The building formerly occupied by Java John’s, one of Decorah’s longtime downtown coffee houses, has changed owners and will soon reopen under the name The Lefse Lodge. The new business, located at 400 W. Water St., will feature homemade Scandinavian desserts, sandwiches and a full coffee bar. The Lefse Lodge the brainchild of Lawler couple Rodney “Flash” Flaskerud and Cheryl Haggerty and is slated to open Nov. 1.
“We’re having fun, and we want people to enjoy what we have, and we want to have fun doing it,” Haggerty said. “Everybody tells us that what Decorah is lacking is what we’re doing.”
Java John’s closed its doors earlier this summer, and the building went up for sale in July. Flaskerud and Haggerty looked at the building’s store space at the time and asked former owner Kim Bosworth if they could lease the storefront, but that conversation wasn’t fruitful until September, when Bosworth got back in touch with Haggerty and suggested she contact Decorah native Susanna (Cole) Billington, who had purchased the building.
Without making a commitment, Haggerty, Flaskerud and Flaskerud’s daughter Kari Steinlage, met at the building to discuss the space’s interior potential — Steinlage also happens to own interior design company KL Design in Decorah.
The new business owners recalled Flaskerud discussing design concepts with his daughter while Haggerty spoke with Billington outside, ultimately striking an agreement — when Flaskerud exited the kitchen, he was surprised by Billington’s handshake and congratulations on the purchase.
“It just kind of fell in our lap,” Haggerty said. “And, it felt like the right thing to do.”
Flaskerud, a Calmar native, and Haggerty, originally from Dubuque, have been together for nearly two years, but they met 10 years ago, when Haggerty and her ex-husband bought Flaskerud’s house in Lawler. Later, after Haggerty’s divorce, Flaskerud moved back into that same house to live with Haggerty, and they’ll soon be moving to another house closer to Decorah.
After their relationship started, Haggerty told Flaskerud they needed to “go all in” at the Decorah Farmers Market, where Flaskerud had been selling his homemade lefse the last few years.
“He was doing lefse, and we started doing kringla and ham balls and rømmegrøt,” Haggerty said. “I said we have to be all in if we’re going to do this. You can’t be halfway in and then change your mind. So, when we decided to open the Lefse Lodge, it’s kind of the same thing. You need to be all in, or it’s not going to work. So, we’re all in, and this is our retirement.”
Flaskerud, who spent most of his last 10 winters in Florida agreed, jokingly that he was getting really bored spending his winters in the Sunshine State.
“I thought I’d stay home and shovel snow and slide down the ice,” he said. “It was fun until we learned that the building is on the historic registry. We weren’t aware of that when we signed the lease.”
Flaskerud explained that means the couple will need to appeal to the local historical society in order to paint over the Java John’s sign on building’s the east exterior wall. Haggerty noted the new sign’s colors and design will also need to be approved, and the new business owners are trying to jump through each hoop with a lighthearted attitude. They’ll also need to possess a certificate of liability, and the city of Decorah will require them to have $2 million of insurance coverage on the building.
The couple has already removed the former business’ logo from the building’s hardwood floor. Flaskerud relied on his 45 years of flooring experience in doing so.
“It took a long time to get that paint off,” Flaskerud said. “A sander couldn’t cut it.”
The couple plans to use Nordic designs and colors for the shop’s interior, and their menu will include homemade lefse, kringla, rømmegrøt, ham balls, sandwiches, rolls, muffins and traditional Norwegian breakfasts. Beverages will include a multitude of options in addition to acid-free coffee and a full coffee bar. Flaskerud said he’ll also be using a “close-to-gluten-free” flour in the preparation of all his delicacies.
“We’re trying to keep it as local and as natural as possible,” Haggerty said.
Flaskerud said he’s looking forward to continuing his family tradition of making Scandinavian treats and sharing them with the community year round.
“I just enjoy being in the kitchen,” Flaskerud said. “I like the Norwegian heritage and trying to keep that Norwegian flavor going.”
The Lefse Lodge will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Saturday. For more information, call Haggart at 563-543-3459 or email rodney-cheryl@lefse-lodge.com.
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So glad to hear all this! I know you will serve up great stuff! And we will still see ya in church Sunday mornings.