Food eating contests around the world

The Acme Oyster Eating World Championship at Acme Oyster House, May/ June
Record: Sonya Thomas with 46 dozen oysters in ten minutes in 2014.

New Orleans celebrates its oyster pride annually at the New Orleans Oyster Festival. Acme Oyster House and other restaurants from around the city come together to show the country the importance of the Louisiana Gulf Oyster and to fundraise to keep the coast thriving.

Shea Communications for Major League Eating
Minneapolis, MN
The World Brain Eating Competition at Zombie Pub Crawl 
Record: Joey Chestnut (pictured, third from right) with 54 brains in eight minutes

Even the undead need to eat, right? The Zombie Pub Crawl is the largest gathering of "zombies"—who are actually partygoers in costume—in the world and they’re hungry. But don’t worry: The "brains" are actually pork. 

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Shea Communications for Major League Eating
Stockton, CA
Deep-Fried Asparagus Eating Competition at the San Joaquin Asparagus Festival, April
Record: Joey Chestnut with 12 lbs 8.75 oz in 10 minutes

Mom might’ve wanted you to finish your vegetables at dinner, but did she mean for you to eat 13 pounds of it? The San Joaquin Asparagus Festival honors the vegetable with live music, celebrity chefs, and plenty of asparagus. The asparagus surplus comes from the perfect growing conditions of the San Joaquin River Delta wetlands, making the Stockton area one of the country’s biggest producers of the stuff.

 

Shea Communications for Major League Eating
Corinth, MS
The World Slugburger Eating Championship presented by Main Street Corinth, July
Record: Matthew Stonie with 43 Slugburgers in 10 minutes

The race to eat slugburgers is anything but sluggish. Competitors grab burger after burger, each a deep-fried patty made from beef and soy meal, mustard, onions and pickles. The ingredients were tossed together by the slugburger creator John Weeks and were oringinally called "Weeksburgers." Back when Weeks first brought the burgers to Corinth from Chicago in 1917, they sold for just a nickel. In Mississippi at the time, "slug" was slang for nickel and the name "slugburger" stuck. 

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Amarillo, TX
Big Texan Steak Ranch 72-ounce Steak Challenge
Record: Molly Shuyler with three 72-ounce steak meals in 20 minutes

Finally, a challenge any eater can take on—even you. The Big Texan Steak Ranch restaurant charges $72 for each steak, but if you eat every bite, the money is refunded and you get the glory. Molly Shuyler, a mother of four, weighs 120 pounds yet she still managed to consume 13.5 pounds of meat, three baked potatoes, three shrimp cocktails, three salads, and three buttered rolls. And she did it all In 20 minutes. Do you have the courage to road trip to Texas for the challenge?