First Oregon Trail: Day 3

The third day of Oregon Mania (a play on the annual WWE wrestling event) saw us take the pace down just a bit. We returned to Salem for a stop at Odd Moe's Pizza. This is the location off Lancaster. Owner Michael Sublett knew Aaron Wakamatsu well, heard of my eating antics, and wanted to design a challenge that I would inaugurate.

I remember it was a cool, overcast day. We arrived at the pizza place early, but there was confusion over meeting times. Michael greeted us in the kitchen, talked to us about his restaurant and cooking experiences, and generally seemed very enthusiastic about competitive eating and eating challenges. He was familiar with many of my YouTube videos too.

Odd Moe's Pizza already offered the Suicide Squeeze Wing Challenge, which was your standard hot wing challenge. Eat some chicken wings doused in Trinidad Moruga and Ghost chili sauces without water to get your name on the wall of fame.

Well, I wouldn't be getting away so easily. My challenge would include the 12 Trinidad Scorpion wings, but alongside it I'd also have a medium pizza loaded with toppings and a pint of ice cream. My task was to eat it as quickly as possible and set a house record for future champions to beat.

Michael called it the Triple Play Challenge, in keeping with the baseball theme present with the "Squeeze" wing challenge.

I needed 11 minutes, which became the standing record. For a new challenger to claim victory, they'll need to eat the whole challenge faster than 11 minutes. It's probably around 4 lbs of food total. The pizza was well-cooked, saucy, and the toppings were interesting. The wings were incredibly hot but the burn didn't sink in for several minutes. The ice cream at the end was very enjoyable.

I earned a spot on the wall of fame for my new record. It wasn't a very large meal, but we wanted to include Odd Moe's on our Oregon Mania journey and things worked out well. Owner Michael Sublett was thrilled we stopped by. So much so, that he gave me two bottles of hot sauce and some Mountain Dew as a parting gift.

First Oregon Trail: Day Two

The morning after eating 7 lbs of chicken was difficult. Thankfully Salem, OR has a 24 Hour Fitness location and I was able to energize my body with a strong cardiovascular workout.

An energy drink helped jolt my body as well. The original plans for Day Two included tackling the 11 lb Greek Deli Challenge at the Mad Greek Deli in Portland, but those plans had to be scrapped. Turns out the challenge needs at least 3 days' notice and the presence of the owner. That wouldn't be possible on this journey. I negotiated with both locations to no avail.

So, it was time to find some replacement challenges. The first stop on the dock was Voodoo Doughtnut Two, in Portland. I went with Aaron Wakamatsu and I ate their 1 lb Texass Dougnut. Though there is an 80 second challenge attached to it, I opted to simply eat it for fun and without liquid. Aaron decided to eat a very spicy Voodoo doll.



It was a little harder than I might have believed, but delicious. Aaron entertained many of the customers there with his spicy antics.

After that, we decided to sample the 5 lb Poutine Challenge at the Original Dinerant in Portland. I'd never eaten poutine before, but as I described it later - it was like chili cheese fries but with gravy instead of chili. They served it on a butcher's block for presentation purposes. I wasn't sure how to approach it, but decided to be neat and use a fork.

The staff told me that there were 2 or 3 previous victors. You get 30 minutes to devour the entire dish, but I needed fewer than nine. By all measures that was a new record. My method was simple, taking manageable bites and using warm water to chase them down. Probably the most comical moment came when the server realized that I hadn't signed a waiver, and stopped me mid-challenge to put my signature to it. That was about 7 minutes in, and though it messed with my rhythm did not ruin the spirit of the endeavor. What a tasty meal, by the way.



Aaron didn't opt for poutine, but instead sampled their spicy peanut butter ice cream (they have over a dozen flavors on the menu at any time). Of course, "The Spicochist" didn't find it hot enough so he embellished it with his own sauces.

Most people might be satisfied with a huge doughnut and a crazy poutine record. We decided that day two of "Oregon Mania" needed something a bit different to cap it off. Aaron, master of spice and interesting restaurants, led me to a place we discussed many times... Salt N Straw Ice Cream, also in downtown Portland.

My captivation with the place stemmed from one of the seasonal flavors: Sweet Heat Apricot Ice Cream, featuring candied scotch bonnet peppers. Wow! How often do you find ice cream with peppers in it? I'd only ever heard of such a thing. Never saw it up close, so I chose to buy a whole pint and make my own challenge out of it.



Aaron went for a normal serving and spiced it up to hell, as you can observe in the video. My portion - though mildly insane - allowed me to enjoy the magic of candied peppers. The sugar completely neutralized the heat and all I felt was a mild spark here and there. On the other hand, the apricot flavor was sweet and delectable. I almost wish they had a gallon bucket available.

