Lightbulb moment
Teal by Sally Abé, Chishuru, MAAI by Nikita, Fallow, Dulwich properties, The Woodcote, MORE
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WORK • Wednesday Routine
Tweak and twist
ADEJOKÉ BAKARE • chef & co-owner • Chishuru
Neighbourhood you work in: Fitzrovia
Neighbourhood you live in: Marylebone
It’s Wednesday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
I run a Michelin-starred West African restaurant, Chishuru. Wednesday mornings are blissfully quiet. I get in before anyone else, around 6a, so I can work alone on my sauces. Our sauces are central to our food (we have to get them just right), and I find it most effective to do that in the early morning, armed with a soursop leaf tea.
What’s on the agenda for today?
We’ve recently done a little refurbishment of the restaurant – some new décor, new flooring and, most importantly, some gorgeous new (larger) tables – and I’m bringing lots of new dishes onto the menu to coincide with it. Every time we put on a new dish, we test and tweak and twist, so that’s what’s on my mind this morning.
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
My lovely pal Sally Abé just opened her solo restaurant Teal in Hackney (intel below). The menu is terrific (and very, very Sally, which is a good thing). She didn’t need to prove she’s a master of taking the ordinary and making it magical... but she did.
How about a little leisure or culture?
London is great for art – we get lots of visitors in the restaurant around Frieze time – and I loved Nigerian Modernism at Tate Modern. My friend Cyndi Handson has a DJ residency at the Tate Corner Bar with her husband Christian.
Any weekend getaways?
My next trip out of town is to Updown Farmhouse in Kent, where once again I’ll be cooking with Oli [Brown] in his gorgeous kitchen. The last time we cooked together down there was October 2024, and since then Oli and his partner, Ruth, have been very busy making Updown even more magical.
What was your last great holiday?
Lake Garda in Italy last autumn. We went to Lido 84, which turned out to be serendipitous because after years on the World’s 50 Best list, they recently announced they’re closing. It’s a beautiful restaurant right on the banks of the lake and the menu was heaven. We stayed at the Grand Hotel Fasano in Gardone Riviera, which is very much a treat. The best type of outing in that part of the world, apart from driving on the road that runs alongside the lake, is to visit local winemakers – Italy’s finest Champagne-method sparkling wines come from the Franciacorta region, half an hour from Garda.
What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
I love music, and my KEF speakers were a big splurge, but they’re worth it.
What store or service do you always recommend?
If I have to wear something special for a big posh event, I head straight to Guillermo, my personal shopper at Liberty.
Where are you donating your time or money?
Action Through Enterprise, a charity that works with rural communities in Upper West Ghana, tackling poverty and creating opportunities. We support them at the restaurant by offering raffle prizes.
RESTAURANTS • First Word
Game on
The Skinny: Sally Abé made her name at Fulham gastropub The Harwood Arms before setting up The Pem, a female-run fine dining restaurant in a Westminster hotel. After a stint at The Bull at Charlbury in the Cotswolds, she opened her first independent restaurant, Teal by Sally Abé, in Hackney last month.