b'TOURISMFirst NationsWe usually offer a lot ofgluten-free, vegetarian, vegan andpescatarian options.According to Brant, Yawkon usually Women inserves people who work at the band council or offices in the area. I like to call it quick gourmet because our menus are designed to be done in four minutes TourismBYRICK GARRICK or less, she says. We do a daily chefs offering, so our menu changes every daywe use a lot of Indigenous foods.Brant opened Yawkon to help her Female business owners emerge post-pandemiccommunity after noting that many people have dietary restrictions. It kind with new industry opportunities of changed the direction of what I was trying to do as a chef, but sometimes being home is more important, she says. My business is so much biggerI employ four people in my community full time. It keeps me home instead of doing what I used to, which was constantly travelling, going different places, trying different foods, learning from people, doing fancy dinners and teaching workshops.Brant says aspiring entrepreneurs have to be their own cheerleaders first, noting that nobody else is going to care about the business the way they do: Definitely know your business, know your skillset, know your customers, and location, loca-tion, location. Its [about] that dedica-tion to [your] business and your passionyou have to be interested in it, [and] you have to know what the next popular thing is.Indigenous ExperiencesMather-Simard, CEO of Indigenous Mdahk Farm, home of Indigenous Experiences. Photo by Ashley Fraser. Experiences and a Curve Lake citizen, says her business is now located in Ottawas Greenbelt at Mdahk Farm, T aking advantage ofYawkon which means to share the land. She opportunities was key fororiginally started up the Turtle Island three First Nations womenBrant says her business has expandedTour Company in 1998 to bring during the COVID-19since opening in the Iroquois VillageIndigenous tourism experiences to pandemic. Tawnya Brant opened herPlaza during the pandemic. She previ- existing festivals and events, and then ously operated her Yawkon Foodsoperated a cultural attraction on Victoria Yawkon by Chef Tawnya Brant takeoutcatering business and taught chefs aboutIsland from 2000-2019 for a range of lunch counter and catering businessIndigenous food. visitors, including international visitors in Six Nations; Trina Mather-Simardand student groups.moved her Indigenous ExperiencesWe have a lineup out the door everyWere an Indigenous working farm, event-planning company to a farmday at lunch, so thats usually a goodso we provide both cultural and culinary near Ottawa; and Melissa Cooper issign, Brant says. It benefits Indigenousfarm-to-table experiences, Mather-currently planning an expansion for hercommunities having just a little bit [of]Simard says, noting that they moved to Bayside Resort waterfront cabin resort healthier optionsits real food; itsMdahk Farm in October 2021. For in Wiikwemkoong. whole food; its Indigenous food.the public, we are doing a number of 38l I ssue1 2022C hIefs ofo ntarIoA dvocAte magazIne'