Travel Channel’s Man vs Food

Do you really want your last words to be I’ll have another pork chop please?
-Coach to Luther

The Travel Channel has a number of food related travel shows-mostly of the I’m-not-sure-I’d-eat-that type. Andrew Zimmern and Anthony Bourdain go to exotic places and eat odd foods, which they seem to truly enjoy. These are fun shows to watch for the most part, but the odds of my finding my way to some remote part of the world to try some bizarre food is pretty slim. Not that I would really want to eat most of the stuff they eat.

Man vs Food is closer to home. Adam Richman, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Fred Savage from The Wonder Years, goes to places that have food challenges. Such as giant pizzas, steaks, and sandwiches. There are also spicy foods like killer hot wings. These are foods that a bit more familiar than eels and bugs, but usually in extremes that make you do a double take.

Adam Richman is not a huge guy, but he isn’t as skinny as that Korean fellow that wins hot dog eating contests all the time. The challenges are often timed, such as eating a two and half pound Dagwood Sandwich in thirty minutes-that’s one of the challenges he won. A lot of these challenges are simply impossible looking, and at least one of them has not been won. Man vs Food has several big meals in each episode, with a really tough challenge left for the end.

Now I like to eat, and I even like all you can eat buffets, but I have never had the urge to die by overeating. I am also a chili head, and that is where I think I could win a t-shirt or two. I could eat six Atomic Wings. Well, maybe. I think I’d have a better shot at eating super hot wings than say-an 11 pound pizza.

The Travel Channel’s Man vs Food is fun to watch. I think it might even be fun to try one or two of the challenges. But then, Adam Richman doesn’t look like he’s having fun at the end of each show. So I think I’ll just stick to watching the challenges.

 

---