This is a classic midwestern sandwich. Claimed to be invented in Indiana. Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee also serve it up, but the fame and glory belong in the Hoosier State.
2 of my favorites are in the running and have made it to the "MEAT 16" bracket. You can vote too.
My very favorite, which is located in a gas station just north of my Alma Mater Wabash College, is the tenderloin served up at MIDWEST SUNOCO CLEAN FUEL. Yes, I said it. A gas station. A gas station in Indiana serves up the best tenderloin sandwich on the planet. I'll fight you over that.
Close runner up is in Winimac, IN. I travel to Winimac with my shooting group, and ONE EYED JACKS is a great stop for a good tenderloin.
There is a link in the story so you can vote, but if you vote you got to vote for the SUNOCO gas station in Crawfordsville.
Here is a link to the brackets on Facebook if you enjoy the book of many faces:
2 of my favorites are in the running and have made it to the "MEAT 16" bracket. You can vote too.
My very favorite, which is located in a gas station just north of my Alma Mater Wabash College, is the tenderloin served up at MIDWEST SUNOCO CLEAN FUEL. Yes, I said it. A gas station. A gas station in Indiana serves up the best tenderloin sandwich on the planet. I'll fight you over that.
Close runner up is in Winimac, IN. I travel to Winimac with my shooting group, and ONE EYED JACKS is a great stop for a good tenderloin.
There is a link in the story so you can vote, but if you vote you got to vote for the SUNOCO gas station in Crawfordsville.
Here is a link to the brackets on Facebook if you enjoy the book of many faces:
Huge upset shakes up Tenderloin Tourney after 26K votes. Vote now in the Meat 16.
The biggest tenderloin in Indiana will not be named the best, but one from a gas station might.
www.indystar.com
Huge upset shakes up Tenderloin Tourney after 26K votes. Vote now in the Meat 16.
Want to jump right into the voting? Click here
One round into IndyStar's vaunted Tenderloin Tournament, a No. 1 seed is toast and a gas station in Crawfordsville looks primed for a deep run. Indeed, it is March Madness in Indiana.
Last week we announced 32 tenderloin vendors across the Hoosier State and seeded them — with well-meaning but perhaps dubious level of scrutiny — in a single-elimination bracket.
IndyStar readers cast nearly 27,000 votes, leading to a slew of narrow victories. As predicted a week ago, the margins are slim. Here are some key takeaways from the first round of the Tenderloin Tourney and a primer for the hallowed Meat 16.
Round one was mostly chalk, with one big upset
Fourteen of the first round's 16 matchups went in favor of the higher seed. But the headline was the No. 16-seed Sunoco Midwest Clean Fuel gas station in Crawfordsville, which stunned the No. 1 Edinburgh Diner, home to the state's largest-known tenderloin at two feet in diameter. Sunoco was the round's highest vote-getter, defeating Edinburgh Diner 2,222 votes to 806. The gas station, located three miles north of Wabash College, has become something of a bucket list item for tenderloin connoisseurs statewide, a reputation that could win it the whole tournament.
Clearly, 16th was far too low a seeding for the veteran-owned business, though I hope most readers can forgive an Indianapolis-based editorial team for underestimating the culinary acclaim of a gas station an hour's drive away. To quote NBA legend and "Inside the NBA" host Shaquille O'Neal's viral 2021 postgame interview with then-Houston Rockets forward Christian Wood: "I owe you an apology — I wasn't really familiar with your game."
On the opposite side of the bracket, tenderloin forefather and No. 1 seed Nick's Kitchen in Huntington stayed alive by beating No. 16 Klooz Brewz in Lebanon 1,227 votes to 837. The round's most decisive victory belonged to No. 9 Miller's Tavern in North Vernon, which received 82% of votes in its defeat of No. 8 Americana the Lebanon Grill. Meanwhile, No. 14 The Mug in Greenfield edged out northside staple and No. 3 seed the Mousetrap by just 14 votes, 503-489.
