Heats Up Meat-Cutting Challenge on Ice to take place Sept. 12
Cookeville – Ben Burgess and Dylan Neveau of Cookeville will be competing with some of the best meat cutters in the region during Texas Roadhouse’s National Meat Cutting Challenge (NMCC) next week in Antioch.
“When area butchers hit the ice rink next week, they won’t need skates or hockey sticks to score,” said NMCC in a statement. “To prove they’re a cut above the competition 38 professional meat-cutters, from across the region will compete on the ice in the first round of the Qualifier Meat Cutting Challenge.”
The competition will take place on Sept. 12 at 9:30 a.m. at the Ford Ice Center at 5264 Hickory Hollow Pkwy.
“Meat-cutting is truly a lost art,” says Tom Beem, Texas Roadhouse Senior Product Coach. “Our annual competition celebrates the success of our professional meat cutters. Our meat-cutting challenges are one way we show appreciation and reward their hard work and dedication to cutting perfect steaks for our guests.”
Each participant will receive 30-40 pounds of beef, consisting of one sirloin, one filet and one ribeye to cut. Meat cutters are judged on quality, yield and speed in a timed cutoff. The winner is the cutter who yields the most steaks, with the highest quality cut in the least amount of time.
To assure the best, freshest quality meat, all cutting is done at a chilly 38 degrees. Top scoring challengers in the region will advance to the semi-finals where they’ll compete for the opportunity to participate in the 2024 national competition.
Each Meat Cutter in the competition is responsible for hand-cutting every steak served at their local Texas Roadhouse. In an average year, they cut about $1 million worth of meat and spend seven to eight hours a day cutting meat in the 35-degree walk-in cooler.
The NMCC is part of the Meat Hero program, created in 2001, to recognize daily efforts of Texas Roadhouse meat cutters. The semi-finals and final competition will be held in March. The winner of the national competition receives a grand prize of $25,000 and is crowned Meat Cutter of the Year.
Image by KamranAydinov on Freepik.
