Background behind the phrase:
Gary Hart and Walter Mondale
The phrase was associated with the 1984 U.S. presidential election. During primaries in the spring of 1984, when the commercial was at its height of popularity, Democratic candidate and former Vice President Walter Mondale ridiculed the candidacy of his rival, Senator Gary Hart by using the phrase during a televised debate before the New York and Pennsylvania primaries. The debate was televised March 11, 1984.
Hart had moved his candidacy from dark horse to the lead over Mondale based on his repeated use of the phrase "new ideas." When Hart once again used the slogan in the debate, Mondale leaned forward and said, "When I hear your new ideas I'm reminded of that ad, 'Where's the beef?'" The line got a great response from the audience. Thenceforth, the two campaigns continually clashed using the two dueling slogans. Mondale ultimately prevailed to win the Democratic Party nomination, only to lose the general election in 1984 in a landslide to incumbent Ronald Reagan (Source: http://www.answers.com/topic/where-s-the-beef).
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