New ownership keeps Lola’s traditions going strong

Aron Bode’s deep dive into the New Ulm bar and restaurant scene keeps him hopping, balancing three projects and planning a fourth.

The 29-year-old New Ulm native and entrepreneur’s newest venture has Lola’s maintaining the traditions that’s kept the popular downtown New Ulm restaurant as busy as ever.

Bode took over Lola’s last year from restaurateur Lacey Leuth, who built up the establishment during her 14-year run as owner-operator. Bode previously worked at Lola’s following college graduation and “was very excited when I heard it came up for sale.”

Leuth surprised many in the New Ulm area when news surfaced that she was moving on to a new restaurant venture, The Cranberry over Superior, in northwest Wisconsin. It wasn’t an easy decision for Leuth, having transformed the Larkspur Market into Lola: An American Bistro, then adding a popular food truck and catering business.

“I still think about the place every day,” Leuth said recently.

“I mean that was pretty much my entire existence for 14 years building that to what it is. I miss the people, and the work. But sometimes new beginnings and projects are needed for longevity in this industry, I believe.”

For Bode, there’s been several new beginnings and projects. He’s been a tremendously active food and beverage business developer, along with brother Eric Bode, a New Ulm-based commercial and residential real estate broker.

The Bode brothers’ first ventured into a “speakeasy” establishment, The Retz 277, in 2017. It’s a specialty business, open only Friday nights.

Next came New Ulm’s first drive-thru coffee shop, Sippet Coffee & Bagels, two years later. Lola’s makes it number three, while Aron Bode has already begun work on number four.

“Recently, I started construction on ‘Rush,’ a small plate, intimate restaurant with indoor seating, as well as a rooftop patio in New Ulm,” Bode said.

But it’s Lola’s that has the richest tradition in downtown New Ulm, and Bode is proud to have kept the popular Minnesota Street restaurant thriving. His move didn’t, however, come without pause.

“I definitely had my reservations about being able to go between all of these locations, but the teams that I have at each location, and even as a whole, are fantastic,” he said.

Bode did make some key changes. A wall was constructed to the south side of the kitchen to allow for more prep space for staff, and another wall will be taken down to allow for installation of a larger dishwasher.

Bode added, “We spruced up a few items, like furniture, bathrooms, etc., which will always be an ongoing process.”

Still, another key decision for Bode was to limit hours of operation, ending the evening dinner hours.

“This was a very hard decision,” Bode said.

“But we sat down and looked at how to become the best restaurant we could be. This meant we would no longer do larger caterings, our hours would change, and we would focus more on what our group could do together. One day we hope to bring back evening dinners and larger caterings but, for now, we just want to become the most well-oiled machine we can be.”

That doesn’t mean Bode is dropping the popular Lola’s food truck, which remains a busy part of the business. It does mean Lola’s staff may alter the direction a bit of where that food truck might appear.

“We are going to try to approach this next year, 2023, a little differently,” Bode said.

“I have booked a bunch of our fun, out-of-town caterings, but we also want to dive back into our own community. We have plans to run the truck right out by our store on weekends and days that we would normally not be running (the restaurant). We want to support the (New Ulm) downtown with a new menu for locals and tourists alike.”

And as with most in the food and beverage industry, staffing remains critical, he said.

“Staffing is tight in every industry right now. I just hope I can hold onto the awesome crew that I have at Lola. Seriously, every industry is feeling the staffing shortage.”

Bode knows how Leuth built up Lola’s and the reputation it carries throughout the region. And as he moves between his restaurant and business ventures, he places his confidence in both Lola’s veteran employees and new staff members.

“I cannot stress enough that I would not have done any of the ventures or even got into Lola without the individuals that I have working with me,” Bode said. “I hope that I can work with the current employees to meld what Lola is now with what my style is.”

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Lola's menu includes unique, made-fromscratch sandwiches and other dishes, including this Veggie Dagwood.

7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday-Saturday; 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sundays

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