Longhorn Steakhouse employee receives honor for grilling over 1 million steaks

Part of the employee’s prize was $5,000

A Longhorn Steakhouse griller has been recognized by the company, joining an elite group of employees.

Long-time employee Roberto “Birdie” Hernandez has grilled more than one million steaks during his time of employment at Longhorn, a rare accomplishment within the company.

For his achievement throughout 20 years at the chain restaurant, Hernandez has earned the esteemed honor of being named one of Longhorn’s Grill Master Legends.

He is one of only 36 chefs across the United States to receive the title.

To celebrate his contributions to the restaurant, a ceremony was held at Longhorn’s Columbus, Ohio, location, where he was given a specially designed chef’s coat, a cash prize of $5,000 and an additional $1,000 to be received annually, pending his continued employment at the steakhouse.

Birdie Hernandez was honored by Longhorn Steakhouse (Courtesy of Longhorn Steakhouse)

Hernandez received a $5,000 cash prize (Courtesy of Longhorn Steakhouse)

Another employee at the Columbus, Georgia, restaurant — Gayle Dudley — also achieved the Grill Master Legend title in 2022. At the time, only 14 Longhorn chefs held the special title.

“I was taken aback. To be named a Grill Master Legend means a lot to me,” Dudley said in a statement given to CNN at the time. “What made me happiest is that I had the opportunity to share it with my mother and see how proud she was.”

“I love the people. I love my coworkers,” she continued. “I love my guests too. Because at the end of the day, when they tell me they enjoyed that steak, that gives me the most joy in the world.”

The announcement of Hernandez’s accomplishment came after the chain announced it would be observing a 24-hour nationwide closure on Christmas Day, despite normally being open for seven days per week.

During the closure, all Longhorn Steakhouse locations will be stopping their regular hours and operations for the purpose of dedicating that time to facilitate training and development programs for staff nationwide, including focusing on improving service quality and reinforcing team bonding across locations.

The chain will reopen on December 26.

Longhorn follows the recent string of both fast food and fast casual restaurants that have decided to close their doors for the global holiday. Other restaurants who have also announced closures are: Chili’s, Olive Garden, and Taco Bell.

The first-ever Longhorn Steakhouse location opened on Peachtree Street in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1981, serving its customers a variety of steaks and classic steakhouse sides such as loaded potatoes, macaroni and cheese, baked potatoes, crispy Brussels sprouts and seasoned rice.