World-travelling First Nation chef plans to make southwestern Ontario town prime tourism destination

By Colin Graf

LEAMINGTON— With the help of a world-travelling First Nations’ chef, Caldwell First Nation is planning to make the southwestern Ontario town of Leamington a prime destination for gourmets, tourists, and people interested in learning more about First Nations.

The community expects to transform its small fish-and-chips “The Happy Snapper” on the Lake Erie shore into the “Three Fires” restaurant that will showcase both First Nations food and stories, says Chef Bill Alexander.

After spending close to 21 years working in Canada and around the world promoting First Nations culture and cuisine, Alexander found himself as a consultant to the Caldwell community in their efforts to create a prime food attraction for visitors to the Lake Erie shore. Before long, he had committed to becoming the executive chef of the new restaurant and bought a house in nearby Kingsville.

Three Fires will use “traditional Indigenous ingredients and traditional Indigenous cooking methods,” but will be an interactive place where much of the food will be cooked in front of diners. The food will also be used as a way to tell First Nations’ stories and history, according to the winner of the 2020 Restaurants Canada Culinary Excellence Award and consulting chef for WestJet Airlines.

“Food for us as Indigenous people has always been something that has brought people together; a reason to celebrate and often is what has held our communities together. It’s a most powerful conduit for sharing our culture and who we are,” Alexander says.

The menu will feature ingredients specific to southern Ontario, with seafood from the nearby waters of Lake Erie and game meats such as deer from the annual community deer hunt, combined with lots of vegetarian choices, Alexander says.

“There is this misconception that Indigenous people were carnivores by nature,” he says.

In fact, in years past when the hunt was not plentiful, ancestors ate herbs and fruits frequently. Given that fact, “by default” a lot of the menu will be gluten-free, or dairy-free, he explains.

The Caldwell community has settled on tourism as “a huge part” of its economic development strategy and “rebranding” their restaurant with its marina and bakeshop are the first major steps, says councillor Robin Perkins.

“We knew we wanted something different. That’s always been our goal, to have strong economic development and get away from the government so we can be a sovereign nation, a strong nation,” she tells Anishinabek News.

Re-inventing the restaurant was an idea that grew by examining data that showed Indigenous cuisine is something visitors to Canada are looking for, says Caldwell’s Economic Development officer Kyra Cole.

Alexander says statistics compiled by the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada show that 1 in 3 travellers from Europe landing in Canada are asking where they can experience authentic Indigenous cuisine, and his goal with Three Fires is “to make Leamington and Caldwell a major food destination,” even bringing in food tourists from as far away as Toronto. With a target opening date of May 2021, organizers are already working with regional tourism operators to attract visitors from the GTA, he says.

“People act like Indigenous food is some new fad. I always laugh and smirk at that. If so, then it’s a 14,000-year fad [making it] the longest fad in Canadian history,” he says. “What’s new to us is the tourism side of things. We’ve been doing this (cooking) forever but we didn’t know people were interested. Three hours travel is nothing, and we are three hours away from the major food destination (Toronto) in all of Canada.”

Opening a new restaurant during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic may seem a risky proposition, but the Caldwell community’s plans called for spring and summer to be planning and renovation time at the restaurant so work has proceeded mostly on time, says Cole.

“We were able to take the time to be very thoughtful and use the time we had available and also figure out what might have to be done to provide for distancing and ensure safety,” she explains. “We’re going to be on the leading edge of providing a safe and welcoming environment for visitors.”

Officials have met with the architect and are in the process of getting permits. Most of the kitchen has been designed and Chef Alexander will be presenting to Chief and Council in September, she says. Three fires will not be a “superficial four-wall” structure,” and will feature waterfront views, she adds.

“COVID-19 definitely brought in some new obstacles,” says Perkins. “[But] nothing has ever stopped us moving forward. We’ve always hit some speed bumps, but I kind of think our nation almost thrives off those challenges.”

While visitors are dining, they will also be learning about First Nations’ past, say the organizers.

“We want to teach our history,” says Perkins. “This will be a perfect opportunity for people to sit and learn and enjoy. You’re always happy when you are eating, and even though it’s a sad story, we want to focus on our resilience rather than maybe the past harms.”

A tentative opening date for Three Fires is May 2021, says Cole, coinciding with the Festival of Birds during spring migration season at nearby Point Pelee National Park, when bird-watching tourists often come by the thousands to the area, says Cole.

“We will have a captive audience,” with the restaurant situated on the main road into the park, she says.

Three Fires is only part of an ambitious plan to create an “Indigenous tourism hub” in the Leamington area, says Perkins. The community has been working since 2018 on setting economic development options, and attracting tourism emerged as a leading idea, she says.

“Three Fires is just the beginning,” says Alexander, and adds that other ideas include creating a winery and cultural centre. “There’s a lot more development ready to happen.”

Alexander hopes to have “the biggest Indigenous food and beverage team in Canada” by the time all the plans come alive.

He wants to bring a sense of fun to the restaurant also, featuring not only local ingredients but playing up the fabled warm climate of the Leamington area, the southernmost in Canada, in the choice of other items on the table.

“We’re going to do some different spins. There’s really nowhere else in Canada you can grow cactus, and bamboo and palm trees. Something people are not expecting in Canada is that climate of being able to grow those,” he says. “Do you know how many Canadians don’t even realize that exists in Canada?”

Still, Alexander does not view Indigenous food as a matter of just ingredients; he sees it more conceptually.

“It’s our relationship to the land, it’s our relationship to Mother Nature and the Creator, and to what was provided. It’s our responsibility as stewards of the land to manage that partnership in a truly respectful way, never taking more than we need, and then telling our stories through food.”