South Dakota
Best dive bar South Dakota? Here are 3 spots loved by locals that are worth the $2 beer
There’s a game of Shake-A-Day around here somewhere.
Dive bars in the Midwest are like coming home and bellying up to your regular spot or with your lucky pool cue. Your Jack and Coke is already poured, your buddy arrived at the time he always does and now the lore is flowing.
It’s going to be another great night.
This time of year especially harkens a bar regular – home for the holidays and wanting to unwind once again.
Whether you’re chasing nostalgia or just a cold one, these dives prove that the heart of the Midwest beats loudest in its bars.
Here’s a look at a few great dive bars in South Dakota.
The Ice House: Shattered glass and record-breaking can smashing
The Ice House Bar in Yankton, South Dakota, isn’t known for producing artificial ice. How boring. It’s known for its century-old tradition of smashing empty beer bottles against a brick wall.
The family-owned, Missouri River establishment began in 1928 as the Pure Ice Co. until it started selling beer after the prohibition in the 1930s. Since, folks come for the $2 beers, $10 buckets served curbside or to hang their legs off the dock to toss a bottle or two underneath their feet.
The tradition is famous. Broadcast journalist and South Dakota native Tom Brokaw frequented the bar for a Budweiser, and owner Jim Anderson was on “The Late Show with David Letterman” to show off his record-breaking can-smashing skills: He can crush 76 cans in 25 seconds with one foot!
Details: 101 Capital St., Yankton, S.D., 605-665-2631.
Top Hat: One of the oldest haunts in Sioux Falls
The Top Hat in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is timeless. Your father probably sat underneath the same glow of the same PBR neon sign in the 1970s and grabbed a bag of Fritos from the same clip on the wall. (Hopefully the chips are newer.)
Owner Andy Lenz prefers to freeze this dive bar in time. Why change it? she says. There are no frills, no craft beers on tap and no menu. Hungry? She’ll toast a thin-crust Rosken’s Dakota Pizza if you want to pair it with your Grain Belt while playing a game of pool underneath dim lighting.
There’s also dart boards, video lottery, a juke box that’s always humming and the smell of old cigarettes and stale booze – which is to say, it feels familiar, safe and like home.
Details: 508 S. First Ave., Sioux Falls, SD, 605-332-8171.
Meridian Corner: Deep-fried chislic and broasted chicken
If you know South Dakota, you know chislic. If you know chislic, you know Meridian Corner. Located on the corner of highways 18 and 81 west of Freeman, this proudly proclaimed “hole-in-the-wall” is nationally known for its family recipe of deep-fried lamb or mutton: Lamb chislic is more tender, while mutton chislic is chewier but with more flavor. Each is humbly served in skewers of three, six, nine or 12, with a side of saltines and garlic salt.
There’s savory broasted chicken and pork chops on the menu as well.
The family-owned tradition of Meridian Corner was hard to kick. It opened in the 1980s, closed shop for years then opened again in 2011, back by popular demand and with little change. It’s an old red farmhouse on the corner of nowhere, and there are usually tractors in the parking lot.
Details: 43915 U.S. Highway 18, Freeman, S.D., 605-387-5000.
South Dakota
Dept. of Agriculture and Natural Resources announces $48 million for statewide projects
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – The South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources (DANR) has the approval of over $48 million in loans and grants for statewide projects.
Together with the Board of Water and Natural Resources, a total of $36,958,000 in state loans, including $425,000 in principal forgiveness, was authorized for drinking water and wastewater improvements.
More funding was distributed to the following programs:
BDM Rural Water:
- Received an additional $233,450 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to construct a new water treatment plant, install a new water reservoir, install a pipe to expand the water system, and replace water meters
Clay Rural Water:
- Received $334,250 in ARPA grant funds to construct two ground storage reservoirs near the Greenfield reservoir and the Wakonda Water Treatment plant
Mid-Dakota Rural Water System:
- Received $917,357.85 in ARPA grant to update the existing water system
Mitchell:
- Received $3,930,000 in Clean Water State Revolving Funds to upgrade the clay sanitary and storm sewer
Rapid City:
- Received a $14,512,000 Drinking Water State Revolving loan to make improvements to an existing well and also construct two new wells
Shared Resources:
- Received $1,500,000 in ARPA grant funds for a treatment plant, well field, distribution pipeline, and two storage tanks
Sioux Falls:
- Received $7,648,000 to complete a third connection to the Lewis and Clark Regional Water System
- Received $17,746,000 to construct a new Southeast Basin sanitary force main
South Lincoln Rural Water System:
- Received $328,250 in ARPA funds to install an elevated water tank, new pump station, and new water treatment plant
South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources:
- Received $1 million in ARPA funds for its statewide Riparian Buffer Initiative
Toronto:
- Received $770,000 Drinking Water Revolving Loan to accommodate the Department of Transportation installing new storm sewers and highway surfacing
These programs are funded through a combination of federal appropriations, loan repayments, and bonds.
The board approved the funding during a January 8 meeting in Pierre.
Copyright 2026 Dakota News Now. All rights reserved.
The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Jan. 8, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Jan. 8 drawing
05-12-13-39-48, Lucky Ball: 13
Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize
- Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
- Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
- Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.
When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.
RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) – A harrowing scene at Sheridan Lake ended without serious injury Tuesday after a man, a woman and their dog fell through thin ice near the swimming beach, authorities said.
Keep pets on a leash and never attempt a risky rescue if someone falls through the ice, officials said. Call 911 immediately.
The South Dakota Game, Fish, and Parks agency advises that ice three inches or less is unsafe. Four inches is generally considered the minimum for walking, ice fishing or skating.
Lt. Casey Kenrick of the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office said the incident is a reminder to take extra precautions this winter.
“Usually at this time the ice is significantly thick on the lakes around the area, well, some aren’t even frozen all the way at this point. The temperatures have been up and down so much that the ice isn’t solid even though it may look like it is, so make sure you know the ice depth that you’re getting onto,” Kenrick said.
Kenrick said those precautions could mean the difference between a close call and a tragedy.
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Copyright 2026 KOTA. All rights reserved.
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