Have you had an 'Ojibway taco'? If not, act quick — Toronto is losing a cafe devoted to powwow fare

Toronto is losing one of its three remaining Indigenous restaurants later this month, a closure that will chop down the representation of Indigenous cuisine in the city after the recent closure of two other such spots.

The Pow Wow Cafe has been dishing out classic powwow fare using traditional ingredients since it opened in 2016. Diners have enjoyed everything from corn soup with smoked duck to the classic fry-bread taco.

But with his Kensington Market landlord selling the building, Chef Shawn Adler says the cafe will close for good on May 28. The closure comes after two others in recent years. Ku-Kum Kitchen folded in in 2019 and NishDish in 2020.

Adler said he intended to sell the business after five years, but now says he will put his focus on his flagship restaurant in Eugenia, Ont.

"We've had that restaurant for 13 years and we live there, so we're just gonna sort of concentrate our efforts on The Flying Chestnut," he said.

When the cafe's doors close, Toronto suffers two losses. First, the urban Indigenous community has one less place to gather. Second, those who haven't tried an "Ojibway taco" — a crispy and doughy treat that's become a best-seller — will have to venture further for the experience.

Fry-bread is a well-known dish in many Indigenous communities across Canada — similar to bannock, but fried instead of baked. Pile on top some fresh chopped lettuce, seasoned ground beef, tomatoes, cheese and sour cream and voila — you've got yourself what's commonly known as a "fry-bread taco."

WATCH | CBC Toronto toured the cafe when it opened to check out its signature tacos:

For Indigenous customers, it's comfort food. "I see the looks on their faces when they try our fry bread ... it brings them back," Adler told CBC Toronto.

For others, it's a brand new experience. Before opening the Pow Wow Cafe, Adler had been slinging his tacos at music festivals and powwows around Toronto.

But while the fry-bread taco has become an staple at powwows, its roots aren't actually Indigenous.

Joseph Shawana, an Odawa chef and chair of Indigenous Culinary of Associated Nations, puts it simply: powwow food isn't Indigenous food.

"Tacos, Blanket dogs (scone dogs) chili aren't anywhere Indigenous. Bannock, Fry Bread or Scone is such a colonial food that it was given to use in rations," he said.

"We had to make do on what was given to us to survive as we were relocated countless times from our traditional homelands to other parts of the country. And when we were displaced a lot of our food went with it."