| As always, I like to focus on unconventional | | | | 27, they started their restaurant business |
| travel ideas and experiences, and food is | | | | with funding assistance for Young Aboriginal |
| part of this experience. So before I left for | | | | Entrepreneurs. I asked Phoebe about the name |
| Ottawa I called up the ByWard Market Business | | | | of their restaurant and she explained that at |
| Improvement Association to find out about any | | | | the time they were considering two names: |
| interesting dining establishments. Sure | | | | "Sweetgrass" and "Smoke Signal". Sweetgrass, |
| enough, they had a creative suggestion for | | | | the final choice, is a tall perfumy grass |
| me: an establishment named Sweetgrass Bistro | | | | that grows mostly in marshy areas and it has |
| that specializes in aboriginal cuisine. | | | | a long tradition in aboriginal culture. It is |
| | | | used in prayers, it is woven into braids and |
| So after my arrival in Ottawa and my initial | | | | baskets and it is also used as a tea by a |
| explorations I made my way to the ByWard | | | | variety of aboriginal tribes. |
| Market, Ottawa's largest and most dynamic | | | | |
| entertainment and restaurant area. Sweetgrass | | | | "Sweetgrass" is the only aboriginal |
| Bistro is located in a former private home on | | | | restaurant in Ottawa and only the second |
| 108 Murray Street at the north end of the | | | | restaurant specializing in native cuisine in |
| market area. | | | | all of Canada. Phoebe explained that they |
| | | | integrate foods from different aboriginal |
| You walk inside and the place has a bar area | | | | tribes from all over Canada, the United |
| with an open concept kitchen on the left and | | | | States and Mexico and they use a lot of |
| a dining room to the right. The atmosphere is | | | | herbs, grains and different types of meat |
| calm and understated and aboriginal art is | | | | such as moose, elk, buffalo, duck, pheasant, |
| adorning the walls. I had a chance to sit | | | | rabbit and various types of fish. The menu |
| down with Phoebe Sutherland, one of the | | | | changes seasonally to reflect the |
| co-owners of Sweetgrass. She and husband | | | | availability of specialized ingredients. |
| Warren opened this dining establishment in | | | | |
| late 2003. | | | | I had a chance to sample Sweetgrass' unique |
| | | | cuisine and started off with "Wabush |
| Phoebe has an interesting story to tell: she | | | | Dumplings" which are pan-fried rabbit |
| is of Cree origin and grew up in Northern | | | | dumplings in a honey mustard sauce with |
| Quebec in the James Bay area. She lived on | | | | Bryson greens in a citrus vinaigrette. I am |
| the reserve until age 10 and spent her | | | | usually not a big meat eater, but the subtle |
| childhood camping, enjoying nature, snaring | | | | flavour of these rabbit dumplings |
| rabbits, and from a culinary point of view | | | | complemented by the savoury sauce was very |
| she got exposed to a lot of game meats | | | | pleasant to my palate. As a main dish I chose |
| including rabbit and moose. | | | | the "Rustic Mahnoomin Siipai", a purely |
| | | | vegetarian dish consisting of wild rice |
| At 10 years of age she moved and went to a | | | | dumplings filled with great northern beans, |
| private school in Quebec near the Vermont | | | | topped with wild greens and a spring |
| Border. She later attended Grenville | | | | vegetable sauce, a multi-flavoured, yet |
| Christian College in Brockville and after | | | | surprisingly filling dish. To cap off this |
| high school she enrolled at Algonquin College | | | | exotic dining experience I had "Mom's Indian |
| in Ottawa to complete a program in hotel and | | | | Buudin", a beautifully presented dense, |
| restaurant management. Following her | | | | dark-coloured cake, reminiscent of Christmas |
| graduation she wanted to expand her education | | | | cake. |
| in culinary arts and decided to pursue a | | | | |
| degree program in this discipline. Since no | | | | Phoebe had joined me for dinner and told me a |
| Canadian university offered a degree in | | | | bit about her childhood, growing up on a |
| culinary arts she went on to attend the New | | | | reserve and then moving away to small towns |
| England Culinary Institute in Vermont where | | | | in Quebec and Ontario. She says she enjoyed |
| she honed her practical experience in two | | | | the simple life on the reserve and as |
| internship programs. Her first internship was | | | | children they would always play outside. One |
| at a four star French establishment named | | | | of her favourite activities was to search for |
| Hammersly's Bistro in Boston and her second | | | | wild strawberries. Today the lodge in her |
| one was at the Asticou Inn in North East | | | | village has been turned into a conference |
| Harbour, Maine. The cuisine at this historic | | | | centre and although 8 or 9 hours northeast of |
| inn focused on seafood which was a great | | | | Ottawa, the area where she was born attracts |
| learning opportunity for Phoebe. | | | | a lot more tourists. |
| | | | |
| She met her husband Warren in her second year | | | | Phoebe and her husband Warren, originally |
| of school where he was studying a year behind | | | | from Jamaica, share a passion for food. Every |
| her. Warren had given up his studies in | | | | year they participate in the ByWard Market |
| electrical engineering to pursue a career in | | | | Stew Cookoff and this year they won the |
| creative culinary arts. After graduation, | | | | People's Choice Award for best stew. They |
| both Phoebe and Warren moved to Phoenix, | | | | also regularly participate in a local food |
| Arizona, where she studied transcontinental | | | | show in a small town outside of Ottawa which |
| cuisine, a mixture of South-Western cooking | | | | is a true collaboration between farmers, who |
| and world fusion. Phoebe went on to say that | | | | provide local produce and meats, and chefs, |
| she was the only female in an all Mexican | | | | who turn these precious ingredients into |
| kitchen crew and through the interaction with | | | | mouthwatering delicacies. Last year about 600 |
| her co-workers she learned a lot about | | | | to 800 people attended the food festival. |
| traditional Mexican foods as well. That also | | | | |
| explained why Sweetgrass has a Mexican | | | | Phoebe and Warren Sutherland's creation |
| Tortilla soup on its spring menu. | | | | "Sweetgrass" is a unique addition to Ottawa's |
| | | | food scene and testimony to two young, |
| After this experience Phoebe and Warren moved | | | | talented and hardworking people who share an |
| back to Canada and decided to get married. | | | | absolute passion for food. |
| Less than a year later, at the young age of | | | | |