SULTAN’S TENT CHEF RELISHING NEW ROLE
Longtime kitchen boss takes reins of ownership at Moroccan restaurant
During his 25-year tenure as executive chef of Sultan’s Tent (4 - 14 St. N.W., 403-244-2333), Ismaili established a solid routine. He would arrive at the restaurant about 1 p.m. to start prepping the evening meal. He’d spice and grind fresh lamb into merguez sausages, fold phyllo pastry around spinach and shrimp, perhaps brine some lemons and mix some harissa sauce and commence the long cooking of Moroccan tajines and couscous dishes.
But now, as owner and still chef of the Tent, Ismaili — he prefers to be known by the simple oneword name — has had a major change to his schedule. “I come in at 8 a.m. now,” he explains, “to pay the bills, meet suppliers and deal with the building.” The hours are longer but Ismaili is enjoying his new life as a restaurant owner.
Until recently the ownership tasks fell to Jackie Olsen and siblings Coby and Martin Heikoop. After 27 years of bringing Moroccan food to Calgary, the original trio have decided to step back from the business and have turned the reins over to Ismaili. (The partners thank all their customers for their wonderful support over the years.)
Sultan’s Tent is the only Calgary restaurant that Ismaili has ever worked at. The native of Meknes, Morocco grew up in a family that catered numerous events in his home town and then he worked in restaurants across the country. When he was recruited to come to Canada and cook at Sultan’s Tent, he had no idea it would turn into such a long-term relationship.
The Tent’s long list of regulars will note the absence of the original owners but the food will remain the same.
Ismaili will incorporate new dishes over time including some new kefta ( ground meat) dishes and others made with halal beef. And once more staff are hired, Ismaili hopes to open Sultan’s Tent seven days a week for dinner. They do not currently do lunches but they will open for lunch for any group of six or more. ( What the heck, he’s in the building anyway.)
Regulars will also note that the Tent’s servers have all remained, including the always-helpful Lyle Thiele. An engineering technician by day, Thiele provides a calm, experienced presence in the dining room at night. With over 20 years’ experience at the Tent, he’s skilled in the ways of Moroccan cuisine.
One note to first timers: Sultan’s Tent is notoriously tricky to find. It’s on the east side of 14th Street N.W., immediately on the north side of the bridge. (If you hit Chicken on the Way, you’ve gone too far.) There is some parking on the south side of the building, even closer to the bridge.
CULINARY EVENTS AROUND THE CITY
There are some notable culinary events taking place around town soon.
At 7 p.m. on Oct. 1., the Calgary Central Library will host an evening in recognition of World Farm Animals Day. Speaking about the humane and compassionate raising of farm animals will be Kris Vester (Blue Mountain Biodynamic Farm), Ben Campbell (Grazed Right Ranch), Ron Hamilton (Sunworks Farm) and Saman Zomorodi (Farm Sanctuary Intern). The evening is free to library members with pre-registration at register@ calgarylibrary.ca.
On Oct. 2, an educational day will be held by Women Chefs and Restaurateurs ( WCR) at Hotel Arts. This event is notable not only for its long list of renowned women chefs and restaurateurs but also because it is the first time the group has held an event outside the United States. The Alberta Culinary Tourism Alliance (ACTA) is hoping the exposure will help convince WCR to hold a larger conference here soon. For info and registration go to wcrconference.info.
Cook It Raw, a global chef-focused event, will take place around Alberta in early October, partnered with ACTA. International chefs such as Albert Adria (Spain), Elizabeth Falkner (U.S.), Magnus Ek (Sweden) and Syrco Bakker (Netherlands) will work with Alberta chefs such as Blair Lebsack (Rge Rd), Eden Hrabec (Crazyweed), Darren MacLean (Shokunin) and Scott Pohorelic (SAIT) to explore culinary frontiers. On Oct. 11, this mostly industry-only event brings together 21 chefs who will team up to create seven dishes for a public lunch that will help define Alberta cuisine. For example, chefs Ek, Connie DeSousa and Duncan Ly will do a dish focused on honey while chefs Brandon Baltzley, Paul Rogalski and Brayden Kozak will work with bison. Tickets for Feast on the Frontier — if there are any left — are $125 at www. albertaculinary. com/ cookitraw. The event takes place at Rouge (1240 - 8 Ave. S.E.) and starts at noon on Oct. 11.