Forget the film – Fargo is the ultimate holiday destination

From a gay men’s chorus to a winter ‘Frostival’ with a mobile sauna, North Dakota’s most well known city is full of surprises

The Red River is a slow-moving waterway which marks the border between Fargo and Moorhead (Photos by The Washington Post/Jenn Ackerman)

Forget Fargo.

Don’t get me wrong – I loved the Coen brothers’ dark crime-comedy, not to mention three seasons of a successful spin-off on Netflix. But 22 years later, if you’re still thinking only about the movie or TV series when you hear that word, it’s time to rewire your brain. I’m here to tell you that this North Dakota city is not a godforsaken frozen wasteland of woodchippers. Fargo’s a slice of Oz on the eastern edge of the Great Plains – quirky, colourful and full of surprises: a Scandinavian-Jewish lunch counter; a gay men’s chorus; a thriving immigrant community; a winter “Frostival” with a mobile sauna; an artsy boutique hotel; Microsoft’s third-largest campus; and a championship football team.

More than that, it’s the people of Fargo and Moorhead, Minnesota, its sister city across the river, who have drawn me back multiple times. They all seem to share a remarkable can-do attitude and collaborative energy. Locals are quick to credit their forebears – the Scandinavian settlers who depended on each other to raise barns, harvest crops and recover from floods. That same work ethic, dynamism and community support helps a new generation of makers, entrepreneurs and artists who dream big and often succeed. The long, frigid winters seem to only bolster Fargoans’ industriousness and sense of humour.

When I showed up in June, I ran into a friend before we’d even had a chance to make plans – downtown’s that small. That afternoon, I heard that drivers get a friendly written warning before their first parking ticket – locals are that nice. When you go, chat them up. See the woodchipper at the visitors’ centre if you must. Then, get to know the real Fargo.

The real woodchipper (with fake leg) used in the film (The Washington Post/Jenn Ackerman)

Places to go

Local faves

On autumn Saturdays, take your competitive spirit to the Fargodome, which houses the home field of American football team North Dakota State Bison. The Thundering Herd, as the squad is known, has won the NCAA Division I Football Championship tournament six of the past seven seasons. Fargoans bleed yellow and green all year round. (Insider tip: you’ll hear chatter about Carson – that’s Herd alumnus and hometown hero Carson Wentz, now in the NFL as a quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles.) Tailgating is a sight to behold: it begins at 4am, and you’ll find custom-wrapped buses and motor homes, propane-heated tents and vans donning bison horns. The dome seats 19,000 for games and 25,000 for concerts such as the recent Def Leppard and Journey shows. Across from the dome: the Fargo Air Museum.

I love stepping into places where you momentarily forget what state – or country – you’re in. For something utterly surreal, try Sons of Norway Kringen Lodge No 25. The lodge is among the largest in this Nordic heritage fraternal organisation, and the building, an old Buick dealership with red carpet and walls, is decorated with Norwegian folk art, Viking carvings and rosemaling – a traditional painting style made up of scrolls and flowers. Even the skip outside is rosemaled. As I ate cherry pie in the dining room, a regular group played bridge and two volunteers chatted about lutefisk – a kind of Nordic dried fish. On my way out with a pack of homemade lefse (a potato flatbread) I picked up a newsletter and glanced at “klub” activities open to the public: Norwegian lunches, walleye dinners, folk dancing, rosemaling practice and weekly live music in the Troll Lounge, which has a 96-foot mural and 22 handcarved trolls.

Guidebook musts

Outside Fargo, it’s nearly impossible to mention the city without people commenting on the film, so hats off to the Fargo-Moorhead Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) for treating visitors to a little Fargo. The CVB displays the screenplay and a promotional ice scraper, but the main attraction is the original woodchipper, with a leg poking out. A friendly woman rushed over from behind her desk, holding a flannel hat with ear flaps. “Would you like me to take your picture in the hat? You can pretend to push the foot in.” I handed her my camera and posed awkwardly. “Now,” she said, “with a horrified look!” While I was there, a mother and daughter from northern Virginia arrived and announced that North Dakota was their 50th state. The woman excitedly gave them “Best for Last Club” T-shirts and certificates, and the Virginians told us about their travels. I left the centre and spent 36 hours in Fargo without hearing another peep about Fargo.

Known for its American modernism and regional art, the Plains Art Museum was an early investor in the town centre’s renaissance and has become a gathering place for the community. Located in a gorgeous turn-of-the-century warehouse that once stored farm machinery, the museum has about 4,000 works in its permanent collection. There’s a print studio, performance area, pollinator garden and space for workshops; there’s one on Native American poetry and art, for example. When I visited, I enjoyed a large audio installation, a William Wegman pup, a Warhol screenprint of first lady Jacqueline Kennedy and David Bradley’s Mona Lisa-esque 1990 painting Pow-Wow Princess in the Process of Acculturation. The museum is free, thanks to members and donors. Some of its other funding comes from what’s called charitable gaming, a widely accepted practice in North Dakota that generates millions of dollars in taxes (from blackjack and bingo et al) for a state that offers meagre funding to nonprofit organisations.

