Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Eat This Book!
By
Martha Burzynski
Published May 5, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Martha Burzynski
Published May 5, 2006
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Wednesday night we celebrated the release of Eat This Book! by Ryan Nerz on the (still enclosed) rooftop of The Delancey, savored cupcakes from Sugar Sweet Sunshine and watched our first professional eating contest. From left, we saw "Crazy Legs" Conti, Eric "Badlands" Booker and Tim "Eater X" Janus eat as many mini cupcakes as possible (without water!) in 2 minutes. At 29 tiny frosted cakes, New York's own (and a crowd favorite) Badlands won, but all watching the competition were amazed as the author, a part-time announcer for the International Foundation Of Competitive Eating (IFOCE) told us about the different techniques.
Stemming from a short piece in the Voice journalist Nerz writes about the history of competitive eating, tracks day to day training of the superstars and his own adventures in hope of gastrointestinal glory.
Eat This Book! (St. Martins, $15) is available now
Event photo by Brian Van
Tagged
books
Brian Van
Competitive Eating
contest
Crazy Legs
Eater X
event
food
food events
history
international
new york
Sugar Sweet Sunshine
the delancey
Wednesday
Martha Burzynski
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
Inside a photographer's journey to visit every neighborhood in New York City
What do you see when you record the whole of the boroughs?
By
Sonia Rao
Published Oct 5, 2026
Banned books and Winnie the Pooh: October in NYC libraries
It's a busy month at the branches.
By
Alec Hamilton
Arts & Entertainment
Banned books and Winnie the Pooh: October in NYC libraries
It's a busy month at the branches.
By
Alec Hamilton
NYC music in October: The Strokes, a Blink-182 cover band, and Polish experimentalism
By
Hank Shteamer
Are you a New Yorker? The Department of New Yorker Verification will now decide.
By
Hannah Frishberg
In the mood for a pastoral autumn experience? Try Queens.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
and
James Ramsay
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .