Chan does a fine job of outlining how he and his Nigerian-born front of house counterpart Iré Hassan-Odukale came to launch Ikoyi (the bit about the pair’s early interactions with developers and property agents is particularly illuminating) and the story of the restaurant so far.

Yet while I make a kebab out of this beautiful animal and show respect to this ingredient, it comes from a love of crappy kebabs I had when I was a kid, which I still love. While chefs might not be able to get their hands on some of Chan’s ingredients they will appreciate his precise instructions and the fact that the recipes are presented are taken directly from Ikoyi’s own recipe folder.Chan acknowledges this in the book, declaring that “many of these ingredients will be difficult or at times impossible to procure” but that this challenge represents what it’s like to run a restaurant “with a kitchen comprising of a complex network of supplier and producer relationships”. It soon becomes clear that Chan’s development process is somewhat tortured, with the chef agonising over what his plates say about him as a chef, his restaurant, his ingredients and food culture more widely. I commend him on presenting “the recipes in this book exactly as they are written in the kitchen folder at IKOYI. Toss the peppers, onions, ginger, garlic, and chiles lightly in the remaining grapeseed oil and place in an even layer on the hot grill. Partnered with Nigerian-born Iré Hassan-Odukale, who handles front-of-the house, chef Jeremy Chan draws on a wide range of culinary influences even as he keeps an eye on the restaurant’s African inspirations.

The gorgeous, vibrantly-hued new book contains more than 80 recipes, exactly as they’re written in the restaurant’s kitchen, including his decadent take on the classic jollof rice (recipe below). After finely chopping ginger, spring onions, and garlic, he poured boiling hot oil over the vegetables, which bubbled and fizzled in the inferno of wok-breath heat.

He discusses developing (and eventually abandoning) the concept of a Nigerian restaurant with his childhood friend—and Ikoyi’s managing director and cofounder—Iré Hassan-Odukale (the restaurant is named for the neighborhood in Lagos where Hassan-Odukale grew up). In the hands of a less erudite chef such an approach could easily have been tedious and self-indulgent, but Chan’s prose is as captivating as his food. This debut cookbook tells the compelling story and journey of Chan and Ikoyi, with 80 recipes that Chan has carefully developed to encapsulate bold his signature style. In this book, you feel the creative struggle that one must go through to do something truly special. Ikoyi offers world-class innovation and inspiration for anyone looking to develop distinctive and original cuisine of their own.