<P> Donna Fong, a competition barbecue pitmaster, says that Otto Schaefer, Sr. discovered and marketed tri-tip in Oakland, California in the 1950s . </P> <P> Otto decided to cook that triangular shaped steak which was located next to the ball tip . He cooked it whole and then sliced it thinly; instead of cutting a thick slice and cooking it like a traditional steak . The flavor was marvelous if you sliced it thin against the grain . The discovery got Otto thinking that this cut of meat could be sold as a steak instead of being ground up into the less expensive hamburger . Otto started talking to their retail customers and marketed the steak as "Tri-tip" because of its shape . </P> <P> Larry Viegas, a butcher at a Santa Maria Safeway store in the late 1950s, says that the idea to cook this part as a distinct cut of beef first occurred to his store manager, Bob Schutz, when an excess of hamburger existed in the store (into which meats from this part of the animal were usually ground). Viegas says that that day, Schultz took a piece of the unwanted meat, seasoned it with salt, pepper, and garlic salt, and placed it on a rotisserie for 45 minutes or an hour; the result was well - received, and Schultz began quietly marketing it as "tri-tip". </P> <P> It became a local specialty in Santa Maria in the late 1950s . Today, it is seasoned with salt, pepper, fresh garlic, and other seasonings, grilled directly over red oak wood to medium - rare doneness . Alternative preparations include roasting whole on a rotisserie, smoking in a pit, baking in an oven, grilling, or braising in a Dutch oven after searing on a grill . After cooking, the meat is normally sliced across the grain before serving ." </P>

What is tri tip called on the east coast