Book review: Ikoyi by Jeremy Chan

A look behind the pass at one of the UK’s most creative restaurants was never going to be straightforward

When chef Jeremy Chan and his business partner, Nigerian-born Ire Hassan-Odukale, launched Ikoyi in London in 2017, restaurant critics lauded it as “intriguing”, “challenging”, “original and super-delicious”, but none seemed quite clear how to define it.

It’s a question Chan seeks out to (almost) answer across his debut cookbook, a hefty, 255-page tome delving into his history and the background of the restaurant and its dishes. This includes the two-year process of opening Ikoyi – including the frustration at dealing with some of London’s property developers – the impact of critics, the reaction from customers and shift from serving à la carte to a £300 tasting menu at its new home at 180 the Strand.

Chan also sets out Ikoyi’s struggle with identity. When the restaurant launched it was hailed as West African and “central London’s first Nigerian restaurant”, but the chef has always resisted labels. Although its dishes use ingredients from that area of the world, Ikoyi is billed as ‘spice-based cuisine around British micro-seasonality’ and Chan uses the book to explain his aversion to themes.

Each of the 80 recipes in the book is accompanied by a thoughtful essay on the creation, inspiration and techniques behind the dish. Nothing on the menu feels like a second thought to Chan, who is as eloquent about the creation of a miso cookie as he is the restaurant’s smoked jollof rice and crab custard. His passion and studious attention to detail shine through.

The methods are presented exactly the way they are written in the kitchen folder at Ikoyi and recipes are designed to produce four portions. Chan admits some of the dishes may be difficult to recreate at home without the suppliers and equipment of a professional two-Michelin-starred kitchen, but the result, he writes, gives an insight into life at Ikoyi.

This book is a fascinating insight into one of the UK’s most innovative restaurants, and a must-read for any curious chef.

Ikoyi: A Journey through Bold Heat with Recipes by Jeremy Chan (Phaidon, £44.95)