Calabar’s Slaughter Street: Nigeria’s own suya hub

Just as sellers fan embers beneath wire gauzes over which finely portioned beef roast barbeque-style, prospective buyers wave thin smoke clouds away as they line up en masse to select what parts they want for their suya. This is common sight on Calabar’s Slaughter Street from top to bottom with some stalls labelled ‘Imoke Suya,’ […]

Just as sellers fan embers beneath wire gauzes over which finely portioned beef roast barbeque-style, prospective buyers wave thin smoke clouds away as they line up en masse to select what parts they want for their suya. This is common sight on Calabar’s Slaughter Street from top to bottom with some stalls labelled ‘Imoke Suya,’ and ‘University of Suya’.
Suya is seasoned meat kebab usually served in wooden skewers and is a popular food item in various parts of Nigeria. It is a delicacy originating from northern Nigeria, but which is also given as much prominence in the south-eastern city of Calabar as any of the ancient city’s local foods.
Slaughter Street in the heart of the metropolis boasts of no less than 30 stalls selling suya and fresh beef. The dealers, all northerners, ensure that this delicacy is a major part of the city’s tourism attraction; so much so that it has its own place reserved on the menu listings of restaurants close by where tourists lounge every now and again all year round.
Located in Bogobiri, a part of the metropolis mostly occupied by northerners, the street is probably the only one in any Nigerian city with the attribute of suya hub.
For many visiting the city during the Yuletide and other festive seasons like Easter, they must pay homage at Slaughter Street on the Calabar Carnival route, which also has shops selling a variety of beverages and local delicacies.
For some like Lois Ibekwe from Lagos State, it offers as much delight as the carnival does. “I’ve made the Calabar Carnival even more popular amongst my friends by telling them about this place and ensuring it is our major stop during the carnival,” she told Weekend Magazine.
Reputable for her mouth-watering dishes, Calabar is gradually making suya a regular accompaniment for these meals as our reporter observed.
New guests to the spot usually went straight to the suya stalls, surveying them one after the other as they decided which would give them the best deal. Upon making a choice and placing their orders, they then went to the food and drinks vendors. The general end to their orders was: ‘don’t worry about meat. We’ll use suya.’  
Some others simply wanted suya which they ate with different forms of vegetables, including salads.
Serving multiple purposes, the stalls have inner chambers some of which offer a range of petty items like seasoning cubes, tinned tomatoes, cocoa beverages, spaghetti and even toiletries in some cases, amongst others.
Also visible from the exterior are chunks of fresh beef on concrete slabs or wooden tables, rid of all visible filth, as butchers go back and forth with hard bargaining buyers who only want meat to take away for home cooking.
For these butchers and sellers, hygiene is key and even more so in a place like Calabar. Explaining why they take it so seriously, one meat dealer, Haruna Mohammed, said: “You know Calabar people, they don’t like filth. If your place is dirty, they will never buy from you.”
He added that: “When the governor gave us this place we were very happy there was regular running water. We scrub before and after we slaughter and properly dispose of the rubbish. Because asides a dirty environment, Calabar people also hate foul smell.”
This hasn’t gone unnoticed by clients like Ima Etuk, who said she would rather patronise meat sellers on Slaughter Street than go to the Watt Market. “I feel more care is taken in preparing the meat here than at Watt Market and I get a better deal now that I have a regular customer here,” she said.
Organised like any factory unit, there is division of labour for all. Young men transport the slaughtered cows, goats, sheep and chickens onto slabs; others receive them, wash and then cut the meat into more sizeable chunks for sale. Another set of people further cut them into much smaller strips and then slices in preparation for suya. These are then transferred to another section of the stalls where they are seasoned with powdered groundnut, pepper, salt, and other condiments with someone picking them stick by stick onto the waiting rack for barbeque.
Slaughter Street was not always a suya spot. Mohammed explained: “We used to be at Mary Slessor roundabout but we were not very organised as we are now. That is why the government decided to relocate us here and equip it adequately for us. We prefer this location because it is also closer to our homes. This enables us start market very early and also close as late as we want.”
The sellers, who are from states like Kano, Zamfara, Jigawa and Yobe among others, say they have made a home in Calabar and are in no hurry to go back, having lived there for at least a decade.
Hassan Taku, proprietor of ‘Imoke Suya,’ which he says is the best on the block, states that: “You know, when you bring something new to a place where it isn’t common, you must make the most of it.”
He teased further: “In Gusau (Zamfara) almost everybody is a master at making suya. But here even within ourselves, we know who is who and I make sure, I maintain very good standards and make my suya the tastiest. After 12 years here and interacting very well with the people, I have improved how best to make my suya so that they enjoy it.”
Speaking on keeping up with patronage, Musa Buba from Adamawa State said: “During festivities and when school is in session, we are most busy and work extra hours. Sometimes some of our children come around to help us when we are overwhelmed. But after this, sales are usually low and we manage quite well.”
Buba added that another busy time is when they have to supply for occasions.
With all sorts of exotic cars lined up on Slaughter Street and some adjoining ones, regular patrons like Fati Ali Umar, who has lived in Calabar for the past four years, said: “On several occasions I have bought suya from here to travel with to Taraba. I’m glued to this place and no one can convince me otherwise about the quality of their suya.”