In the spirit of keeping up with our tradition...well I guess our 'every other year' tradition (2008 Goals) we've compiled a list of our goals for the new year.
10 goals for 2010
This year we hope to...
1: BLOG MORE (yes, we have been slackers lately)
2: Take a sisters trip back to Coney Island for the 4th. After attending last years festivities, we can't imagine spending our Nation's birthday any other way!
3: Attend the Lexington BBQ Festival
4: Be Krystal Bunnettes again
5: Go to Hickory Hops...beerfest!
6: Attempt the Big Cow Pile Ice Cream Challenge. Who knew that LINCOLNTON of all places had an eating challenge!?!?!?!?!?! And an ICE CREAM CHALLENGE?!? We are so there.
7: Celebrate Jamie's 21st Birthday in true HungrySisters style: a day of gamblin' and a night of pubcrawlin'/Go to Vegas for Jamie's second 21st birthday party at some point in the year
8: Eat at the Moose Cafe and indulge in everything southern.
9: Join the Mellow Mushroom Beer Club
10: Go to the gym every day to counter all of this food we are apparently going to eat/beer we are going to drink.
10.5: Be young, be foolish, but be happy.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
Spaghetti Pie--Healthy HungrySisters Style
8 oz cooked whole wheat spaghetti
2 Egg Whites, beaten lightly
2 Egg Whites, beaten lightly
8-10 oz spinach, chopped (frozen or fresh, whatever)
A tablespoon or two of softened low fat cream cheese
1/2 lb browned ground turkey
16 oz spaghetti sauce...your choice!
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
A tablespoon or two of softened low fat cream cheese
1/2 lb browned ground turkey
16 oz spaghetti sauce...your choice!
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
-Preheat Oven to 350
-Mix cooked spaghetti with egg whites
-press into greased pie dish--making sure to go up the side of the dish too to form a 'crust'
-mix spinach and cream cheese (adding a little parm. cheese if you want to) & spoon onto 'crust'
-mix spaghetti sauce and turkey, add garlic to taste if you want to, spread over spinach mixture
-bake 30 minutes or so, top with mozzarella cheese, bake for 5-6 more minutes
-Mix cooked spaghetti with egg whites
-press into greased pie dish--making sure to go up the side of the dish too to form a 'crust'
-mix spinach and cream cheese (adding a little parm. cheese if you want to) & spoon onto 'crust'
-mix spaghetti sauce and turkey, add garlic to taste if you want to, spread over spinach mixture
-bake 30 minutes or so, top with mozzarella cheese, bake for 5-6 more minutes
EAT & ENJOY!
(It is actually even better the second day)
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Salsa-holic
The Hungry Sisters have been known to be able to put down a lot of Mexican food. We are BIG fans of anything spicy, cheesy and drenched in salsa. We have searched high and low for the best mass-produced salsa and have finally found a winner:
On The Border Medium Salsa
Unfortunately, this fabulous find can only be purchased at Sam's Club (and you can't even find it at every location)...so when you do come across it, take our advice and STOCK UP. You will eat this stuff fast. I recently opened a 47 oz jar and within two weeks, I had single-handedly eaten its entire contents by myself. On top of nachos, mixed in tomato soup, or just sitting around eating chips and salsa, I can't get enough of it. The best thing I have made with it is a copy-cat version of the gone but not forgotten Wendy's treat: Chili, Chips, and Cheese (nacho chips topped with chili and lots of cheese; and in this case topped with On The Border Salsa too!)
I would be lying if I said I had never just eaten it by itself with a spoon. It really is that good. It is by far the most fresh, delicious tasting salsa you can buy (outside of going to a Mexican restaurant and buying the stuff they make there).
On The Border Medium Salsa
Unfortunately, this fabulous find can only be purchased at Sam's Club (and you can't even find it at every location)...so when you do come across it, take our advice and STOCK UP. You will eat this stuff fast. I recently opened a 47 oz jar and within two weeks, I had single-handedly eaten its entire contents by myself. On top of nachos, mixed in tomato soup, or just sitting around eating chips and salsa, I can't get enough of it. The best thing I have made with it is a copy-cat version of the gone but not forgotten Wendy's treat: Chili, Chips, and Cheese (nacho chips topped with chili and lots of cheese; and in this case topped with On The Border Salsa too!)
I would be lying if I said I had never just eaten it by itself with a spoon. It really is that good. It is by far the most fresh, delicious tasting salsa you can buy (outside of going to a Mexican restaurant and buying the stuff they make there).
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Pizza.
Yes, we have been busy and school and work has slowly consumed almost every ounce of fun as of late, but rest assured, we are still eating. Lately, it seems I have eaten pizza almost every day and have yet to tire of it. Everywhere I go, friends and coworkers seem to offer me a slice, or two, or five. Now, I am not a girl to turn down food, ever; so I gladly accepted every savory, delicious slice.
I'm pretty sure it is blog-worthy to describe my pizza experiences as of late.
These are the pizza's I have consumed within the past month, or as many as I can remember:
Little Caesars Pepperoni (free)- This past Saturday I spent seven hours folding never ending piles of men's jeans while being reprimanded by a customer who was unsatisfied by t-shirts that cost $1. As we were about to close, my manager told me that Little Caesar's from the K-Mart adjacent to the mall where I work brought them a free Pizza yesterday as an advertisement. My day was better. I actually may go by K-Mart tomorrow before work and buy a pizza for lunch. Seriously, $5 for a large pizza is a perfect treat.
Mellow Mushroom "Funky Q Chicken" (also free)- At my other job, on campus at UNCA at the Student Health Services, I have gotten a lot of free pizza this month. One of my coworkers brought in leftovers on a few occasions, and since I am the only student who works there, they feel sorry for me and give me food and buy me coffee a lot. Bless them. This pizza was particularly delightful. It had bbq chicken, cheddar cheese, carmalized onions and bacon; need I say more?
Pizza Hut (FREE!)- From the same job, a few weeks later, the same coworker brought leftover pizza from pizza hut. I had one slice of cheese with thick crust (pan, if my pizza hut crust knowledge serves me right) and a slice of thin crust that had meat and onions. I don't remember the exact on the meats, but I do remember bacon, and pepperoni. Pizza hut never fails me.
Papa Johns (free, thanks to Lindsey)- Last week, I had gotten the movie Shag in from Netflix. It is about four girls in the 1960s who had just graduated high school in Spartenburg, South Carolina and they go on a trip to Myrtle Beach. This movie is a requirement to watch for anyone who has ever been to Myrtle Beach, so I was shocked when I asked my friend, Lindsey if she had ever seen it. Anyway, she told me that she had ordered a pizza and needed help eating it (and do I ever say no to helping anyone eat anything?) so I brought the movie and we ate a quite peculiar pizza, but tasty nonethelsess. See, she does not eat cheese, so she ordered a thin crust, mushroom pizza sans the cheese from Papa Johns. I must say, Papa Johns has tasty sauce.
Papa Johns (I paid for this one)-So, apparantly with the first order you make online for Papa Johns, you get a free medium cheese pizza! So technically, I still got something for free with this experience too.... free is so fun. Anyway, since I knew I was getting a free cheese pizza, I had to order something that would put my order over ten dollars. I opted for a small, specialty pizza: Spinach Alfredo Deluxe. Not bad at all.
Papa Johns... again (and free, again)- My roommate ordered pizza the other night with his girlfriend. He told me I could have some. I ate a slice of pizza but I don't even remember what kind it was because I was mainly focused on the breadsticks. They were DELICIOUS and garlicky and buttery. He left the next morning to go to Maryland, and the pizza stayed out on the kitchen counter all day. I knew the pizza and breadsticks would just have to be thrown away if I didn't act fast; hello breakfast AND lunch!
I plan on reporting back about other places in Asheville that have pizza that is way better than these fast chains. There are a lot. I have eaten at most of them, and will eat at these places very soon, I'm sure. Stay tuned, Stay Hungry!
Jamie
I'm pretty sure it is blog-worthy to describe my pizza experiences as of late.
