Man v. Food Season 3 Episode 19: Ann Arbor
The season three finale finds Adam in Ann Arbor, Michigan, home to the University of Michigan, to take on the Mt. Nachismo Challenge at Tios Mexican Cafe. This mammoth sized nacho plate is five pounds of yummy meats, refried beans, cheese, and toppings. If Adam can defeat this plate of nachos in forty-five minutes, he wins a t-shirt and a place on Tios Mexican Cafe’s wall of fame; if he loses his picture goes up on Tios Mexican Cafe’s wall of shame. Ninety percent of challengers have lost the Mt. Nachismo Challenge.
Adam’s first stop on the University of Michigan campus is Krazy Jim’s Blimpy Burger, where they make quarter pound burgers piled up with a vast amount of choices for hamburger buns, grilled toppings, cheeses and condiments. Adam hangs with a freshman who is trying his first Blimpy Burger. When the frosh bites into the burger he is bowled over with how tasty it is. Adam tells the audience there are over thirty different toppings for Blimpy Burgers, which equals to over two billion different variations of Blimpy Burgers!
Adam heads back to the kitchen at Krazy Jim’s to choose toppings for his own Blimpy Burger experience. Manager Paul Hoppin shows Adam how the Blimpy Burger is put together. Each hamburger patty is a quarter pound, with most orders consisting of two to five burger patties. Paul tells Adam the record for the most burger patties consumed in one sitting is forty-three! Adam goes for the five patty burger. As his burgers grill, Paul adds Adam’s choices for the grilled toppings to his burger: grilled onions with Worcestershire sauce, a fried egg, and three slices of bacon. Next comes Adam’s choices of cheese for the burger: crumbles of Blue cheese and Swiss cheese. Next Paul adds Adam’s choices for condiments: stone ground mustard, ketchup, black olives, lettuce and tomato. Adam dives into this juicy burger and as he sighs tells Paul “Oh, my word, the burger is unbelievable!”
Adam’s next stop on campus is at the Maize and Blue Delicatessen, where they are famous for their delicious sandwiches. Maize and Blue Deli has eighty-five sandwiches to choose from. Adam is at the deli to taste their Triple Play Reuben, a meaty reuben sandwich topped with cheeses, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing, grilled melty and crispy in a pannini press.
Adam heads back to the kitchen, where Manager Ehab “Eric” Sukkar is ready to show him how the Triple Play Reuben is created. Eric starts with two pieces of thick sourdough rye bread, drenched in Russian dressing. The meats are next, with a pound each of corned beef and pastrami added to the sandwich. Next on the sandwich are slices of Swiss and Jarlsberg cheeses, topped off with sauerkraut. After a trip to the pannini press, Adam’s Triple Play Reuben sandwich is ready for tasting. Adam takes a mega bite of the sandwich and is stunned by the flavor, telling the audience “My whole world has been turned into chaos…I thought the only good Reuben I could get was in New York!”
Adam arrives at Tios Mexican Cafe for the Mt. Nachismo Challenge. Adam will win a t-shirt and a place on Tios Mexican Cafe’s wall of fame if he can take down the plate of nachos in forty-five minutes. Adam is up against it since ninety percent of challengers lose the Mt. Nachismo Challenge.
A montage shows Adam preparing for the Mt. Nachismo Challenge by changing into the University of Michigan football team’s uniform and running football drills in order to work up a big appetite.
Adam visits the kitchen at Tios Mexican Cafe to see the mountain of nachos he must face in the challenge. Head Chef Jeremy Seaver walks Adam through the creation of the Mt. Nachismo Challenge platter. First Chef Seaver lays down a a huge pile of tortilla chips as the foundation for the plate. Next Chef Seaver adds tons of his homemade refried beans to the chips. A blend of shredded Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheeses are added to top the beans. The next layer is full of meats: shredded chicken, pork, and beef are added to the mound of food. The final garnishes of tomatoes, onions, olives, green peppers, guacamole and sour cream are added, topped by a massive amount of spicy Con Queso cheese sauce.
Adam heads into the dining room where Man vs Food fans are screaming and cheering him on. Adam sits at the table, and Chef Seaver delivers the massive nacho platter. The challenge begins and Adam grabs handfuls of nachos and starts munching. Adam tells the audience the nachos are delicious as he takes his first bite. As Adam keeps eating he tells the audience no matter how much he eats, there seems to be no difference in the amount of nachos on the plate. As Adam scarfs down the food he looks into the camera and asks “Want some nachos?” The crowd encourages Adam, chanting “Go, Adam, go!” After fifteen minutes of noshing, Adam is a third of the way through the nacho platter. Adam notes that the homemade refried beans are not his friend being so thick and rich, telling the audience “It’s like an appetizer ambush”, and bemoaning “The beans are knucking futz!”
Adam gets through the second third of the food and has fifteen minutes remaining in the challenge. Adam seems to be struggling when one of the diners decide to cheer him on, yelling to the crowd “Climb Mt. Nachismo!” The crowd picks up the “Climb Mt. Nachismo!” chant, and Adam goes into overdrive. Adam devours the remaining nachos until in the last few minutes only one bite remains. Adam stands and takes the final bite as the crowd cheers. Adam receives his Mt. Nachismo t-shirt proudly. Adam tells the audience that today, in the Mt. Nachismo Challenge of man vs food, man won!
