SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
A national magazine has carved a spot for Bullocks' Bistro among the nation's top 10 uniquely Canadian restaurants.

Mark Elson, right, and Jo-Ann Martin took over Bullocks' Bistro last April, after founders Sam Bullock, left, and Renata Bullock retired. The restaurant made Food & Wine magazine's list of most uniquely Canadian restaurants earlier this month. - NNSL file photo

"It was a bit of a surprise," said owner Jo-Ann Martin of the profile, which appeared in Food & Wine magazine earlier this month. "You know it's very humbling actually."

She and her partner Mark Elson took over the business last April, when founders Sam and Renata Bullock retired.

"We were customers for many years and so it was kind of a dream of ours to own something like Bullocks' eventually," said Martin. "It had a great history and great following for many years, and so for us it was a win-win situation when we took over. We've just tried to keep it very similar to what was already there."

Bullocks' opened originally in 1992 in the building that now houses CKLB Radio in Old Town. It moved to its current location, the historic log cabin that started life in 1937 as the original Weaver & Devore trading post, in 1999. That history is what Martin believes may have earned Bullocks' its spot on the Food & Wine list.

"We're located in a historic building, a part of the original buildings that was here when Yellowknife first got started in the mining industry," she said.

In the 10 months since they've taken over, Martin says not much has changed for longtime visitors, including a menu that continues to offer fresh fish from Great Slave Lake, Arctic Char from Cambridge Bay, house-made sauces and door-stopper portions of fresh baked bread. For Martin, who's been in Yellowknife for 25 years but originally from Labrador, having good fish on offer is a very big deal.

"Fish is a big part of Canada, obviously," she said. "We keep the food the same and we keep the atmosphere very friendly and very welcoming. We try to encourage people to come in and visit and maybe leave a little bit of themselves behind with either a business card or a photo or whatever they bring with them."

That encouragement has led to walls covered in scribbles, signatures, stickers and swag. For Martin, that's part of what makes Bullocks' not just uniquely Canadian, but uniquely Yellowknife.

"I think that you have to be a part of the community if you're in any business in any community in Canada," she said. "We always invite people to you know put their local stuff on the walls ... it all becomes a part of what Yellowknife really is. To me Yellowknife is a warm, inviting community ... that's what we try to provide there."

Bullocks' Bistro has 32 seats in the winter and double that when the patio opens in the summer.

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