There are some invitations you get when you just think, yes. Yes I WOULD like to come to the uber-trendy new Akoko and try out the new 8-course tasting menu, at Aji Akokomi and Chef Theo Clench’s eponymous new restaurant. The cuisine is inspired by Nigeria, Ghana and Senegal and has been touted as London’s hottest opening of 2021.

I'm not going to exhaust you with a blow-by-blow account of the meal, as that'll only spoil the surprise for you. What I will say is that for £95 for a full-blown tasting menu of this high calibre, this is a steal for a meal at such quality. We had little courses around the menu too, like the welcome snacks (pictured below) of a croquette, and some other things that weren’t listed on the menu - all based on popular West African street food ‘Boli & Epa’ . These were all sensational.

We arrived at around 6.30pm on an autumnal Wednesday evening. Already busy as expected, we sat down at the table and our experience began. From here I noticed the interiors; minimalistic, with warm wooden accents and sandy coloured walls. I love an open kitchen concept - I can look at the method of my dinner, and it also shows that the chefs have nothing to hide. The energy of the bustling kitchen was contagious, as we geared up excitedly for the evening ahead.

After the snacks, Gambian Oyster came out first, cooked on coals and served with a lovely Gambian oyster stew. I was tempted to neck the rest of the juices in the shell; we were off to a great start. The Guinness bread with Yassa butter was also very good - my partner cried 'this is the last of the bread, I promise!' but that home made stuff was so good I didn't mind ordering another two more portions.

I was delighted when having a nosy through the wine list. Skin contact galore - and our very friendly Sommelier Henny presented a terrific pairing to our tasting.

*Maafe - Galician Octopus, peanut, cacao*

The Maafe course was a gnarly beast, the sweet and tender Galician octopus grilled and plated beautifully. The cacao and peanut sauce was vibrant and oily, seasoning the meat herbaceously. The delicate crisp that accompanied the course was delightful.

The Jollof Rice, lightly smoked carrot terrine and Ivorian aubergine sauce came next. Taking on the woody aromas of the grill, the rice was crisp on the outside, with the smokey carrot and goat complimenting this very well. The aubergine sauce they were drizzled with balanced out the intrinsic richness of the rice, and we were pretty animalistic in devouring this. More napkins were fetched for our increasingly greasy lips / faces / everything. This course was amazing, and one of the definite highlights.

Turbot was served on a splodge of Ehuru and charcoal oil. The dainty hunk of fish was mellow against the sauce and caviar - turning slightly sweet when mixed with the saffron yellow dip that accompanied. It was cooked to perfection, the meat still blushing from the kitchen. It was really quite faultless.

*Egusi - aged longhorn beef, melon seed stew, spinach*

A generous slab of Aged Longhorn beef garnished with Spinach was served on top of a smoosh of intense melon seed stew. Sorry, I don't have any better words for it. This was possibly my favourite thing of the day. The jus was light and flowy, the meat melty and luxurious. Clearly chef Theo Clench is brilliant at sourcing and treating ingredients simply and well.

*A very palette-cleansing palette cleaner of baobab, hibiscus and lemon.*

*Eso - Roasted pineapple sorbet, Kent mango, banana and malt*

Finally, the dessert course terrified us; we were imagining a big dish of sweet to follow the already generous courses that came before, but this little number was just the right size. Roasted pineapple sorbet sat pretty on top of a banana crisp, with shards of mango nestled underneath. A generous drizzle of malt cemented the dish - it was a great finale.

So - another great reason to live on the West side of town. The flow of the service and kitchen, quality of the ingredients and food - and finesse. Akoko – intriguing, sexy and very unique – is sweeping the restaurant world into a new decade. This experience was an utter delight, and I will be back imminently.

Thank you to Theo, Victoria, Aji and the rest of the Akoko Team for such a fabulous evening.

Address: 21 Berners St, London W1T 3LP, United Kingdom

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