Acclaimed West African Restaurant Considers Closing After Manager Detained by ICE
An award-winning West African restaurant in Roxbury is on the brink of closing after a visit from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over the weekend scooped up an essential employee — and a family member of the owner.
Restaurant manager Paul Dama of Suya Joint — the brother of chef and owner Cecelia Lizotte — was detained by ICE on Sunday, June 15. The county has no criminal charges on file for Dama because he is being detained by national immigration authorities, according to an officer at the Stafford County Department of Corrections, in Dover, New Hampshire, where he's being held in jail.
Lizotte, who immigrated to the U.S. in 1999 and is a legal citizen, says that her brother joined her in 2019. She told Eater that Dama has applied for asylum and the case is pending. He has not been approved or denied.
The family has not been given an explanation for his detention, and is not aware of any official charges against him, according to Lizotte.
Dama's family has worked to find him legal representation in the state of New Hampshire, which Lizotte says was difficult because immigration lawyers have many current cases. A hearing is currently set for Thursday, June 26. Dama can call his family daily, and told his sister that he is 'shaking and scared' because he said other detainees have been transferred at night, and he is not sure where they are being taken.
The ordeal has forced Lizotte to consider closing the restaurants (possibly temporarily, Lizotte says) to focus on getting Dama back home, but her staff is encouraging her to keep going.
'What am I working for, you know?' she says. But 'the tears just keep coming when I talk about it because, no, I do not want to close.'
It's also 'extremely scary' to be running a restaurant right now, Lizotte says. 'Like, could I be the next person?'
The West African restaurant has been a mainstay in Roxbury since 2016, nabbing local honors along the way, including a spot on Eater Boston's 38 essential restaurants and a Best of Boston award from Boston Magazine three years in a row. A Providence location opened in early 2025. The Nubian Square restaurant is known for its jollof rice, a one-pot rice dish prepared with a savory pepper sauce; tender beef suya, a spicy beef skewer popular throughout West Africa for which the restaurant is named after; and egusi, a staple stew made with ground pumpkin seeds, spinach, chicken, and fish. The restaurant is currently donating 20 percent of all jollof rice sales directly toward Dama's legal expenses.
The restaurant has posted a GoFundMe to raise money for legal fees and to help Dama's family make ends meet while he is detained.
The Trump administration has taken an unyielding stance on immigration since coming into power, wreaking havoc on restaurants across the country. Fears of ICE raids have closed markets in Las Vegas, and massive crackdowns have hit restaurants in Washington, DC. CBS News reported earlier this year that local restaurants in East Boston have seen a drop in immigrant customers due to increased concerns about ICE raids. Immigrants of all statuses make up the backbone of the food service industry, and ICE agents are conducting raids on many businesses. Eater has compiled a guide to dealing with them if they come to your restaurant. See More:
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Atlantic
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New York Post
3 hours ago
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