Ah the meat raffle. So distinctly Minnesotan, there is really nothing like it anywhere else.
OK, to be fair, Australian pubs seem to have a similar practice of raffling meat trays to raise money for their sporting teams, but in the United States, when one thinks meat raffle, they think Minnesota.
If you’re looking for a local meat raffle to see what the fuss is all about, downtown Chaska is ripe with these events. In fact, one could make a long weekend out of attending meat raffles, starting at the Chaska American Legion Post 57 on Thursday nights, then on to the Chaska VFW Post 1791 on Friday nights and finally pulling a double-header starting at Kelley’s Bar on Saturday afternoon and finishing at Cy’s Liquors Saturday night.
But what happens at a meat raffle? A Herald reporter braved the elements one snowy Thursday night to check out a typical raffle at American Legion Post 57, on Fourth Street.
According to Legion Commander Steve Nelson, the post began hosting meat raffles to make up for a decline in pull tab revenues. Meat raffles are just one of a small handful of gambling games approved by the Minnesota Gambling Control Board to generate revenue for charitable giving.
They make up less than 1 percent of lawful gambling activity, but are growing in popularity, said Tom Barrett, executive director of the Minnesota Gambling Control Board. Last year, meat raffles accounted for $6 million in state charitable gambling revenue.
The premise is pretty simple. You buy a ticket and if your number is chosen, you win a package of meat. Hurray!
Raffles kick off with a limited number of tickets being sold for each round of play. There is one round of play for every package of meat up for grabs. At the Legion, they sell 30 tickets at $1 a piece. (Kelley’s Bar conducts a meat contest instead of a raffle. Tickets are given out for free rather than sold.)
Once the tickets are sold out, the official Minnesota Gambling Control Board wheel is spun and people with tickets watch, waiting anxiously as the flipper ticks past the numbers from 1 to 30.
Finally, the ticker slows to a stop. The number is called out and the lucky ticket holder rejoices as they come to claim their package of meat.
The Chaska American Legion gets its meat from Mackenthun’s County Market in Victoria. On this particular night, a glamorous spread of choice cuts are displayed on one of the pool tables. There are pork chops, a variety of steaks and even a seafood package for winners to choose from.
Not surprisingly, the best cuts go the fastest so it benefits all that want choice meat to get to a raffle early.
When a tantalizingly red meat package is chosen by the winner, the round ends and tickets are collected to be resold for the next round of play. Rounds continue until all of the meat is gone.
It’s a sight to be seen for sure. Where else will you see a pool table turned into a meat display case or a woman doing a shimmy shake dance over a package of steaks?
Only in Minnesota.
-Mollee Francisco, staff writer
LOCAL MEAT RAFFLES
Chaska American Legion Post 57
102 W. Fourth St.
5:30 p.m., Thursdays
$1/ticket
(952) 448-4090
Chaska VFW Post 1791
620 Creek Rd.
5 p.m., Fridays
$1/ticket
(952) 448-4126
Kelley’s Bar
501 N. Chestnut St.
3-5 p.m. Saturdays
Free
(952) 556-0019
Cy’s Liquor
500 N. Pine St.
4-6 p.m. Saturdays
$1/ticket
(952) 448-9001
TELL US: Have you been to a meat raffle? What’s your favorite cut of meat?