Yesterday we learned that disgraced former State Senator Hiram Monserrate had moved from slashing faces to slicing pizzas. But what was missing from the story was a review of the pies at Papaya Pizza. But no longer! Competitive eater Jason "Crazy Legs" Conti—who, having eaten 21 slices in 10 minutes at last year's Upper Crust Pizza Eating World Championship, knows a thing or two about pizza—stopped by for a try yesterday and did not come out a fan. more ›

Attention competitive eating fans – hey, stop snickering; it’s a legitimate sport regulated by an International Federation! As one fan site says, "For those of you who doubt it's a sport, try making your body consume 20 pounds of food in 10 minutes." Anyway, C.E. fans will definitely want to plan for an extra-long lunch break on Tuesday, May 20th, when two of the world’s biggest "gurgitory gladiators" will lock horns in a Battle Royale for watermelon eating dominance. more ›

It's our favorite July 4th tradition, this side of smiley-face fireworks: The Annual Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest, held at Nathan's in Coney Island. And this year's competition is particularly tantalizing: Current champion Takeru Kobayashi has been having jaw pains, while Joey Chestnut broke the hot dog eating record, by scarfing down 59.5 at a June event. So we shall begin our liveblogging, and Jen Chung and Tien Mao will be providing other commentary during the competition from time to time. more ›

Gothamist has decided to liveblog this year's Nathan's Famous July Fourth Hot Dog Eating Contest. Jen and Tien will be providing color commentary; Tien will also be attempting to eat hot dogs competition-style more ›

The nice weather always seems to bring about crazy events, like tonight's Love Ahoy party. That's right, tonight the S.S. Hot Yacht will be docked at Galapagos and filled with bachelors, ladies and some of your favorite locals. more ›

This Friday at Crobar, the good people at Coney Island USA are having a fundraiser and mini-hot dog eating competition. The "City of Fire" Spring Gala will feature various entertainment, including Miss Coney Island, the World Famous Pontani Sisters, and a mini Mermaid Parade. For our money though, the eating competition is where the money is at. Dick Zigun, Coney Island USA's Artistic Director, will take on Crazy Legs Conti, the IFOCE's 12th ranked eater. more ›

When most people see forty nine hot dogs, it's usually behind the counter at Gray's Papaya. But at Coney Island yesterday, it was the gold standard, as the reigning world hot dog eating champion, Takeru Kobayashi, won his fifth consecutive hot dog eating belt at Nathan's, eating forty nine hot dogs in twelve minutes. And Gothamist thought our acid reflux this weekend was bad! The 27 year-old Kobayashi didn't beat his world record of 53.5 hot dogs, set last year, and admitted that he showed up some more muscle (check out those guns!) which may have hurt him. Dude, but still, the second place finisher was Sonya "The Black Widow" Thomas, the slender cheesecake eating champ, who downed 37 hot dogs. The Post reports that Kobayashi "struggled throughout the first half of the contest — until a prodigious belch at the 7-minute mark got him back on track. He then started stuffing hot dogs in his mouth three at a time, a new technique dubbed 'The Three Way.'" Where's our Zantac? more ›