These are the pizza's I have consumed within the past month, or as many as I can remember:
Little Caesars Pepperoni (free)- This past Saturday I spent seven hours folding never ending piles of men's jeans while being reprimanded by a customer who was unsatisfied by t-shirts that cost $1. As we were about to close, my manager told me that Little Caesar's from the K-Mart adjacent to the mall where I work brought them a free Pizza yesterday as an advertisement. My day was better. I actually may go by K-Mart tomorrow before work and buy a pizza for lunch. Seriously, $5 for a large pizza is a perfect treat.
Mellow Mushroom "Funky Q Chicken" (also free)- At my other job, on campus at UNCA at the Student Health Services, I have gotten a lot of free pizza this month. One of my coworkers brought in leftovers on a few occasions, and since I am the only student who works there, they feel sorry for me and give me food and buy me coffee a lot. Bless them. This pizza was particularly delightful. It had bbq chicken, cheddar cheese, carmalized onions and bacon; need I say more?
Pizza Hut (FREE!)- From the same job, a few weeks later, the same coworker brought leftover pizza from pizza hut. I had one slice of cheese with thick crust (pan, if my pizza hut crust knowledge serves me right) and a slice of thin crust that had meat and onions. I don't remember the exact on the meats, but I do remember bacon, and pepperoni. Pizza hut never fails me.
Papa Johns (free, thanks to Lindsey)- Last week, I had gotten the movie Shag in from Netflix. It is about four girls in the 1960s who had just graduated high school in Spartenburg, South Carolina and they go on a trip to Myrtle Beach. This movie is a requirement to watch for anyone who has ever been to Myrtle Beach, so I was shocked when I asked my friend, Lindsey if she had ever seen it. Anyway, she told me that she had ordered a pizza and needed help eating it (and do I ever say no to helping anyone eat anything?) so I brought the movie and we ate a quite peculiar pizza, but tasty nonethelsess. See, she does not eat cheese, so she ordered a thin crust, mushroom pizza sans the cheese from Papa Johns. I must say, Papa Johns has tasty sauce.
Papa Johns (I paid for this one)-So, apparantly with the first order you make online for Papa Johns, you get a free medium cheese pizza! So technically, I still got something for free with this experience too.... free is so fun. Anyway, since I knew I was getting a free cheese pizza, I had to order something that would put my order over ten dollars. I opted for a small, specialty pizza: Spinach Alfredo Deluxe. Not bad at all.
Papa Johns... again (and free, again)- My roommate ordered pizza the other night with his girlfriend. He told me I could have some. I ate a slice of pizza but I don't even remember what kind it was because I was mainly focused on the breadsticks. They were DELICIOUS and garlicky and buttery. He left the next morning to go to Maryland, and the pizza stayed out on the kitchen counter all day. I knew the pizza and breadsticks would just have to be thrown away if I didn't act fast; hello breakfast AND lunch!
I plan on reporting back about other places in Asheville that have pizza that is way better than these fast chains. There are a lot. I have eaten at most of them, and will eat at these places very soon, I'm sure. Stay tuned, Stay Hungry!
Jamie
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Jamie's Krystal Summary.
Sadie gave a wonderful review of the events of the weekend, but after looking at Valerie's Pictures, I was inspired to give my thoughts. I read the previous post right after it was posted, so this will probably sound almost exactly the same.
So I woke up bright and early, before my alarm went off at 5am on Saturday morning. Sadie was already on the road and I anxiously packed way too many warm weather clothes and tried to kill time waiting on her. Sadie got to Asheville to pick me up, and we were off on I-40, but not without stopping for an egg and cheese biscuit on the way from Bojangles. I don't need to go into how delicious it was because we have only discussed it a million times on this blog and every day of our lives.
We got to Chattanooga amidst a downpour and road construction and ate our first Krystal in a very long time. I opted for the crispy onions on my Krystal and that was quite possibly the best slider I have ever eaten in my entire life.
I'm going to skip on to the fun things. At 6pm on Saturday night we went to the Krystal Square Off Reception and ate delicious pineapple and spinach dip with pita bread. They revealed the eater's jerseys which I thought looked very sharp. It was interesting to be behind the scenes, being a Business student, I was particularly impressed by the marketing strategies that Krystal has obviously mastered and I'm very curious to how they fit such an expensive event into their budget! (and that was my "business woman's special.")
Anyway, after the reception, we followed in a convoy to a Krystal where we could eat anything we so chose. I got the oreo caramel milkquake. It was delicious. We also kept getting sweet bites shoved in our faces and could not deny those tasty balls of fried dough. Sadie and I both thought our stomachs were going to explode when we got back to the hotel Saturday night. I tried on my Krystal Counter shirt and got alittle nervous because my stomach was so full, it almost didn't fit! Luckily, a night's sleep will always shrink my food-baby down to normal.
I'm going to skip on to the contest...
After looking at Val's pictures, and watching the replay later on Sunday, it has finally set in that I have finally been at a eating competition where Kobayashi won! After these past few years of our ventures into the world of competitive eating, we finally see the man who sparked our interest years ago dominate it almost brings a tear to my eye. He is back. 2010 should be a very interesting year in the CE world.
It was fun to be a counter, but I do kind of wish I could have seen the comeback as an onlooker.
Okay, you can read anything else about our trip in the post below here. I still have not completely caught up on my rest from the weekend and I'm back in the real world of waking up early for school and work and homework and no more fun in a land where it is over an hour drive to the next Krystal!
Jamie
So I woke up bright and early, before my alarm went off at 5am on Saturday morning. Sadie was already on the road and I anxiously packed way too many warm weather clothes and tried to kill time waiting on her. Sadie got to Asheville to pick me up, and we were off on I-40, but not without stopping for an egg and cheese biscuit on the way from Bojangles. I don't need to go into how delicious it was because we have only discussed it a million times on this blog and every day of our lives.
We got to Chattanooga amidst a downpour and road construction and ate our first Krystal in a very long time. I opted for the crispy onions on my Krystal and that was quite possibly the best slider I have ever eaten in my entire life.
I'm going to skip on to the fun things. At 6pm on Saturday night we went to the Krystal Square Off Reception and ate delicious pineapple and spinach dip with pita bread. They revealed the eater's jerseys which I thought looked very sharp. It was interesting to be behind the scenes, being a Business student, I was particularly impressed by the marketing strategies that Krystal has obviously mastered and I'm very curious to how they fit such an expensive event into their budget! (and that was my "business woman's special.")
Anyway, after the reception, we followed in a convoy to a Krystal where we could eat anything we so chose. I got the oreo caramel milkquake. It was delicious. We also kept getting sweet bites shoved in our faces and could not deny those tasty balls of fried dough. Sadie and I both thought our stomachs were going to explode when we got back to the hotel Saturday night. I tried on my Krystal Counter shirt and got alittle nervous because my stomach was so full, it almost didn't fit! Luckily, a night's sleep will always shrink my food-baby down to normal.
I'm going to skip on to the contest...
After looking at Val's pictures, and watching the replay later on Sunday, it has finally set in that I have finally been at a eating competition where Kobayashi won! After these past few years of our ventures into the world of competitive eating, we finally see the man who sparked our interest years ago dominate it almost brings a tear to my eye. He is back. 2010 should be a very interesting year in the CE world.
It was fun to be a counter, but I do kind of wish I could have seen the comeback as an onlooker.
Okay, you can read anything else about our trip in the post below here. I still have not completely caught up on my rest from the weekend and I'm back in the real world of waking up early for school and work and homework and no more fun in a land where it is over an hour drive to the next Krystal!
Jamie
Monday, September 28, 2009
Krystal Square Off--2009
This picture pretty much sums up my shock of what went down on Sunday at the Krystal Square Off. Kobayashi is back, yall.
This year, our journey to Chattanooga started bright and early on Saturday morning. We fueled our bodies with food from the ever-delicious Bojangles; eating enough to hold us until we made it to Chattanooga. The ride started out pretty pleasantly until we got to Knoxville, then it started raining. Like a lot. We had to make a pit-stop right outside of Chattanooga to buy a raincoat for fear that this rain trend would last all weekend. We also hit up our first Krystal during this stop, excited to try some new products (well, new to us at least): the Crispy Onion Krystal and Sweet Bites. Oh.My.God. The sweet bites were out of this world delicious. Honestly, how can you go wrong with fried dough? The Crispy Onion was great too--a nice additional taste and texture to an already delicious little burger. Dark storm clouds still surrounding us, we decided just to suck it up and drive and hopefully check in to the hotel early. After almost getting the car stuck in a flooded Chattanooga street, almost running about five stop signs, and almost ruining the transmission of my car, we made it to our destination and could (luckily) check in early.
