Beef Commercials (or Hot Beef Sandwich)

Boy, what a great discussion to get into when two people are arguing over South Dakota and Minnesota.

Although I no longer address the issue between which state is better, I still love to bring up the "similarities" between South Dakota and Minnesota regarding the small things in life, like food.

This discussion came up at work on Monday night. It came about when a co-worker, Al, brought up some of his stories while working at his grandparent's cafe in Brandon. Then, it came to me: Ask him what a "hot beef sandwich is."

I asked, and he explained: "Two pieces of bread, filled with beef. It's cut down the middle and a scoop of mashed potatoes placed in the middle. Then, the whole thing is covered by gravy."

I shook my head in agreement. Then I asked him what we called a hot beef sandwich back in Minnesota -- "a beef commercial."

Al's reaction was priceless. He just kind of shook his head in Lewis Black-fashion and said, "What? Isn't a beef commercial something you see on the TV -- like 'beef, it's what for dinner.'?"

And there you have it. You're typical South Dakotan response to a "beef commercial."