Article content

A month ago, when Ottawa chef Joe Thottungal received copies of his new cookbook, Coconut Lagoon, he knew just who he would give the first copy to — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The decision wasn’t partisan, Thottungal says, pointing out that in 2015, he happily cooked lamb biryani for then-prime minister Stephen Harper at 24 Sussex Drive.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Coconut Lagoon chef Joe Thottungal launches his first cookbook Back to video

Besides, the Trudeau family had eaten twice in recent months at Thottungal’s east-end Ottawa restaurant, which is also called Coconut Lagoon. At an out-of-the-way table in the back of the dining room, the Trudeaus dug into the vibrant and distinctive dishes from the chef’s home province, Kerala, on India’s tropical, southwestern Malabar Coast.

So in mid-April, Thottungal briefly visited Trudeau’s Parliament Hill office. The chef gave the prime minister one copy of his cookbook, and had Trudeau sign another, which he says he will treasure.

For the chef, being able to give his book to Canada’s prime minister is a sign of how welcoming Canada is to new Canadians. “That is why I am a blessed Canadian,” Thottungal says. “I am a proud Indian, but I am blessed Canadian.”