We thought we would just relax in the room and maybe take a nap, but we were anxious to get out and about in Chattanooga. Even though it was raining, we still wanted to make the most of our trip. We decided against going to Rock City, frankly because we didn't want to pay money to be miserable walking around in the rain. Instead, we hopped on the bus and rode to the NorthShore District. At the time we didn't realize this but we were riding the bus with some of Kobayashi's entourage, sans Kobayashi. Anyway, the rain let up a little and we were able to walk around to some shops at the NorthShore. Getting hungry again, we decided to try out Clumpies for ice cream. Clumpies was really cool--they microbatch their ice cream so it is of a good (and deliciously creamy) quality and use more butterfat than most ice creams. I sampled the Animal Cracker flavor, but something about blue ice cream freaks me out. We ended up opting for scoops of Butterfinger and Espresso Chocolate Chunk--both were great!
After our adventure to the NorthShore, we went back to our luxury accommodations (aka the Days Inn) to relax before the real fun was to begin. Around 6:00, we made our way across the street to the Sheraton Read House as we were invited by none other than Kenny Hammontree of Krystal himself to pick up our Krystal Counter shirts/attend the pre-KSO reception. This was really cool because we were among the first to see the new jerseys for the contest (a baseball style shirt) and really see what goes down the night before a big contest. After all of the rules were discussed, everyone was invited to go on the annual 'night before Square Off' trip to Krystal. We tagged along and gorged ourselves on Milkquakes, cheese Krystals, and even more Sweet Bites. I hate that I did not get any pictures of this event, but it was very interesting to see that although many eaters claim they don't eat the night before a contest, the majority couldn't pass up a few bites of food or sips of Milkquakes. I might be mistaken but I believe I saw Sonya Thomas eat three Big Angus burgers.
The morning of the contest, we once again had our traditional City Cafe chocolate chip pancake breakfast-this time omitting the whipped cream. As usual, it did not disappoint. We met up with Valerie at Greyfriar's and caught up with her over an iced mocha. This girl has some dedication. After working all evening in Chicago, Valerie left in the middle of the night again this year to make the ten hour drive to Chattanooga only to turn around and go back later that afternoon. Making our way down to the river front, it was time to begin our bunnette duties for the 2009 Krystal Square Off. Being assigned count for Eater X (Sadie) and Tim 'Gravy' Brown (Jamie), we were excited for the day to begin.
After meeting the other girls, though, we realized we missed an important memo. We weren't blonde. Every single Krystal Counter (except for one) had long blonde hair. At least that made us easier to spot on the TV broadcast! Even though we weren't in the blond-tourage, we still did our bunnette/counter duties with smiles on our faces--passing out thundersticks, cheering for the sackful challenge, shaking our pompoms on stage--we were regular-old-fashioned cheerleaders.
The stage entrance was interesting this year; if you couldn't see it on the live broadcast the eaters were raised on a lift to come up from the ground to the stage--nice touch, Krystal! The contest was about to begin and we were ready to start counting burgers for X and Gravy. During the contest, we pretty much zoned out on everything except for the judges so we would be sure to get the right points on our counter cards. You could tell even from behind the eaters that things were getting tense in the middle of the stage. At the countdown from 10, people were yelling and screaming for Kobayashi in the audience. The next thing I knew, Kobayashi was slamming his fists on the table, water was flying in the air, and a shocked look was on many faces (...including my own). Kobayashi freaking won! Not only did he win the Krystal Square Off, he dominated it. Eating 93 Krystal/Big Angus points, Takeru Kobayashi is now the new Krystal Champion. This was the first contest we had ever been to where Kobayashi took first place, so that was pretty darn exciting. Coincidentally, it was also the first contest we have ever been to that Joey Chestnut didn't win. I guess you could say we were good luck for him...until now.
The rest of the results are as follows:
Kobayashi 93
Joey Chestnut 81
Pat B. 76
Humble Bob 71
Sonya Thomas 65
Hall Hunt 60
Eater X 59
Erik The Red 58
Gravy Brown 52
Buffalo Jim 50
Badlands Booker 47
12th Man 8
...yeah, our predictions were pretty off.
After watching the re-play of the broadcast back into the hotel room, it was insane to watch how it all actually went down. Kobayashi inhaled those burgers. He didn't even look like he was chewing. He went on that stage with his new hairdo and ripped abs and literally made those burgers his bitch. I have a feeling things are going to be interesting over the next few months in regards to rankings and wins. God I already can't wait for the showdown at Nathan's!
We made the smart decision to spend Sunday night in Chattanooga as opposed to previous years of driving back home immediately after the contest, getting home in the middle of the night. Since we had some extra time in town, we made our way to the Bluff View Arts District of Chattanooga. Finding ourselves hungry again, we found Tony's Pasta Shop and Trattoria. This was a neat little restaurant with inside and outside seating. They had a nice variety of pastas, the prices were decent, the portions were just right, and the food was really good.
Meeting up with a few of the eaters later, the rest of the night was filled with some very interesting moments--from encountering a shady guy with a dog, witnessing beer chugging challenges, the resurgence of a germ-filled breathalyzer, shutting down two restaurants, roaming the deserted Sunday night Chattanooga streets, and eating mediocre biscuits & gravy with new friends, I'd have to say overall, it was a very fun night.
750-something miles, only a few hours of sleep, many hamburgers, sweetbites, and beers later, we are back in the great state of North Carolina--back to the old grind of work and school. It was an awesome trip, I only wish we had taken more pictures! The pictures we did take can be found here. Once again, we can't wait till next year. The Krystal Square Off just gets better every year!
--Sadie
This year, our journey to Chattanooga started bright and early on Saturday morning. We fueled our bodies with food from the ever-delicious Bojangles; eating enough to hold us until we made it to Chattanooga. The ride started out pretty pleasantly until we got to Knoxville, then it started raining. Like a lot. We had to make a pit-stop right outside of Chattanooga to buy a raincoat for fear that this rain trend would last all weekend. We also hit up our first Krystal during this stop, excited to try some new products (well, new to us at least): the Crispy Onion Krystal and Sweet Bites. Oh.My.God. The sweet bites were out of this world delicious. Honestly, how can you go wrong with fried dough? The Crispy Onion was great too--a nice additional taste and texture to an already delicious little burger. Dark storm clouds still surrounding us, we decided just to suck it up and drive and hopefully check in to the hotel early. After almost getting the car stuck in a flooded Chattanooga street, almost running about five stop signs, and almost ruining the transmission of my car, we made it to our destination and could (luckily) check in early.
We thought we would just relax in the room and maybe take a nap, but we were anxious to get out and about in Chattanooga. Even though it was raining, we still wanted to make the most of our trip. We decided against going to Rock City, frankly because we didn't want to pay money to be miserable walking around in the rain. Instead, we hopped on the bus and rode to the NorthShore District. At the time we didn't realize this but we were riding the bus with some of Kobayashi's entourage, sans Kobayashi. Anyway, the rain let up a little and we were able to walk around to some shops at the NorthShore. Getting hungry again, we decided to try out Clumpies for ice cream. Clumpies was really cool--they microbatch their ice cream so it is of a good (and deliciously creamy) quality and use more butterfat than most ice creams. I sampled the Animal Cracker flavor, but something about blue ice cream freaks me out. We ended up opting for scoops of Butterfinger and Espresso Chocolate Chunk--both were great!
After our adventure to the NorthShore, we went back to our luxury accommodations (aka the Days Inn) to relax before the real fun was to begin. Around 6:00, we made our way across the street to the Sheraton Read House as we were invited by none other than Kenny Hammontree of Krystal himself to pick up our Krystal Counter shirts/attend the pre-KSO reception. This was really cool because we were among the first to see the new jerseys for the contest (a baseball style shirt) and really see what goes down the night before a big contest. After all of the rules were discussed, everyone was invited to go on the annual 'night before Square Off' trip to Krystal. We tagged along and gorged ourselves on Milkquakes, cheese Krystals, and even more Sweet Bites. I hate that I did not get any pictures of this event, but it was very interesting to see that although many eaters claim they don't eat the night before a contest, the majority couldn't pass up a few bites of food or sips of Milkquakes. I might be mistaken but I believe I saw Sonya Thomas eat three Big Angus burgers.
