The food locations list on the official Man v. Food page has been updated with restaurant information and broadcast dates for the episodes which will air through March 18 (See the list on the Travel Channel’s website for the non-challenge restaurants) :

• New Orleans, NO Jan. 28
  Challenge: 15 Dozen Club at the Acme Oyster House
• Portland, OR Feb. 4
  Challenge: Great Balls of Fire (habanero chili cheese fritters) Challenge at Salvador Molly’s
• Seattle, WA Feb. 11
  Challenge: The Southwestern Exposure 12 egg omelet at Beth’s Cafe
• Los Angeles, CA Feb. 18
  Challenge: The Special Number 2 at Orochon Ramen
• San Jose, CA Feb. 25
  Challenge: The 911 (Hot Wing) Challenge at Smoke Eaters
• St. Louis, MO March 4
  Challenge: The Malt Milkshake at Crown Candy Kitchen
• Denver, CO March 11
  Challenge: The 7 pound Breakfast Burrito at Jack-N-Grill
• Raleigh-Durham, NC March 18
  Challenge: Hot Dogger (15 hot dogs) Eating Challenge at The Roast Grill.

All of the above episodes have been filmed, except for the North Carolina episode The Minnesota episode, which is expected to be filmed in early February, was not listed.

RockyMountainNews has a report (contains spoilers) on Adam Richman’s attempt at the 7 pound burrito. 9 News has a preview of the filming with a lot of comments.

BlogCritics.org calls Man v. Food “the best thing on television”

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The San Jose Mercury reports that Bear Silber purchased Pizza Party (formerly Pizza and Pipes) restaurant. Silber finished the restaurant’s Belly Buster Pizza challenge in December 2006 with a time of 38 minutes. (Joey Chestnut completed the pizza four days later with a time of 15 minutes.

In other San Jose news, one of the Man vs. Food sites was SmokeEaters (former University Chicken) and Adam Richman tried the Hellfire Challenge there.

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• This week’s Philly.com Wing Bowl column profiles John “Stormin Norman” Tiska and Rick “The Manager” Russo
• Delco Times wants to hear from Wing Bowl fans & contestants
• Video of Joey Chestnut vs. Pack 340 leader
• Video of Boston crepe eating contest
• Billy the Fridge to have a donut eating contest at his Fantasy Freak Show CD release party February 26
• Buffet ejection contest in Louisana (make sure to read the last line)

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A livejournal blog entry reports that a woman (not named) currently holds the top mark of 17 hot dogs in 90 minutes on the Wall of Fame at Spike’s Junkyard Dogs in Somerville (Boston). A eyewitness to the record attempt comments the new record holder was the previous record holder whose mark of 14 was broken when her husband ate 16. If that is the case, the LeFevres might have company in the ranks of competitive eating couples.

Another commenter says he encountered the record holder at Spike’s while another diner was attempting to exceed her total and she said “I hope you know that if you break the record I’ll just come in and rebreak it tomorrow.”

It is possible that the record reclamation was a response to the recent record attempt video posted on igreggor.com, but 15 hot dogs were consumed in that attempt and the previous record was 16 (each Spike’s location maintains its own record.)

An eatfeats post from November 2007 has a picture of a previous female record holder at Spike’s (who might be the current “top dog” as well)

update A 2+2 forum thread documents a 2007 trip to Spike’s. While the diners attempted to eat 6 or more hot dogs to get on the “Kennel Club”, the holder of the record (which was then 13 hot dogs) entered the restaurant and was photographed (picture on right).

Someone who has met the record holder describes her as “pretty cool, but amazingly tiny, like a white female version of Kobayashi.”

