A chef with a heart to make Wendat cuisine shine

At 45, Ms. Collier is rebuilding her professional nest a few steps from the Akiawenrahk’ River (also called Saint-Charles), in the establishment integrated into the Hôtel-Musée Premières Nations. She had worked there since its opening, around fifteen years ago.

For three weeks, she returned there as executive chef, succeeding starred chef Marc de Passorio, who left at the end of 2023.

“It was the community’s aspirations to find a local leader. Being Wendate myself, it’s a project that I really care about, if only for the communication of our culture, a great vector of sharing,” affirms the one whose role will be to dictate the broad outlines of the menu, manage staff and negotiate with suppliers.

An atypical journey… in CHSLD

To describe her career, Ms. Collier has only one word: atypical. “I did catering and launched my catering service before going to cook in a residence for the elderly,” she says. Then, three years ago, a new CHSLD in Wendake needed someone to run the food service. I accepted this offer with great pleasure!”

This transition allowed him to discover another way of approaching his job. “The challenge is to reach older people in their memories, in what they ate to comfort themselves. Seniors experience great grief and great emotions. So, it was important for me to bring them happiness on the plate, even for those who ate pureed foods. I talk about it and it still gives me chills!” she confides.

Descendant of a famous line

Anora Lia Collier — her full name (which can also be pronounced in English) — was born in California. His father is an American of Cherokee origins, whom his mother of Wendat origin had followed to the west coast.

“My background is as atypical as my career!” says the one who returned to Wendake at the age of five. She still lives there, after an interlude of a decade in Limoilou.

Through her “grano” mother — who sheared sheep, spun her own wool and forbade sugar to her children — she is among the descendants of her late grandfather Max Gros-Louis, a well-known Wendake chef for three decades.

“I love it when people who met him tell me stories about him, about his encounters, about his travels. I have the impression that he still lives through these stories!” shares the mother of three children aged 20, 18 and 11.

In communion with nature

For three weeks, Ms. Collier and her team have been working primarily on the Discovery table, a five-course menu which will be unveiled at the beginning of October. “The creativity is there 100%. We brainstorm ideas, drawing inspiration from nature and the Wendat calendar to identify culturally important elements,” she explains.

Any clues about the upcoming menu? “At this time, the leaves change color, the mushrooms grow,” she says. So, our theme will be very nature and forest. Without forgetting fish, prized in the Wendat diet.”

Put heart on the menu

Culinary exploration must both think outside the box and be linked to ancestral know-how, in Ms. Collier’s opinion. This is why she wants to add an unusual ingredient to her slate.

“I brought deer heart onto the menu. In our country, when we hunt, it is important to use and honor as much as possible of the animal that gave its life through us. For me, it’s my signature dish.”

— Anora Necklace

Initially, the heart will make its place among the à la carte entries. Depending on the reception, it could slip into the Discovery table after the holidays.

“I am not a fan offal and kidneys, but the heart is really something else. It is extremely tender, less flavorful than liver at the ferrous level, very soft, with a super pleasant texture. The people who dare will hallucinate and brag about it to all their colleagues at the table!” she promises.

Fighting for wild meat

During the interview, Ms. Collier mentions an irritant that could turn into a battleground: the ban on offering customers wild meat from hunting.

“It’s a fight that I would like to lead hand in hand with Mr. Boulay [Jean-Luc, chef et proprio du Saint-Amour, entre autres] and my friend Stéphane [Modat, chef du Clan] if they want me to join. I would like Quebec to open up at times of the year during which small quantities of hunting products would be allowed in restaurants. It’s not allowed at the moment, but it’s done everywhere else,” she compares.

The experienced cook dreams of a culinary identity revitalized by a controlled quantity, for a limited period, of wild meat, such as moose or beaver.

“We have a problem controlling beavers, which are wreaking havoc. However, beaver makes excellent shredded meat for style sandwiches. pulled pork!” she suggests.

The challenge of standing out

If it’s up to the boss, we’ll hear a lot about La Traite in the coming years. His hope: to make his table shine, maybe even win honors.

“The great challenge that I shared the first time I spoke to my sous-chefs is that our cuisine representative of the First Nations stands out, at the Lauriers [prix québécois de gastronomie] or elsewhere. I would like the color I bring to come with recognition for the whole team,” she wishes.

In duo with chef Sylvestre Hervieux-Pinette

Note that Ms. Collier is not alone in this wind of renewal blowing through La Traite. Earlier this year, Sylvestre Hervieux-Pinette joined the team as chef responsible for research and development, for the creation and implementation of new recipes. Unfortunately, an unforeseen event prevented the interview with this Innu cook from the North Shore from being carried out on time.

Namely

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