Now based in the imposing and deeply cool 180 Strand building, ‘bold heat and umami’ are the twin lures at Ikoyi, which specialises in Nigerian ‘jollof’ cuisine. Although the kitchen uses this as a jumping-off point for cooking that transforms west African food into boundary-pushing hyper gastronomy. Ikoyi dishes up something truly new for London’s ever-curious diners – but it's not cheap, with the tasting menu dinner coming in at £320 a head.

Jeremy Chan has an energy that knows no bounds; he’s very much a chef who cooks with passion and intent. As time goes by, he continues to refine and develop his repertoire, seeking out the best seasonal produce the UK has to offer, then combining it with lovingly sourced West African spices. The surprise menu is a journey indeed and whilst there is notable spice and heat to the dishes, it never masks the true flavour of the main ingredient.

If you’ve been privileged enough to experience fine dining-style restaurants, it can be easy to disregard another starred spot. But Ikoyi is one of those restaurants, complete with a £350 tasting menu, that will make you wonder whether a higher power has been resurrected in the form of a bowl of crab custard. The Strand restaurant is global in influence and haute in style, with West African spicing playing a big part.

Set in a glass-fronted space in a sleek, slightly corporate development, Ikoyi, a Michelin-starred newcomer, feels surprisingly homey. But in the kitchen Jeremy Chan is pushing boundaries. Every dish is thrillingly unfamiliar, from the moment the first plate lands; say, plantain dipped in hot-pink raspberry salt with a luscious slick of smoked scotch-bonnet mayo.

Its innovative tasting menus (from £200 to £320), previously serving the likes of ike jime trout, caramelised plantain and smoked jollof rice, have earned Ikoyi bragging rights as one of the top Michelin star restaurants London has. Located at 180 The Strand, this contemporary hideaway, co-owned by Ire Hassan-Odukale and Jeremy Chan, is dedicated to presenting produce in its optimal state, in addition to creating sub-Saharan West African flavours using micro-seasonal ingredients, organic meats and British fish. As one of the most exciting places to eat in the capital, it's no wonder that in 2023, it was named one of the world's 50 best restaurants, making it an incredibly sought-after dining destination.

Earthy tones, secluded booths, natural materials and some of London's best and most exciting food; Ikoyi is a shoe-in if you're hoping to pull out all the stops to romance your lucky date. The two-Michelin-starred restaurant has a focus on exploring West African cuisine through a fine dining lens, and it's an approach that has earned it numerous accolades over the years. The menu features anywhere between 8-10 courses (which can end up being up to 26 once you add on additional accoutrement like canapés and petit fours), so if your conversation is good enough to last the duration of the meal, then you may have just found the one.

Owned by Iré Hassan-Odukale and chef Jeremy Chan, this two Michelin-starred and World’s 50 Best restaurant combines British produce (including in-house aged meat and fish) with West African ingredients largely unseen in London, like ogbono seed, tiger nut, long pepper and grains of paradise, creating a unique food style. This same ethos is carried through to the drinks list, where these ingredients are used to put a twist on classic cocktails. The full tasting menu here costs £300 so eating at Ikoyi is certainly not an everyday occasion but it is an experience.

With a blind tasting menu based around British micro-seasonality, the unpredictable dishes at Ikoyi are grounded in the West African palate without being pinned down to a single cuisine. The smoked jollof rice is a stalwart (sometimes with crab, or bone marrow, or garlic), and you could be served anything from plantain crusted in raspberry salt and smoked scotch bonnet to Wagyu beef with smoked eel sauce. Book ahead to discover the inventiveness that won them a Michelin star a year after opening (a second followed in February this year) for yourself.

You’re looking at around £300 for the tasting menu but, if you want to invest in highly memorable, utterly unique dining, this is it. Founder and chef Jeremy Chan delivers nothing but the very best biodynamic vegetables and 100% organic beef and even insists on all his British fish being caught using the Japanese Ike Jimi method (don't look it up before eating). Chan has a passion for West African spices, which feature heavily, and the results have garnered he and partner, Ire Hassan-Odukale two Michelin stars.

Ikoyi offers a unique blend of West African spices and British produce, crafted by the innovative Chef Jeremy Chan. The restaurant boasts a vast collection of spices sourced with utmost care, focusing on sub-Saharan West Africa. With a tasting menu that changes according to the seasonality of British produce, Ikoyi offers an intriguing culinary experience that pushes the boundaries of flavor, featuring signature dishes like the Smoked Jollof Rice and the Caviar with Razor Clam.

Through an air lock of a door, past dry-aging chambers glowing with slabs of beef, around a corner into a hushed cloister of dusky copper and English oak: You’re in Jeremy Chan’s world now. This is the workshop of an intensely cerebral chef, who along with managing director Iré Hassan-Odukale has created a 10-course experience truly worthy of hours and hard-earned coin. Chan’s food is soulful and slippery, playing fast and loose with references from the very first bite.

