DARJEELING EXPRESS
Second Floor, Kingly Court
Your menu is changed every eight weeks to reflect the seasonality of vegetables from organic British producers. Why did you introduce this? Most Indian households eat seasonally, and almost everyone buys from the local fruit and vegetable market. I wanted to maintain that traditional ethos of shopping from the Sabzi Mandi (vegetable bazaar) at Darjeeling Express. Seasonal and local produce tastes so much better! Very exciting that you were the first British chef to be featured on Netflix's 'Chef's Table'. How did you use your voice to promote sustainability? In the film we go to my family's mango orchard, and my father talks about the value of the soil and its importance to my family. I talked about the damage being done to the lives of farmers in developing countries who are being encouraged to grow specifically sized produce for British supermarkets. The farmer gets hardly any money and the middlemen make all the profit. The family of the farmer, who would previously be fed by produce grown in the land, struggle to make ends meet with the cash they get for their produce. All restaurants should buy locally and reduce the carbon footprint on their menu by reducing the number of items they fly down from distant countries. If you could choose a dish from your menu to best describe you, what would it be? At the moment the chicken chaap onnour from our special menu. It's a subtle, korma-like dish made with chicken cooked on the bone. It's only made in Bengal and Bangladesh, where my maternal family comes from. It's a fragrant, gently spiced heritage dish with royal roots.
Asma Khan, Chef and Restaurateur
What do you love the most about Carnaby, and why is it the perfect home for Darjeeling Express? I love the buzz of Kingly Court. You immediately feel transformed to another world. For me, the courtyard reminds me of my home in India in the summer, on the second floor with all the windows opened. In winter, the roof and beautiful lights remind me of the winter marquees of my family weddings. It fits so well with the food we serve!
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