The biggest challenge was using a plastic spoon to eat rock solid ice cream. Well... I struggled mightily but found an alternative plan. It was a great choice overall, and a nice way to end the second day of an epic trip.

Salt N Straw

Salt N Straw is a small ice cream shop located in downtown Portland (Oregon). I know they have another location, and operate a truck, but my experience is localized to this one store.

My visit came over Memorial Day weekend, on the same day that I tackled the huge Texass doughnut and handled a 5 lb poutine challenge in record time. This was a dessert of sorts. They have lots of unique flavors, including temporary and seasonal ones. I went with Aaron "The Spicochist" Wakamatsu, food blogger and lover of all things spicy. 

We were there to sample the hottest flavor on the menu. Even ice cream can get hot. Titled "Sweet Heat," it was an apricot flavor with candied chunks of Scotch Bonnet peppers mixed in. Aaron bought a sensible portion while I opted for a whole quart ($8).

There's no knocking the taste or quality of the ice cream here. It stood up to, and defeated, some of my best previous experiences. The apricot flavor was spot on and strong. The heat of the peppers, however, was entirely muted by the candying process.

Sugar and dairy tend to neutralize the effect of capsaicin, so no surprise. I wanted a kick in the mouth. This turned to be more of a novelty. Still, it was one I enjoyed - though I'd recommend getting a more pedestrian flavor to see what this shop is really capable of.

July is National Ice Cream Month. Why not reflect on this one past experience?

A Necessary Correction

Last Sunday, at the 3rd annual Farrell's Ice Cream Eating Challenge, we witnessed the debut of the Professional Eaters' category.

I misreported the finish of that illustrious 7-man race. Though prizes were only offered to the top 3 finishers (Wells, Reda, Koch), all of the other eaters continued to plow until time was called for Ron Koch.

Shawn Kirby, Matt Cohen, Kevin Ross, and Frank Paulin all ate to the very last moment. Words chosen in the last blog entry incorrectly implied that some of the food warriors gave up early. Competitive eaters have more heart than that. They have more stomach too.

In particular, a couple sentences suggest that Matt Cohen stopped eating early. That wasn't true. Matt finished more ice cream than some of his competitors to boot. Came across a couple high resolution photos (taken by Pablo Martinez) late in the contest showing that the "Sweet Tooth" battled to the end. I'm sorry for my mistake. In the future I will work harder to write more dilligent posts.

Looking forward to the next "sweet, dairy, and cold" contest in Southern California. Will Red Cup bring back a fourth installment of the Gallon Froyo Challenge?

Farrell's 2012 Recap

Farrell's Ice Cream Eating Championship concluded its third annual installment yesterday. The contest was hosted at the Brea location and featured a stage. As an event, it can't yet compete with larger productions but it's certainly getting there.

This was the first year that the contest featured a "Professional Eaters" division. Damon Wells, Kevin Ross, Matt Cohen, Frank Paulin, Ron Koch, Shawn Kirby and I filled the chairs of this brand new division and we represented it well.

Matt "Sweet Tooth" Cohen, last year's Men's Champion

Previous years did not have a "Professional" division. The seperate Men's and Women's championships were decided by whomever could finish a 6-scoop Pig's Trough the fastest. This year, pros qualified for their special section by eating the Pig's Trough. I ate it several times for various promotional events, and my best times were 1:30 and 1:45.

At the championship, each eater would be responsible for tearing through a 5.5+ lb Zoo Sundae. This mammoth dessert comes in a huge bowl and packs in standard scoops of vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry ice cream along with different types of sherbert and whipped cream.

Things change when you go from eating a 6-scoop sundae to a bowl holding 30 scoops. The contest goes from one favoring short-gamers to people who eat for the long haul. Additionally, ice cream is a difficult contest food. Sweet, dairy, and cold isn't for everyone, but it's one of my best. I knew this would be close.

Damon Wells, your champion. He finished in 6 minutes and 2 seconds

The contest was staged under first-to-finish rules. We were provided with warm water and coffee at our discretion. They gave us short introductions, and before long we were off. Chugging away like madmen starving for dairy.

Damon Wells and I stood next to each other at the center of the contest stage. Matt Cohen really deserved center stage because he was last year's champ, but they decided to give us the spots because we had the fastest qualifer times (1:45 and 1:44 respectively - edge to Damon). The newly independent Wells gave me a run for my money, and I did my part to push the hell out of him.

When the smoke cleared, Damon froze his mouth to a jaw dropping win at 6:02. That's nearly 6 lbs of ice cream in six minutes... the rest of us paused a second, but remembering there were prizes for second and third place, plowed on. I finished my bowl at 7:17, marking my first contest finish ahead of Ron Koch. Ron finished maybe 20-30 seconds later.

