Cape Coral grill cook wins national title and $15K. Here's where you can try his steaks

Jacob Montgomery is the comeback kid.

And he earned a national title in the process.

The Cape Coral resident won $15,000 and was crowned champion of LongHorn Steakhouse’s Steak Master Series.

“It means everything to me,” Montgomery said in a news release. “I really just zoned in on my grill and took it by the reins.”

Thousands of grill cooks from LongHorn’s 580-plus locations entered the annual nationwide competition that highlights grill masters’ skills.

Montgomery, who works at the LongHorn Steakhouse on Pine Island Road, reached the finals of the 2022 competition, ultimately finishing fourth.

“I focused, I came back and I killed it,” the eight-year LongHorn employee said in the news release.

Seven finalists participated in a one-day grill-off in Orlando on May 2. Montgomery outgrilled them all to become the event’s seventh winner.

Reigning 2023 champion Kylie Hall from Farragut, Tennessee, was second, while Esterling Rosario from Temple, Texas, took third.

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LongHorn Steakhouse, owned and operated by Darden Restaurants and based in Orlando, serves “steak as it was meant to be,” plus ribs, chops, chicken and more.

Montgomery represented the LongHorn Steakhouse at 1851 NE Pine Island Road in Cape Coral. It's open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday to Thursday and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Call (239) 599-3324 for details.

Other local locations, open at 11 a.m. daily, include Gulf Coast Town Center and Market Square (anchored by Target and Barnes & Noble) in Fort Myers and on Trail Boulevard off Tamiami Trail North in Naples. For more information, go to longhornsteakhouse.com.

Robyn George is a food and dining reporter for The News-Press. Connect at [email protected]

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Grill cook from LongHorn Steakhouse in Cape Coral wins national title