Aggressive eater Joey Chestnut declared Lengthy Island’s bagels “could be one of the best” after chowing down on a sampling of native bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches — which he washed down with 26 bowls of soft-serve ice cream.
The perennial Nathan’s Sizzling Canine Consuming Contest champ’s frank admission might spark some red-hot debate within the Massive Apple, the place assured New Yorkers may toast his buns for daring to assert there are higher bagels outdoors of the 5 boroughs.
“Lengthy Island bagels, I really feel like they could be one of the best,” Chestnut, 42, informed The Submit after his BEC-on-bagel tour of the island in April. “You’re getting a bit of completely different, little bit higher … It’s type of cool.”
However the Kentucky native and California-raised client claims that any native rivalry between the burbs and the boroughs means little or no outdoors of the Empire State — the place outsiders would view all of them as merely “New York bagels.”
Chestnut’s unannounced April journey by way of Nassau and Suffolk included stops at 4 breakfast spots: Dominick’s Deli in New Hyde Park — a spot additionally well-known for its hen fingers — together with Syosset’s Bagel Grasp, Kerber’s Farm in Huntington and Wally’s Bagels of Babylon.
He acquired a hero’s welcome.
“Aggressive consuming — it’s type of bizarre. Everyone knows this,” Chestnut laughed. “However the individuals who actually suppose it’s bizarre, they don’t acknowledge me, the individuals who do acknowledge me, they’re all the time good folks, they usually’re pleased, and I’m simply tremendous fortunate.”
On the subject of Chestnut’s BEC order, he hardly ever goes outlandish and sometimes stays within the respectable realm of including simply salt, pepper and scorching sauce.
Generally he’ll toss on avocado, which can be a polarizing favourite of Islanders phenom Matthew Schaefer.
“I really like a great garlic bagel … typically an all the things bagel,” Chestnut mentioned.
Sizzling doggin’ it
Chestnut was lured out to the island by GOAT USA clothes co-founder TJ Cristina of East Williston, who first caught the aggressive consuming GOAT’s consideration on-line by streaming a small employees scorching canine consuming contest in 2019.
“He answered our DMs and mentioned, ‘Guys, that is unbelievable, ‘” Cristina recalled.
After years of forwards and backwards, they have been lastly in a position to schmear a bit of love on LI’s bagel and meals scene in particular person.
“We all know that Lengthy Island is placing out the best of all time bagels,” mentioned Cristina, whose model will probably be promoting bacon, egg, and cheese shirts this summer season.
Chestnut completed his day on the GOAT USA Riverhead outlet retailer, the place he participated in a pleasant vanilla soft-serve ice cream consuming contest in opposition to 4 employees.
“I didn’t know the way significantly he was going to take it … however 5 minutes earlier than we began, he was doing these warm-ups for his jaw,” mentioned Robke’s proprietor, Louie Selvaggio, who officiated the competitors.
“He took it as significantly as you could possibly. He went all out.”
Chestnut downed 26 bowls in six minutes — different opponents mixed for 25.
“They nearly beat me, and it was enjoyable,” Chestnut claimed, including that ice cream is a heck of so much tougher to scarf down than scorching canines, as “it adjustments your physique temperature.”
“My throat was hurting. My abdomen was actually chilly for some time,” Chestnut added, saying that packing down the dairy after for BEC sandwiches “wasn’t the worst” taste crossover.
“It’s simply bizarre to eat ice cream quick. Your complete life, you eat it sluggish. So it’s bizarre to eat ice cream with a way of urgency.”
Selvaggio described Chestnut’s dedication — he beforehand set a file for 25.5 ice cream sandwiches in 2018 — as like nothing he had ever seen in his complete life.
What saved Chestnut from freezing up on the massive Lengthy Island stage was that “you discover causes to do it, as a substitute of discovering causes to not do it,” the professional eater mentioned of enjoying by way of the ache.
“Really, I had ice cream final week,” he chuckled.
Subsequent, Chestnut will flip his consideration to what will probably be an particularly patriotic Nathan’s Sizzling Canine Consuming contest on America’s 250th birthday on Coney Island.
“Though I’m 42, I’m nonetheless going to be attempting exhausting to make a file,” mentioned Chestnut, who downed a historic 76 scorching canines on the 2021 occasion.
He’ll be working towards on Thursday with 75 scorching canines, video work, and have a pair buddies over to yell at me and never let me get lazy,” he mentioned.
“I must convey it,” Chestnut mentioned. “It’s a must to be prepared to go farther than anybody else so as to do what no one else can do.”