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• Asparagus contest at the Stockton, CA Asparagus festival returns April 25
• Video of Pat Bertoletti completing a 29 inch pizza in 34 minutes without assistance. The pizza is probably from Barlo’s Pizza in Indianapolis
• Man vs. Food Merchandise page with 3 t-shirts and a food journal (The graphic on the right is one of the t-shirt designs)
• The LA Times reports that the Los Angeles challenge on Man vs. Food will be the spicy ramen called Special #2 at Orochon Ramen and the other foods will be the French Dip sandwich at Phillipe the Original and the Manuel Special burrito at El Tepeyac
• The Cherry Cricket will be another Denver Man vs. Food location
• ESPN.com clip of Kobayashi’s fruitcake record clip
• Chicago chili contest January 31
• Pie eating contest on UK Big Brother in honor of Obama’s inauguration

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• Beautiful Brian wants to know who will stop the Shea Stadium rain
• Rice and Bean Pot burrito eating contest at Boston area colleges starts January 27
• Nacho eating contest in Paul Blart: Mall Cop
• Questions about performance enhancing substances in competitive eating
• Picture of 29 inch pizza at American Pie Pizza in Florida
• Oyster Bowl X to award 4 Night All Inclusive Trip to Cancun or Punta Cana for two Adults
• Hot dog eating contest in Hong Kong
• A youtube page by “Kobayashi”
• Don Lerman has resumed competitive eating posts on mosesnews.com
• Olivia Wilde of House MD once ate 33 pancakes in 20 minutes to win an eating contest – interview video (from Sebastian Walters)

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Pat Bertoletti commented that he ate the 5 pound Burritozilla at Iguana’s Taqueria in San Jose in 1 minute and 41 seconds, breaking Joey Chestnut’s record. (Joey Chestnut may have since regained the record). Pat’s Burritozilla mark is included on the list of eating challenge results on deepdisheats.com which includes feats such as the 40 inch pizza (with a partner) at the Pizza Machine and the Tex-ass doughnut from Voodoo doughnuts in Portland, OR in 23 seconds which have not received much media attention.

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Cities for the next eight episodes of Man vs. Food after the initial batch of ten have been listed on the program’s slideshow page:

Portland, OR
Seattle, WA
Los Angeles, CA
San Jose, CA
St. Louis, MO
Denver, CO
North Carolina
Minneapolis, MN

The Travel Channel’s schedule page says that the Portland episode will be televised on February 4 and the challenge will be Salvador Molly’s Great Balls of Fire habanero chile cheese fritters. The episode was recorded on December 9.

Information about restaurants in other cities is available on the internet. The Seattle challenge will be the 12 egg omelet at Beth’s Cafe. Red Mill Burgers was another site for that episode. The Saint Louis challenge restaurant was Pappy’s Smokehouse and the meal was the Big Ben (full slab of ribs, 2 sandwiches, a quarter-chicken, and 4 side dishes)

The Denver episode has yet to be filmed and the challenge will be the 7 pound breakfast burrito at Jack n Grill

The commercial for next week’s New York episode, which co-stars Adam Richman’s mother, is available.

update El Tepeyac, which is famous for giant burritos, and Daichan Kaiten-Sushi were sites for the Los Angeles episode

Iguana’s Taqueria is a San Jose location and the challenge meal there will be the Burritozilla. Joey Chestnut started his competitive eating career in a Burritozilla eating contest and still holds the record of 4 minutes and 26 seconds.

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• Kevin Carr says that he turned down an opportunity to appear on Wife Swap, which went to Badlands Booker and he hopes to become a competitor on Dancing with the Stars
• Red Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis appears on last night’s episode of Man vs. Food
• Pictures from 2006 and 2007 have been added to Major League Eating’s flickr gallery
• Skinnyboy’s second Denver Wing Bowl qualifier report
• Denver Wing Bowl spectator information
• 21 ounce burger with “bailout” in honor of Obama’s inauguration
• Video of “El Gigante” burrito challenge attempt in Carrboro, NC
• Video of “Big Ass Burger” attempt in Houston, TX

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(From Sadie Carpenter & Carlos) The Hungry Sisters blog has an article about Rick “The Manager” Russo’s qualification for Wing Bowl 17. Russo served as Dave “The Dumpster” Moyer’s manager in previous Wing Bowls.

Badlands Booker wrote the theme song for Rick the Manager, which can be listened to on RickTheManager.com A myspace page is also available.

A video of Rick’s qualification stunt of eating 4 feet of sushi served on the bodies of two lingerie wearing females can be viewed on youtube. (This is not the first time sushi consumption off of a female body has been recorded; in The Surreal Life, MC Hammer, Emmanuel Lewis and Corey Feldman refuse to eat sushi served on a naked woman.)

