Man v. Food Season 2 Episode 13: Baltimore
Adam visits Baltimore, Maryland and gears up for his next mission: The Great Steak Challenge at Steak & Main restaurant. If Adam finishes off 74 ounces of steak and one pound of side dishes he wins $100. If Adam loses, he must pay the cost of the bill for the mega sized steak meal, a whopping $140 meal.
Adam’s first chow down in Baltimore is at Chaps Charcoal Restaurant, where they serve scrumptious pit beef sandwiches. One of their popular sandwiches is “The Raven”: pit beef, turkey, corned beef topped with onions, barbecue sauce and American cheese, then coated with their special Tiger Sauce. Adam digs into the sandwich with gusto. For TV trivia fans, a fun fact: I caught a glimpse of Adam’s t-shirt at Chaps Pit Beef restaurant. Fans of cable show “The Wire”, set in Baltimore, might recognize the logo on his shirt “Carcetti for Mayor” as a character from the well-known TV series.
Next Adam travels to Obrycki’s Crab House and Seafood Restaurant, famous for their seafood, especially their cracked crab. Adam looks on as the owner grabs blue crabs for the meal, aiming a live one at Adam who cringes and jumps back from the swinging crab claws. Owner Rob Cernak teaches Adam how to crack open their delectible fresh cooked blue crabs with a mallet to reach the rich crab meat inside the shell.
Finally its time for Adam to face The Great Steak Challenge at Steak & Main restaurant. Two dozen challengers so far have tried the challenge but only four have succeeded. Adam must devour 74 ounces of steak and one pound of side dishes in one hour. The challenge features five of the finest steaks available including Filet Mignon, Flat Iron, Delmonico, Prime Rib and New York Strip.
The crowd is revved up and cheering Adam on. Adam dives into the steaks, finishing the Filet Mignon, Flat Iron and Prime Rib after twenty minutes. He hits the “meat wall” as he calls it when eating the Delmonico steak, and uses the sides to help get it down. He’s looking queasy at this point and the crowd is chanting “Man v. Food” to encourage him. As Adam eats the New York Strip steak he is struggling with every bite, standing up and taking a breather before final bites. Adam gets down to three bites of steak and can’t make it through the challenge. So close! He pays up the $140 bill after a courageous try at besting The Great Steak Challenge and admits today “food won”.
