Buka Binging

Lagos is unique for its food culture where every street has about 2-3 bukas and you can get food at relatively cheap prices except the popular ones. Food choices aren't really much; you have Amala with Ewedu which I've still not learnt to eat after all these years ,then pounded yam with efo or egusi ,porridge yam cooked with sugar which i never intend knowing what it tastes like. My all time favourite still remains the white rice and palm oil stew and believe me no city makes palm oil stew like Lagos and I've had to learn too.

This line of business is mainly dominated by migrant Togolese population while the rest are owned and managed by Nigerians. Some of these food sellers are known to have food shops but with branches, that's employing young girls who hawk smaller quantities of the food on the streets to people who are not able to come to the shop. 

Being able to reach more people most times does not mean more money for some as the big players have taken over the business, these big players are situated at strategic points all over Lagos with spacious and well ventilated bukas and they all have one thing in common:

1.  Rude and nasty staff
2. Crowd of customers at any time of the day who are even more than willing to wash their own plates just to get served.
3. Outrageous prices that even well established eateries like KFC,TFC,Mr Biggs and co dare not even ask for.

Now my question is, what is it about these places that keep attracting people like magnet? A buka where you'll have to practically beg to be served despite the fact that you're paying with your hard earned cash? I don't have an answer to that but for people who troop to such places, that's a question I'd like you to answer. Bear in mind that Its normal to hear murmurings about food merchants using diabolical means to attract and sustain customers like the Eleme story I read 2 days ago and I'm not going to dwell on that because anything could have happened to the lady in question, like most people would say, it could be dark forces trying to run her down and it's always easy to suspect or try to discredit a phenomenon we do not understand.

 I grew up hearing the phrase that “A good product sells itself” it doesn't need much advertisement, so call a spade a spade and call a good meal same. While we're on this topic, someone please help me check the kind of women running these establishments, are they endowed like the Eleme woman in this picture? Check the girls working there too, how dem be? Let’s not forget the food’s native flavors because some people prefer it that way.

 For people who keep pointing at diabolical sources, stop patronizing such places if  you feel something fishy is happening, if you can't stop then we'll be forced to assume your umbilical cord was buried there.