INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Some of the region’s best meat cutters will leave their Texas Roadhouse restaurants and head to Indianapolis for the first round of the National Meat Cutting Challenge.

With sharp knives and steady hands, 11 butchers from across Indiana and Ohio will meet at Zink Distributing Company, all hoping to “steak” their claim to a $25,000 grand prize and the title Meat Cutter of the Year.

Carving up the competition

Each butcher is given 30 to 40 pounds of beef consisting of one sirloin, one filet, and one ribeye to cut. The cuts are judged on quality, yield, and speed in this timed “cut-off.” The winner is the cutter who puts out the most steaks with the highest quality cut in the least amount of time.

Top-scoring challengers in the region will move on to the semi-final round. The semi-finals and final competition will be held in March 2024.

Meet the meat-cutters

Each meat cutter is responsible for hand-cutting the steaks 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 their restaurant’s walk-in cooler, Texas Roadhouse said in a release.

Tuesday’s competitors include:

• Ira Bales, Muncie
• Alvaro Benitez Garcia, Indianapolis (Michigan Road)
• Antonio Benitez Gregorio, Indianapolis (Michigan Road)
• Brendon Donnelly, Fishers
• Jalon Jones, Muncie
• Nick Miller Reynoldsburg, Ohio
• Jorge Perez, Indianapolis (Shadeland Avenue)
• Luis Ramirez, Avon
• Vince Soto, Anderson
• Aurelio Varillas, Indianapolis (Shadeland Avenue)
• Ivan Xique, Fishers

Three of Tuesday’s competitors — Antonio Benitez Gregorio, Adelio Cabrera Nolasco, and Ivan Xique — made it to the final round of the 2023 National Meat Cutting Challenge. Daniel Rivera of Covington, California, took home the title of Meat Cutter of the Year.

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