Adejoké Bakare, head chef and founder of Chishuru restaurant in Fitrozia, has been announced as the winner of CODE Hospitality’s prestigious Woman of the Year award this evening.
Earlier this year, the Nigerian-born, self-taught chef became the first black female chef in the UK to win a Michelin star. Not only is Bakare the first black female in the UK to have this honour, she is also only the second black female chef in the world with a star.
Tonight, she accepted her latest accolade at the awards, held at Claridge’s ArtSpace.
Bakare was honoured alongside an impressive list of fellow winners, including Lifetime Achievement Award winner Sally Clarke MBE, who is celebrating 40 years of her Kensington restaurant Clarke’s this year.
The Breakthrough Talent award was given to Abby Lee, chef and owner of Mambow in Clapton. In a review earlier this year, we hailed the restaurant as a Malaysian masterpiece and certified hit, undeniably worth the trip out to E5.
Wine writer and Evening Standard contributor Hannah Crosbie, who has been lauded as the “Nigella Lawson of wine”, was also recognised, taking home the Innovator award.
This marks the sixth year of CODE’s Women of the Year awards, which received more than 850 nominations. As well as being hosted by Guardian restaurant critic Grace Dent, the nominees were judged by an impressive panel of industry experts, including last year’s Woman of the Year Samyukta Nair, industry figurehead Thom Hetherington, Bibendum’s Valeria Rodriquez, food writer Hilary Armstrong and CODE founder Adam Hyman.
“The sheer volume of nominations we received this year shows the importance of our annual Women of the Year list to the industry,” Hyman said. “Every woman featured in the list has made meaningful impact to our industry over the past 12 months and they come from all parts of hospitality. It highlights how integral women are to making hospitality a better industry and the role they play in the future of it.”
