Adejoké (Joké) Bakare
Joké was born and raised in Nigeria, and came to the UK with her family in the late 1990s. She never worked professionally in food until 2019 when she won a three-month restaurant residency in Brixton Village, south London, which began in September 2020.
When journalist Jay Rayner from the Observer came in and gave the restaurant a rave review, the residency became permanent. In April 2022, TimeOut published their annual ‘best restaurants in London’ issue and placed Chishuru (which at that time had 18 seats) at number one.
The Brixton site closed in late 2022 and Joké then operated popups before moving Chishuru to its permanent new home in Fitzrovia in September 2023.
Five months later, in February 2024, Michelin awarded Chishuru a Michelin star, making Joké the first black female Michelin-starred chef in the UK. Joké is the first black female chef in the world with her own Michelin-starred restaurant.
Joké was named ‘Chef of the Year’ at the National Restaurant Awards 2024. In December 2024, the Financial Times listed Joké as one of the 25 most influential women of 2024, and in July 2025 British Vogue listed her in the ‘Vogue 25: The Women Defining Britain in 2025’.
Matt Paice
Matt worked in television as a channel controller commissioning editor and executive producer before becoming a chef by accident.
He ran a street food business which he later turned into two casual dining restaurants in west London. After these closed, he worked as operations director of a group of Italian restaurants in the City of London.
Matt became Joké's business partner in June 2021, and is responsible for front of house at Chishuru. He has two wine qualifications and will happily talk to you about unacylated anthocyanins in red wine, if asked.
Design & Build
Joké worked closely with interior designer & project manager Sasha Filskow to showcase authentic materials including rough plastered walls, wood grains and pigmented cement. Soft furnishings have been sourced from British-Nigerian designer Eva Sonaike to reflect the visceral and authentic roots of the Chishuru menu. Through strong graphics, rich colours and carefully curated lighting, including a commissioned light feature from South African designer Mash.T, alongside table tops and stonework custom-made in North Africa, create a sense of home.
The illustrations of women in the alcove table downstairs were created by Afiya who can be contacted for commissions via her Instagram here.
Our front of house build was overseen by Andy and Matt at Thinking Space who we are very happy to recommend highly.
