Akoko, London - Nigerian food giving 10/10 Michelin style

The way my Nigerian is ‘prouding’ right now 😊… Ouu.. Akoko is definitely bringing West African, particularly, Nigerian Cuisine in a way that has me all in my feels 🥰! This food adventure was nothing short of EXCELLENT! The food (check), the service (check), the banter (check). There are quite a number of restaurants that stay upping the game when it comes to Nigerian food from tapas style eating at Chuku’s, to modern day twists on traditional Nigerian dishes at Ikoyi, to fellow michelin worthy like Chishuru and I could not be more proud! #Naijatotheworld. Our reservation was the chef’s / counter table because there was no way I was going to miss any of the action as this fab team did their thing and it was so worth it! Arriving early (as we do) had Neal somehow managed to engage in quite a lengthy conversation with one of the sous chefs about the joys and craftmanship of Japanese steel and that I think really set the tone for the wonderful food adventure that we had, plus or opening cocktail was palm wine based which made me happy ha!

We decided to try the full tasting menu with both wine and cocktail pairings and lisssstteeennn.. they threw it DOWN!!!!! Starting with beef tartare, sosu Kaani aka plantain samosa combining Nigeria and Senegal flavours. The samosa came looking like a donut

and it GAVE! it was soft in texture and somewhat fluffy with a hint of spice and ever so flavourful. Not gonna front, I was a bit concerned about the spice levels, not for me but for Neal, considering, but so far so good! He really was into it and he does like plantain as well so #wining. Irish oyster, tartare relish (Gambian stew) was just stunning

To think that an oyster could be upgraded the Naija way had me cheesing. Like the humble oyster in fried bell pepper tomato sauce aka Ata din din? Come on now! And yes, we still had to slurp as you would an oyster and it was goodt! Mackerel Vatapa and moi moi cme next. One time for the moi moi because, it was ELITE! Now for my non – Nigerian readers, moi moi is a blackeye bean cake (think tofu). Moi moi to Nigerians is a delicacy and recipes differ but the cooking process is fundamentally the same – steaming. The moi moi in Akoko did not disappoint! It is the head chef’s mom’s recipe and let me just say, Mama knows best, look at it

It was spicey, soft and fluffy aka steamed to perfection, served with grilled Mackerel which was cured first and then seared for crispiness with a sauce

my goodness, it was YUMMY! accompanied with a South African White wine, talk about Pan African! The Ayamase was up next. Ayamase is a designer stew synonymous with the Yoruba tribe from South West Nigeria. It is made from locust beans, green bell peppers, various cuts of beef and / offal and generally very spicy but so delicious. The ayamase in Akoko has got to be the prettiest I have ever seen

Plus, this ayamase was made with monk fish and it worked, especially as monk fish is meaty fish. Whilst it was not as spicy as more of the traditional versions, it was flavourful, aromatic and delicious! The supplement course was Goat cashew cream Exmorr caviar and tatale. I mean, they had me at caviar 😊, it sounded bougie and I am extra 😜so yeah, we had to try it and it was a darn good decision. Tatale is a Ghanaian style plantain, and I love the team’s take on it. This tatale out here looking like buttermilk pancake and the combination was exceptional, like to die for!

Your palate goes through a journey from salty, savoury and sweet. If this had been the dessert, honestly, I would have been well happy ending the meal. However, team Akoko still had some star dishes up their sleeves. Taking centre stage was jollof rice. Like are you truly authentic if you dont have Jollof rice on the menu 🤔 And if you have not heard of and / or do not know what Jollof rice is, all I am going to say is ‘google is your friend’ because bruhh.. they have been ‘jollof wars’ okay?! Simply put, Jollof rice is rice cooked in a tomato sauce . Simple sounding process yes, but how you cook this (open fire as an example) and the spice and herbs used impacts the overall taste. I, personally prefer jollof rice cooked on open fire, nothing compares to the smoky / chargrilled aroma and flavour. The Jollof rice in Akoko has that smoky aroma flavour down to a T!. The jollof rice is not only topped with deep fried wild rice to give it that extra crunch becasue everyone knows that taste of slightly burnt (usually the bottom of the pot) is the best #IYKYK but it is also infused with smoke right before being served with an information pamphlet on the history of Jollof so guests can get situated and enlightened 👏🏽

served with Hereford beef, shito XO and purple carrot

Yup, cool ASF! The penultimate course before pudding is another staple in Nigerian cuisine – Suya! A type of smoked spice beef skewer. Now what makes Nigerian suya unique is the spice also known as ‘yaji’. This is a spice blend originating from the Northern part of Nigerian and as with anything, there are many variations however, an authentic yaji spice is easily identified cos the flavour stays giving. I have had many a ‘yaji’ spice in these London skreets but I have to say, tasting Akoko’s yaji immediately transported me back to University of Suya / or Ikoyi club suya #IYKYK! Yup, it was banging!!!

This menu is giving 10/10 and I can’t get enough! Our palate cleanser was Zobo which typically is a hibiscus leaf drink but no.. at Akoko they serve zobo granitas! A watermelon hibiscus sorbet

that is just soooo good and trust me I would know. Having had some of the best granitas in Sicily! Uda, chocolate, coffee aka Café Touba ended the meal. The chocolate was from Ghana, coffee from Ethiopia that is blended in house. For sweets, we had praline and fudge.