Although Mory Sacko was born in Paris, the first of eight siblings, he has Malian and Sengalese roots which inspired the focus of his diverse cuisine. It was only when Sacko started working alongside chef Hans Zahner at the Royal Monceau that he truly believed there could be a career for him in food. Thierry Marx became his mentor when Sacko worked as his sous-chef and Marx shared his love of Japan, its culture and its cooking. Building a sense of umami is important in both Japanese and African cooking which made sense to Sacko when the direction of his cooking style led to a reflection of his cooking journey.

Alexander Lobrano met Sacko and was able to indulge in his Franco-African-Japanese cooking. “It began with a superb starter of roasted lobster with lacto-fermented peppers, miso and tomato, an elegant dish in which the miso’s umami enlivened the sweetness of the crustacean and the peppers added some teasing punctuation. We also loved Sacko’s sole cooked in a banana leaf with shichimi togarashi and its garnish of attiéké, a dish of fermented cassava pulp popular in the Ivory Coast, and a brilliant dessert of marinated pineapple with bissap sorbet and candied shiso leaves.”