“What is Nigerian food exactly? I cannot say that I know. And that is the beauty of our cuisine. We have over 250 ethnic groups, and that means we have over 250 methods of cooking. It might be [that the] asaro from Ijebu is different from [the] asaro in Abeokuta. And those variations really open us up … and it also shows our similarities. We all eat native rice, we all eat zobo, (sic) we all eat asaro in different ways.”

“Nigerians, I think in some ways we can have a sense of unity but when it comes to our food, we can be a bit tribalistic. People are like, ‘Ah! Me I don’t eat amala: what is that black Yoruba food?’ You might think it is not your food, but have you tried it? Have you truly experienced it?”

I first met chef Moyo at the premier Atije Experience pop-up back in May. Like other diners, I was shocked to see everyday dishes take on new forms and different food items, that I would have sworn before that day could not be eaten together, appear on the same plate. For example, the sweet potato puree and the egusi. I have seen the odd mix – egusi and white rice, egusi and bread – but uziza-flavoured egusi and sweet potato puree? That was a definitely first, and the main reason why the Atije Experience exists.

“I think one of our primary goals is just to encourage Nigerians to enjoy our food in different ways. I think Nigerian, West African food, we kind of relegate it to home food, celebration food, but it is not like special food, it is not like fine dining,” explains chef Moyo. “It is like we can all cook rice, we can all do this, but I think it’s opening our minds – including myself – to see that Nigerian food has more potential.”

Since Awari, Ms Odunfa has gone on to host two other food tasting events – Asiri and Ajowa. For now, she is focused on these pop-ups, which happen every 4-6 weeks, rather than on opening or running a traditional restaurant. “I guess in a sense, [what I do] is not very common, but I think it is something that a lot of chefs do. Even if I were to open a restaurant, I don’t think it would be typical. I think I would still want to do like a set menu. We might have different types of set menus, maybe for different days, or maybe like lunch versus dinner … but I don’t think it will be the regular ‘oh, let’s choose something off the menu.’ I think we would still use this concept because I really enjoy doing it.”

Moyo may have fallen into some sort of routine for the culinary pop-ups at the Atije Experience, but the challenges she faces in bringing people together to discover Nigerian food in a whole new way have not abated in any way.

“Nigerians, we love our food [but] if I can just get people to come, that is usually the major [challenge]: convince people to just come. Once they come, we [can] have beautiful experiences together and … show [them] what we do. Because people can be a bit dismissive of Nigerian food like ‘Ah, we know it, we don’t want to go out and eat it.’ So, truly being able to convince people that this is a worthwhile experience for [them is] just something.”

“[In terms of putting together the menu for each experience] having to do a new menu every month can be challenging, it can be interesting, it can be exciting and balance is very key for us. And that is another thing that can be a bit tricky because … let me use Ajowa as an example. To me, I think when we think of asaro, a lot of times, we eat it with fish – smoked fish, dried fish. But initially, I wanted to do the dish with chicken because I wanted to use fish for the main course. But we had to switch that around because we realised that no, this dish is simply eaten with seafood, so we had to keep that there and change the main course to accentuate that. So, even when we start off thinking that this is what we want to do, we realise that no, there has to be balance, everything has to flow. You cannot give people a palate cleanser and then a very spicy and overpowering dessert – the palate cleanser would have had no effect at the end of the day. So, we really try and make sure that everything … makes sense even as a person is eating it.”

“[Lastly], having the faith to put out that menu actually [is another challenge we face]. Because, if I use Ajowa as an example again, the desert was zobo. And it went through so many iterations because we really tried … at the beginning, it kinda tasted like a palate cleanser because zobo can be very light, and we were thinking, ‘ok, how do we make this a dessert? Something that people would actually, you know, want to relish and it’s sweet and all that.’ And, even after the dessert was done, I wasn’t sure that it was the right thing. And people loved it! I couldn’t even believe it! So sometimes, it’s really just that courage to believe that what we’re doing is good enough. What we’re doing is worthy of being experienced. As much as I believe in Nigerian food … there’s a difference between ok I believe in Nigerian food and I believe in my own Nigerian food. Having that faith to say I am putting this out, and I am going to believe that people would enjoy it. I am going to make sure that it is good enough to be enjoyed. And I think with every menu – even menus that we have done before – sometimes it’s just to click that button to say ‘post’ that can be a daunting moment but so far so good, we’re making it work.”

