Sneak Peek: Owamni by The Sioux Chef

Sean Sherman and Dana Thompson are about to open their Indigenous restaurant by the river.

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We really want to say that this restaurant has been in the works since the dawn of the Mississippi, because in a way, it has. Sean Sherman and Dana Thompson, the founders and leaders of The Sioux Chef organization, are on the verge of finally opening their Indigenous-foods restaurant, Owamni. While they have a few more technical details to iron out with permits and such, they think it's safe to say they'll be open within the month of July. 

Building out the Water Works site on the sacred river has had challenges. The first vision was to build the restaurant directly into the ruins, but steel tariffs and the pandemic made that impossible. The resulting compromise actually gives them a better view of the river and more light, not a bad trade-off. 

If you enter on the ground floor, near the river road, you'll be greeted with a grand staircase. Laid with the beams from the original Fuji Ya restaurant that once occupied this site, it leads you up to the main kitchen and dining room. The desk down here will be manned by the Park Board, as this is a Minneapolis Parks building and restaurant: like Sea Salt or Bread & Pickle. But this one will stay open all year. 

As you come to the top, you'll have to come to the decision to eat inside or outside. There will be about 80 seats in this area which is known as the Wankata (upper) Terrace. "We'll have full service tables out here on the cement, and more casual tables on the lawn if you want to grab some snacks and drinks," Thompson told me today. "The railing will also be fitted with a bar rail and seating, so you can just hang out and watch the river while you eat."

The lower level will also have tables on the Wakpa (river) patio. You'll be able to grab a seat and order from a QR code on a posted menu. This menu, different from the dining room, will offer more casual food, easy and quick for people who are headed to other city events. And there will be a tap trailer for easier access to beer, wine, and tapped N/A cocktails (no spirits). You'll also find a private dining and event space that they'll book out. 

"Everything you see here, we worked with the landscape architect to plant. They are all Indigenous plants, things you would have seen growing near this river originally." Thompson said that the plants all around the restaurant will be labeled with their Dakota names first, then their American names and a description of how the plant can be used medicinally, culturally, or for food. "It's part of everything we've been trying to create: passive education. So that people who don't know who we are, they might stumble in and see native words on the menu, or on the plant cards. They're going to ask the server, and interact with an Indigenous person, and humanize what that means. Then they're going to start to understand the depth of culture that is here, all around them, that maybe they didn't know because of erasure and racism and forced assimilation. All of these heavy things, right, but they'll learn those words and maybe they won't be afraid to learn more." I am down for sneaky knowledge delivery.

Dining inside will mean scoring one of the 70ish seats that float along the windows or pulling up at the bar. "We decided that the wines should all be Indigenous and BIPOC wines, but we ended up almost filling the list with Indigenous makers," Sherman said, "We just kept finding a lot of native wineries in California, Mexico had some great ones, and some really interesting native wines from New Zealand." They are being particular about sourcing their coffee beans, and tea, too. "We're not going to have decaf coffee, if you want decaf, just have tea. In fact, I was working on a line of Indigenous herbal teas when I found this guy in Duluth already doing it, so we're going to use his."

Remember, the idea of Owamni isn't just to cook with plants that were grown in this area long ago, but also to NOT cook with ingredients that didn't exist here originally. No butter. No dairy. No wheat. No sugar cane. Sherman's cooks were sitting down for family meal while I was there, so I asked them if they were nervous about cooking like that. General consensus: Not really. "Maybe French food we couldn't do like that, but this food makes sense," one cook told me who had worked for Gordon Ramsey, but had been following Sherman for more than six years, waiting to come cook with him. Another cook came from California just to work in this kitchen. Over 75% of the staff they hired identify as Indigenous.

As for the service model, they are paying people in the $18-$22/hr range and will have a 15% service charge on the bill. Thompson mentioned that they are also paying out 2% of net revenues back to the staff (there's an algorithm), but they will keep a tip line on the bill that is optional. They are already starting with a few different service models, some tables will be full service, some quick service, and that will carry them through the summer. Once winter comes, they'll tent the patios and keep the decks going with fire pits (hopefully) as long as possible. The dining room will transition into a more focused tasting menu, which will be a ticketed meal. Those should start around February, with ticket sales starting in late fall, so be aware. 

There's a pretty good chance that Owamni will be open just before the Aquatennial. They'll just be getting their river legs, so be patient if you happen upon them open. Reservations will open through Resy when they know their dates. 

"We're excited and ready! We'll have to learn a bit as we go," Sherman said, "but we've been waiting a long time to do this. We can't wait to have special events, and cooking classes, and invite chefs to come cook with us for meals, it will be great." They both agreed that it has been quite the mission, taking all their ideas and hopes, and history, and culture and making it tangible, for everyone.