Ever wondered how to land a plum gig inhaling artery-hardening goodies for sport and money? For Man v. Food human trash compactor Adam Richman, the answer was heartbreak. And poetry!
He’s currently dealing with rumors of ill health induced by his gluttonous diet; Man v. Food’s format will shift to Man v. Food Nation, offering audience members the chance to compete in the ulcer-inducing eat-offs once reserved for Richman alone.
But it seems the real pain came for Richman long before he embarked on a TV career. Emory magazine tracks the alum’s ascendance in their current issue and discovers that he actually began frequenting restaurants as a form of romantic catharsis:
Richman went through a couple of shattering break-ups as a student, and one of the things he did in response was buy a fancy leather-bound Moleskine notebook in which to write, he says, ‘angst-ridden, black-turtleneck, clove-cigarette-smoking college poetry.’ Instead, he wandered into Virginia’s, a cozy restaurant tucked away on a residential street in the Virginia Highland neighborhood (gone now, sadly), and started writing about it.
The lovelorn Richman pulled up a chair and unburdened himself by way of food journals; soon, a passion for gluttonizing was born. And now? Well, he’s been dubbed “mankind’s culinary porn star“! Tough to swallow, no doubt, for the unsuspecting coeds who broke his heart.
Soul Food [Emory Magazine]
Related: Man vs. Food Porn