But in the end, the entire process appears to be paying off on both sides. “I think people have been surprised. Sometimes when people come, they’re sceptical. And they say, ‘let’s just go, sebi it’ll be a nice time.’ [But they] are surprised at the amount of networking they have there at that long table because it can be daunting. [But] the ice actually breaks over time, and [they] are surprised that the food tastes how it tastes. Because, they think, you know, in Nigerian restaurants there is a lot of hype. There is a lot of glitz and glamour, and the food might not actually meet up to your expectations. So people are actually surprised that [the] food is actually nice, [it] tells a story and they learn. They go home with new information about Nigerian food. ‘Oh, I didn’t that that dawadawa and iru were the same. I did not know that native rice, Abakaliki rice is also the same as ofada rice but not just fermented’ So that knowledge really really makes a difference, I think.”

“I have [also] learnt a lot! I have learned the importance of having a full overview of this kind of event [which] has been really important. Because for me, I am a chef, but doing this kind of thing, I have to wear so many more hats: to be a sommelier and think about wine pairings; to be an events planner; to be logistics [manager] … everything, too many moving parts at every time and it has taught me the importance of teamwork.”

“When it comes to the kitchen, honestly speaking, it has taught me that there is really no boundaries. This last Ajowa menu, we were trying to play on ileya and ram, and we had to buy a whole ram, so that we could control the parts of the ram that we were cooking. And that for me was something I would have felt afraid of before, but once you set your mind to something, truly truly – and it might sound cliché – but you’ll do it if you have to do it and that just gives you more boldness and courage to do it another time.”

Chef Moyo may be intentional about reintroducing us to our food in ways we did not think possible, but for her, the Atije Experience is deeper than that. The Atije table is the foundation of relationships. And the success it has recorded so far has actually amazed her.

“The networking has surprised me. When people sit on a table, sometimes we’re really privileged to have someone who is like a very engaging person and just draws everybody in. I don’t know, especially Fridays, Fridays can be so … they don’t even want to listen to me talk anymore: they’re talking to each other, they’re sharing about their careers. One time, someone was even playing their song because she was like a musician. I’m so encouraged when I see everyone truly just connecting. And there was even a person who said someone was sitting opposite him at one dinner and he didn’t say a word throughout dinner and he thought ok, he didn’t really want to talk. Later on, he sent a message on LinkedIn saying, I met you here, I would like to connect. You know, and those things, they really, I don’t even know how to say it, they really bring me joy because … that thing of, we’re actually eating together. We can all sit on one table from different walks of life, different tribes, different languages, different cultures. We can all eat together and it has an effect on all of our lives afterwards.”

At the moment, chef Moyo is planning a new pop-up that is set to happen from the 23^rd to the 25^th of September. And this time, the experience is a bit special. “This time last year, we were in a competition called The Kitchen, Nigeria, and I think that was an opportunity to really test out the Atije concept in general, like in public. [Now] we’re bringing that menu back so that people that did not get to experience it then [can do so]. [We’re] bringing it back a bit better, revamping some of the recipes, rethinking them. But still bringing back the same stories and the same essence.”

“So this menu is Atije, literally the original Atije, meaning how we eat. We’re exploring in general how we eat as Nigerians … we have dishes from Calabar, dishes from the South West … things like abula, things like banga and we’re really just bringing … I think a lot of the dishes were really delicious, and we are trying to think of a way to bring it back even better and enable our guests who didn’t know about us then to try it out once again.”

Want to get a feel of what The Atije Experience is? Register for the upcoming pop-up at www.atije.com  or click on the link in the bio of the Atije Experience page on Instagram.

The post At the Atije Table, Chef Moyo Delivers an Elevated Fine Dining Experience first appeared on Aspire Luxury Magazine.

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Visiting Dubai this year? Here’s a list of some of the selected restaurants to dine at

Il Ristorante – Niko Romito (2 Stars)

Situated at the Bulgari Resort in Jumeira Bay Island, Dubai, Il Ristorante – Niko Romito is the expression of Italian culture and heritage and was awarded 2 Stars for “its modern Italian fare, which comes with balance, purity and clarity. Top quality ingredients are flown in from Italy, with highlights including fish and pasta dishes.”

