What do almost all small towns and villages across Western Canada, or heck, across ALL of Canada seem to have in common?
No, I'm not referring to hockey rinks, though that would be a good one, as well as a more-than-fair assessment.
No, I'm also not thinking of the wheat elevators that dot the Canadian landscape at every which way and turn. Though again, that would also be a fair guess.
I'm talking about the presence of Asian restaurants in seemingly every little nook and cranny of our country, but especially here in our province. Take a map of Saskatchewan, close your eyes, point your finger randomly on said map, and the odds are good that someone knows of a really good cafe that does amazing spring rolls.
Let's take a moment to think things over here. Think back to when you were a kid, and you can probably even ask your parents to do the same thing. There was a great little Chinese place that made incredible food, wasn't there? Or maybe it was a Korean establishment, or maybe the owners happened to be Japanese.
It seems that very good, very cost-effective food from the Asian side of the culinary wheel has deep and rich roots in our province, dating back generations to when our parents and even our grandparents were kids, if not longer. But this doesn't get discussed all that often alongside the more traditional historic points, does it? That's a shame, because the generational stories to be told in the history of these restaurants and cafes are interesting and help paint a picture of our province.
They may be situated in a fair-sized community, a small village, or even a one-horse town, but any way you fry the chow mein, the existence of these restaurants have an equal hand when it comes to propping up communities that may be clinging to existence.
Allow me to present the following scenario:
It's Friday after work in small town Saskatchewan. You don't have much in the fridge for leftovers and you forgot to take anything out that needed defrosting. Oops! You don't want anything all that fancy, but you do know that you don't want 'just a burger'. On top of that, you're willing to drive a little if it means satisfying that appetite. What's the solution? You guessed it. Takeout from Insert Asian Restaurant Here!
Maybe you feel like a combination dinner from the Modern in Outlook. Or maybe you go two doors down because it's time for some shrimp and noodles from K&S Cafe. Maybe you're craving some special fried rice from the cafe down in Dinsmore, or maybe you feel like taking a bit of a drive west over to Rosetown for some garlic prawns or sesame chicken from Great Wall Express.
The choice, of course, is yours. The options, it seems, are endless.
So are the restaurants and the families that operate them, it seems. They're in the big cities of Saskatoon and Regina - endless options running the gamut on the menu. They're in the modestly sized towns of Outlook and Rosetown - a few options to choose from, including three restaurants in Outlook alone that are side by side....by side. Strangely, all three neighbourhood eateries just up the street from the offices of this newspaper seem to do very solid business, and that's because there are differing tastes among the people of this area.
Hey, I get it. Perhaps one place does low mein the best while the other has better egg rolls, while the third place does ginger beef better than anyone. It's understandable, everyone's palate is different and everyone's going to have their favorite of the three.
These tastes of the Far East in seemingly every Saskatchewan small town represent something, I believe. They represent a certain type of comfort food that puts our minds at ease when life is getting just a little too hectic and we need an escape. They represent a small and temporary swing through the other side of the world on the Flavor Scale when soup and sandwiches just won't do.
More than anything, I think they represent a perfect pairing for the Prairies that's been a great fit for decades. On paper to the uneducated, should they work together? Chinese restaurants and cafes in small towns across Canada, pairing "exotic palates" with its blue-collar clientele comprised largely of farmers? Who knows? Better yet, who cares? It works, that's what matters, and it's worked for many years.
Their signs glow in so many communities of various sizes, even in the smallest of Prairie towns where other businesses on Main Street have given up against the struggles to hold on just a little longer. Those signs continue to glow with the 'OPEN' letters because it's a business that's needed and wanted.
Local Chinese cafes can be found seemingly everywhere on the Saskatchewan landscape. They're on Main Street, they're on the corner, and they're under the auspices of the ever-present grain elevator in any small, rural village. Those elevators represent a community's identity, but then again, I suppose so does the local cafe.
Running these businesses are typically husband-and-wife duos or entire families, and their sacrifices as well as their contributions to their communities shouldn't go unnoticed. Their backstories help shed light on a part of our own history as small town Saskatchewan and Canada as a whole: immigrants who undoubtedly have a hand in building a small town's reputation, while at the same time helping these communities that may be smaller than most cling to existence.
It feels like as if the contributions of these cafes and restaurants that dot the Saskatchewan landscape have gone largely unnoticed for the longest time. Although, perhaps it's the consistency in cooking up a great product that causes many to simply take them for granted.
If you ask me, any popular Asian restaurant that goes back many years has just as much of a right to be included in the history of our country's small towns. After all, they fed generations of people who helped make our land what it is today. If that's not contributing in a substantial way, I don't know what is.
Now if you'll excuse me, I have a real hankering for some wonton soup for some reason...
For this week, that's been the Ruttle Report.