Carmel starts undefeated, half of Marion County eateries advance
While last year's burger and fries bracket kept the field to the Indianapolis area, the Tenderloin Tourney spans much of the Hoosier State, with first-round competitors hailing from Cloverdale up to Winamac.
Nevertheless, Indy-area eateries held a clear edge: Carmel's three contenders (No. 2 Dooley O'Toole's, No. 3 Muldoon's and No. 4 Swayzee Loins) all won their matchups. Five of the tournament's 10 Marion County participants notched victories as well.
An IndyStar bracket naturally lends an edge to Indy restaurants, but history may be on the side of the small towns. Historians largely credit Nick Freienstein, a Huntington native and first owner of Nick's Kitchen, with the invention of the iconic sandwich. The son of German immigrants, Freienstein in the early 1900s adapted a recipe for schnitzel to sell out of his hamburger stand on North Jefferson Street. He swapped out veal for pork and slapped the sprawling mass of breaded pork on a bun, casually creating the most enduring staple of Hoosier cuisine.
Will this untouchable pedigree vault Nick's to the tenderloin title? Or will another far-flung purveyor like the Crawfordsville Sunoco or No. 6 One Eyed Jack's in Winamac steal the crown? The outcome is, in part, up to you, so get voting.
Results from round one of IndyStar's Tenderloin Tournament
You can view the final voting tallies from every first-round matchup here. Be sure to place your votes for round two, located below.
*Denotes a matchup in which the lower seed won
- No. 1 Nick's Kitchen (Huntington) beat No. 16 Klooz Brewz (Lebanon), 1,222 to 837
- No. 2 Dooley O'Toole's (Carmel) beat No. 15 Lou's Diner (Cloverdale), 648 to 458
- *No. 14 The Mug (Greenfield) beat No. 3 Mousetrap, 503 to 489
- No. 4 Swayzee Loinz (Carmel) beat No. 13 Plump's Last Shot, 729 to 610
- No. 5 Pawn Shop Pub beat No. 12 Oasis Diner (Plainfield), 985 to 539
- No. 6 The Legendary Kitchen food truck (Franklin) beat No. 11 Mecca Tavern(Mecca), 1,119 to 883
- No. 7 Steer-In beat No. 10 Grindstone Charley's (Kokomo), 713 to 367
- No. 8 Dawson's on Main (Speedway) beat No. 9 Sahm's Place, 745 to 674
- *No. 16 Sunoco Midwest Clean Fuel (Crawfordsville) beat No. 1 Edinburgh Diner(Edinburgh), 2,222 to 806
- No. 2 Clubhouse Grill at Southern Dunes beat No. 15 Barringer' Tavern, 1,490 to 459
- No. 3 Muldoon's (Carmel) beat No. 14 Tin Plate (Elwood), 692 to 443
- No. 4 5th Ave. Grill and Bar (Beech Grove) beat No. 13 Aristocrat Pub, 900-649
- No. 5 Fire by the Monon beat No. 12 Oaken Barrel Brewing Company (Greenwood), 1,451 to 419
- No. 6 One Eyed Jack's (Winamac) beat No. 11 Ale Emporium (Fishers, Greenwood, Indy), 1,639 to 654
- *No. 10 Jonesy's Junction (Akron) beat No. 7 The Friendly Tavern (Zionsville), 1,076 to 806
- *No. 9 Miller's Tavern (North Vernon) beat No. 8 Americana the Lebanon Grill (Lebanon), 1,438 to 312
Vote now in the Meat 16
Below are the matchups for the second round, the Meat 16. You can vote in each poll as many times as you like, so vote early and often. Of course, this means name recognition goes a long way. But clearly, so does spreading the word, whether you're a restaurant owner or simply a fan, so be sure to share this contest with the fellow tenderloin aficionados in your life.
Indiana’s finest pork tenderloin will be crowned April 9th, and I'll be stopping by some of the contenders on the bracket as a somewhat self-indulgent means of verifying the results. I look forward to reporting my findings.