Its new Michelin status does not come as a surprise, seeing as its head chef, Niko Romito is Michelin-approved and has his own 3-star Michelin restaurant in Italy.

STAY by Yannick Alléno (2 stars)

You can visit STAY by Yannick Alléno at the One&Only Palm Jumeirah if you’re craving elevated French cuisine.

Run by yet another Michelin-starred chef, the restaurant was chosen for its “sophisticated dishes that are skillfully crafted with French cooking as the base.”

Höseki (1 star)

The second Bulgari Resort Jumeirah Bay Island restaurant to receive a Michelin star, Höseki – which means gemstone in Japanese – is a nine-seater dining establishment promising a unique Omakase experience, the most traditional way to savour Japanese food. (Omakase means “I leave it to you”)

Led by the sixth-generation sushi master, chef Masahiro Sugiyama, guests are promised a culinary experience like no other involving fresh ingredients imported daily from Japan.

Hakkasan Dubai (1 Star)

Looking to explore Chinese cuisine with a twist? Hakkasan, located at Atlantis, The Palm, has exactly what you need to satisfy your gastronomic curiosity.

At Hakkasan Dubai, expect traditional Chinese dishes reimagined for contemporary tongues and exclusive to Dubai.

Al Khayma (Bib Gourmand)

Michelin describes Bib Gourmands as typically lower-priced spots that provide great food at a similarly great value, and the 14 restaurants placed in this category “offer a value-for-money gourmet experience for an average price of 250 AED for a 3-course meal.”

Described as part museum, part restaurant, Al Khayma offers original Emirati food at its Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood location. Expect generous portions of traditional dishes such as dango (spiced chickpeas) and balaleet (sweetened Vermicelli with egg).

Lowe (Green star)

Dubai’s first Michelin restaurant celebrated for its commitment to sustainability is Lowe, a contemporary dining establishment whose “kitchen team cook on fire, practice nose-to-tail cooking and procure ingredients as locally as possible. As part of their efforts towards zero food waste, the restaurant’s ‘Waste NOT’ dinners offer eight to ten courses of would-be waste products, saved over the previous months.”

For the full list of restaurants featured in the inaugural Michelin Guide Dubai 2022, go here.

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“I think this happens due to a lack of exposure to the diversity and potential of our local ingredients,” explains chef Moyo Odunfa, the brain behind Atije, an African-themed culinary ‘lab’. “In most culinary schools and chef training academies, the focus is on haute cuisine which is based on French cuisine. Even when cuisines of the world are studied, Africa is brushed over. Maybe one class making South African malva pudding, an ‘exotic’ fruit dessert, or chicken Muamba is enough to summarise the cuisine of the continent.”

“This gives professional chefs the perception that French cooking is the epitome of fine dining, and African cuisine does not really have a seat at the table, so it becomes difficult to apply their knowledge to local cuisine and ingredients.”

Up until April 2022, Moyo was sous chef at the Itan Test Kitchen, one of the very few African-themed, fine dining establishments in Lagos, Nigeria. Before this, she had studied culinary arts and international business at The Culinary Arts Academy of Switzerland, and did various internships at Rosewood Hotel, Abu Dhabi, Restaurant Hofke Van Bazel, Belgium and Restaurant Veranda, Belgium.

Usually, the expectation is that chefs with these kinds of qualifications and experience would move on to high-end establishments where the available menu is nothing like Ms Odunfa has been experimenting with since her graduation in 2020.

“ I am inspired by the beauty and bounty of Nigerian cuisine: by the spices, the mixtures, the herbs, the textures,” she says of her decision to work with local ingredients and dishes. “Our food is beautiful, complex, and under-explored. I love Nigerian food because it tells me a lot about who we are as Nigerians. It is as much of an artistic pursuit as it is an anthropological experience. We have so much to offer, so much untapped potential and if I can uncover just a tip of the iceberg, I would be grateful.”

Perhaps one of the reasons why so many chefs are not keen on working with our African cuisine is that we have not successfully found a way to make a lot of our ingredients available in and out of season, thus causing them to constantly change their menu. According to Moyo, this is not the case.