For a uniquely Midwestern experience, head to Scheels (The Washington Post/Jenn Ackerman)

Places to eat

Local faves

In their dining-out days, my grandmothers would have loved BernBaum’s. One collected mid-century modern furniture; the other whipped up Jewish meals and desserts like nobody’s business. So I had to smile when I walked into Brett Bernath’s Madhaus, which has largely been taken over by the fabulous lunch counter run by his wife, Andrea Baumgardner. She started making bagels in a corner of the furniture shop in 2016, and soon, BernBaum’s eclipsed the Madhaus; much of Bernath’s furniture (such as the pink fibreglass, boomerang-shaped bowling alley bench from the 1950s) has become restaurant seating. The Scandinavian-German and Jewish fare, reflecting the proprietors’ heritages, includes potato latkes, knishes with mustard crème fraîche, cheese blintzes with lingonberry sauce, chicken matzo ball soup and brisket with ramp soft cheese and pickled rhubarb. You’ll probably see Baumgardner cooking on her 1948 four-burner stove below the “Shalom” sign. Don’t miss her occasional themed dinners, which sell out quickly.

The owners of Wild Terra Cider and Brewing acknowledge the complete lack of commercial apple orchards in North Dakota. But that didn’t stop them from opening Fargo’s first cidery in December, and I’m thankful for that. Most of Wild Terra’s dozen offerings, which change daily, are from the Pacific Northwest or Michigan. But it does craft some of its own ciders – including the blueberry and banana Stargazer, with apples from small local growers. The cidery is in a beautifully restored, century-old horse stable. The menu, all vegetarian, includes treats such as a Buddha bowl with microgreens and brussels sprouts with “bacon” from the Herbivorous Butcher in Minneapolis. Locals gather for Eighties movies upstairs on oldschool sofas; a mustard coloured velvet one has national parks patches. The new co-op is next door.

Tim Griffin pulls a cup for a customer at Young Blood Coffee, home of reportedly rapturous cinnamon toast (The Washington Post/Jenn Ackerman)

Guidebook musts

At Rustica Eatery & Tavern, just across the Main Avenue bridge in Moorhead, dinner is comfortable and neighbourhoody. The more casual, seat-yourself tavern has a wood burning pizza oven and copper beer taps, and the eatery, where I found a spot at the bar, has exposed brick walls, indistinct jazz playing in the background and a relaxed, classy vibe. Not surprisingly for this part of the country, the menu is meat heavy, with rack of lamb and cornmeal-dusted local walleye fish, but it also features house pasta and a board so full of roasted veggies, dips and towering baguette slices that I needed a doggy bag. That plus a salad was just $9 (£7), thanks to a well attended and hard to believe happy hour from 5pm to 6pm and 9pm to 11pm: you’ll get half price on all starters, soups, salads, pizzas, burgers, mac and cheese, and select beers and wines. No fine print.

The first thing I noticed about the cinnamon toast at Young Blood Coffee: it was doorstep thick. Then I saw the tiny lakes of butter pooling in the fresh sourdough, and I knew that if my childhood toast had looked like this, I would’ve never left home. Young Blood makes its own sourdough (a bargain at $5 per loaf, the same price as avocado toast) and roasts its own coffee beans. As I savoured my slice of heaven, Rush played on vinyl atop the morning chatter. Nearby, I noticed a lovely green matcha latte with an Instagram-perfect design in the foamed milk. This new location is around the corner from hip Roberts Alley, which has an indoor bike park like nothing I’ve ever seen: bike tools, a pump and gym-style lockers and benches.

Places to shop

Local faves

If Etsy metamorphosed into a bricks and mortar shop, it would look like Unglued. Featuring more than 300 local and regional makers, mostly women, the shop is often bustling. Under twinkly lights and hundreds of origami cranes swooping down from the ceiling, you’ll find a jigsaw puzzle of the famed Fargo Theatre; a onesie adorned with a loon, the Minnesota state bird; jewellery made from repurposed crockery; zipper pouches featuring hockey skates; and hair pomade from Dakotah Beard Oils. Yeobo Sweet Shop is in the back. How can you not love the bulk offerings when they’re green apple Army guys, blackcurrant gummy moustaches and giant sour spiders? If you’d rather DIY than buy, check out Unglued’s classes in leatherworking, ceramics, embroidery and macramé.

Unglued stocks craftwork from over 300 local and regional makers (The Washington Post/Jenn Ackerman)

For a uniquely Midwestern experience, head to Scheels, a nearly 200,000-square foot mash-up of REI, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Cabela’s, with a 12-car Ferris wheel and enough taxidermied animals for a natural history museum. Upon arriving, the world’s friendliest cashier greeted me, and cheery welcomes continued as I ambled through the shop (I stopped counting at eight). I passed all the expected sportswear and gear, as well as skateboards, pogo sticks, cornhole sets and Bison ties with green and yellow checks. An entire section features merch for lake life (locals’ ubiquitous weekend activity), with packs of water balloons, kites and a gun that kills insects with a spray of table salt – all things you could buy cheaper online, but then you’d miss the archery shooting range, golf simulator and collection of lifesize presidents around the store. And then there’s the gun department upstairs (supposedly the largest in the state), where I snapped a picture of the “Youth Shotguns” section in case I later thought I’d imagined it.