The morning of the contest, we once again had our traditional City Cafe chocolate chip pancake breakfast-this time omitting the whipped cream. As usual, it did not disappoint. We met up with Valerie at Greyfriar's and caught up with her over an iced mocha. This girl has some dedication. After working all evening in Chicago, Valerie left in the middle of the night again this year to make the ten hour drive to Chattanooga only to turn around and go back later that afternoon. Making our way down to the river front, it was time to begin our bunnette duties for the 2009 Krystal Square Off. Being assigned count for Eater X (Sadie) and Tim 'Gravy' Brown (Jamie), we were excited for the day to begin.
After meeting the other girls, though, we realized we missed an important memo. We weren't blonde. Every single Krystal Counter (except for one) had long blonde hair. At least that made us easier to spot on the TV broadcast! Even though we weren't in the blond-tourage, we still did our bunnette/counter duties with smiles on our faces--passing out thundersticks, cheering for the sackful challenge, shaking our pompoms on stage--we were regular-old-fashioned cheerleaders.
The stage entrance was interesting this year; if you couldn't see it on the live broadcast the eaters were raised on a lift to come up from the ground to the stage--nice touch, Krystal! The contest was about to begin and we were ready to start counting burgers for X and Gravy. During the contest, we pretty much zoned out on everything except for the judges so we would be sure to get the right points on our counter cards. You could tell even from behind the eaters that things were getting tense in the middle of the stage. At the countdown from 10, people were yelling and screaming for Kobayashi in the audience. The next thing I knew, Kobayashi was slamming his fists on the table, water was flying in the air, and a shocked look was on many faces (...including my own). Kobayashi freaking won! Not only did he win the Krystal Square Off, he dominated it. Eating 93 Krystal/Big Angus points, Takeru Kobayashi is now the new Krystal Champion. This was the first contest we had ever been to where Kobayashi took first place, so that was pretty darn exciting. Coincidentally, it was also the first contest we have ever been to that Joey Chestnut didn't win. I guess you could say we were good luck for him...until now.
The rest of the results are as follows:
Kobayashi 93
Joey Chestnut 81
Pat B. 76
Humble Bob 71
Sonya Thomas 65
Hall Hunt 60
Eater X 59
Erik The Red 58
Gravy Brown 52
Buffalo Jim 50
Badlands Booker 47
12th Man 8
...yeah, our predictions were pretty off.
After watching the re-play of the broadcast back into the hotel room, it was insane to watch how it all actually went down. Kobayashi inhaled those burgers. He didn't even look like he was chewing. He went on that stage with his new hairdo and ripped abs and literally made those burgers his bitch. I have a feeling things are going to be interesting over the next few months in regards to rankings and wins. God I already can't wait for the showdown at Nathan's!
We made the smart decision to spend Sunday night in Chattanooga as opposed to previous years of driving back home immediately after the contest, getting home in the middle of the night. Since we had some extra time in town, we made our way to the Bluff View Arts District of Chattanooga. Finding ourselves hungry again, we found Tony's Pasta Shop and Trattoria. This was a neat little restaurant with inside and outside seating. They had a nice variety of pastas, the prices were decent, the portions were just right, and the food was really good.
Meeting up with a few of the eaters later, the rest of the night was filled with some very interesting moments--from encountering a shady guy with a dog, witnessing beer chugging challenges, the resurgence of a germ-filled breathalyzer, shutting down two restaurants, roaming the deserted Sunday night Chattanooga streets, and eating mediocre biscuits & gravy with new friends, I'd have to say overall, it was a very fun night.
750-something miles, only a few hours of sleep, many hamburgers, sweetbites, and beers later, we are back in the great state of North Carolina--back to the old grind of work and school. It was an awesome trip, I only wish we had taken more pictures! The pictures we did take can be found here. Once again, we can't wait till next year. The Krystal Square Off just gets better every year!
--Sadie
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Predictions and a picture.
After much deliberation, we have decided on our predictions for the 2009 Krystal Square Off:
1. Joey
2. Humble Bob
3. Pat B.
4. Kobayashi
5. Sonya
6. Hall
7. Eater X
8. Gravy
9. Erik
10. Badlands
11. Buffalo Jim
We really don't know how the numbers for Joey and Kobayashi will compare since they didn't have to qualify without dunking, so we didn't predict the amount of Krystal Points...just the rankings. After Humble Bob's performance this weekend in burritos and grits, how could we not put him (almost) at the top? We have high hopes for him again this year at Krystal. We also have a gut feeling Pat might have an edge over Kobayashi this year. As the qualifiers have shown X, Hall, Sonya, and Tim B. will probably have close totals but Sonya will prevail. To come to this decision, we thought about qualifier totals, access to Krystals for practice, and overall non-dunking performances. We'll see next week how close our predictions were. What do you think will happen next Sunday?
--Sadie and Jamie
In other news:
In honor of his victory today, a picture from last year...
1. Joey
2. Humble Bob
3. Pat B.
4. Kobayashi
5. Sonya
6. Hall
7. Eater X
8. Gravy
9. Erik
10. Badlands
11. Buffalo Jim
We really don't know how the numbers for Joey and Kobayashi will compare since they didn't have to qualify without dunking, so we didn't predict the amount of Krystal Points...just the rankings. After Humble Bob's performance this weekend in burritos and grits, how could we not put him (almost) at the top? We have high hopes for him again this year at Krystal. We also have a gut feeling Pat might have an edge over Kobayashi this year. As the qualifiers have shown X, Hall, Sonya, and Tim B. will probably have close totals but Sonya will prevail. To come to this decision, we thought about qualifier totals, access to Krystals for practice, and overall non-dunking performances. We'll see next week how close our predictions were. What do you think will happen next Sunday?
--Sadie and Jamie
In other news:
In honor of his victory today, a picture from last year...
Picture from: KSO Blog: 5 Questions with Eater X
So are we shaking hands? doing a low-high five? Who knows, but it was exciting to see my picture on the KSO blog on Friday.--Sadie
Friday, September 18, 2009
Life.
Hello World! We have been out of commission as of recent--but fear not, we have not dissappeared forever.
A few quick updates:
-Jamie has started her third year of college; being a full-time student, is working 3 jobs (at the student health center, at the mall, and at a costume shop)
-Sadie is teaching high school full time, taking two graduate classes, and is in the process of becoming a certified personal trainer.
-Both of us are trying to find the time for sleep, a social life, and sanity.
We are, however, very excited to be taking a few days off of life next weekend to again make the drive to Chattanooga for Krystal Square Off (how could we miss it!??!??). Holy crap, we cannot believe it is next weekend! Where has the time gone?
Keeping up with our yearly tradition (well, it is only the second year we've done this, but who's counting?) we have for you our top reasons to be excited for the KSO this year:
-Obviously the new rules: No dunking!?!? The contest will be very exciting and tense this year
-Our new driving route: Instead of taking the interstate the whole way from North Carolina to Chattanooga, we are going to drive through the curvy mountain roads. The distance is shorter!
-Krystal Blitz/Big Angus Burgers: We're ready to taste some new Krystal products
-Rock City: Seeing as it will be the third consecutive year of being at the KSO, we want to do some "Chattanooga-ish" things. We both have been to Rock City, but it has been like 10+ years. We want to go back and see Fat Man's Squeeze and Lover's Leap.
-The City Cafe: Sticking to our pre-KSO breakfast at the City Cafe, we are CRAVING chocolate chip pancakes.
-Two Hungry Bunnettes??: You'll just have to tune in on Sports South next Sunday to see :)
A few quick updates:
-Jamie has started her third year of college; being a full-time student, is working 3 jobs (at the student health center, at the mall, and at a costume shop)
-Sadie is teaching high school full time, taking two graduate classes, and is in the process of becoming a certified personal trainer.
-Both of us are trying to find the time for sleep, a social life, and sanity.
We are, however, very excited to be taking a few days off of life next weekend to again make the drive to Chattanooga for Krystal Square Off (how could we miss it!??!??). Holy crap, we cannot believe it is next weekend! Where has the time gone?
