Believed to be the first concept of its kind at colleges across the country, the First Foods Station at Whitman College’s Cleveland Commons offers students, faculty, and the public the chance to dine on a curated menu of authentic indigenous cuisine. Offered the first Friday of every month September through May (excluding January for winter break), the station is usually accompanied by educational components – a presentation by a local tribal member as well as signage in both English and in the Native languages of the Weyíiletpuu and Imatalamłáma, the Cayuse/Nez Perce people and the Umatilla people.
Foods served include sustainably farmed, seasonally appropriate plants and animals which the Native tribes have lived off for thousands of years: water (fish), game, roots, and berries reflecting ‘úyit hípt, úyit tkʷátat (First Foods). For example, the menu for the launch in December of 2024 included water: Cedar plank smoked Rainbow Trout (rainbow trout = píickatyo, píckatyu); game: herb roasted elk loin (elk = wewúkiye, wawúkya); huckleberry sauce (huckleberry = cemíitx, wíwnu); roots: Hayshaker Farm parsnips, sweet potato, carrots, beetroot (roots = qíˀnit, x̣nít); and berries: house-made fry bread, chokecherry jam (chokecherry tímš, tmɨ́s).
The menu changes every month dependent on what is most fresh and in season. Fish has included everything from sockeye salmon, Copper River salmon, and rainbow trout with lake eel appearing in the future; game has included venison loin, rotisserie bison steak, and grilled quail. You can expect a variety of locally grown organic roots and vegetables.
The First Foods Station initiative was led by Jeanine Gordon, Special Assistant to the President for Native American Outreach at Whitman who suggested a collaboration with Bon Appétit to its General Manager Shannon Null (Bon Appétit Management Company has been the food provider to Whitman since 1994). Null and her team, led by Executive Chef Nimal Amarasinghe, embraced the concept immediately immersing themselves in the CTUIR culture – the history, ceremony, ingredients, and traditional preparation of the foods by training at the CTUIR longhouse (community center).
Cleveland Commons – a far cry from the average college cafeteria and perhaps Walla Walla’s best kept culinary secret – is worth a visit for the experience alone. You’ll find locals and tourists in the know gathering for morning coffee made by a Stumptown trained barista or noshing on everything from open-hearth oven baked pizzas to made-to-order sushi by a sushi master, all operating from individual café stations. The light filled, state of the art modern building was named for Chuck Cleveland, former vice president of student affairs whose vision ultimately resulted in a bespoke dining hall complete with a gold rating for its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards.
First Foods Station: First Friday of every month September-May (excluding January for winter break)
Lunch: 11:30am – 1:30pm; Dinner: 5pm – 7pm
Cleveland Commons at Whitman College | 114 Otis St, Walla Walla | 509-527-5111
First Foods photos courtesy of Kaitlin Moor Photography