Fargo duo to open So+Lo’s, a downtown eatery that blends art and Icelandic fare – InForum

FARGO — Husband and wife team Chris and Jen Nelson will use “skyr tactics” to attract people to So+Lo’s, the Icelandic-inspired grab-and-go eatery they plan to open in downtown Fargo this March.

Translation: The Fargo couple hope to make their skyr — the mildly tangy, probiotic-rich Icelandic food pronounced “skeer” — a starring ingredient in their salad dressings, dips and breakfast bowls.

“Technically, it’s a cheese, but it tastes just like yogurt,” Jen explains. “I like to think of it like a cross between Greek yogurt and crème fraîche, but with even more protein and less sugar. It’s a staple in Icelandic diets and gaining popularity worldwide as a nutritious snack or breakfast option.”

Beyond skyr, the duo will infuse their menu of sandwiches, soups and snacks with Icelandic staples like dense, malty, rye-based brown bread, pannekucher (a thin, crepe-like pancake) and rullupylsa (a rolled, spiced meat similar to cold porketta).

They also hope to provide catering for local businesses and events.

Their breakfast-lunch eatery will be based partly on what they can prepare in their space at 629 First Ave. N., which doesn’t have a hood system. But it also reflects Jen’s deep Icelandic roots, the opportunity to offer something unique to downtown Fargo and an entrepreneurial vibe sparked by Jen’s ceramics artistry and Chris’s decades spent cooking in professional kitchens.

“Chris has worked so hard for other people,” Jen says, while sitting in the 980-square-foot shop, which formerly housed a nutrition shake shop and a pet-grooming business. “Here’s an opportunity to work hard for ourselves.”

Jen is originally from Minot, N.D., but her mother grew up in the northeastern North Dakota community of Mountain. That part of the state has retained strong ties to its Icelandic heritage and so did Jen’s mom, who introduced the family to traditional Icelandic foods and holidays.

Jen has carried on the pride in her heritage. She’s visited Iceland a couple of times, belongs to the F-M Icelandic Klub and helps cook traditional dishes for the

Scandinavian Hjemkomst Festival

in Moorhead.

She is also an artist. After 22 years teaching elementary school art in the Moorhead Public School system, she left that career in 2024 to produce her ceramics full-time

under the Jenny Sue name.

Her work ranges from white dinnerware decorated with bold graphic shapes to funny, Midwestern-themed ornaments and refrigerator magnets.

“I feel like I’ve always been an entrepreneur at heart,” she says. “It’s been quite a journey.”

The two met in 2001 at the Plains Art Gallery, where Jen worked in the education department and Chris had opened the original Cafe Muse.

Chris’s culinary experience runs deep. His credentials include working at The Hub (now closed) and Wurst Bier Hall as well as helping to open Fargo’s Gastropub and

downtown’s Beer & Fish Company.

“A lot of what I learned was just on my own,” Chris says. “Just my own curiosity. And then at the museum, I had creativity all around me all the time. We had tons of weddings and Kiwanis groups and this and that. So everything had to be kind of perfect. And you don’t want to make a bride angry or anything like that. So, yeah, that’s where I learned most of my stuff.”

Inspired by her most recent trip to Iceland last fall, Jen returned with a vision to bring a taste of the Land of Fire and Ice to Fargoans.

It didn’t take long for Chris to warm up to the idea. From the start, the Nelsons knew one thing: they wanted to be in downtown Fargo. “We live in the Hawthorne neighborhood, so being downtown is so cool for us. It’s so close and we love the downtown neighborhood,” Jen says.

“And we’re in a good spot,” adds Chris, pointing out the many bypassers, the busy streets and the range of shops.

Their initial plan had been to lease the old Orange Records space at the northeast corner of First Avenue and Roberts Street. But after they learned that store would

become the home to Sovereign Press & Gallery,

the Realtor told them about this available space on the same block.

Prior to the shake shop, the space was the original home to the

Hotdog! Pet Salon.

“Yeah, we actually have a huge water heater,” Jen says, laughing.

They signed a two-year lease and decided to name their venture So+Lo’s — a portmanteau of their children’s names, Arlo and Soley.

Although downtown Fargo has seen

higher vacancy rates recently,

the Nelsons believe the metro area’s core is still a natural fit for their business.

“I feel like there’s so many businesses down here to support multiple restaurants,” Jen says. “And I feel like too, we all have something different that we’re all focusing on. I think we’re unique in that we have the ceramics, the art component and then the food component.”

She added that they, like many others, have missed Broadway heavy-hitters like

Zandbroz

and

Bernbaums

, but that downtown has recently added some new businesses, too. “I feel like, even since we signed the lease in January, we’re hearing about the Orange Record space and

Maria’s

down there opened up. I feel like it’s a little revival,” she says.

The Nelsons are building out the space themselves, so a partially constructed pony wall divides the server area from the customer area and a soft white paint covers the previous cement-gray color scheme.

Jen’s art will be an integral part of the design. Her ceramics will be displayed in the front window and So+Lo’s food will be served on her dinnerware. They also plan to incorporate her colorful ceramic tiles into the decor.

Shelves will be added to break up wall space and a long bench will be installed along the east wall. New flooring will replace the waterproof vinyl that belies the shop’s former life as a pet-grooming studio.

The Nelsons bought a bunch of wooden table-and-chair sets, previously from

Bertrosa’s in the Black Building,

for a song. The dining sets are sturdy but no-frills, so Jen hopes to paint each piece in a bright hue to coordinate with the lively color scheme of her dinnerware.

“We’re both invested,” she says. “We were at Menards this morning and buying 2- by 4s and wood screws. And we are recipe-planning together and shopping for deli coolers and all those things. We sit down at the table and hammer it out.”

There’s much to do over the next month, but the Nelsons are used to working hard and working together.

“When we bought our first house, Chris and I put together an IKEA kitchen, and our marriage survived that,” Jen says, with a laugh. “So I feel like, if you can build an IKEA kitchen and stay married, well, you can do anything.”

For updates, visit

“Jennysueart”

on Facebook.