Keeping up with our yearly tradition (well, it is only the second year we've done this, but who's counting?) we have for you our top reasons to be excited for the KSO this year:
-Obviously the new rules: No dunking!?!? The contest will be very exciting and tense this year
-Our new driving route: Instead of taking the interstate the whole way from North Carolina to Chattanooga, we are going to drive through the curvy mountain roads. The distance is shorter!
-Krystal Blitz/Big Angus Burgers: We're ready to taste some new Krystal products
-Rock City: Seeing as it will be the third consecutive year of being at the KSO, we want to do some "Chattanooga-ish" things. We both have been to Rock City, but it has been like 10+ years. We want to go back and see Fat Man's Squeeze and Lover's Leap.
-The City Cafe: Sticking to our pre-KSO breakfast at the City Cafe, we are CRAVING chocolate chip pancakes.
-Two Hungry Bunnettes??: You'll just have to tune in on Sports South next Sunday to see :)
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
My First Krystal Memory
With less than two weeks away from the Krystal Square Off, I thought it would be appropriate to post my first Krystal memory. I don't know why I haven't done this before...but in the spirit of the occasion, now is as good of a time as any to tell.
It was a Thursday morning, in the middle of the summer. I don't know how old I was...probably 6 or 7, but my Papaw Bob picked up Carrie and me at our house and took us to the Flea Market in Hickory, North Carolina. I don't remember a whole lot about this trip but I do remember helping Papaw pick out produce and seeing puppies at the flea market, going to Sam's Club, and visiting Krystal. I can remember going to Sam's Club because was a big deal--it was pretty new to the area and was the first time I had ever been. I can remember going to Krystal Burger for another reason.
As a 6 year old child, I was a VERY picky eater. I had a food repertoire of about three things: chicken nuggets, spaghetti, and rice. After leaving the Flea Market, my Papaw insisted that we eat at Krystal (which was right across the road). At the time, I thought this was the worst idea ever because hamburgers was not one of the three foods I liked. Papaw ordered for us and we ate in the car...Carrie and I both getting just one little Krystal Burger each (which was fine with me). Although I hated burgers, I decided to give it a shot, just to be polite. Low and behold, I liked the burger. I can't remember much else about that day but I do remember eating that Krystal burger in Papaw's car and liking it. Not only was it my first ever Krystal, it was my first ever burger.
That Krystal in Hickory is long gone but this memory will never be forgotten. I wonder if my papaw can remember this.
--Sadie
It was a Thursday morning, in the middle of the summer. I don't know how old I was...probably 6 or 7, but my Papaw Bob picked up Carrie and me at our house and took us to the Flea Market in Hickory, North Carolina. I don't remember a whole lot about this trip but I do remember helping Papaw pick out produce and seeing puppies at the flea market, going to Sam's Club, and visiting Krystal. I can remember going to Sam's Club because was a big deal--it was pretty new to the area and was the first time I had ever been. I can remember going to Krystal Burger for another reason.
As a 6 year old child, I was a VERY picky eater. I had a food repertoire of about three things: chicken nuggets, spaghetti, and rice. After leaving the Flea Market, my Papaw insisted that we eat at Krystal (which was right across the road). At the time, I thought this was the worst idea ever because hamburgers was not one of the three foods I liked. Papaw ordered for us and we ate in the car...Carrie and I both getting just one little Krystal Burger each (which was fine with me). Although I hated burgers, I decided to give it a shot, just to be polite. Low and behold, I liked the burger. I can't remember much else about that day but I do remember eating that Krystal burger in Papaw's car and liking it. Not only was it my first ever Krystal, it was my first ever burger.
That Krystal in Hickory is long gone but this memory will never be forgotten. I wonder if my papaw can remember this.
--Sadie
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Monday, August 24, 2009
KSO--Where to Stay
It's that time of year again...time to plan our trip to the Krystal Square Off on September 27th in Chattanooga! We've been searching the internet for a place to stay during this weekend of fun, and since we've looked up all of this info, we thought it might be helpful to share it with some of ya'll too.
After two years of being official fans/now veterans of the KSO, we have decided that the best places to stay are downtown. Granted, we have only stayed downtown but why change a good thing? All of the places we have listed below are within walking distance to all of the downtown excitement and are easily accessible on the free city shuttle.
The rates are for 2 nights: Saturday Night 9/26 & Sunday Night 9/27
1 room with 2 beds unless otherwise noted, including taxes. We've included the links to all of the hotel websites--you also might want to check out expedia, travelocity, or some other discount websites. Some hotels had packages, government/military/AAA/other rates, but here is a basic run-down:
Days Inn Rivergate:
Downtown, within walking distance to all downtown things, free tram-stop right in front of hotel, only budget hotel with a good location
-Buy Now and Save (no refunds on cancellations): $167.43
-Government/AAA/AARP: $177.28
-Best Available Rate: $196.98
-Currently running a 20% off deal if you stay for two nights...$138
-Parking: FREE!
The Chattanoogan:
“Urban Resort” spa hotel, fancy flat screen TV’s, add-on options such as chocolate covered chocolate and champagne, looks pretty fancy!
-Standard Room $361
-Parking: $8/day
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Chattanooga Downtown
Continental breakfast and an indoor pool
-Advance Purchase or AAA (no cancellations): $263.81
-Featured Rate: $277.89
-Government: $204
-Parking: ?
Sheraton Read House
Historic, pretty, great location, and possibly haunted. "Official" hotel of the Krystal Square Off.
-Best Available Rate: $302.51
-Parking: $15/day
Chattanooga Marriott at the Convention Center
Newly renovated rooms! Can get packages for sight-seeing things too.
-Leisure Rate $290.78
-Parking $6-10/day
Delta Queen Hotel
Awesome river-boat-turned hotel. You really just need to check out the website for this place—it looks like it would be a really fun place to stay.
Rates
Courtyard by Marriott Chattanooga Downtown
VERY close to the Krystal Square Off location
-Best Available Rate: (King and Sofa-bed) $372
-Parking $8/day
Hilton Garden Inn Chattanooga Downtown—Only King Beds available
Package options also available…bed and breakfast, sight seeing, etc.
-Advanced Purchase (non-refundable)$377
-Best Available $419
-Parking: $7/day
Doubletree Hotel Chattanooga
-Advance Purchase (non refundable) $296.99
-Internet Best Rate $349.41
-Parking $7/day
Holiday Inn Chattanooga Choo Choo
Fun & historic, a little further from the waterfront but easily accessible by the free tram. Cool restaurants on site.
-Standard Room-$311.88
-Parking: ?
After two years of being official fans/now veterans of the KSO, we have decided that the best places to stay are downtown. Granted, we have only stayed downtown but why change a good thing? All of the places we have listed below are within walking distance to all of the downtown excitement and are easily accessible on the free city shuttle.
The rates are for 2 nights: Saturday Night 9/26 & Sunday Night 9/27
1 room with 2 beds unless otherwise noted, including taxes. We've included the links to all of the hotel websites--you also might want to check out expedia, travelocity, or some other discount websites. Some hotels had packages, government/military/AAA/other rates, but here is a basic run-down:
Days Inn Rivergate:
Downtown, within walking distance to all downtown things, free tram-stop right in front of hotel, only budget hotel with a good location
-Buy Now and Save (no refunds on cancellations): $167.43
-Government/AAA/AARP: $177.28
-Best Available Rate: $196.98
-Currently running a 20% off deal if you stay for two nights...$138
-Parking: FREE!
The Chattanoogan:
“Urban Resort” spa hotel, fancy flat screen TV’s, add-on options such as chocolate covered chocolate and champagne, looks pretty fancy!
-Standard Room $361
-Parking: $8/day
Holiday Inn Express & Suites Chattanooga Downtown
Continental breakfast and an indoor pool
-Advance Purchase or AAA (no cancellations): $263.81
-Featured Rate: $277.89
-Government: $204
-Parking: ?
Sheraton Read House
Historic, pretty, great location, and possibly haunted. "Official" hotel of the Krystal Square Off.
-Best Available Rate: $302.51
-Parking: $15/day
Chattanooga Marriott at the Convention Center
Newly renovated rooms! Can get packages for sight-seeing things too.
