Who’s Behind It Chef-owner Tracy Little
What’s on the Menu Dishes showcasing local ingredients, representing the bounty of the Bow Valley
Chefs often talk about “taste of place,” or capturing the terrain and culture of a location through food, but few take it as seriously as Sauvage’s Tracy Little. A deeply creative chef with a penchant for hyperlocal (and often foraged) ingredients, Little uses the bounty and wilderness of the Bow Valley as her palette in painting a vivid portrait of mountain cuisine.
Little’s tasting menu forms the heart of Sauvage. It allows Little to take diners on a real trip through her home turf and her own sense of curiosity. The small, tucked-away dining room sets the mood for the food: it’s comfortable and luxurious, with hints of woodland whimsy scattered throughout.
“I want people to feel like they’re coming into my house, giving me an opportunity to feed them like I would at a dinner party,” Little says. “It’s important to show not a stiff version of who I am, but to give a true experience by being unapologetically myself.”
That means a constantly changing seasonal menu, with themes reflecting the seasons and Little’s own life (last year, she created a menu in homage to her newborn daughter). Ingredients like Arctic blueberries, venison, birch and pheasant frequently mingle together in immaculately plated and often surprising dishes, with a constant eye on ethical sourcing and sustainability. Under a less-deft hand it could all become overly rustic, but Little keeps things refined, never losing sight of her fine-dining aesthetic.
Combine all this with thoughtful wine selections, gutsy cocktails (including zero-proof for those driving home to Calgary) and attentive service, and you’ve got more than enough reason to head out to Canmore for dinner. The drive isn’t really much farther than a trip from the far reaches of one quadrant of Calgary to another, but tasting ingredients sourced from the wilds of the mountains while dining under the shadow of the Rockies is a one-of-a-kind experience.
633 10 St., Canmore, 403-609-0583, sauvagerestaurant.ca, @sauvagecanmore
