Since 2019
Our Story
The Beginning
Lagos → London
Yoruba Cuisine
Canning Town, E16
“Alata” — the Yoruba word for one who sells pepper. Bold, essential, made for the people.
Chef Taiwo Adeyemi grew up between Ibadan and Lagos in a household where cooking was everything. His grandmother’s kitchen on Lagos Island — aromatic with crayfish, scotch bonnet and locust beans — was his first classroom. Every Saturday, the compound would fill with the smoke of jollof rice cooked over firewood and the laughter of the whole family.
After years working in London kitchens, Taiwo realised his community needed a place. A real Nigerian restaurant where you could sit down, eat proper food, feel at home — without dressing up or spending a fortune.
In 2019, he opened Alata on Beckton Road, Canning Town — no apologies, no shortcuts. No fusion for fusion’s sake. No watered-down spice for nervous palates. Just Yoruba cuisine, cooked the way it has always deserved to be.
“I want every guest — Nigerian or not — to taste something true. Not a performance of African food. The actual thing.”
— Chef Taiwo Adeyemi
What We Stand For
Our Values
Ìdánimọ̀
Identity
Every recipe is a living archive — a thread connecting us to family who cooked by firelight and shared food with neighbours.
Àdánidá
Authenticity
No shortcuts. No shortcuts. Our pepper base is built from scratch every day — the way it should be.
Àjọbí
Community
Nigerian food has always been communal. At Alata, everybody is welcome at the table. Come as you are.
Ìtumọ̀
Good Food
We cook with love and intention. Not to impress, but to feed you well and make you come back.
The People Behind the Fire
Meet the Team
Chef Taiwo Adeyemi
Head Chef & Founder
Born in Ibadan, raised between Lagos and London. Taiwo spent fifteen years cooking across the city before coming home to the food that shaped him — proper Yoruba cuisine, no compromises.
Kemi Olawale
Sous Chef
A master of swallows and soups, Kemi brings the deep warmth of home cooking to every dish she touches. Her egusi soup has a cult following.
James Okonkwo
Pastry & Drinks
James reimagines Nigerian flavours in cocktails and desserts — his zobo negroni has been featured in Time Out London.
As Seen In
Time Out London
The Guardian
Evening Standard
Vogue UK
Eater London