Beef. It’s What’s for Dinner. We meet three passionate and committed meat providers in our community, each with a dedication to quality that sets them apart. Once you hear their storied histories and plans for the future, you’ll know the answer to the age-old question, Where’s the Beef? It’s in our community. And it’s really, really good.
Gongoll Beef
Father and son team Fred and Dave Gongoll not only share a driveway, they share a passion and a very busy hobby. Gongoll Beef is a third-generation family farm in Mayer that started in the 1950s with Fred’s father milking cows on this expansive, picturesque 500-acre farm. In the 1990s, Fred began selling beef to acquaintances around town, starting with 18 steers in his first year. Since then, Gongoll Beef has steadily expanded, adding around 10 more animals to the herd each year. Their beef steers come to them at six months old and around 700 pounds. Fred and Dave (along with Uncle Doug, who helps out as well) believe that steers shouldn’t be confined, so straight away, theirs are allowed to graze and eat corn… with a healthy side of grass. “They eat three pounds of corn a day and gain about 100 pounds a month. We believe there’s something to not confining them and instead letting them stretch their legs.”
Gongoll Beef’s meats are rich in succulent qualities, but you’ll also find that every interaction with this small but mighty team is rich in passion. Dave works full-time for a construction company but has so much fervor for farming that he wishes he could focus on it full-time. “I just like doing it. It’s so relaxing – you talk to a farmer, and they’re never in a hurry. My Grandpa did it, my Dad does it. Do you know how people say they want to be like their Dad? That.”
Not if, but when you decide to give Gongoll Beef a try, simply give Dave a call. He’ll talk you through the process and connect you directly with their butcher. And don’t worry, if you’re not fluent in meat-cutting speak, the butcher will help you along! What size hamburgers do you want? How thick do you want your steaks cut? How do you want them packaged? No matter, you’re in for a treat and a wonderful new connection.
Gongollbeef.com
@gongollbeef1
Schroeder Meats
Shortly after Kelly and Jeremy Hart started dreaming of creating a home-based business on their property, one where they could raise and process steers, they realized it was just out of their reach. Jeremy was a traveling fleet maintenance director, and Kelly was a stay-at-home mom. “We wanted to spend our days together as a family,” Kelly explains. A real estate agent friend notified them that Schroeder Meats was on the market, and they quickly began the buying process. “We experienced miracle after miracle throughout the process.” Out of these miracles came their mission: to use their platform to serve the community, inspire hospitality, and build Christ-centered relationships.
The team behind this heartfelt goal consists of three butchers, two wrappers, and an office manager, who all share the same vision and eagerness to see where the future takes them. One direction includes honing in on processes and efficiencies to continue serving the community in an exceptional way. “We also want to grow our lines of spices and seasonings and plan on creating an online store with local home delivery.”
When you walk into their retail shop in New Germany or one of several stores in and around Carver County where they have a presence, you’ll find beef sticks, beef jerky, bratwursts, and summer sausage. They process beef, hogs, sheep, the occasional alpaca, and have a very large wild game market in the fall. But the thing they’re most proud of is their bacon. “Jeremy developed new recipes of original and peppered bacon that customers rave about!”
In the end, Schroeder Meats prioritizes relationships over transactions. They place a high importance on spending time explaining what they do and how they do it to newcomers. They spend time catching up with seasoned farmers. They deliver an outstanding product, and when they don’t, they make it right. “We dream of making Schroeder Meats a destination spot in little New Germany.” It seems they’re well on their way.
Schroedermeats.com
@schroedermeats
Cathy’s Mackenthun’s Meats & Deli
In 1955, Ruben Mackenthun opened Mackenthun’s Sausage on Main Street in downtown St. Bonifacius – and it was the epitome of your small-town meat market. Ruben and his family of five served the community fresh and smoked meats, but they also served up memories. Cathy and her siblings grew up in the shop. “We still have older folks come in and tell the story about how my dad would give them free hot dogs as a kid,” Cathy shares. It was all about family, the hard-working one they had great pride in, and the families in the community.
After Ruben passed away unexpectedly, Cathy, with the help of her mother, took over. In 1988, the business, now known as Cathy Mackenthun’s, moved to its current location. Cathy worked extremely hard to make it profitable, skinning deer during deer season and starting fires for the smokehouses in the middle of the night to prepare for the busy day ahead. History began to repeat itself when her children, Sophia and Wyatt, started helping out and continued to do so on and off throughout college and in the initial stages of their careers. Both have since returned as full-time managers and soon-to-be co-owners when the baton is passed to the fifth generation.
Cathy’s staff of 40 – chefs, sausage makers, meat cutters, management, deli and retail staff, and part-time high school students – work hard to continue the tradition of serving local, fresh, handmade products and providing the unique experience that all started with Ruben. Let’s start with the mouthwatering smell that hits you immediately upon walking through the door. That’s local beef, lamb, pork, and chicken. It’s pot pies, lasagnas, and beef stroganoff. It’s old-fashioned wieners, bologna, jerky, and numerous flavors of bratwursts and sausages. And the bacon… Oh, the bacon. “We use a traditional method to dry cure our bacon that takes longer but results in a far superior product smoked with apple wood in our real wood smokehouses,” Cathy says. And speaking of smokehouses, theirs, built in 1972 by a local blacksmith, were grandfathered in (only electric smokehouses are allowed now), which adds even more flavor to this cherished cornerstone of the community.
If that taste bud tingle hasn’t already gotten you planning a visit, there’s more! For lunch, you can grab a cold or grilled specialty sandwich every day of the week or enjoy a hearty breakfast burrito on the weekends. Head to the deli counter for maple beef sticks to go – made with their very own in-house maple syrup. “It’s hard to find another store like ours that does all these different services and products, all from one location, especially with everything still being made by hand.”
They only hire experienced, passionate workers who put quality and patrons at the forefront. Translation: exceptional customer service. “Finding our niche as a small family-run meat market has been crucial to our survival.” You’ll find beef bacon, USDA prime briskets, premium ground brisket burgers, and local bison products, and they’re constantly adding to their repertoire. In the future, you might find them expanding their current location, adding another location in the Twin Cities or Duluth, and even adding an online purchasing option. And that delicious weekend burrito we mentioned? Soon, you might just be able to dive into one every day of the week. And knowing the enthusiasm of Cathy’s team, this is just a taste of things to come.
Cathymackenthuns.com
@cathymackenthuns
They eat three pounds of corn a day and gain about 100 pounds a month. We believe there’s something to not confining them and instead letting them stretch their legs.