8th July, 2017
A Nigerian restaurant owner in Pretoria, Mr Eze Amara, says South Africans patronise Nigerian delicacies served in his eating joint more than Nigerian and other African customers.
Amara, 37, a native of Oghe, Ezeagu Local Government Area of Enugu State, said in Pretoria, on Saturday that South Africans love Nigerian food.
Located in Pretoria East, the restaurant serves Nigerian delicacies like Rice, Beans, plantain, yam, vegetable, Ora , okro, egusi, bitter leaf, nsala, Okazi (saint leaf) soups, yam porridge and pepper soup.
“ I attend to an average of 200 customers daily except on Sundays. Half of them are South Africans.
“ Others are from Ghana, Congo, Cameroon, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Kenya and Nigeria. They love Nigerian dishes and it is my duty to satisfy their needs,” he said.
Amara said he came to South Africa in 2009 and that it required a lot of hard work to start the business and sustain it.
He advised Nigerians interested in food business in South Africa to be focused, dedicated and committed to it.
“ It takes a lot to start the business, but it is worth doing because a lot of Africans here love Nigerian food. I have three staff working in my restaurant and we are doing well,” he said.
Mr Ikechukwu Anyene, President, Nigerian Union, South Africa, commended Amara for being a good ambassador of Nigeria in food business.
“ This is a testimony that some Nigerians are doing well and contributing positively to the South African economy. I am impressed with what I have seen here and he has potential to grow more than this,” he said.
Anyene, however, advised that Nigerians doing well in business should not relax because they had made money.
“ I recommend that they invest the money and keep working hard instead of relaxing and abandoning what they already have,” he said.