“I don’t think so. We are able to make crops available out of their season; however, it is done on a small scale. We have purveyors who provide locally grown frozen mangoes, passion fruit, strawberries and so on all year long. All over the world … seasonality is seen as a muse for chefs. Cooking with what is in season is a great way to cook sustainably and in sync with the environment. Foods are at their peak in terms of taste and nutrition when they are in season, and I think this is something chefs should leverage.”

“However, other food production issues like varying quality and availability of ingredients even when they are in season can be problematic, but these are issues we need to overcome in order to make our food systems more reliable.”

From May 13 to 15, chef Moyo hosted a small group of friends and guests to Awari, a 5-course culinary experience that was more of a journey of discovery into the true – and largely unexplored – versatility of our food. On the menu were our everyday dishes like egusi, abacha, kunu and even ewa agoyin, and as we sat down to follow Ms Odunfa on this culinary voyage, the silent question on everybody’s mind was, ‘what should we expect?’

As each course was presented to us, followed by a brief explanation of the inspiration for its creation by the chef, nothing in our wildest imagination prepared us for what we got.

There was the familiar Abacha, but rather than the usual paste of potash and palm oil; the traditional garnish of stockfish, vegetable leaves and crayfish, Chef Moyo managed to mix sweet corn, seared chicken thighs, carrots, pepper and plantain chips to give us a dish quite unlike anything of the same name we had ever tasted.

Then there was the main, which frankly, was everyone’s favourite. (In chef Moyo’s words:  “I think the most loved dish was the egusi Ijebu. People who did not like egusi beforehand testified to loving the dish and that made me happy!”) Never before have I tasted Egusi so sweet and spicy, deftly flavoured with uziza (west African black pepper) and served with sweet potato puree, prawns and the softest snail.

People are generally very protective of traditional dishes, and Nigerians are no different – if in doubt, check out the jollof rice wars on social media. The average Nigerian may consider it almost sacrilegious to merge sweet potato and egusi together; that is until they taste Chef Moyo’s dish. Apparently, our egusi, like several other Nigerian foods, has been unfairly restricted all these years when it could have been so much more.

As stated earlier, the fine dining industry is changing, growing every day to accept largely-ignored dishes. In Nigeria and all over the African continent, it appears that this growth started, but slowly. Ms Odunfa is hoping this changes soon.

“I would like to see [more foreign-trained chefs] be more accepting of using local ingredients. We cannot be inspired by the same things, but we can always create beautiful things through what is available to us. In using local ingredients, we are creating the demand that might just be able to bolster the food production industry.”

“People have been quite accepting, especially after tasting [the dishes]. Beforehand though, [they] can be sceptical. Some Nigerians do not understand the point of trying out different interpretations of our dishes- and some foreigners do not think our food can taste as good as it does, but most people change their mind after they taste it.”

She makes a different case for wider adoption of our food in the fine dining scene. As she explains, they bear quite the resemblance with other widely celebrated cuisines from other continents, like “the food of the Caribbean and South America. Dishes like Acaraje from Bahia in Brazil find their root in Nigerian Akara and our Puff-puff is an ancestor of the famous Louisiana Beignet. Rice dishes, okro dishes and maize dishes across the South of the USA are also very similar in taste and constitution to our Jollof rice, seafood okra and the likes.”

“[Another similar, yet not-so-known cuisine our foods bear some resemblance to] is Sri Lankan cuisine. The use of ingredients such as plantain, mangoes, etc, and the general hearty nature of the cuisine is very nostalgic and reminds of food from home. [What we really need to do to put our dishes on a global stage and make them more ubiquitous] is an understanding, appreciation, and celebration of our food culture. Also, giving ourselves the opportunity to explore outside the existing boundaries of our cuisine can lead to creative successes that push the beauty of our food further”

Chef Moyo, who admits that her favourite cuisine to cook and eat is the Nigerian cuisine, hopes that fine dining establishments in the country include African dishes more on their menu while focusing more on the food. “Fine dining is more than just food, it’s a holistic experience, but sometimes we focus so much more on the ambience and entertainment than the actual food. I think this needs to change. At the heart of a restaurant experience is the food and of course, the level of service.”

