Inside Interior

Just outside the national park entrance, right in the middle of the South Dakota Badlands is a little town called Interior, with a population of 67 according to the "welcome to" sign on each end of town. The four campgrounds, the two motels, the bar and the cafe belie the town's (and its vicinity's) main industry, catering to visitors to the Badlands.

The A & M Cafe is the gem of Interior. The small dining room seats around 30 customers. The ground level access offers accessible entry for wheelchairs and scooters, with minimal assistance. The table and chairs are movable, allowing for variability. In South Dakota, state law prohibits smoking in restaurants, so the air inside is clean and comfortable.

The menu includes rarities like buffalo burgers (not beef with hot sauce, but real bison meat). The specialty of the house is "Indian Tacos." They are not the usual Mexican fare. Made with fried flat bread instead of tortillas, these have a taste all their own.

The Indian Tacos come in two sizes. We recommend the small unless you are really hungry. They are filling. If you have more culinary talent and ambition than The Ample Traveler©, you will be pleased to know that the recipe for the fried flat bread is readily available.

Other restaurants in the Badlands area make such tacos, but A & M has a reputation for being the best. The Ample Traveler© enjoyed them so much that we came back a second time during our week-long stay.

There are some drawbacks to the A & M cafe. The parking lot is gravel. The restrooms are not accessible for wheelchairs, frailer people or larger people.

For a small town, Interior is remarkably accessible, but by big city standards, there are a number of problems. However, the campgrounds and motels are more accommodating, providing parking and access.

The Badlands prairies and farms surround Interior, leaving room for campgrounds and recreational activities. Of course, the Badlands National Park Cedar Pass Lodge, Cedar Pass Campground and Cedar Pass Restaurant (adjoined to the lodge gift shop) are more accessible and have similar services and menu fare as the businesses in Interior.

By the way, the unexpected delight of the Cedar Pass Restaurant was the excellent Reuben Sandwich. We don't know why, so don't ask.

Prices inside the national park are slightly higher than Interior's motels, campgrounds and the A & M Cafe. The Ample Traveler© knows that Interior is not able to accommodate everyone. However, we recommend it as a less expensive alternative with more local flavor in more ways than one.

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