Fermented Jollof Rice, Squid and Plantain
I do not think there is one Restaurant I have been a repeat offender of/ Visitor to, within the last 6 months than Ikoyi. It has gleaned high critical acclaim from many recognised Restaurant reviewers and from me – an unrecognised Restaurant reviewer. My first visit was alone when I found I had a couple of hours to spare between a meeting and a Theatre visit. I was in the vicinity and recalled reading an interview with Chef Jeremy Chan (who had worked with Heston Blumenthal at Dinner, Noma and Claude Bosi at Hibiscus) and being intrigued that he and his partner Hassan Odukale ( ex flat mates and Hassan hailing from Ikoyi, a suburb of Lagos) were intent on bringing West Nigerian Cuisine to St.James in a fine dining Gastronomic style.
I thoroughly enjoyed my first visit and the unheard of ingredients, the Spices and Heat involved, and the marvellous skill in balancing them which Jeremy was managing artfully. The restaurant was virtually empty but I put it down to its newness and unusual concept which I hoped would catch on toot suite. Thereafter I have taken different sets of friends on three further occasions – one time the Restaurant was happily buzzy and busy, the others fairly dormant – and this Sunday lunch I was to attend a new concept that the restaurant had advertised – The Staff Food Waste Project. This was an ethically driven Tasting Menu experiment based on waste products from their kitchen.
Upon arrival at 13.00 I was concerned I had the wrong time or date as a I was unsure if the restaurant was open behind its smokey glass interior, but then realised there was movement inside. My 3 friends and I ventured inside and realised there were only 3 other people in the restaurant and more alarmingly the kitchen appeared to be unnaturally quiet for a fully operating lunchtime service.
However we were greeted with open arms and led to our table and provided with the Set Menu and a list of cocktails should we wish to imbibe. Shortly thereafter our first starter arrived being a Garri Cracker, Citrus Asaro with Pickled Herb Stem. Now you understand when I mentioned unheard of products/ingredients !
Garri Cracker,Citrus Asaro And Pickled Herb Stem
Upon a little questioning we learnt that Garri is Cassava( an edible tuberous root) and that Asaro is Yam. They resembled little dusted golden breadcrumbed cakes with the pickled stems just visible through the powder. They also tasted like nothing I have eaten before but in a good way with the pickled herbs dominating over the Yam, not really picking up on the Citrus element, but a little heat coming through as the taste developed in your mouth. An intriguing start. ( by this time 5 more people had entered the restaurant but that was to be the entirety of its reservations on this Lunch service).
Second Course was a tiny little ceramic pot of Pepper Broth with Seaweed. It was earthy and dense and maybe had chicken stock as a base ? – but the Black Pepper taste was just at the right level and, whilst strong, was extremely inviting and tasty and I personally could have managed more than the small pot contained.
Pepper Broth and Seaweed
Admittedly the colour and presentation did not look too inviting but this was more than made up for with the next course which was a vibrant and beautifully coloured dish of Fermented Jollof Rice, Squid and Plantain. I have eaten Ikoyi’s Jollof Rice on every visit to date and whilst the components have changed a little over time – last time it was Crab Jollof Rice- the taste is amazing and one of my favourite finds of the year to date. This dish was very different to what I was expecting as the rice had been made into a circular rice cake and had been plied with crispy squid and other vegetables. We were advised to roll it up and eat it like a Taco, and the texture of the crispy squid and plantain were fabulous. Still not as good as the orgasmic Fried Jollof Rice but a very good second best – Rice Wise.
The final savoury Course was Chicken with Artichoke Root, Preserved Citrus and Garlic, which looked very brown, and again, maybe not too appetising, visually, but the taste belied it’s aesthetics. I am unsure why the chicken would qualify as Food Waste – maybe they were the false Fillets from the breast that are not usually used ?
Chicken,Artichoke Root,Preserved Citrus
It contained an unnamed sauce and was all very tasty albeit the textures were are similar, so something crunchy or more textured would have been welcome. Maybe the roots could have been crisped up a little – an idea ? Now back to rice again, we were provided with a side dish of glorious Coconut Rice with potent Scotch Bonnets which I was happily mopping up as I was desperate to recover from a Gin infused hangover from the night before. My dining partners liked the taste but felt the quantity was too much sat against the size of the main meal – additional sauce with the meal could have been used to compliment additional quantities of the rice, but as it was the voluminous Rice dishes were not fully consumed ( other than mine !)
Dessert was actually a real stand out even though I am not usually a fan of sweets. This was Milk Solids with Zobo (?) Caramel And Spent Cameroonian Coffee. The Milk Solids were used to make a very soft Ice Cream style Dessert which sat on a crumb of caramel and coffee (?) and the tastes intermingled together perfectly.
Milk Solids and Zobo ?
The price of the meal was £45 for 5 courses which when you consider the restaurant a la Carte prices are not cheap seemed quite reasonable. Maybe the quality was not quite up there with their usual dishes, and when you eat with your eyes maybe the presentation/ colours were lacking. All of the dishes were however very original and displayed interesting ideas, introducing all of us to new tastes for our palates.
At the end of service we saw Jeremy leaving, and in recognising me – obviously a good Customer for them ! – he did an about turn and we had a quick discussion about the concept. He admitted that it had not gained traction and in fact they had to cancel the previous Sunday as there were literally no takers for the Lunch Time Service. He postured that maybe the name of the Project using the word “Waste” may have put people off, but that it had been a learning experience bearing in mind the restaurant is not usually open on a Sunday. He did suggest that maybe they could come up with a different Tasting Menu concept for a Sunday to differ from their usual A La Carte offering during the evenings and also confirmed that they have a new Menu in any event, so I have a reason to venture there yet again!
I will continue to bang the drum for this restaurant which also has great local Restaurant neighbours in Aquavit and the newly opened Scully. Generally James explained he is not getting the footfall of walk ins as maybe their menu is just too unusual for casual walker bys, so this is their next challenge. I do hope more people “get it” and they do not have to move away from their original concept to attract more Customers, but they exist in a very competitive environment operating in a eye wateringly expensive area – please get out and support them !
Ikoyi, 1 St James Market, SW1Y 4 AH
ikoyilondon.com
Rating – Food Very Hot Pan 4 ( Waste Project Menu , but on other visits a 5)
Service Very Hot Pan 4