For most of their 70 years together, Dean and Barbara Dennis have had a hot beef sandwich on their anniversary.

For their 70th anniversary meal, Dean and Barbara were joined at Julie’s Homestyle Cafe by their daughter, Ronda Dennis-Smithart and son-in-law Mike Smithart; Dean’s best man, Tom Tucker and his wife, Fran; and friends Peggy Klein and Debbie Snyder.

The jovial group had the ease of long friendship and shared many laughs together around a table decorated by the Dennis’ neighbor, Melissa Adams, right at the cafe’s front window.

“The two mothers went, the two people that stood up with us went, and that was that,” Dean said. “They don’t cost anything that way.”

Barbara recalled picking flowers by the roadside.

Dean said he and Barbara were wed in the What Cheer Methodist Church around 2 in the afternoon.

“My family lived on a farm over there, so we all went out there and we left there, just her and I, and we were going to Cedar Rapids for the honeymoon,” he said. “We got as far as Marengo, so we had to eat and that’s when we stopped and had a hot beef sandwich.”

The meal cost probably less than $2 in 1948.

“It was the cheapest thing on the menu,” Barbara said.

Dean said nobody made much money in those days

“And I’d gotten married and I didn’t have a car or anything and I was making $27.50 a week, six days a week,” he said. So that’s what we had. We didn’t have parties back then like they do now. So it’s been a thing that we have fun with.”

Tom laughed and said Dean had borrowed some money from him 70 years ago and he just paid it back a week ago.

“Well now, I owed [Tom] $3, which was a lot of money,” Dean said. “A year ago, I got around to getting it paid. I gave him a two dollar bill and a silver dollar. He wanted to know about the interest. So I said when it was up we were way ahead, but I said interest went bad so that’s all you get. And we’re still best friends.”

Tom and Fran live in Milan Ill.

“We’ve been planning this for a year,” Tom said.

Dean said his mother made a delicious white cake with wild hickory nuts in it.

“One woman, 40-some years afterwards still mentioned about the best cake she’d ever eaten.”

Barbara reminded Dean to thank their daughter for the cake, which he did.

“Still taking orders after 70 years,” Tom cracked.

It’s all been good advice, Barbara responded.

Dean and Barbara celebrated 70 years of marriage with family, friends, lots of laughter and hot beef sandwiches.

“Think it’ll last,” asked Tucker with a chuckle.