursuit of authenticity. That is, tasting food where it originates, understanding its context, and then translating those flavours into his cooking. “Travel isn’t an expense for a chef,” he says. “It’s an investment.”
On who really inspired his journey, Chef Kunal Kapur exclaims, loudly and as a matter of fact, that it’s none other than “the great Chef Sanjeev Kapoor!”
Like many young chefs in India, Kapur, too, grew up watching the legendary Sanjeev Kapoor on TV. After all, he made professional kitchens feel approachable and inspiring for an entire generation of aspiring chefs. “I used to watch him and think, if he can make this, maybe I can too,” he says.
Today, years later, the two chefs share a close professional relationship—something Kapur still takes pride in.
As a foodie at heart, his favourite dining destination is an answer that’s of interest to many. I almost expected an exotic spot in one of the many corners of the world. However, his answer, which came too quickly, was one very close to home. In fact, only a 5-hour train ride from Delhi. It’s none other than Punjab’s prize and honour, Amritsar! The city’s food, he says, is everything he loves about Indian cuisine.
What the Future of Food Holds for Kapur
Despite decades in professional kitchens and television studios, some of Kapur’s most memorable cooking moments have happened far away from restaurants. A wonderful anecdote he shares is of a reunion trip to Jim Corbett with friends he has known since before becoming a chef.
Gathered around a bonfire beside the Kosi River, Kapur says he was made in charge of the barbecue dinner. Unlike the controlled intensity of a professional kitchen, this meal was entirely unserious. No pressure to plate it well, no critics to tell him what works and doesn’t. “My friends kept asking, ‘Aren’t you tired? You’ve been cooking since the afternoon,” he laughs.
But I loved it. When I cook for friends and family, it’s completely different. You know that masti when you can let your guard down? Experiment without having to worry about being judged? So you cook. Unhinged, you cook without any boundaries. At the end of the day, there’s good food on the table no matter what.”
On what the future holds for food, three pennies shine brightest to him. Beginning with a significant rise in regional food, the chef discusses regional dishes popping up and taking centre stage in India.
The second big moment in the future of food is the rise of healthy eating. “A greater focus on sustainable options, less sugar, more fruit-forward, locally sourced and produced, no glucose, and just overall well-made and clean food is on the rise,” he adds.
And lastly, food as an experience, while already on the rise, is bound to fly even higher. According to the chef, this involves experiencing less popular cuisines, at-home potlucks and supper-clubs, and pop-ups.
In an industry where trends change overnight, Kapur has gradually learned to ignore them. Early in his career, he admits, he often followed what was fashionable in food. But eventually, he realised that trends are fleeting. Today, he prefers to focus on something more lasting.
Taste, he believes, must always come first. Presentation and storytelling can enhance a dish, yes, but they cannot replace the fundamental satisfaction of good food. “At the end of the day, food has to please the palate. Everything else can follow,” he concludes.
When asked what he would name a drink around his own journey, Kapur took a pause and finally said, “Legacy and Lime.”
“After 26 years in the industry, I hope I can call it a legacy,” he laughs. “A cocktail that’s a little rooted, spicy, limey, with a kick, and enough citrus to keep things interesting.”
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