Ikoyi builds its own spice-infused menus around the seasons, harnessing local vegetables, native beef and line-caught fish for a high-reward menu. With something akin to reverence, Ikoyi’s team extracts as much flavour as possible from every ingredient whilst celebrating the authentic, natural qualities and goodness of each. Enhanced by a wide collection of spices and herbs from around the world, the flavours here are sure to take you on a real journey of the senses.

Founded by friends Iré Hassan-Odukale and Chef Jeremy Chan, two-Michelin-starred restaurant Ikoyi combines West African spices with British ingredients, made using organic meats, biodynamic vegetables and fish from UK waters dispatched using the Ikejime method. Think aged sirloin with salted citrus and lobster, turbot and caramelised chicken wings, smoked jollof rice, and a poppyseed and rum cake. 1 St James’s Market, St. James’s, London SW1Y 4AH; ikoyilondon.com

With its spaceship-styled interiors crafted from natural materials, Ikoyi feels like a vision of restaurants from the year 2094. It’s the stylish second iteration for the restaurant started up by two friends in 2017, which quickly earned a Michelin star and won heaps of acclaim for its elegant West African-inspired food. These days, the double-starred menu casts its net far and wide for inspiration, with the general theme being ‘creative and amazing’.

Ikoyi builds its own cuisine around a vast collection of West African sourced spices which are combined with seasonal British ingredients. The result is an eclectic melting pot of as much flavour as possible. They explore ingredients such as Grains of Selim, a smoky peppercorn with the scent of eucalyptus, plantains and scotch bonnet chillies, which they ferment, burn and pickle.

Jeremy Chan and Iré Hassan-Odukale’s second iteration of their highly acclaimed contemporary fine-dining restaurant at 180 The Strand. The spice-focussed menu has evolved to new heights and cooking techniques courtesy of a much bigger space, while keeping the theme more than ever on micro-seasonal British ingredients. Tasting menu £300; ikoyilondon.com

If you have an open mind (and an open wallet) try this restaurant set in the heart of St James’s in central London. Its menu is fusion cuisine with a Nigerian influence, so you won’t find party-style jollof rice here. But if you’re up for trying something with a Naija twist, and don’t mind breaking the bank a little, you may want to pay a visit.

A one Michelin star restaurant, Ikoyi is inspired by flavours from the West African nation of Nigeria but with a twist. Think about it as your favourite dishes reimagined in a gourmet setting, for example you can try smoked jollof rice & crab custard or overripe plantain with preserved apple and roasted kelp. Visit Ikoyi: https://ikoyilondon.com

Location: 180 Strand, LondonOpening Hours: 6 PM - 7 PMApproximate Cost: £180-£300. Ikoki ranks among the top 50 restaurants in the world and not just in London. This is one of the Nigerian restaurants in London that offers a tasting menu which is served for dinner from Monday to Friday and also for lunch on Fridays.

With its ingredients organically or biodynamically produced, Ikoyi has sure made its commitment to sustainable gastronomy. The menu is always a surprise but the quality of the food never is – come to Ikoyi for an experience unlike any other. Address: 1 St. James’s Market, London, SW1Y 4AH, United Kingdom

If you are a spice lover, African-inspired Ikoyi is for you. Excitingly, the restaurant earned its second star in 2022. While other restaurants base their dishes around specific ingredients, this Michelin starred spot creates dishes based around particular spices and British micro-seasonality.

Ikoyi was the first African-inspired restaurant in London to earn itself a Michelin star. Now, it’s the proud holder of two. See, head Chef Jeremy Chan and his co-founder Iré Hassan-Odukale explore the spices and tastes of West Africa using seasonal British produce.

The gastronomic haven, offers a unique interpretation of West African cuisine. With mouthwatering dishes like the Plantain, Raspberry Salt, and Smoked Scotch Bonnet, this is your ticket to a luxurious dining experience with African flavors at the heart of it all.

Now in its new home on The Strand, Ikoyi is a much larger affair and one of the few multi-Michelin-starred restaurants that's open on a Monday. So if you're a fan of Jeremy Chan's food and want to check out their new digs, Monday may be the day.

Perhaps the most unique, distinctive restaurant in London, no restaurant in the capital is harder to pigeon-hole than Ikoyi. Chef Jeremy Chan’s utterly meticulous approach and dedication to great British ingredients makes this a must-visit.

Their desserts, infused with unique African ingredients, awaken your senses to a new world of flavours. It’s a symphony of spices and sweetness, a dance of culture on your taste buds. Address:180 Strand, Temple, London WC2R 1EA

The restaurant famous for combining West African spices with British ingredients rises from one to two stars. The award is likely to be a popular one — few places are so widely and regularly praised. Read our write up here.

Tuck into innovative tasty dishes based on the myriad of rich spices found throughout the region of West Africa at Michelin-starred Ikoyi.