Foodievents

‘Gentleman’ Joe Points to the Fences, Promises 75 Dumplings in Two Minutes

It’s going to be a wet day tomorrow, but the NYC Dumpling Festival is on, rain or shine. Your Grub Street editor, Daniel “Mosca” Maurer, is coming out of competitive-eating retirement and might just strap the fairy, er, fly, wings on for this one. Competition for the $1,000 top prize is going to be tough: While twenty women will compete against each other, there will be no fewer than 40 dudes downing dumplings starting at 1 p.m., including the winner for the past five years, “Gentleman” Joe Menchetti. Last year, he gulped down 66 of them in two minutes, at an astonishing rate of 1.1 dumplings every two seconds. (The women’s finalist, Floria Lee, managed 38 dumplings). And this year, Menchetti tells ESPN Radio that he plans to top 75. If, through some sort of masticatory miracle, we manage to beat that, come find us — your $5 plates are on us.

‘Gentleman’ Joe Points to the Fences, Promises 75 Dumplings in Two