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RockyMountainNews reports that Man vs. Food will be recording at Jack n Grill in Denver on January 22. The restaurant will also host a film crew from the Travel Channel’s new Extreme Places to Pig-Out show on January 19.

The challenge food will be the 7 pound Grande Breakfast Burrito. Andrew “Skinnyboy” Lane has a blog entry about his attempt. The restaurant offers free food for life to women who complete the challenge without assistance. Metromix has a gallery of three attempts to claim that prize.

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videos from the episode: commercial, 2 minute youtube segment

• Challenge Restaurant Eagle’s Deli
  • Home Page
  • #2 Listing on the Travel Channel’s 10 best places to pig out
  • Reviews: yelp, citysearch, review expressing disapproval for removing Wall of Fame pictures
  • Videos: Phantom Gourment, attempt by Greg Maloomian, rising star of New England eating challenges
• The East Coast Grill
  • Home Page
  • Reviews: yelp, citysearch
  • Hell night fiery food challenge which Adam Richman participated in – phantom gourmet video
• The Barking Crab
  • Home Page
  • Reviews: citysearch, yelp

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• Review of Quest for the Golden Hot Dog
• 4 person USA vs. Canada team slider eating contest in Toronto on February 8, 2009. “Furious” Pete Czerwinski will captain the Canadian team
• List of all Wing Bowl 17 finalists on 610WIP.com. “Obi Wing” and “Damaging” Doug are the only repeat competitors at this moment I am aware of
• Wrestler “The Executioner” sets restaurant record by eating 10 pattie burger
• Picture of menu at Wintzell’s Oyster House which lists the current oyster eating records (Men – Joe Evans: 403, Women – Julia Ward: 280)
• Picture of Sonya Thomas and Rickey Henderson (on right) from the 2005 San Diego Golden Palace qualifier. Rickey Henderson is expected to be announced as one of the new baseball Hall of Fame members today

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The website for the Big Texan Steak Ranch has been updated. A page about Joey Chestnut breaking the 72 ounce steak record has been added. The foreword of the Story of the Free 72 oz. steak, which is now available at Barnes & Noble, can be read online. The webcam for 72 ounce steak attempts remains, but the finishers database, which was removed in 2005, has not been restored.

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• (from Pierre Abry) Food Network page about tonight’s episode (at 6:30 pm) of My Life in Food starring “Crazy Legs Conti , a dreadlocked veteran, Lovely Juliette [sic] Lee, a petite 100lb female rookie, and Patrick Deep Dish Bertoletti, a talented up-and-comer”. The episode will not be rerun in the near future and the series is not available online, so watch it when it is televised if you want to see it.
• Segments from the new tracks on the Best of Hungry & Focused are available on Badlands Booker’s myspace page
• Wing eating contest at the Den Again in Racine, Wisconsin January 25 $500 first prize
• Facebook page about the Seaside, Oregon mayoral campaign of “Consumption”
• Blog entry about Frank Pastore, former Big Texan record holder, from a resident of Pastore’s hometown
• Video of Joel Podelsky’s cheeseburger eating contest at a Newark Beaks game
• Wing eating contest in Beijing
• Don Lerman’s baked bean record (but not Lerman by name) was mentioned on Who Wants to be a Millionaire recently according to a Ray Meduna email

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OCMexFood has a review of Green Burrito in La Habra, California which includes a picture of the restaurant’s burrito champion. The picture has the following caption:

This is a winner, who came to the GREEN BURRITO one lucky Saturday in November. Our winner ate three (3) Big Ed Burritos and claimed $300.00. The owner of the GREEN BURRITO could not believe that this little 130lb, 5’9″ girl really ate all three Big Ed Burritos. He challenged her. “Come back next Saturday, eat three Big Ed Burritos and I’ll give you $1000.00. If you cannot do it, you must return the first $300.00

SHE DID IT

Again – three Big Ed Burritos weighing over 7 lbs. [presumably total – not 7 lb. each] in less than 35 minutes and won $1,300.00. BELIEVE IT OR NOT!!