Guidebook musts

When I visited in June, Dakota Fine Art was still glowing from its lively grand opening. The nine prominent local and regional artists who own and run the gallery had reason to celebrate: the space is filled with stunning pieces that reflect Great Plains landscape and culture. Steve Revland, a furniture maker and one of the founding artists, had brought in his $3,750 chamcha root coffee table that morning. “It weighs 500 pounds,” he told me, “and I got it here myself.” Among the lighter-weight pieces is a playful series by photographer Meg Spielman Peldo featuring Corso, the rehabilitated bison who has become the NDSU mascot. Water Buffalo shows him at a swimming pool and Bison Elevator captures Corso in front of a grain silo. By the way, Nichole’s Fine Pastry next door has dreamy traditional desserts and Scandinavian treats such as krumkake and kransakake.

Fargoans are serious about their North Dakota State Bison (The Washington Post/Jenn Ackerman)

Just as I’ve begun to tire of homogenous retail boutiques that have a little bit of everything (Anthroplogie mini-me’s, with well made dresses, handcrafted home goods, tasselled pillows, sustainable soap), I came across Others. The shop may look like similar boutiques, with its beautiful products and minimalist decor, but founder Laura Morris has raised the bar by donating all store profits to education, social health and job creation. Morris, a pharmacist and Fargo native, opened the shop four years ago and has never taken an Others paycheck. With each purchase, shoppers support vulnerable populations around the globe: wooden spoons and bowls help fund employment programmes for sex trafficking survivors; hoop earrings made from recycled brass help jewellery makers grow their businesses. Each set of sunglasses sold yields a free eye exam and glasses for someone in need; every Bogobrush sale means a toothbrush giveaway. This month, Others expects to reach the $500,000 mark for donations. Now that’s something to shop about.

Places to stay

Local fave

When I first stayed at the Hotel Donaldson in 2015, I was blown away by the 17 artist-inspired rooms, daily wine and cheese happy hour, rooftop bar, turndown truffle and complimentary morning pastries delivered to my room. This is Fargo? Earlier this summer, when my beagle and I planned a rendezvous in town with my friend Margie, I knew exactly where we’d stay. The boutique hotel is conveniently located within walking distance of the river, shops and restaurants, although you’d eat very well even if you never left the property. Too tired to venture out, Margie and I kicked back in our room and enjoyed a HoDo flatbread with garden-fresh tomatoes and basil, along with fare we’d picked up from Vinyl Taco across the street. One taco was particularly spicy, and Margie, who grew up nearby, said “Uffda!” – a Norwegian exclamation of surprise that I’d seen on T-shirts and mugs. Rooms start at $184 per night.

The Hotel Donaldson has 17 artist-inspired rooms (The Washington Post/Jenn Ackerman)

Guidebook must

Stepping into the Element by Westin in west Fargo feels a bit like checking into an ecofriendly spa, with its modern and minimalist decor, sunlit rooms and greenery at every turn. The pet-friendly hotel has priority parking for fuel-efficient vehicles, a Tesla charging station, free self-service laundry, a nicely sized gym and pool, and complimentary shuttles to the airport and downtown. Most of the 130 rooms have a full kitchen. Borrow one of Element’s free bikes to pedal to dinner at the Blarney Stone Pub, or walk next door to Tru Blu Social Club. Studios start at $129 per night, including breakfast.

Places to explore

Local fave

Here’s a fun fact: the Red River flows north! This slow-moving waterway meanders 550 miles from Breckenridge, Minnesota, up to Lake Winnipeg in Manitoba, and most of those miles form the border between North Dakota and Minnesota. From downtown, walk across Veterans Memorial Bridge, where you’ll find signage with more trivia: “The Red River Valley is one of the flattest landscapes on Earth.” Stroll north along the tree-lined river to nearby Hjemkomst Centre, home to a replica Viking ship. You can rent kayaks there or farther south at Lindenwood Park on the Fargo side – which also rents bikes and has a cool pedestrian bridge to Gooseberry Mound Park in Moorhead. (Check it out: the bridge lifts when the river levels rise.) To retire by the Red at day’s end, head to Lindenwood Campground, where tent sites cost $30 a day.

Guidebook must

Just across the Red River, Moorhead is often overlooked by visitors. Granted, the high school’s mascot is the spud, and the only unanimous recommendation I received from locals was to visit their Dairy Queen fast-food restaurant, where the Dilly Bar ice cream was supposedly invented. But even though Moorhead is couple of decades behind Fargo in downtown development, there are an increasing number of reasons to visit this side of the Red. Don’t miss Bluestem Centre for the Arts, a fantastic amphitheatre venue. Get your zen on during free yoga on the Comstock House lawn, and get your drinks at Junkyard Brewing, which feels like a college party with nightly live music, free popcorn, a taco truck and unexpected, always changing libations such as stout with peanuts and an experimental strawberry sour.

© The Washington Post