No one else finished their bowls at that point, and I can't really blame them. There was nothing else up for grabs. Ouch and ouch. My teeth and mouth were stone cold at the end, and I didn't realize it until we stopped eating. Cohen stopped eating minutes before, and Kevin Ross stopped with about a pound to go. This was my first finish ahead of Kevin in a non-hot dog eating contest. Ice cream's definitely not his food of choice, but it was his birthday and a hell of a way to celebrate. I know he'll slaughter me (not literally) the next time we meet.

Shawn Kirby stood at my left. One enthusiastic soul.



Frank Paulin came hungry and left happy

The view from the stage is incredible

Took second place, finishing in 7 minutes and 17 seconds.

Until next year! Yum!

Farrell's 2012 Professional Eater's Contest

On July 15, Farrell's Ice Cream Parlours will bring back its annual Ice Cream Challenge for the third time. The event will be staged in Downtown Brea, along Birch Street. It will last all day and include community events.

For eaters, the actual event should be described as a contest. There will be a stage and several divisions in contention. The winner of each division will win a trophy and a year's supply of ice cream.

However, things are a little bit different when it comes to the brand new professional eaters' division. I discussed different ideas with Farrell's marketing team for months and, along with Matt Cohen, we finally came up with the current format.

Left: I hold all 3 ribbons signifying my prior completion of all 3 "Bellybuster" sundaes, making me a Triple Crown Champion. Right: Matt Cohen hoists the 2011 Men's Trophy

To qualify as a professional eater you'd need to consume a Pig's Trough (6-scoop sundae) in the fastest time possible. The 8 quickest qualifier times would then take on the 6 lb, 30 scoop Zoo Sundae at the final. Whoever finishes their Zoo first will win $500 and a year's worth of free ice cream.

So far, three people have qualified for the professional eater's division: Damon Wells, Kevin Ross, and myself. Matt Cohen (last year's men's champion) will qualify this Thursday night at a special event in the Mission Viejo location. Anyone else who wants to play has until July 5 to qualify for any division. You can stop by any location in Southern California to do so.

A Freak will also be appearing at the special event Thursday night in Mission Viejo. Cohen and I will be participating in a special radio broadcast with Tim Conway. My role is part of a donation fundraiser, in which donors give cash and guess my finish times on all 3 Bellybuster sundaes (basically all 6-scoop sundaes). The donors who most closely guess my times will win prizes.

The final event will benefit Children Hospital of Orange County and the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Hopefully more people come out and eat for a cause. The pro division still has four empty slots!

Candied Peppers

I'm a sucker for novelty food products. Salt & Straw, with two locations in Portland, features special flavors of ice cream every month.

Last month, when I was traversing Oregon, one of those seasonal flavors was "Sweet Heat Apricot." The sweet heat comes from candied scotch bonnet peppers. Scotch bonnets pack a punch, but after being all sugared up you can hardly tell. The apricot was balanced.

I visited the shop with Aaron Wakamatsu and we went to town. He got a sensible portion, and the quart for $8 called my name. Video upcoming.

Farrells Ice Cream Heating Up Summer

The 3rd installment of Farrell's Ice Cream Parlor's annual Ice Cream Eating Challenge returns this July. As usual, it is a charity event benefiting Children's Hospital of Orange County. The contest itself is going to be a little different this year. For one thing, the championship is going to be contested on the street outside the new downtown Brea location. The other exciting element is the development of a "professional eater" category.

Eaters will qualify for the professional category by consuming a "Pig Trough" during the qualifier period (pictured above, basically a large banana split). At the final, contestants will be required to eat a 6 lb Zoo Sundae. The pro division will also offer a cash prize for the first time in the contest's history.

Matt "Sweet Tooth" Cohen won the 2011 Farrell's Ice Cream Eating Challenge last Summer. He's moving into the new professional division as its defending champion. Matt's skill with sweet, dairy, and cold is well-known, but no doubt other contenders will step up to battle him in 2012.



The qualifying period for all categories of the contest begins June 18 and runs through July 8. Finals will be held on July 15, 2012 in Brea.

More details will be released shortly. Do you have what it takes to become the 2012 Farrell's Ice Cream Eating Champion?

Orochan's Bowl of Lava

Ah yes, we continue with a hot story already in progress. The incredibly spicy Special #2 ramen challenge at Orochan Ramen in Los Angeles will net you a pic on the "Wall of Bravery" if you can survive.

So how hot was it? Well, aside from the few noodles, vegetables, and peppers in the bowl, you are dealing  with red chili powder dissolved in water. It's hell in a bowl. It's gonna be hell in your mouth, hell in your esophagus, hell in your stomach, hell in your intestines... you get the picture.

