Bannock busy business before National Aboriginal Day
- EFN Staff | June 17, 2016
Leon Almightyvoice is preparing hard for National Aboriginal Day when demand for the cultural icon bannock is at its greatest. Leon is the proud owner of Twisted Bannock, home to some wicked good bannock and bannock derived meals. He operates out of a busy little corner in the Fire Creek Gas Station on the One Arrow urban reserve in the heart of the inner city of Saskatoon. And he knows there is high demand for his goods on June 21.
“It is always a big day at the shop on National Aboriginal Day. I bring in two extra people and we cook like crazy. Even leading up to it with pre-orders is pretty good,” said Leon during a break in the action in his corner restaurant.
Leon is a member of One Arrow First Nation and a graduate of the SIAST Commercial Chef program and he spent several years with Athabasca Catering cooking at camps in Northern Saskatchewan. His last job up north was as a sous chef...which Leon jokingly describes as “doing all the work while the chef stands at the end of the line and gets all the credit.” Now he gets all the credit for his kitchen mastery.
Check out the 2016 National Aboriginal Day Celebrations in Saskatoon.
“I really wanted to become my own boss and become financially independent and also cook at a place where I can let my creativity run wild,” said Leon. “This spot became available and I just fired out a bid on the place then it just took off from there. There was a lot of start up costs I used all my savings and a line of credit and went for broke. There was no planning I just dived right in cause of my work and management skills from previous jobs and school.”
Adhering to the old saying "too many cooks ruin the soup," Leon has one full time employee and is training a part timer. They will all be working on June 21 as the demand for Leon’s awesome product sky rockets.
A lot went into honing his craft of making bannock. “I learned how to make bannock at Fire Creek Gas and Grill 4 years ago when I first worked there. Then it took some practicing so basically self taught through experience,” said Leon. “The reaction from the customers is great when they come to find fresh hot bannock. The reaction when they take that first bite on their face is priceless.”
Leon intends to grow the business through deliveries and keep selling bannock to the neighbourhood and eventually open a full restaurant. He loves his job and encourages others to live the dream and find their bannock. “I would say if you really want something bad enough in your life seize the moment and go with it. Don’t doubt yourself you only get one life be the best you can be and work hard work toward your goals in life.”
But for now its heads down working and getting ready for the big bannock day where his most popular items, fried bannock, baked bannock, Indian tacos and bannock burgers will be flying out the door on National Aboriginal Day.