On Monday, two west African restaurants in central London became some of the newest recipients of Michelin stars. Chishuru and Akoko, both in Fitzrovia and with Nigeria-born chefs at their helms, pride themselves on a creative and modern take on west African food, a set of regional cuisines which have received little recognition outside their communities in the past.
Adejoké Bakare, of Chishuru, also became the first Black woman in the UK to be awarded a star – only the second in the world – and, in homage to the area of northern Nigeria in which she grew up, named the restaurant for a Hausa word meaning “the silence that descends on the table when food arrives”– a clue to her culture’s positively reverential approach to food. “Food is spiritual for her,” confirms her business partner, Matt Paice, describing how she once fired an Italian chef for swearing at the food while he was cooking it.
