How food in Canada is tied to land, language, community and colonization
This episode originally aired on April 18, 2021.
Food ties us to land, language and culture. From an Indigenous chef opening a new restaurant during the pandemic to the ways Canada's Food Guide is connected to colonization — this week on Unreserved, how Indigenous people are using food to strengthen community.
This year has been very difficult for the culinary industry. Many Indigenous restaurant owners have had to find creative ways to pivot. Shawn Adler is the chef and owner of Pow Wow Cafe in Toronto and The Flying Chestnut Kitchen in Eugenia, Ont. Adler, who is from Lac des Mille Lacs First Nation, speaks about how he's keeping his business up and running during the pandemic.
In the 1940s and 50s, nutritional experiments were carried out on malnourished Indigenous people, many of whom were children in residential schools. This hidden history was brought to light by historian Ian Mosby in 2013 when he published the article, "Administering Colonial Science." Mosby identifies the connections between these nutritional experiments and Canada's Food Guide.
Curtis Cardinal used to sell bannock out of a backpack at powwows. It was then that he knew he had a business idea cooking. Teepee Treats started as a catering business in Edmonton, but has since turned into a full-fledged restaurant.
Art Napoleon is the co-host of Moosemeat and Marmalade. The series, which is airing its fifth season on APTN, brings two very different chefs together to explore culture, culinary traditions, and really good food.
Melissa Brown is both Ojibwe and Jamaican but she didn't always feel that way. The chef and owner of Brownees Urban Bistro in Winnipeg was raised by her mother in Winnipeg's inner city. She felt connected to her Ojibwe culture through cooking with her Mother but it wasn't until her father took her to Jamaica that she began to connect with that side of her culture… through food.
This week's playlist: 
Mattmac — Break Me Down
Jayli Wolf — Child of the Government
Cilo — kant stress
Art Napoleon — Bannock Love