Indigenous cuisine restaurant Owamni hasn’t been afraid to tweak their James Beard award-winning formula, with an evolving seasonal menu, a summertime snack stand, and last winter’s 13-course Waníyetu tasting menu (covered in the January 19, 2024 edition of the Tap). Owamni’s latest venture is the Turtle Island Dinner Series, an eight-course tasting menu the Heavy Table was invited to experience free of charge on opening night.
The manoomin-themed menu features some form of wild rice, which is spiritually and culturally important to the Ojibwe people, in each of the eight courses. In keeping with Owamni’s approach to decolonized Indigenous cuisine, all ingredients are indigenous to North America—in addition to wild rice, the menu highlights venison, salmon, beans, carrots, sweet potatoes, and maple.
A cup of evergreen wild rice tea awaited us at our table when we arrived, alongside a bowl of crisps paired with duck remoulade. The tea was robust and piney, and the wild rice left a lingering impression of sweetness. The crisps included pieces of fried duck skin; airy, wholesome-tasting wild rice crackers; generously salted sweet potato chips that put the mass-produced versions to shame; and my favorite, fried perch skin that reminded me of sitting lakeside on an August evening. Each type of crisp was enhanced by the duck remoulade’s creaminess and gentle touch of heat.
Despite the auspicious start, the next courses stumbled. A luscious wild rice and carrot custard was garnished with a coil of thinly-sliced raw carrot that made for a lovely visual but was impossible to eat. The carrot was too tough to cut with my table knife and too large to fit in my mouth in one go—ultimately I gave up and just ate the custard. Likewise, the nigiri-inspired presentation of huckleberry cured salmon atop a wild rice dumpling (above) looked beautiful, but the textures and flavors didn’t mesh. The dumpling was doughy and bland, a distraction from the appealing, silky texture and complex, sweet-tart flavors of the salmon.
The menu found its footing again with the scallop. The scallop itself was cooked perfectly, with a dollop of trout roe that added little pops of saltiness. But the black bean puree on the side stole the show, with its slightly nutty flavor, satisfying rustic texture, and eye-catching wild rice tuile garnish.
The beauty of the menu’s elk and venison tartare was in the details: the tenderness of the thin-sliced venison steak, the meticulously minced elk, the vibrancy of the berry sauce. The dish was garnished with perfectly ripened berries (no mean feat in the depths of winter) and the branch-like wild rice cracker garnish lent a touch of whimsy.
The highlight of the menu was the evergreen duck, a dramatic presentation of pieces of meat threaded shish kebab-style onto a foraged juniper branch and accompanied by a slice of duck sausage, sweet potato pave, and thick wild rice treacle. Everything about this dish felt like a celebration, from the luxurious fattiness and herbal flavors of the duck to the sweetness of the treacle to the beautifully stacked rounds of sweet potatoes.
Dinner finished on a high note with a chocolate wild rice pudding topped with a toasted maple marshmallow and maple duck fat caramel. The pudding itself was barely sweetened, better to let the nuttiness of the wild rice and the slight bitterness of the chocolate shine through. The sweetness of the marshmallow pulled the dish into dessert territory, and the duck fat caramel lent a slightly savory undertone. This wasn’t just a great refined sugar and dairy-free dessert—it was a great dessert, period.
The question with an upscale experience like this is whether or not it’s worth it. Tickets for the Turtle Island Dinner Series are $150 per person, plus tax and tip—in line with tasting menu experiences at other Twin Cities restaurants, but definitely a significant splurge for most of us.
Something to keep in mind when considering the cost is that what you’re getting at Owamni is more than a fancy meal. You’re supporting a restaurant that centers the Indigenous perspective, prioritizes purchasing ingredients from Indigenous producers, and is owned and operated by the non-profit North American Traditional Indigenous Food Systems, which works to make Indigenous food more accessible. If those values resonate with you, and you have the financial means, by all means, book a ticket—you’re in for a delicious meal.
Owamni’s Turtle Island Dinner Series is offered Thursday evenings through March 27, 2025. Tickets for the eight-course meal are $150 per person, plus tax and tip, and beverage pairings (n/a option offered) are available for purchase upon arrival. Beverages can also be purchased a la carte.