At Awari, the two – great food and exceptional service – came together quite beautifully. However, what was most remarkable was the fact that the highlight of the experience, the dishes, were not the usual ones we had come to associate with fine dining. Chef Moyo has proven, through Awari, that our African cuisine is just as excellent as any other cuisine from all over the world. Hopefully, more chefs will tow this path and, just like our music, create dishes that are appreciated beyond the continent.

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Wondering where you can go for a truly enjoyable dining experience that transcends the food? Here is the 2021 list of the most extravagant, and of course most expensive restaurants with the Michelin mark offering some of the highest-priced full tasting menus in the world

1. Sublimation, Ibiza Spain: Top tasting menu: USD $1,740 per head (1500 Euros)

To call Sublimotion “just a restaurant” is to call the Roman Colosseum “just a set of pillars”. For the bank-busting price of US$1,740 per head (the most expensive restaurant in the world), Sublimotion offers its diners something truly unexpected. Thanks to hybrid reality, a Cyber-chef cooks in front of each diner, giving them the opportunity to eat a delicious meal within a virtual world.

While Sublimotion hasn’t yet received any Michelin stars, the restaurant’s Head Chef and one of its founders – Paco Roncero – has two Michelin stars under his belt.

2. Ultraviolet by Paul Pairet, Shanghai, China: Top tasting menu: USD $1,422 per head (8,888 CNY)

Similar to Sublimotion, Ultraviolet blends gastronomy and visual technology, giving Shanghai diners a Western menu filled with the occasional Asian flair. Each table is surrounded by walls of moving pictures as they delight on perplexingly inspired small plates such as foie gras cigarettes and moon cakes baked with traditional French ingredients.

The restaurant aims to live up to its hefty price point by leaving its customers’ senses overwhelmed with an onslaught of tastes, smells, sights and other epicurean delights.

3. Kitcho Arashiyama Honten Kyoto, Japan: Top tasting menu: USD $910 per head (100,000 Yen)

Kitcho Arashiyama Honten, located in Kyoto, eschews the high tech flair for a stunning traditional ambience, giving its diners the finest of Japanese food and architecture. Each of its seven dining rooms has views of a meticulously maintained Japanese garden, while the menu leans heavily on its fresh seasonal ingredients, ranging from wild radishes to ise-ebi lobster.

4. Azabu Kadowaki Tokyo, Japan: Top tasting menu: USD $825 per head (90,750 Yen)

Azabu Kadowaki in Tokyo elevates traditional Japanese cooking through the use of modern gastronomical techniques and international ingredients.

Guests sit at a six-person hinoki wood counter to watch the chef cook their meal on an open charcoal grill, while they take in the smells of freshly cooked luxurious ingredients such as white truffles and controversial shark fins. World-class head chef Toshiya Kadowaki ensures his customers the finest experience by serving each meal in intricately crafted Japanese pottery with beautifully painted designs.

5. Masa, New York City, USA: Top tasting menu: USD $800 per head

The first entry from North America, Masa represents the finest (and most expensive) Japanese cuisine in New York City.

Head chef Masayoshi Takayama grew up working at his family’s fish market in Japan and brings his passion for fresh seafood all the way to the Big Apple, where he delivers New Yorkers exquisite sushi creations on dishware designed by the chef himself.

6. (Tie) Joël Robuchon Tokyo, Japan; Kikunoi Honten Kyoto, Japan, and, Gion Maruyama Kyoto, Japan: Top tasting menu: USD $637 per head (70,000 Yen)

Joël Robuchon may be in Tokyo, but the décor is unapologetically French. The building uses a château design, standing out magnificently against the surrounding architecture of Japanese castles. Patrons dine like kings in Versailles, amidst crystal chandeliers, enjoying dishes that meld fine European cooking with subtle Japanese elements.

Kikunoi Honten blends fine Western ingredients like foie gras with Japanese delicacies. Head chef Yoshihiro Murata once worked aboard a fishing boat, where he learned the art of selecting the perfect seafood to guarantee his customers the freshest fare. The restaurant serves as a museum of Japanese culture, set dazzlingly inside a garden amidst an ancient temple.

Gion Maruyama, on the other hand, sets itself apart through its commitment to highlighting natural flavours and ingredients. Its seasonally shifting menu gives visitors more than enough reasons to return, serving bamboo shoots and pregnant grouper in spring, hamo pike in summer, matsutake mushrooms in autumn, and snow crabs and pufferfish in the winter months.

