A weekend trip to Minnesota led me to lunch at Owamni by The Sioux Chef, an award-winning Indigenous restaurant on the banks of the Mississippi River.
Here, chef Sean Sherman, a member of the Oglala Lakota tribe, serves a "decolonized" menu of Indigenous foods used before European colonists arrived. Think bison, elk, duck, and sweet potatoes. Colonial ingredients, such as beef, pork, chicken, wheat flour, cane sugar, and dairy, are absent.
Sherman's mission at the restaurant extends beyond cooking the ingredients once consumed by Indigenous peoples in North America for thousands of years to job creation and the support of Indigenous producers.
The Sioux Chef grew up on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. After high school, a job with the U.S. Forest Service helped him realize the value plants have long held among Indigenous communities, whether as food or medicine.
In the past, Indigenous cuisine wasn't usually at the top of my mind when choosing where to dine in the United States. However, I'm now changing this. Restaurants specializing in local cuisines have always been my priority when traveling abroad.
I'm spoiled with Mexican and Vietnamese restaurants in Austin, but Native American cuisine is scarce. So, I was especially curious to experience dining at Owamni.
About Owamni Restaurant
Owamni pays homage to a culturally significant Dakota village, Owamniyomni ("turbulent waters"), that once thrived in the same spot. The Dakota word refers to the natural 50-foot limestone waterfall that came to be known as St. Anthony Falls.
The Upper St. Anthony Falls Lock and Dam was built over several decades and completed in 1963, allowing commercial vessels to pass. The project also allowed for the generation of hydroelectric power.
But, to the Dakota people, the heavy construction on Native land along the river added insult to the injury of having already been displaced and marginalized.
Dining at Owamni offers an opportunity for reflection in a beautiful, modern space. The main dining room provides more windows than walls and an open kitchen with counter seating.
In June 2022, a year after opening, Owamni won the James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant in the United States. As of 2023, Owamni is owned by the North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems, a non-profit organization set up by Sean Sherman to promote Indigenous foodways.
Owamni in downtown Minneapolis was our first stop after Kel's friend picked us up at the airport. Even at 2:45 p.m. on a Friday, we were lucky to get seated without a reservation. Sitting at the counter, I caught my first glimpses of the staff's black T-shirts, which had phrases like "#landback" on them.
Lunch
The menu at Owamni by The Sioux Chef is organized around plant-based dishes, wild game, larger shareable plates, desserts, and sauces. I appreciated the simplicity and design, which was easy to read and highlighted the many Indigenous ingredients used.
Plant
We ordered a corn taco with corn jam, corn fritters, and sumac popcorn. Corn was utilized in the same small dish in four ways, including the tortillas. The corn chowder with corn dumplings and popcorn had similar flavors. True wild rice with cranberries or white bean salad with poblano peppers would've been a better choice.
Our order of sweet potatoes with maple chili crisp was enormous, large enough to share among several people. Plant dishes were priced at $8 to $15 each.
Game
The meat section offered various options, from a duck pupusa with mole amarillo to fresh oysters and an elk taco. Bison made two appearances, first with a walnut soup and again in taco form.
I chose the latter, which was my favorite lunch dish. The bison birria taco came with guajillo salsa, spring pesto, and bison broth. Prices ranged from $8 for crickets and popcorn to $30 for a half-dozen oysters.
The largest dishes were under the shareable section, including smoked clams with crab, ancho-brined duck breast with duck fat, and stuffed green tomatoes with wild rice. I was curious about the elk skewers slathered with garlic squash aioli and served with turnip, carrot slaw, and onion.
Three large skewers were presented on a dish, offering plenty of meat. It was gamier than the bison and other meats I'm accustomed to (beef, pork, and chicken), but I'm glad I tried it. The shareable foods ranged from $28 for the elk to $65 for smoked bison.
Sweet
Finally, desserts. The spring menu at Owamni had three offerings, and we ordered two of them. My favorite was the squash custard with meringue, berries, and bison fat caramel. The other was a pair of sweet potato donuts with candied seeds, blackberries, and maple vanilla.
Sweet tamales with squash maple rounded out the choices. Desserts were priced from $12 to $14 apiece.
Drinks
Owamni by The Sioux Chef offers hot and iced Indigenous teas blended by Anahata Herbals. I enjoyed an iced Nimaammaa made from raspberry leaf, nettle, oatstraw, lemon balm, and peppermint. Coffee is currently sourced from Copper Cup Roastery, an Indigenous-owned company. Lattes can be sweetened with agave, maple, or honey. A small selection of flavored sodas and zero-proof cocktails is also available.
For alcoholic beverages, Owamni primarily sources its wine and beer from BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) and women-led producers. The small, curated wine list features selections from Minnesota to Mexico and California to New Zealand.
Visiting Owamni
Plan a visit to Owamni by The Sioux Chef in the Twin Cities for a one-of-a-kind meal that centers on the Indigenous perspective.
Address: 420 S 1st St, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Hours: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday
Parking: Paid street parking is available in the area.
Reservations: Counter seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Reservations are available up to 60 days in advance and are highly recommended if you want a table. They can be made through Resy.
Dress code: As far as I know, there's no stated dress code; however, I'd recommend casual by day and smart casual for dinner.
