How Bulrush Is Studying The Pre-1870 Cuisine Of Indigenous, Enslaved People Of The Ozarks

Chef Rob Connoley’s acclaimed St. Louis restaurant, Bulrush, isn’t just a delicious night out. It’s also a deep dive into the culinary history of the region. The Grand Center eatery takes its inspiration from cuisine in the Ozarks region prior to 1870, before railroads allowed for easy transport of foodstuffs. And, in recent months, the restaurant has doubled down on that exploration. Aided by college interns, Connoley has begun researching the food of marginalized populations in the area at that time. That includes both indigenous people, enslaved people and freed slaves. In this segment, we talk with Connoley and St. Louis University student Gabriel Shoemaker, and with Dr. Andrea Hunter, director/tribal historic preservation officer for the Osage Nation Historic Preservation Office. She discusses what the Osage ate prior to their first encounters with Europeans in 1673, and how that changed in the centuries that followed.