Nova Eatery & Supper Club soon opening in former BernBaum’s location

By Rick Gion

rickgion@gmail.com

Photos by Rick Gion

Living in downtown Fargo has its perks. One of them is taking walks along Broadway and peeking into the restaurants and shops for a glimpse of what’s new. Sometimes this makes a person both curious and hungry.

For a few weeks now, each stroll past the old BernBaum’s location at 402 N. Broadway has been an intriguing experience. Colorful wallpaper has been going up inside, new paint has been added to the walls, and dining room furniture has been stacked and moved about.

This rubbernecking led to the keen observation of a recent social media announcement describing a special VIP soft opening fundraising event on Thursday, April 10 for Nova Eatery & Supper Club. This is important, because soft openings for restaurants generally signal that an opening to the regular public may take place within a few weeks after.

For those who don’t know, the former Nova Eatery, located in the old Fargo Brewing Company building, recently moved to 402 N. Broadway. This space was home to BernBaum’s, but at one time also home to Darbar Palace, Juano’s, Kitchen Gremlin, and others.

This new establishment will be transformed into Nova Eatery & Supper Club. Think of it as Nova Eatery 2.0. The improved restaurant will serve elevated Midwestern fare and offer breakfast, lunch and dinner. The smashburgers and other pub foods will stay, but more interesting selections will be added. Beer, cocktails and wine will also be available. The restaurant’s atmosphere aims to feature more of a Midwestern supper club vibe.

Heading up Nova Eatery & Supper Club will be local restaurateur icons Nikki Ness Berglund and Chef Ryan Nitschke. Chef Andrew Martin Dohn will lead the kitchen. Mandy Dolney will be the lead purveyor of baked goods and sweet treats. It will be a serious effort and restructuring. These folks have brought you restaurants that have received national accolades and nominations from the revered James Beard Foundation. It’s a hard working and intrepid culinary crew.

The other establishments and restaurants in their arsenal include the House of Noods + Buns in Brewhalla, Luna Fargo on south University, Luna Market in Brewhalla, Mangata in Brewhalla, Sol Ave. Kitchen in north Moorhead, and Unicorn Park Fine Foodery in Brewhalla. It’s a fine collection of handsome eateries and shops.

The decor at Nova will be more colorful than at BernBaum’s. The wallpaper is fun, and the bathrooms even have new stripes. A recent social media post shows bathroom corridor wallpaper featuring large pheasants. The food will be quite different too. However, a personal suggestion to the restaurant management is to pay homage to BernBaum’s with a menu item or two. It would be smart food politics.

Although some of this is not new to many local food fanatics, the big news here is that Nova Eatery & Supper Club has a VIP soft opening date of Thursday, April 10. Specifically, the announcement was made last week on the establishment's social media channels.

Please note: A soft opening does not mean the restaurant will be open to the general public. It’s usually reserved for a select crowd of friends and family. A soft opening is restaurant speak for an event that offers a smaller menu for a distinct group of diners before the establishment opens to the public. It gives a restaurant an opportunity for a trial run to address challenges and work out kinks.

Similarly, this first soft opening is a fundraising opportunity to help the new restaurant kick start an expedited opening. Please go to the Nova Eatery & Supper Club Facebook page for more information if you’d like to help with a financial investment.

Rumor has it that after the special VIP fundraising event to help kick start food hearts, restaurant management will then hold a regular soft opening for friends and family. After some things have been tweaked and improved, the restaurant will then open to the public a short time after. For Nova Eatery & Supper Club, this means a public opening will probably take place in mid or late April.

However, please keep in mind restaurant opening dates can get pushed back. New equipment can often be in short supply and installment can be a hassle due to a lack of certified technicians in the area. These are typical challenges new restaurants face along with their own labor shortages and high food costs. Patience is important. Give ‘em a break if things don’t go quite as planned.

That’s why it’s also important for diners to refrain from overly negative comments online about new restaurants for a few months after opening. Please keep in mind that the food and service will not be perfectly executed right out of the gate. Grace is a good word to keep in mind. Let the staff know what the issues are. Online condemnation can have lasting and unfortunate effects.

The abrupt closing of BernBaum’s last fall left a void in the downtown Fargo food scene. Replacing an iconic restaurant like BernBaum’s will be tough work. If anyone can do it and be successful, it’ll be the restaurateur duo from the Luna network of establishments.

[Rick Gion administers a Facebook food group called “Fargo-Moorhead Eats” that’s dedicated to the area’s great cooks and cuisine. The group now has nearly 46,000 followers. Check it out, join, and feel free to post items about your local culinary adventures and home cooking. And, while you’re at it, also join the Instagram and TikTok pages. Rick is also a featured guest on Prairie Public Radio’s “Main Street.” His weekly segment about food called “Prairie Plates” airs between 3 and 4 p.m. every Wednesday.]