Wasted Grain in Carroll serves Iowa’s best breaded pork tenderloin this year, according to the Iowa Pork Producers Association (IPPA). The restaurant rose to the top of 464 restaurants nominated by Iowans this spring, then beat four other finalists to win IPPA’s 2026 Best Breaded Pork Tenderloin contest, announced during National Pork Month, better known as Porktober.
· 2026 Winner: Wasted Grain, Carroll — receives $500, a plaque, and an outdoor banner
· Runner-up: Friends Hide-A-Way, Underwood — receives $250, a plaque, and an outdoor banner
IPPA will present the award to Wasted Grain today at noon at the restaurant,1235 Plaza Drive in Carroll.
A hometown favorite, recreated
This year’s winning sandwich started as a memory. Co-owner Cory Handlos remembers eating tenderloins at Darrell’s Place in Hamlin, a famous diner that won IPPA’s inaugural tenderloin contest in 2003. For Handlos, it set the standard. Now, more than two decades later, the tenderloin it inspired has earned the same title.
When Handlos and his wife, Missy, opened Wasted Grain on Mother’s Day 2023, he knew the tenderloin had to be on the menu, and he knew how he wanted it to taste.
“I’ve traveled around the country all my life, harvesting and farming, and I know what good food is,” said Handlos, whose family raises pigs near Audubon. “I wanted that here at Wasted Grain. The pork tenderloin definitely had to be on the menu.”
The Wasted Grain team worked with him to recreate the tenderloin he remembered. Within the restaurant’s first year, the recipe was set.
Tasting the pork, not just the breading
The key to the recipe was simple: tenderize the pork once instead of twice and add a couple of extra ounces of meat. Tenderizing twice made the cutlet wide and thin, so a bite was mostly bun and breading. Wasted Grain’s version is still big enough to hang off the bun, but each bite balances bun, breading, and pork.
“Otherwise, you’re tasting breading, you’re not tasting the pork,” Handlos said. “Appearance matters too, so it still sits out past the bun. But the main thing is tenderizing it once to get the meat in the bun.”
That balance is exactly what the judges look for, and it stood out to them.
“A lightly golden-brown breading with a moist and very tasty pork flavor, this breaded pork tenderloin hits the spot,” said Phil Carey, a finalist judge and retired chef and culinary instructor. “A very enjoyable sandwich to eat.”
Each tenderloin is hand-breaded in the restaurant’s small kitchen using a recipe the team keeps under wraps. For the Wasted Grain team, getting it right comes down to care and consistency, whether it’s the tenderloin or anything else they serve.
“We’d rather put out a good product and cook it the right way,” said Jordan Hunter, general manager. “If we hear something isn’t right on any item on our menu, we keep working on it until it is. That’s what we did with the tenderloin, and we had no idea it would lead to this.”
How the contest works
The contest begins each spring when Iowans nominate restaurants that serve a hand-breaded or hand-battered pork tenderloin on their regular menu. Eligible restaurants must keep regular, year-round hours. Food trucks, concession stands, seasonal businesses, and caterers can’t compete. This year, Iowans submitted nearly 6,000 nominations for 464 restaurants across the state.
After nominations closed June 1, IPPA’s tenderloin committee selected the top 40 restaurants, including the top five from each of IPPA’s eight districts. Pork producers then visited each one undercover, scoring pork quality, flavor, appearance, and overall experience. The five highest-scoring restaurants became finalists, and a final panel of judges, including a pork producer, a chef, an industry representative, and a food influencer, visited each one to choose the winner and runner-up.
Wasted Grain’s owners didn’t campaign for the title. They shared the nomination link once on Facebook and say they had no idea they’d made the top five until the phone started ringing.
One fan is celebrating, too. Sienna Becker of Carroll nominated Wasted Grain last spring and was randomly selected from those who nominated the winning restaurant. She won IPPA’s $100 nomination prize.
Customers have already driven up to three hours to try the sandwich. If last year is any guide, the attention will keep growing: 2025 winner Hometown Heroes in Grinnell saw its tenderloin sales increase 20 times after winning.
This year’s other restaurant finalists were:
· Landmark Grill & Grind — Williamsburg
· Sasquatch Jacks Hideaway Barroom & Grill — Waverly
· Tin Roost — North Liberty
Wasted Grain joins recent winners:
· Hometown Heroes — Grinnell (2025)
· Dairy Sweet — Dunlap (2024)
· Cliff’s Place — Manning (2023)
· Lid’s Bar & Grill — Waukon (2022)
· Complete list of winners and finalists since 2003
Celebrate at Pork Fest
Wasted Grain is turning its annual fall festival into Pork Fest on Saturday, Oct. 17, at the restaurant. The celebration includes a mechanical pig ride, inflatables, pig-themed games, and live music.
Starting at 4 p.m., the kitchen will serve only breaded pork tenderloins with a topping bar and sides. Diners can build their tenderloin however they like.
With Iowa leading the nation in pork production, there’s no better place to celebrate this hometown favorite.
“We’re proud to keep Iowa’s breaded pork tenderloin tradition going strong,” said Kelsey Sutter, director of marketing programs at IPPA. “But it doesn’t stop there. From restaurant favorites to quick weeknight dinners to slow-cooked classics, pork is an easy, flavorful and affordable protein for families any time of day, all year long.”
IPPA encourages Iowans to visit Wasted Grain and try the state’s best breaded pork tenderloin for themselves. Home cooks can also make their own with IPPA’s breaded pork tenderloin recipe and how-to video.
The post Wasted Grain named Iowa’s best breaded pork tenderloin appeared first on Iowa Agribusiness Radio Network.
