As a member of the Osage Nation, Tocabe co-founder Ben Jacobs was inspired by his roots to promote and preserve Indigenous culture through food. Tocabe, established in December 2008, stands as the sole Indigenous-owned and operated restaurant in the Metro Denver area. However, Jacobs and his co-founder Matt Chandra’s mission goes beyond just running a restaurant. They want to remove barriers that make Native foods hard to access.
“When we started Tocabe, it was with the idea that eventually we would start to build our own supply chain system for the restaurant specifically,” Tocabe co-founder Ben Jacobs said. “Then obviously, COVID hit and that realigned our priority, and kind of advanced that idea faster than we were planning. We were seeing this need within just the general population of food sourcing and food supply chain, and we decided it was time to develop this online marketplace, expanding on the idea of something for the restaurant, specifically, but more, something for the general public.”
Aiming to provide culturally relevant and nutritious options in a world where convenience often dominates health, Chandra and Jacobs realized their vision of creating convenient and accessible foods—particularly traditional Native meals—would require significant groundwork.
“The world we live in is about convenience and the way the food industry creates convenience is not the healthiest approach. So, what we wanted to do was create something culturally relevant to our people, but also very thoughtful and meaningful in terms of nutrient impact,” Jacobs said.
Tocabe launched its online Indigenous Marketplace in 2021. The platform aims to provide access to regional pantry staples like rice, beans and condiments grown and made by Indigenous-owned companies. Tocabe also sells its frozen Harvest Meals, featuring ingredients like bison, squash puree and green chilies to bring fan favorites right to people’s doorsteps.
But that’s not all. Through the marketplace, Chandra and Jacobs were able to establish strong distribution channels and partnerships that would help them launch their Direct-to-Tribe Ready meal program in partnership with Spirit Lake Nation of North Dakota. As part of Jacobs’ Seed to Soul nonprofit, purchases made through the marketplace fund the production of the Direct-to-Tribe Ready meals and distribution. Launched in February 2023, the two-year commitment provides monthly batches of ready-made meals like bison chili with roasted root vegetables, green chili stew, and pumpkin risotto to those in the Spirit Lake community. The ingredients are regionally sourced, often from Native-run businesses like Red Lake Nation Foods and Ramona Farms. Spirit Lake now receives over 1,000 meals a month.
“A lot of our native-based, traditional foods like dried corn, dried beans, and different kinds of meats, take time to cook and they’re expensive to produce. So what we wanted to do [with Tocabe] from the get-go was create accessible, convenient foods,” Jacobs said.
Tocabe’s inspiration for launching the Direct-to-Tribe Ready Meal program stemmed from a deep personal connection with Mary Greene-Trottier, the director of the tribe’s food distribution program and a mentor figure to Chandra and Jacobs.
Over a decade ago, Tocabe began working with Mary and the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations program. When Tocabe shared their initiatives with Mary, she expressed a desire to bring the program to her community.
Many of the corporations that supply food to individuals living in Indian Country often don’t consider the well-being and dietary needs of these individuals. Tocabe’s Food Distribution Program differs from other services because they communicate and listen to what the people want and do their best to provide them with the meals they request.
“We try to provide that to them. Just providing people with food doesn’t mean it’s nourishing. So for us, we strive to make sure that we’re nourishing people’s bodies,” Jacobs said.
This year, Tocabe is working on expanding the Direct-to-Tribe Ready meal program to its home city, partnering with Denver Indian Center and the Denver Indian Health & Family Services to give out 10,000 meals throughout the year.
“Being in Denver, it would be wrong for us to not try and provide to the community that has supported us as a company for the last 15-16 years, but also me as a person for the last almost forty years of my life. It’s just all interwoven in the work that we do that it had to happen here, and we needed to start that this year,” Jacobs said.
In expanding access to Native and Indigenous foods, Tocabe demonstrates that food can be cherished as a way to connect with heritage, community, and each other.
Jacobs said members of the Spirit Lake Nation have expressed positive feedback regarding the monthly meal deliveries, noting their enjoyment of the meals provided, the variety offered, and the receptiveness of Tocabe to feedback on how to improve, unlike food donations from major corporations, which may prioritize their own interests over community needs.