January 2022 – F**k Yeah! It's Sioux Falls!

Libertarians On The Rise In SD!

Political blogger and watchman Cory Heidelberger crunched the numbers for us, and found that voter registration for the Libertarian Party has jump by 9.55%! But don’t get too excited, Freedom Lovin’ Folks… there’s still only 2,605 of y’all. That’s only half-a-percent of registered voters.

As he reports:

“There are 279,331 registered Republicans, 152,709 Democrats, 139,874 independents, and 2,605 Libertarians. If Libertarians can continue their annual growth rate of 9.55%, their ranks will top 100,000 in South Dakota in 2062.”

So keep the faith! In forty years you might have a voting bloc the Republicans will have to take seriously!

Honestly, we’re kinda surprised you’re not doing better. We know some good people working hard for Libertarian-leaning groups, and with the post-Trump weirdness in the GOP, there are plenty of younger folks that stammer a “well, I’m kinda Libertarian” when pressed on their political values. Maybe you kids just aren’t registered? Or maybe you register as an R or D strategically to better vote in primaries?

That might be wishful thinking.

Whatever your take on the issues, get educated and then get involved, m’kay? See you at the polls!

Chipotle Doubles-Down on Sioux Falls!

For many of our friends, every trip out-of-town demanded a stop at Chipotle. Sure, Sioux Falls had most everything you’d need, but there were still a few things you’d want. Chipotle being top-of-list. (Don’t start with us, Chick-Fil-A’ers!!)

Of course, by the time they got here, we’d already been swamped with lots of tasty chain and local burrito options. So it was a little anti-climatic to line up for some foil-wrapped Barbacoa once we got the chance.

Still, the fact that Chipotle’s got an east-side location in the works is good news. We’ll take all the lime-rice stuffed burritos we can get!

Minimum Wage Goes Up in SD by, uh, Fiddy Cents!

We guess this is good news. It can’t hurt, right? Here’s the deal: Effective Jan 1st, the minimum wage in South Dakota has increased by $0.50 to $9.95/hr.

So here’s what we’re wondering: Who’s making the official minimum right now? Not to sound like out-of-touch elitist snobs, but we don’t know of anybody. Our friends working “minimum wage” jobs have been making over $10 for awhile now. (Mind you, these are mostly part-time hustles or seasonal gigs.)

And every Taco John’s or shelf-stocking position seems to be loudly declaring that they’re hiring at something more like $12-$15.

Maybe that’s a Sioux Falls thing? Wages in the “big city” might be higher than they are in small towns. Maybe this will make an impact for the folks out in Menno. Anyway, if you’ve got the scoop, drop us a line and let us know.

With inflation on the rise and Covid still cutting into many working hours, every little bit helps. No doubt you’ve earned it.

Burger Battle 2022 Is On!

Let the rumble begin!

We do our best every year to get through a reasonable selection of the beef-a-licious burgers on display every January, but as the competition grows, hitting all the spots gets harder every year.

That’s a good problem to have right?

Twenty-seven local joints are in the running this year. Imagine that. Twenty-seven! A decade ago there weren’t even twenty-seven respectable restaurants downtown to choose from, let alone twenty-seven creative chefs getting their groove on.

If you want the full rundown, The Argus’s write-up is a great place to start.

However, our early reconnaissance has scoped out three early competitors:

Holiday Inn City Centre: The ARC

Wagyu Beef, Bison, Elk, and Wild Boar Patty is served on a bed of Romesco sauce and portobello mushrooms sauteed in red wine. The Burger is then topped with provolone cheese, pickled red onions, fried spinach, and garlic crunch dished up on a toasted butter Brioche bun. Perfectly paired with a side fresh Lobster Mac. No substitutions.

Parker’s Bistro: Raja Burger

Ground tenderloin, Mexican melting cheese, Huitacoche, pickled poblano, house bacon, chicharron

The Treasury at Hotel on Phillips: The Grifter

6oz Hand Pattied Dry Aged Black Angus Beef, Tallegio Cheese, Double Smoked Applewood Bacon, Korean Cucumber Salad with Honey & Kimchi Vinaigrette, Gochuchang Mayo. Served on Black Sesame Seed Brioche Bun.

We’ll report back after doing some further gut-busting research. And then it’s back to the gym!