First Mesa Grill and Deli for business open in Hopi

By Stan Bindell
Special to the Independent

POLACCA, Ariz. — Fine dining is not what most people think of when they hear the Hopi Reservation, but Abel Nash hopes to change that. At noon Wednesday, the First Mesa Grill and Deli opened.

Nash, who graduated from Scottsdale Culinary Institute, hopes to bring a different food experience to Hopi residents and those visiting the Hopi Reservation. Nash is also a Hopi High School graduate and will be assisted by Ida Poola Susunkewa. Before going to culinary school, Nash was known as a radio personality at KUYI, the Hopi community radio station. The grill and deli will offer homemade fresh food with an emphasis on soups, salads and deli meats. The soups will include corn chowder, tortilla, chicken noodle, beef vegetable and chili beans. Turkey, ham, salami, barbecue pork and possibly catfish will be among the sandwiches.

“Everything will be sliced fresh from the deli. People will be able to buy by the pound and they can have it cut as thin or thick as they like,” he said.

The four key salads will be pasta, chicken, Thai and potato. Hamburgers will be available, but Nash hopes they will have more healthy food to cut down on obesity and diabetes.,

“I don’t eat healthy all the time so this will help me and others,” he said.

One of the groups that he hopes to cater to is the staff at Hopi Health Care Center, but he also hopes to work with tour groups. Eventually, Nash hopes to bring in different types of food from throughout the world. After graduating from Scottsdale Culinary Institute, Nash worked at the Philadelphia Sandwich Co. in Scottsdale. “We made everything from Asian to Italian food,” he said. The grill and deli will be located between the First Mesa Consolidated Villages government offices and the post office. It will be open from 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday through Friday.

“We will be preparing food Monday and Tuesday in anticipation of opening on Wednesday,” he said.

Nash, kitchen manager and head cook, said the only trouble in preparing to open has been the lack of road signs that causes problems for vendors when they come to deliver. But the First Mesa Grill and Deli has been given a business license by the tribe’s Office of Revenue. The First Mesa Grill and Deli will offer lunch and dinner to start, but hopes to have breakfasts in the future. The grill and deli currently only has a griddle, but Nash hopes to obtain a grill in the near future. The future could also include steaks, pizzas and deserts as well as deliveries.

“Nothing is permanent on the menu. We want to know what people like and don’t like,” he said.

The grill and deli can be reached at 737-2585.