-Leisure Rate $290.78
-Parking $6-10/day
Delta Queen Hotel
Awesome river-boat-turned hotel. You really just need to check out the website for this place—it looks like it would be a really fun place to stay.
Rates
Courtyard by Marriott Chattanooga Downtown
VERY close to the Krystal Square Off location
-Best Available Rate: (King and Sofa-bed) $372
-Parking $8/day
Hilton Garden Inn Chattanooga Downtown—Only King Beds available
Package options also available…bed and breakfast, sight seeing, etc.
-Advanced Purchase (non-refundable)$377
-Best Available $419
-Parking: $7/day
Doubletree Hotel Chattanooga
-Advance Purchase (non refundable) $296.99
-Internet Best Rate $349.41
-Parking $7/day
Holiday Inn Chattanooga Choo Choo
Fun & historic, a little further from the waterfront but easily accessible by the free tram. Cool restaurants on site.
-Standard Room-$311.88
-Parking: ?
Friday, August 14, 2009
ThirstySister
Red Oak is one of my all-time favorite microbrews. It is a pure, delicious, and smooth amber beer that everyone should get the pleasure to experience. Unfortunatley for some, you can only find it in some restaurants in the Charlotte/Greensboro areas of North Carolina. Fortunately for me, though, the brewery is only about 45 minute away from my new home in Winston-Salem. Today, Trey and I got to tour Red Oak Brewery.
--Sadie
Thursday, August 13, 2009
8/13
Happy Birthday, Trey!
My husband, Trey turned the big 25 today and we celebrated by going out to Chili's. Usually, I do what I can to avoid places like Crapplebees/Chili's/O'Charleys/etc. but this new 3 courses, two people, $20 thing is too good of a deal to pass up. You get one appetizer, two entrees, and a dessert to split for $20! The portions aren't even smaller than usual. We got the molten chocolate cake for dessert and it was very fulfilling for my chocolate & ice cream needs.
I found this at KrystalSquareOff.com. This was the first big contest Jamie, Trey, and I ever attended:
Can you find me? KSO4 in 2007--A fun time. Forever surrounded by stupid thundersticks.
--Sadie
My husband, Trey turned the big 25 today and we celebrated by going out to Chili's. Usually, I do what I can to avoid places like Crapplebees/Chili's/O'Charleys/etc. but this new 3 courses, two people, $20 thing is too good of a deal to pass up. You get one appetizer, two entrees, and a dessert to split for $20! The portions aren't even smaller than usual. We got the molten chocolate cake for dessert and it was very fulfilling for my chocolate & ice cream needs.
I found this at KrystalSquareOff.com. This was the first big contest Jamie, Trey, and I ever attended:
Can you find me? KSO4 in 2007--A fun time. Forever surrounded by stupid thundersticks.
--Sadie
Monday, August 10, 2009
GottaWannaNeedaGettaHava...BOJANGLES
Ya'll know how much we love Bojangles from previous posts but I don't know if our love can even compare to this guy. He is spending the summer traveling all over the southeast visiting every single Bojangles in the U.S.
Go check out his journey and if you are anything like us, reading his blog will make want a cajun fillet biscuit and a large sweet tea.
Bojangles Traveler Blog
Go check out his journey and if you are anything like us, reading his blog will make want a cajun fillet biscuit and a large sweet tea.
Bojangles Traveler Blog
Sunday, August 9, 2009
sad picture.
I know we have discuessed this time and again. but I'm really wanting some Krystal and have no place to go!
Jamie
Friday, August 7, 2009
Beach Break: Krystal
It is nice to be able to enjoy a delightful Krystal lunch after a long day of sunbathing and swimming in the ocean! The Krystal in Murrells Inlet, SC is about a 20-30 minute drive from Myrtle Beach and is a stop we always make while in town since there are no more Krystals left in North Carolina. I saw a few people order the angus burgers that will be added to the KSO--they looked pretty tasty but will definitely add a new challenge to the contest. I was almost tempted to order one myself but since I only get to eat this treat a few times a year, I just stuck my usual: a #1 combo--4 original Krystals, fries, and a diet coke.
Also, check out Beautiful Brian's August Bits and Pieces for a little feature about his thoughts on the new Krystal rules and a little feature about 2 hungry sisters :-)
Sunday, August 2, 2009
The Ultimate Summer Lunch: Tomato Sandwich
Nothing says summer like a Tomato Sandwich: 1 sliced home grown tomato, one tablespoon Duke's Mayonnaise, ground black pepper on whole wheat bread.
....with Cheetos and a homemade peanut butter rice krispy treat on the side.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Krystal!!
KSO VI Announced the new rules for 2009. Big move by Krystal, and I'm excited. No dunking? Seriously?! This is going to be interesting, in a good way. All I keep thinking about is the funnel cake eating contest when Ryan Nerz briefly announced that dunking would not be allowed; talk about terrified competitive eaters! Maybe it was because they were not prepared, in which case Krystal has given ample time for preparation but still, this is huge! Also, they have implemented another twist that I am almost positive was inspired by Super Mario Brothers. Each eater will have five of Krystal's new Angus Big Burgers. These burger are the equivalent of five average Krystals, and the eaters will be able to eat these at any point in the contest in order to boost up their count. All I have to say about that, is that Krystal will need some very good Bunnettes for this change, and I think Sadie and myself are perfect candidates (cough!cough!).
I'm excited. Krystal, you never disappoint and I am way excited for the trip to Chatty!
Jamie
I'm excited. Krystal, you never disappoint and I am way excited for the trip to Chatty!
Jamie
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Day 6: 4th of July!
Yet another early start for us on our trip, but it was easy to get out of bed knowing what was to come on this 4th of July. Bagels in hand, we got on the subway again for the long journey to Coney Island. We got to Surf & Stillwell around 8:40 Saturday morning, trying to scope out a good spot to stand for today's momentous event. Gates were set up all around the stage area so no one was really allowed to get close to the stage. Around 9:30 security opened up those gates to let in the masses and we fought our way to the front like crazy women fight for a free snow globe on the day after Thanksgiving. We ended up getting spots right in the spray zone and were surround by fans from all over the country who soon became our friends for the day. A couple from California right in front of us came to cheer on Kobayashi. Some Pennsylvania boys beside of us were die hard Joey Chestnut fans who came to NYC without telling their parents, hoping they wouldn't be spotted ESPN.
Nathan's did a good job of keeping us entertained for the 4 hours we stood there in the hot sun before the contest began even though they passed out thundersticks. Ever since last year's Krystal Square Off I have decided that thundersticks have to be the most annoying thing ever invented. Anyway, some old school funk type band played for a while and there were a few circus acts performed on the stage including jump ropers, weenie dogs who can do tricks, and a contortionist/gymnast type person. George Shea also did a pretty sweet Michael Jackson tribute--moonwalking and doing the MJ lean.
One of the best parts of the pre-show was Badlands Booker's rap about saving Coney Island. It kind of got down right political; people were yelling "TAKE US NOW" right along with Badlands and everybody seemed to get into it. It was awesome to be there right in the middle of it. Badlands Booker: if you read this you should totally post a recording of that song online.
Finally, at high noon, the big show had begun. The bunnettes came out on stage and it was cool to see some of them after reading the bunnette boot camp stuff online. We had been reading Zoe's blog and were glad she made it as a bunnette this year. Next, the eaters were announced. The eaters only had one introduction this year, not really giving them a lot of time to flaunt their stuff on stage. The intros actually seemed a little rushed. Pat Bertoletti came to the contest dressed as Tony Clifton, and as a long time Andy Kaufman fan, I thought it was an excellent idea! The crowds screamed for the favorites as they were announced, and everyone was excited to get the show on the road. We did notice that one eater was missing--Rich LeFevre. We didn't find out until a few days later that he was absent because of an illness. The judges were brought out and Beautiful Brian Seiken was judging right in front of us and gave Jamie his camera to take some pictures for him.
Around 12:40 the countdown started and the eaters began eating the first few minutes were chaotic to watch, not knowing where to look. It was exciting to be right in front of the stage, but it was also hard to see around the judges. Joey and Kobayashi looked to be neck & neck throughout most of the competition and Eater X definitely held his own as well. From where were standing it was hard to see Pat Bertoletti but we knew he had to be close as well. We had a really good view of Hall Hunt, Juliet Lee, and Humble Bob so we cheered them on from our spot in the spray zone.