Reports about the burrito champion have been floating around the internet have been floating about the internet since at least 2001. No information is provided in the blog entry about the champion’s name or date of her challenges (it was probably in the 1980s based on the jacket style). The $300 award for finishing three Big Ed burritos has apparently not been available since Carl’s Jr. acquired the Green Burrito chain.

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A press release announces that the International House of Pancakes will offer all you can eat pancakes starting at $4.99. The offer is billed as the 2009 Hungry Consumer Relief Plan and will run until February 22.

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Commercial

Challenge restaurant – Big Pie in the Sky web page and page about Carnivore Challenge

Atlanta Cuisine forum thread about Carnivore Challenge

update 2 minute clip – slideshow – location list

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• Consumption has a rap video directed to Badlands Booker
• Wikipedia page about Man v. Food, has a short Adam Richman biography and episode details
• The Princeton Oyster Bowl has a new website at http://oysterbowlnj.com/
• Mike Fitzgerald attempts the 12 pound pizza challenge at Polito’s
• IFOCE review of Santa’s Slay by Tim “Gravy” Brown
• Georgia Tech beats LSU in a beef eating contest held at a Brazilian steakhouse before the Chick Fil A Bowl.
• Dale Boone is in India according to his myspace status

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• Joey Chestnut wants to drop below 200 lbs. before resuming eating contests
• Hungry Sisters look back on their 2008 competitive eating goals
• Music City Bowl rib eating contest between members of the Vanderbilt and Boston College football teams
• Denny’s Beer Barrel Pub’s 6 pound burger serves 17
• Videos from the Minnesota Chicagoland Nathan’s qualifier
• IGreggor attempts the Muddy River Smokehouse Challenge and dedicates it to Furious Pete’s charity challenge
• Hot dog eating challenge at Philadelphia Eagles game
• Furious Pete wants a big facebook group to promote his charity stunt
• Cartoon about eating as a sport from Will Millender

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The website for the Heart Attack Grill has a page announcing that customers weighing 350 pounds or more will receive free food (drinks are not included). Sharing and taking out food are not allowed and diners will have to be weighed by the restaurant’s staff to be eligible for the offer.

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Jon Basso of the Heart Attack Grill has emailed the following information

I’d like to let you know that the Travel Channel has a new series called “Extreme”. This SATURDAY THE 27th they are shooting there only restaurant segment called Extreme Restaurants. They’ve chosen just three restaurant in the world and we’re lucky enough to be one of them. They’d asked me if any competitive eaters will be present and I’ve told them that I’ll try to put the word out to get some folks to come in on Saturday.

I wonder if this is the same program that recorded at Denny’s Beer Barrel earlier this month.

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“Furious” Pete Czerwinski has announced that he will attempt to eat all 12 McDonald’s Value Meals in 30 minutes in early February to raise money for the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada and the Toronto Sick Kids Hospital.

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• Video of Furious Pete’s ice cream challenge
• Ian Hickman & friend complete the 28 inch pizza challenge at the Family Pizzeria in Stafford, VA
• Another NoVA challenge – the Texas Roadhouse in Chantilly, VA offers a 64 ounce steak that is free if eaten in under one hour (requires one week notice)
• 28 inch pizza contest for charity at Polito’s pizza in Wisconsin for teams of three from the Army, Navy and Marines
• 8 lb. + pound pizza challenge for two person teams in Las Vegas
• One pound burger at new Chattanooga restaurant to be named for Obama
• Steakbellie is no longer unemployed
• http://missgluttonsbliss.blogspot.com/ appears to have been pulled down

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• Beautiful Brian’s Christmas CD is ready and a copy will be mailed to any IFOCE member who requests it
• Another article about Chip Simpson’s win in the Bonita Springs, FL wing eating contest which continues to include the claim that he defeated Kobayashi in a wing eating contest
• “Furious” Pete Czerwinksi halves the 15 scoop challenge record at Ricky’s Candy, Cones & Chaos
• Christmas Day latke eating contest in Red Bank, NJ
• Cameron McKirdy challenges Badlands Booker to a rap battle on July 4, 2009 (from email)
• Toby Keith’s 100 ounce challenge reportedly finishes with 2 burgers, making it a 132 ounce challenge (from email)

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