The best places to eat in Kelowna for 2024 are in!

Bannock has been around as long as there was a word for it, in nłeʔkepmxcin, the word for bread is seplíl. If there's a word for it, it existed. Although since time immemorial, this type of bread, was made with Indigenous local ingredients from the earth, such as bitterroot, berries, sunflower root, wild potatoes and wild celery, and sweetened with saskatoon berries or huckleberries.  It was thick sustenance that our people survived on as a source of nourishment. Thanks to the evolution of flour, oil, sweeteners, and cast iron pans, we've been creating delicious bannock, baked, fried and grilled.

If you're new to Merritt BC, the beautiful Nicola Valley, with history so rich, you will want to stay forever! If you're looking for food, fresh, fast, casual and fun! Check out Kekuli Cafe Merritt! "Don't Panic, We Have Bannock!" Our menu is frybread tacos, Venison Melts on Bannock, and also a little Vegetarian mix in there as well! Kekuli Cafe, serves up amazing Organic Coffee & Espresso Drinks! The gourmet Bannock in amazing flavours made in house, like the Saskatoon Bannock, Skor Bannock or the Maple Glaze, is absolutely amazing!

Story by Chehala Leonard. How is Kekuli Cafe doing, during this pandemic? Read all about it, with Chehala Leonard, reporting on Indigenous News in the Okanagan.

If you're driving along the Coquihalla Highway by Merritt BC, don't panic... there's Bannock, downtown Merritt BC. An Indigenous owned Franchise, soon to be popping up across Western Canada.Sharon Bond-Hogg knew she would franchise her business from day one, and now the requests are rolling in from all around British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan and as far away as Ontario. “I didn’t start out thinking Kekuli Café would be an Indigenous restaurant,” Sharon said, “but the need and demand was there.”

In December 2018, Kekuli Cafe sold its successful second business to Elijah Mack-Stirling, an employee with the drive, passion, and heart to own the company. Elijah, a member of the Nuxalk Nation and a long-time resident of Merritt, BC, became the youngest franchise owner of Kekuli Cafe. He had years of experience working in the fast-food industry and graduated from Merritt Secondary School.

What is First Nations foods? It’s food from waters, the skies, the land, the roots of the underground. The time has come to show Canada, that First Nations people are sustainable, we strive and create jobs, business and education in our territories. Kekuli Cafe started out in the early 2000's, we wanted comfort food, homemade food, all food made fresh in-house! People are looking for fresh ingredients and fast! We offer fast-casual dining and we work hard at staying unique, real, strive for customer service excellence.

Is it possible for bannock to be vegan? Yes it is! Gluten-free? Probably Not! But Possible? Yes! We want to make sure that your Bannock experience is 100% pure heaven! Don't feel bad when diving into a piece of bannock, it’s got less fat and calories than most muffins. We pride ourselves on making sure, that a piece of bannock is light, fluffy and golden brown. Cooking the bannock to perfection, to not absorb the oils, and every piece is made with love, light and good thoughts.

Kekuli Cafe, West Kelowna & Merritt BC, we like to start our workers, young! Just kidding, making Bannock memories with your kids or grandkids is what we need to start doing.

Kids love Bannock, handmade, fresh, authentic, a great treat for kids, parents and grandparents. Oh, well actually, who are we kidding. Bannock is great for everyone! Put down that doughnut, try delicious handmade fresh Bannock with your family! Bannock is the new doughnut!

Kekuli Cafe, "Don't Panic...We Have Bannock"!®, we just moved to 307-3550 Carrington Road across from Canadian Tire & Marks Work Wearhouse in Westbank BC. Kekuli Cafe owners, Sharon Bond & Darren Hogg found this amazing spot and couldn't get any luckier than to get this location at the Westbank Hub Centre. 

We've gone through crucial times as bannock is still making its way in the restaurant world.  We first set up as a bannock stand in Westbank, BC, years ago.  We experienced success in our little venture, and sought feedback from our customers about opening a First Nations restaurant.  What is a First Nations restaurant?  If you have been to a Mexican restaurant, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, etc., there are now First Nations restaurants opening up across Canada!

Sharon Bond, a member of the Nooaitch First Nation and owner of the Kekuli Café, revealed her recipe for the restaurant’s popular Berry Bannock Pudding.

The simple recipe – milk, sugar, eggs, nutmeg, cinnamon and vanilla – gets its First Nation flavourings from the café’s day-old bannock, a traditional Aboriginal frybread, as well as from sweet and tart seasonal berries.

We Got Bannock! Experience Kekuli Cafe's fresh, warm buttered Bannock. Or our original flavours of Skor, Saskatoon Berry, Maple Glaze, they're sort of like a doughnut, the texture is light, fluffy, crispy on the outside but yet soft, and tender, actually handmade fresh every single day. Baked and Fried in-house. Best survival bread ever created in the millennium.

Kekuli Cafe: We are ready to Franchise! The day we opened our doors on September 12, 2009, people were flocking into the doors, carrying out our humble boxes of Bannock, and the biggest question we were asked, and still to this day..."Are you a Franchise?" I always said, "Our dream is to franchise, and here we are almost 7 years later, a member of the Canadian Franchise Association. We've attended 2 franchise shows in BC and Alberta and it's been the best experience in the world of business. Build it & they will come!

Moosemeat & Marmalade & Bannock! Filming an episode of the show, Moose Meat & Marmalade, with Art Napoleon and the London Chef, Dan Hayes, at Kekuli Cafe Westbank. This will be a fantastic episode of their wild elk hunt and foraging of delicious wild asparagus and morel mushrooms.

Did you know we are a Coffee Shop in Westbank, Kelowna, Kamloops and Merritt with light breakfast and awesome homemade lunches? We offer catering and take-out as well!     

Catering in Kamloops, Kelowna, Westbank and Merritt. Have you ever panicked for bannock? Well the past 10 years, that’s all we've been doing, making bannock!

Looking for restaurant in the Merritt BC or Westbank BC area? Check out Kekuli Cafe "Don' t Panic...We Have Bannock"!