Not 30 years in, but I put some butcher time in at one of the restaurants I cooked in while doing Fine Dining in SF.
Mostly breaking poultry (duck, guinea hen, squab, quail),salmon and something like branzini or stripe bass, psmos, dry aged lamb saddles, cervena venison saddles... good times!
I’m a pretty simple guy when it comes to meat: when I’m at my most carniverous, ribeye with a good cap muscle! Otherwise, hanger. I used to grind my own meat at one kitchen I was chef at, mixture of chuck and sirloin mostly with brisket fat added in to get me to about 35% fat (pre-seasoned and cured overnight in the walk-in before grinding). A lot of work but a seriously delicious patty!
Whenever I do a stew, I prefer getting shanks lamb or beef. When cooked properly, the meat there is just special... especially considering all the extra collagen/gelatin.
(Try chili con carne with beef shank and veal stock with some demi. Make your own spice blend, too. I would serve that with a masa griddlecake I would make from a Gordita recipe.)