Dinner series celebrates flavours of the Prairies
Collaborative dinner series inspired by prairie view
For many prairie residents, no image evokes the feeling of home more than the bird’s eye view of a green and gold patchwork of farmers’ fields. It’s the view that inspired Dan Clapson to create the Prairie Grid Dinner Series, a travelling food experience that pairs chefs with artisans in a variety of fields.
A food writer by trade, Clapson often views the Prairie provinces from the seat of an airplane. He was born in Saskatchewan, now lives in Calgary and is soon moving to Winnipeg. The series invites collaboration by not only chefs, but also creative people in disciplines like design, ceramics and distilling.
“I travel across the Prairies all the time and I meet a lot of cool people. I feel like the Prairies is not good at knowing other parts of the Prairies. I think Canadians are just bad in general at knowing their own country,” he said. “People in Saskatoon might not realize what’s offered in Calgary and people in Calgary don’t go to Winnipeg.”
Saskatoon chef Christie Peters, who runs The Hollows and Primal in Riversdale, is part of the travelling chef team creating a five-course meal in four different cities. The emphasis of the meal is to showcase regional cuisine using locally harvested ingredients.
“The way Peters runs restaurants
is phenomenal. They’re highly sustainable. She has her own horticulturalist on staff. I love how involved she is with the community. There are so many reasons why Christie was the perfect choice.”
Though Clapson said the idea of local cuisine is overused these days, the participating chefs really take that philosophy to heart. Peters will be joined by Jamie Harling from Calgary, Lindsay Porter from Edmonton, Adam Donnelly and Pamela Kirkpatrick from Winnipeg and Lynnette MacDonald from Calgary.
The event also enlists the skills of Saskatoon fashion designer Laurie Brown, who created custom aprons for the chefs to wear while cooking for the event.
Brown said she was eager to say yes as soon as she heard Clapson’s concept.
“Finding people who are the best of their trade is the coolest thing. No matter what it is, it’s so interesting and you get inspired by it. It makes you want to be a better artist in your field,” she said.
Brown’s linen aprons are a neutral patchwork with leather straps. The only direction given to Brown and the other artisans was to create something inspired by the prairie grid, aka the Dominion Land Survey.
“We all have a mood board or inspiration and we all take it into our own fields and apply the way we see fit,” she said.
A ceramics company in Winnipeg is creating the dinnerware, while a leather artist in Calgary is making table runners. Everything at the meal, save for the cutlery and a few side plates, is custom-made for the event. The chefs will even use custom-made knives as they prepare the food.
The Saskatoon tour stop takes place at Agar’s Corner just outside the city on Oct. 3. The signature cocktail features gin from Blackfox Distillery and prairie musicians will entertain diners. A silent auction for items, including Brown’s aprons, will take place in each location, with proceeds supporting a local Olympic hopeful. In Saskatoon, the money raised will go to bobsledder Ben Coakwell.
Clapson’s goal is to make the Prairie Grid Dinner Series an annual event.
“It’s a nice celebration of the Prairies and really October is the end of harvest season, so it’s your last chance to eat fresh regional cuisine,” he said with a laugh.