In the end, Joey Chestnut won the contest eating 68 hot dogs and buns in ten minutes, Takeru Kobayashi in 2nd with 64.5, Pat Bertoletti in 3rd with 55, and Eater X in 4th with 53. Sonya "The Black Widow" Thomas also set a new female record eating 41 hot dogs and buns.
After the contest, Jamie managed to get a left over hot dog and we went to the boardwalk. It was nice to finally sit down after standing up for five hours. We got a little sunburned during the contest, but that wasn't something a few beers at the after party couldn't fix. It was fun getting to hang out with some eaters and friends after the contest and we even met some people we hadn't met in person (Steakbellie, Crazy Leg's mom, & others). We even got a personal invite to the after-after party by none other than Crazy Legs Conti himself.
By 3:00, our stomachs were telling us it was time to go, and we headed back to Manhattan. We made a mad rush to McDonald's because we hadn't eaten in like 8 hours and nothing seemed more delicious at the time than a double cheese burger and a large chocolate shake. Bellies full and rested up, we got ready and went out to the after-after party. The night was filled with drinking many drinks, making new friends, blowing in a breathalyzer, and doing our best drunk white-girl dance. A fun night was had by all.
Sunday morning at 7:14am, we boarded our train and rode from Penn Station to Trenton, Trenton to Philly, and drove the long haul from Philadelphia to North Carolina, arriving back home Sunday night. Round trip, we spent 986 miles driving in a car and probably 200 miles on a train. Totally worth it--I would do it again tomorrow if I could.
Being at Coney Island on July 4th was the most American way I could ever imagine spending Independence Day. This will definitely be the first of many more July 4th trips to New York City!
For more pictures, from our trip click here!
We've got a few videos from our trip that I have yet to upload, so be sure to check back for those.
Thanks for reading, ya'll. See ya at Krystal on September 27th (...or maybe before, who knows)!
--Sadie
Nathan's did a good job of keeping us entertained for the 4 hours we stood there in the hot sun before the contest began even though they passed out thundersticks. Ever since last year's Krystal Square Off I have decided that thundersticks have to be the most annoying thing ever invented. Anyway, some old school funk type band played for a while and there were a few circus acts performed on the stage including jump ropers, weenie dogs who can do tricks, and a contortionist/gymnast type person. George Shea also did a pretty sweet Michael Jackson tribute--moonwalking and doing the MJ lean.
One of the best parts of the pre-show was Badlands Booker's rap about saving Coney Island. It kind of got down right political; people were yelling "TAKE US NOW" right along with Badlands and everybody seemed to get into it. It was awesome to be there right in the middle of it. Badlands Booker: if you read this you should totally post a recording of that song online.
Finally, at high noon, the big show had begun. The bunnettes came out on stage and it was cool to see some of them after reading the bunnette boot camp stuff online. We had been reading Zoe's blog and were glad she made it as a bunnette this year. Next, the eaters were announced. The eaters only had one introduction this year, not really giving them a lot of time to flaunt their stuff on stage. The intros actually seemed a little rushed. Pat Bertoletti came to the contest dressed as Tony Clifton, and as a long time Andy Kaufman fan, I thought it was an excellent idea! The crowds screamed for the favorites as they were announced, and everyone was excited to get the show on the road. We did notice that one eater was missing--Rich LeFevre. We didn't find out until a few days later that he was absent because of an illness. The judges were brought out and Beautiful Brian Seiken was judging right in front of us and gave Jamie his camera to take some pictures for him.
Around 12:40 the countdown started and the eaters began eating the first few minutes were chaotic to watch, not knowing where to look. It was exciting to be right in front of the stage, but it was also hard to see around the judges. Joey and Kobayashi looked to be neck & neck throughout most of the competition and Eater X definitely held his own as well. From where were standing it was hard to see Pat Bertoletti but we knew he had to be close as well. We had a really good view of Hall Hunt, Juliet Lee, and Humble Bob so we cheered them on from our spot in the spray zone.
In the end, Joey Chestnut won the contest eating 68 hot dogs and buns in ten minutes, Takeru Kobayashi in 2nd with 64.5, Pat Bertoletti in 3rd with 55, and Eater X in 4th with 53. Sonya "The Black Widow" Thomas also set a new female record eating 41 hot dogs and buns.
After the contest, Jamie managed to get a left over hot dog and we went to the boardwalk. It was nice to finally sit down after standing up for five hours. We got a little sunburned during the contest, but that wasn't something a few beers at the after party couldn't fix. It was fun getting to hang out with some eaters and friends after the contest and we even met some people we hadn't met in person (Steakbellie, Crazy Leg's mom, & others). We even got a personal invite to the after-after party by none other than Crazy Legs Conti himself.
By 3:00, our stomachs were telling us it was time to go, and we headed back to Manhattan. We made a mad rush to McDonald's because we hadn't eaten in like 8 hours and nothing seemed more delicious at the time than a double cheese burger and a large chocolate shake. Bellies full and rested up, we got ready and went out to the after-after party. The night was filled with drinking many drinks, making new friends, blowing in a breathalyzer, and doing our best drunk white-girl dance. A fun night was had by all.
Sunday morning at 7:14am, we boarded our train and rode from Penn Station to Trenton, Trenton to Philly, and drove the long haul from Philadelphia to North Carolina, arriving back home Sunday night. Round trip, we spent 986 miles driving in a car and probably 200 miles on a train. Totally worth it--I would do it again tomorrow if I could.
Being at Coney Island on July 4th was the most American way I could ever imagine spending Independence Day. This will definitely be the first of many more July 4th trips to New York City!
For more pictures, from our trip click here!
We've got a few videos from our trip that I have yet to upload, so be sure to check back for those.
Thanks for reading, ya'll. See ya at Krystal on September 27th (...or maybe before, who knows)!
--Sadie
Day 5: Humans vs Elephants/Touring NYC
Friday morning greeted us with a list full of fun activities. We mapped our routes for the day which started by taking the subway from Manhattan to Coney Island to witness the first ever elephant vs human bun eating contest. Once in Coney, we walked around the boardwalk for a while and finally made our way to the Boom-A-Ring circus area for the morning events. As fans of all things white trash, we were excited to find Gravedigger (the monster truck) on display at the circus.
We met up with fellow eating fan, Valerie, who managed to get in the press area and was able to take some amazing pictures. Before the contest began, we were able to talk to Juliet Lee who is as lovely in person as she is in pictures. It was pretty exciting because she knew who we were even before we introduced ourselves.
Right before the contest began, there were some PETA protesters right outside of the gate yelling stuff about Ringling Brothers and how they treat their animals. Coming from small-town North Carolina, we had never seen any PETA protesters before in real life, so that was interesting. Anyway, the humans put up a good fight against the elephants, cramming as many buns as possible in their mouths, but the gentle giants prevailed in the end. It was actually pretty cute watching the elephants eat because sometimes one bun would fall on the ground and they would reach down and grab that single bun instead of a big bunch of buns on the table. In the end, the humans ate a combined 147 buns and the elephants ate a total of 505.
After watching mass bun consumption, it was time for us to do some eating of our own. Carrie, Jamie, Valerie, and I made our way over to Nathan's Famous on the corner of Surf and Stillwell to experience the glory of a Nathan's Hot dog--well they did, I had chili cheese fries instead. I am not a hot dog eater--at all--but I did taste a bite of Carrie's chili dog just to say that I had eaten one, and it was pretty good (for a hot dog).
We made our way over to the Coney Island Cyclone which was a pretty big damn deal for us because of our past roller coaster obsession. Any coaster enthusiast knows that the Coney Island Cyclone is the ride everyone must take at least once in their lives, and riding it was amazing! We each sat in our own seat and were tossed around on every turn and were lifted out of our seats, experiencing maximum airtime. The Cyclone is officially the best wooden coaster in the world!
Leaving Coney Island, we found our way through Brooklyn to Junior's restaurant for a slice of cheesecake. The slices were huge, and still being full from Nathan's, we decided to split a piece of devil's food cheesecake. Excellent choice on our part, because the cream cheese mixed with the dark chocolate was a tasty combination.
Other things we did on our day of being tourists:
-Saw Wall Street/New York Stock Exchange
-Visited Canal Street and bought knock offs (Carrie got a purse, I got a watch. Both broke within 24 hours.)