9. Guy Savoy Paris, France: Top tasting menu: USD $615 per head (530 Euro)

Guy Savoy in Paris is a sight for the eyes thanks to its colourful dishes and the contemporary fine art that adorns the walls of its six rooms. Dollops of foam and spring flowers catch the eye, giving diners a refined experience on the Seine river.

10. Piazza Duomo, Alba, Italy: Top tasting menu: USD $580 per head (500 Euro)

As the first Italian restaurant on the list, Piazza Duomo combines French flourishes with Italian flavours. The restaurant operates its own “biodynamic” garden, ensuring its leafy greens and vegetables only travel a short distance before landing on the plate. Located in the Piedmont region, Piazza Duomo sets the standard for local cuisine, for which it serves as an advocate in the world of Italian cooking.

Source: Chef’s Pencil

The post 2021’s Top 10 Most Expensive Michelin-Starred Restaurants to Feast at this Season first appeared on Aspire Luxury Magazine.

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Located precisely at No.5 Ademola Adetokunbo Street, Vendome is set to introduce visitors and food enthusiasts to a whole new world of rich culinary experiences and outstanding customer service. Armed with the knowledge that Lagos is home and heart to the demography of vibrant, adventurous and youthful people who are in a constant search for new spaces to explore and dine in, this cosmopolitan dining restaurant has curated an array of refreshing and unique experiences, that, along with its premium services, are sure to delight and satisfy you.

Featuring a stunning interior replete with artworks and bright, yet cool lighting, the space gives off a feeling of comfort for a truly relaxing effect. Every detail of this restaurant was well thought out and intricately put together for you by a set of professionals. It offers guests well-selected quality and exceptional food choices, top-notch service as well as a scenic ambience.

Away from aesthetics, the menu at the Vendome Restaurant offers you delicious and upscale meal experiences, comprising several courses with a fusion of fresh tastes from all over the world. It’s a restaurant that redefines luxury from the decor to the dishes and wines which are some of the most exquisite in this part of the world.

Vendome is not just another high-end restaurant: it is a premium dining space promising amazing, heartwarming experiences. At this point, it will come as no surprise that you’re unwilling to leave once you step in. When next you are looking for a place to have quality meals and a high range of options in a serene environment, Vendome Restaurant is the place to go.

For more information regarding the restaurant and the launch, please visit Vendome  on Instagram.

For media/press related matters please email rukevwe.dukuye@roberttaylormedia.com

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“You know, it’s a funny story,” says Aji Akokomi with a chuckle. The first-time restauranteur is sat at the window table by the entrance of Akoko, his newly-opened, West African fine dining restaurant, located in the centre of Berners street in the heart of London’s Fitzrovia.

The story Akokomi is referring to dates back more than three years. It’s about 14 months since the British-Nigerian first announced plans to open a West African restaurant in the capital, but the project itself has been percolating in his mind for much longer than that.

Back when he was first thinking of the idea for Akoko, which translates to ‘time’ and also ‘the first’ in Yoruba, Akokomi already had a specific idea of the sort of West African art he wanted to populate his restaurant with. With that in mind, he headed to Sotheby’s on New Bond Street in Mayfair, to discuss his perspective design plans with an art dealer.

“I had ideas about having these beautiful, contemporary-style African art pieces adorn the walls of my restaurant… And it was as I was explaining this that one of the dealers turned to me and asked if I was from Ikoyi.”

Until that moment, Akokomi was unaware of Ire Hassan-Odukale and Jeremy Chan’s plans to turn their own West African concept – originally established as a pop-up – into a permanent venture. Akokomi visited Ikoyi not long after it launched in 2017 and was blown away by his experience. “It was such a beautiful place,” he recalls enthusiastically. “I remember thinking to myself ‘oh my God, this is exactly how I would want my restaurant to be.’ Artistically, it had its own very unique West African accent. Immediately, I went back to the drawing board and begun to think about how I could make sure Akoko was different. And I hope we’ve done that.”

