Indian lawyer Asma Khan first began her dining career in her own Kensington home with a series of supperclubs.
After impressing with her authentic native dishes, the half Bengali and half Rajput owner chose to experiment with a new "pop-up shop."
She struck an agreement with Soho pub The Sun and 13 Cantons, Great Pulteney Street, to use an area of the facility as her own restaurant while she waits for a permanent location.
Khan, who grew up in Calcutta and Hyderbad gathering inspiration from culinary traditions, cultivates her menu using and mix of Calcutta Mughlai, Hyderabadi and food from north India.
When you walk into the pub its surroundings are dark and cosy, with a classic mix of wood and candles that carries itself into "pop-up" area.
Though you can't escape the feeling you're fine dining in a pub and not a restaurant, its potential is enormous.
Starters
On the starter menu, you can choose from Masala Fries, Masala Peanuts, Paneer Samosa, Puchkas, Papri Chaat, Beetroot Chop and Mutton Shikampuri Kebab.
After overcoming a welcome decision headache, my friend Joe and I decided to go for the Beetroot Chop (£6.50) (below, left) and the Masala Fries (£3) (below, right).
The Spice Bengali is spread into four chops, and biting into them was a highlight of the night with a warm beetroot covered in crisp croquette.
Spicy enough to need a sip of water but not too spicy to leave you needing litres of it, the smoked chilli and sesame chutney that comes with it offers up a gorgeous addition.
Meanwhile the Masala Fries offer crispy chips well worth ordering for the splendidly sweet but not so spicy tamarind sauce.
Drink
Currently the Darjeeling Express does not offer alcoholic drinks, which you will have to order at the bar of the The Sun and 13 Cantons.
Luckily me and Joe are in the midst of Dry January , so we opted for Masala Chai (£3) which made us glad we didn't head to the bar.
It's an Indian tea cooked with garam masala and ginger offering a milky, smooth finish. My only complaint would be that, for £3, I wish there had been a little more.
Mains
If, like me, your experience of Indian food has revolved around a core of dishes including Korma, Jalfrezi and Tikka Masala then you're in for a surprise.
Its menu throws up a choice of Methi Chicken, Goat Khosha Mangsho, Venison Kofta, Prawn Malikari, Niramish, Courgette Bhaji and Gobhi Aloo Mattar.
A far cry from the sugary take-aways you may be used to, this menu offers up organic Indian dishes that the restaurants owner made two separate visits back to India to harness.
I went for the Prawn Malikari (£15), a Bengali specialty of Tiger Prawns cooked in coconut which I would throughly reccommend.
I'd advise sampling the sauce with a spoon, since you're tasting generations of recipes passed down in just a single taste - a truly quality dish.
Joe's choice of Venison Kofta (£14), offered a similar case of organic bliss, offering tender meat in highly rich, creamy tomato sauce.
The verdict
Given that this is a "pop-up" shop it would be unfair to accuse it of lacking the fine dining service and experience one would expect from its brilliant menu.
While Ms Khan waits for a space to renovate into her own restaurant, you will have to put up with the pub view and noise in the background.
But although the menu doesn't offer the sheer volume of dishes one would expect from an Indian, the dishes that we tried give it five star potential, so don't be surprised if it hits the big league in a few years.
Getwestlondon gives Darjeeling Express four stars out of five.