-Found the outside shot of the Cosby Show house
-Saw the Dakota, where John Lennon was shot
-Went to Strawberry Fields
-Walked around Times Square at night
-Ate at the Magnolia Bakery (I had a brownie with cream cheese icing/toffee/pecans. DELICIOUS!)
Overall, our touristy day in New York was busy and awesome. Next post: 4th of July!
We met up with fellow eating fan, Valerie, who managed to get in the press area and was able to take some amazing pictures. Before the contest began, we were able to talk to Juliet Lee who is as lovely in person as she is in pictures. It was pretty exciting because she knew who we were even before we introduced ourselves.
Right before the contest began, there were some PETA protesters right outside of the gate yelling stuff about Ringling Brothers and how they treat their animals. Coming from small-town North Carolina, we had never seen any PETA protesters before in real life, so that was interesting. Anyway, the humans put up a good fight against the elephants, cramming as many buns as possible in their mouths, but the gentle giants prevailed in the end. It was actually pretty cute watching the elephants eat because sometimes one bun would fall on the ground and they would reach down and grab that single bun instead of a big bunch of buns on the table. In the end, the humans ate a combined 147 buns and the elephants ate a total of 505.
After watching mass bun consumption, it was time for us to do some eating of our own. Carrie, Jamie, Valerie, and I made our way over to Nathan's Famous on the corner of Surf and Stillwell to experience the glory of a Nathan's Hot dog--well they did, I had chili cheese fries instead. I am not a hot dog eater--at all--but I did taste a bite of Carrie's chili dog just to say that I had eaten one, and it was pretty good (for a hot dog).
We made our way over to the Coney Island Cyclone which was a pretty big damn deal for us because of our past roller coaster obsession. Any coaster enthusiast knows that the Coney Island Cyclone is the ride everyone must take at least once in their lives, and riding it was amazing! We each sat in our own seat and were tossed around on every turn and were lifted out of our seats, experiencing maximum airtime. The Cyclone is officially the best wooden coaster in the world!
Leaving Coney Island, we found our way through Brooklyn to Junior's restaurant for a slice of cheesecake. The slices were huge, and still being full from Nathan's, we decided to split a piece of devil's food cheesecake. Excellent choice on our part, because the cream cheese mixed with the dark chocolate was a tasty combination.
After consuming thousands of calories between Nathan's and Junior's we decided that it would be a good idea to walk back to Manhattan via the Brooklyn Bridge. Walking the bridge was probably one of my favorite parts of the trip because we were able to see great views of the city without being rushed.
Other things we did on our day of being tourists:
-Saw Wall Street/New York Stock Exchange
-Visited Canal Street and bought knock offs (Carrie got a purse, I got a watch. Both broke within 24 hours.)
-Found the outside shot of the Cosby Show house
-Saw the Dakota, where John Lennon was shot
-Went to Strawberry Fields
-Walked around Times Square at night
-Ate at the Magnolia Bakery (I had a brownie with cream cheese icing/toffee/pecans. DELICIOUS!)
Overall, our touristy day in New York was busy and awesome. Next post: 4th of July!
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Day 4-Thursday in NYC
Our journey to New York City began around 8:45in Philadelphia. Our Philadelphia hostess, Amanda, helped get us to the subway train that took us to the commuter train which took us to Trenton, New Jersey. The ride from Philly to Trenton took about 45 minutes and then we hopped trains from Trenton to Penn Station in New York, which took about an hour or so.
Once in The Big Apple, we hailed a cab to take us to my friend Stephanie's apartment. We had originally planned on walking to her place but it started raining and I had a heavy bag full of Sun Drops to deliver to our New York hostess, so it seemed easier to catch a ride. By this point it was time to eat again, so we dropped off our bags at our new home for three nights, met up with Stephanie, and walked a block or two to Blockheads and indulged in some delicious burritos and tons of chips and salsa. We parted our ways with Stephanie after lunch and headed out to explore the city.
We didn't really have an agenda for the first day so we just walked around until we saw something to look at. We ended up finding the Plaza Hotel, which was exciting for us because we love Home Alone 2! We also checked out F.A.O. Schwartz and saw the Big piano, Trump Tower, and walked into a few expensive fancy New York clothes stores.
We were pretty tired after traveling/walking all day so we decided just to take it easy Thursday night. The evening was spent laying around Stephanie's apartment, gorging on pizza and garlic knots from Fat Sal's, and watching the Sex and the City movie. Another early night in for us!
Coming next: Humans vs Elephants, Cheesecake, & Gurtitation.
Once in The Big Apple, we hailed a cab to take us to my friend Stephanie's apartment. We had originally planned on walking to her place but it started raining and I had a heavy bag full of Sun Drops to deliver to our New York hostess, so it seemed easier to catch a ride. By this point it was time to eat again, so we dropped off our bags at our new home for three nights, met up with Stephanie, and walked a block or two to Blockheads and indulged in some delicious burritos and tons of chips and salsa. We parted our ways with Stephanie after lunch and headed out to explore the city.
We didn't really have an agenda for the first day so we just walked around until we saw something to look at. We ended up finding the Plaza Hotel, which was exciting for us because we love Home Alone 2! We also checked out F.A.O. Schwartz and saw the Big piano, Trump Tower, and walked into a few expensive fancy New York clothes stores.
We were pretty tired after traveling/walking all day so we decided just to take it easy Thursday night. The evening was spent laying around Stephanie's apartment, gorging on pizza and garlic knots from Fat Sal's, and watching the Sex and the City movie. Another early night in for us!
Coming next: Humans vs Elephants, Cheesecake, & Gurtitation.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Day 3: Philly
We left Baltimore around 9 and headed towards Philadelphia. Our first major stop once in Philly was to settle the great cheesesteak debate: Geno's vs Pat's. We plugged the address into the GPS and it took us directly to the intersection of artery-clogging heaven. We decided to try Pat's first. We sent Carrie to order our "Cheese Wit" because Jamie and I were too intimidated.
We'd seen the TV shows about how to order sandwiches at these places and were afraid we'd mess up. Anyway, the sandwich was delicious. Cheez Whiz may or may not be real cheese but it sure does make a sandwich delicious.
We'd seen the TV shows about how to order sandwiches at these places and were afraid we'd mess up. Anyway, the sandwich was delicious. Cheez Whiz may or may not be real cheese but it sure does make a sandwich delicious.
After Pat's we walked over to Geno's. By this point, I was over my fear of ordering and got our sandwich. This time we got a cheesesteak with onions and provolone. Once again, we were not disappointed with our sandwich choice.
So, which is better according to the HungrySisters--Geno's or Pat's? We couldn't come to a unanimous decision, but here is what we did decide:
So, which is better according to the HungrySisters--Geno's or Pat's? We couldn't come to a unanimous decision, but here is what we did decide:
-All three of us thought that the bread at Geno's was far superior to Pat's
-Sadie: Liked the chopped meat at Pat's and preferred Cheez Whiz to provolone
-Carrie: Liked the sliced meat at Geno's and preferred provolone cheese
-Jamie: Liked it all
With our bellies full of steak & cheese, we set off. We did all of the American touristy things: saw the Liberty Bell, Constitution Hall, Independence Hall, Ben Franklin's grave, Carpenter's Hall, and went to Reading Terminal Market. We literally could have spent all day in the market sampling the different foods. We will definitely be back to visit! It was awesome! We were still full from our sandwiches earlier so we just had a snack in the market at Famous 4th Street Cookies. I had a pecan chocolate chip cookie, Carrie had an original chocolate chip cookie, and Jamie got chocolate chip dipped in chocolate icing. The cookies were amazing; they look like they will be hard and crunchy on the outside but they are deliciously dense and chewy on the inside.
After many miles of walking and sight seeing, we met our friend/Philly hostess Amanda who took us to a bar participating in Center City Sips--a Wednesday night happy hour program in Philadelphia. I can't remember the name of the restaurant, but I do know that they had $2 Yuenglings and 1/2 price nacho supreme appetizers, an excellent way to end a long day of touring Philly.
We headed back to Amanda's place and fell asleep pretty early again which seemed to be an on-going yet very necessary theme of our trip.
--Sadie
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