In terms of visual design, Akoko is strikingly singular. While Ikoyi adopts a chic, polished look, Akoko opts for something more minimalist. Conceived by René Dekker Design, the space is inspired by the ‘natural beauty, simplicity and earthiness’ of rural West Africa. The walls are covered in soothing terracotta clay, while contemporary African art by Niyi Olgunju adorns the space, alongside ceramics inspired by the legendary West African 1960s ‘Queen of Pottery’, Ladi Kwali, and mid-century modern Nupe pottery. Together with the furnishings, they offer the room various intriguing textures and shades of brown.

“I was trying to think of what people will expect, and I wanted to subvert that,” says Akokomi of the design. “The choosing of the art was important. We want people to immerse themselves in the stories behind the different pieces we have on display. The idea is to make our visitors feel they’ve travelled to another part of the world when they come here.”

Akokomi has long aspired to have his own restaurant. Initially, he considered opening a place over in Nigeria where his mum owns a bakery, but, having spent a long time studying in London, he soon set his heart on launching a place in the capital. From the beginning, he knew he wanted it to be a West-African focused restaurant.

There have certainly been challenges along the way, not least when it came to looking for a spot to open Akoko. As well as Fitzrovia, Akokomi considered sites in St. James’, Mayfair and Victoria. However, securing a location was a real struggle, with many landlords and agents deeming a top-end West African as a risky venture.

Thankfully, finding a chef to work with proved to be more straightforward. Having seen Chilila on MasterChef, Akokomi approached him, initially over Instagram, to discuss the venture.

“We really hit it off,” says Chilila. “[Akokomi] showed me what he wanted to serve and asked me how I would refine the flavours. This is the food that I grew up eating, but it’s not something I’ve really been able to use in cooking professionally before. Me and Aji spent months and months developing the menu, and have built up a really comprehensive book of recipes that we can always refer back to. It was a long process, but a really rewarding one.”

Telling a story

Positioning itself as a restaurant that offers a ‘progressive and elevated’ take on West African cuisine, comparisons between the food at Akoko and that at Ikoyi are perhaps inevitable, but unhelpful. While Ikoyi does reference some well-known staples of West African cuisine on its menu and uses plenty of spices sourced in the Sub-Saharan region in its cooking, none of its dishes are direct re-imaginings of those found in West Africa; something that was a direct focus for Akokomi and Chilila.

“We want Akoko to be a stepping stone for people who maybe aren’t so familiar with West African food,” explains Akokomi. “We chose to primarily draw our inspiration from Nigeria, Ghana and Senegal: the key was to look at these different cuisines and study the similarities. Take the jollof rice for example. It is something that is recognisable across all three countries, so our aim was to bring them together in one dish.”

The jollof rice is undoubtedly the centrepiece of Akoko’s launch menu. Topped with a hunk of braised then seared goat, then served amid a billowing cloud of smoke, it’s a theatrical showstopper that effortlessly manages to combine authenticity with originality.

Akoko offers diners the choice between a meaty or vegan tasting menu, both priced at  ₤59. Alongside the Jollof, other dishes include Nigerian pumpkin soup with calabash nutmeg, grilled lobster, popped wild rice and moringa oil served with Guinness bread; and barbecued quail served with onions, lemon, mustard seeds and Kani sauce. There’s also a picturesque dessert of uda-infused cream, Ghanaian cocoa butter, goat milk cream, ehuru and uziza oil.

The choice to not serve à la carte alongside, at least for the time being, is something Akokomi and Chilila agreed on early in the menu development. “Offering a tasting menu allows us to tell the story of West Africa a bit better, and takes diners on a journey,” says the chef.

Sourcing as close to home as possible was also of significant importance to the pair, with around 90% of the ingredients coming from the UK. “Akoko is a West African restaurant in London, and it’s very much part of the culture I grew up with to use what’s available to you close by,” says Akokomi. “In Nigeria, we would go to local farmers for our meat and vegetables, and that’s exactly what we’ve done here. And for any spices, seeds or grains we can’t get hold of, we’ve gone to farmers we know in Nigeria, Ghana and Senegal, and set up supply chains with them.”

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The post This Nigerian is Seeking to Elevate West African Cuisine in London first appeared on Aspire Luxury Magazine.

The post This Nigerian is Seeking to Elevate West African Cuisine in London appeared first on Aspire Luxury Magazine.