Indianz.Com > News > Native America Calling: A Native cafe, camas restoration and the Indigenous food pyramid
native america calling
Native America Calling
Listen to Native America Calling every weekday at 1pm Eastern.
Alternate Links: Native Voice One | NAC
Native America Calling: A Native cafe, camas restoration and the Indigenous food pyramid
Friday, May 29, 2026
nativeamericacalling.com   nativeamericacalling   nativeamericacalling

The Menu: Dawn Butterfly Café, camas restoration, and the Indigenous food pyramid
Taos and Skwah First Nation chef and entrepreneur, Caprio “CJ” Bernal opened an expansion of their original coffee bar on Taos Pueblo in New Mexico.

Dawn Butterfly Café is the new full-service cafe that grew from their starting concept in 2022. The name and energy that drives the project honors Bernal’s late sister, Coral Dawn Bernal.

Camas, a wild purple flower with an onion-like bulb, has been an important plant for Native people, mainly in the northwest. This is the time of year for harvesting and cooking them.

Some culture-keepers are reconnecting with traditional teachings and recipes handed down across generations. But environmental and land use changes are setting up more access barriers. The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde is one tribe working to protect this significant plant through a series of projects in Oregon.

Meanwhile, the Cultivating Culture reporting team created imagined an Indigenous version of the USDA’s food pyramid with plants and subsistence animals important to Native diets. It serves as a hub for an Indigenous food reporting project on how food and language fuels tribal sovereignty.

The Menu is Native America Calling’s regular feature on Indigenous food news and stories hosted by producer, Andi Murphy.

Guests on Native America Calling
Carpio CJ Bernal (Taos Pueblo and Skwah First Nation), owner and chef of Dawn Butterfly Café in New Mexico [Instagram @dawnbutterflyllc |Facebook]

Jordan Mercier (Grand Ronde), cultural education coordinator at the Chachalu Museum and Cultural Center, owned and operated by The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde in Oregon

Shaun Griswold (Laguna, Jemez, and Zuni Pueblo), correspondent at High Country News and Native News Online

All Episodes on Spotify | More Options
Search
Filed Under
Tags
More Headlines
Native America Calling: Persistent heat puts strain on people, the environment, and the economy
Chuck Hoskin: Cherokee Nation creates opportunities close to home
Native America Calling: Increasing hurdles and uncertainty put strains on Native beef producers and farmers
‘Let’s go’: Peggy Flanagan wins Democratic primary for U.S. Senate seat in Minnesota
Native America Calling: Native Playlist with Thomas Michael Swensen and Debora Iyall
Native America Calling: Tribes face record-setting wildfire destruction
NAFOA: 5 Things You Need to Know This Week (August 10, 2026)
Chuck Hoskin: Cherokee Nation invests in tomorrow’s leaders
Native America Calling: August primary elections offer insights on Native candidates’ prospects
Native America Calling: Testing the limits of religious freedom in Indian Country
Native America Calling: When is it OK to let a Native language die?
NAFOA: 5 Things You Need to Know This Week (August 3, 2026)
Chuck Hoskin: Cherokee Nation keeps fiscal promises
Native America Calling: New outbreak of food-borne illness shakes public confidence in food supply
AUDIO: Legislative Hearing to receive testimony on S.3573, S.3617, S.4368, S.4417 & S.4890
More Headlines