I powered through the bowl in 20 minutes via sheer stubbornness. As my coworker and friend Steve Mucci put it: "There's no pause button with you." And he's right. I drained the bowl mostly with large gulps, but I used a straw at times.

Luckily the friend who accompanied me was not Mucci, but a medical student from back East. What happened next mixes equal parts comedy, insanity, and medical emergency. We left the ramen house in search of some ice cream to celebrate. My stomach started cramping as we walked, and each step became increasingly laborious.

Well, that should teach me not to eat such hot food on any empty stomach (note to self: your strength is capacity challenges. Skip the hot stuff in the future). I stumbled a bit, the pain in my gut enough to make me double over. Within minutes I was laying on the sidewalk in the Little Tokyo shopping district.

A few kids on skateboards came up to me. They could tell I was in mortal pain, but I waved them away. Damn kids, can't you see I'm hurting? Don't even wanna talk. Get on your boards and get the hell away from me.

My friend had already ran to the local drugstore when he saw me doubled over. He nearly called 911 when he saw me sprawled out on the concrete. Well, the future doctor brought me the right prescription: a roll of Tums, two packages of Pepto-Bismol, and a bottle of water. Everything went down the hatch. Then I waited. The rumbling stopped, and I could walk about.

I felt golden again. Couldn't say no to green tea ice cream at that point.

And this is where I should probably forget to report tackling a team pizza challenge with Matt "Sweet Tooth" Cohen that evening, after the ramen. But what the hell. No pause button.

Sugar High

Anyone got a sweet tooth? Jimano's Pizzeria in Bakersfield offers one of the few "sweets" challenges available in Southern California.

People are particular when it comes to the way they test themselves with food. Some eaters prefer challenges that test their capacity. Other love heat. You have the dairy crowd, with their milkshakes and ice cream. A large crowd eats for pure speed.

There are other challenges that seek out the sugar psychos. I must admit that I fall into that group. If it's got a ton of sugar, I'm there.

Meet "The Beauty." This is a 3 lb chocolate brownie topped with 12 scoops of golden vanilla ice cream and whipped cream. What could be better than this?

You get 30 minutes to ingest this sweet mountain to get your picture on the Wall of Fame and win a T-shirt describing how you were "Tempted by the Beauty."

I was tempted all right. The brownie came to the table warm. It was gooey, chocolatey, and delectable. The worst part was figuring how to eat the hardened edges quickly.

My meal started with a fork, but after a bit I started to tear off chunks of the huge brownie with my hands. The ice cream was effective at softening up parts of it, but the ice cream vanished quickly. After a solid 15 minutes, my brain was on a sugar high. The urge to stand up and run a mile was very hard to control. Jittery, I plowed on to the amazement of the folks at the next table.

At 20 minutes, it was all over. Jimano's Pizzeria had their "first official" winner of the Beauty Challenge on June 18, 2011 (they weren't sure). They took my photo, but I was "flying" so high it barely registered with me. Made sure I got my shirt and I was on the road again.

Two hours later, I arrived at the Prickly Pear Cantina in Danville, CA and polished off their 5 lb burrito challenge in 30 minutes... but more on that in the next post.  There's an interesting tale there.

Please forgive the irony of me wearing a "Bodybuilding.com" T-shirt while I eat 9 lbs of food.

Something Sweet

Richie's Diner is a chain with a few locations in Southern California. I know about them because I've frequented the location in Victorville on Palmdale Road.

Their food is similar to what you find at Denny's. The irony is this location of Richie's shares a parking lot with a Denny's. Richie's Diner has specials for various days of the week. One special that is carried all week long is their highly advertised "2 banana splits for $4."

It's a sweet deal for a sweet tooth. And I'll bet you can't eat just one.

Feeling Dirty

Freddy's Frozen Custard and Steakburgers recently opened a new location in Victorville. It's been busy every time I've passed by, which is more than you can say for several eateries in the High Desert.

Their menu is expansive. The offerings remind me of Foster's Freeze or Wienerschnitzel-Tastee Freeze. What stood out for me was their selection of frozen dessert treats.

How can you go wrong with something called "Dirt N' Worms"?

That's frozen custard with gummy worms and Oreo pieces, topped with whipped cream and a cherry. Sweetness. They should have a contest, I say. Who can eat five of these the fastest?

High Desert Home Town

Hometown Buffet in Victorville serves all-you-can-eat weekday lunch for $5.29. That's a steal.

They serve sliders on Tuesdays up here.

And tacos.

Shrimp carbonara. 

 And real ice cream, in addition to the usual soft serve.

A few things I've never seen at Hometown Buffet before... they've still got their charm. It may be an omen of things to come.