Ready for the Charlie Boy challenge?
Miles Inn to host first-ever eating contest
By Jesse Claeys Journal staff writer | Posted: Friday, August 15, 2008
Ten Charlie Boys in 10 minutes? Miles Inn owner Julie Lias predicts the winner of the first-ever Charlie Boy eating contest on Saturday will consume 10 of the loosemeat sandwiches in 10 minutes.
Ten minutes to glory.
That's how the folks at Miles Inn are billing Saturday's first-ever Charlie Boy eating contest.
Ten minutes is how long 12 contestants will have to take down as many of the iconic loosemeat sandwiches as they can.
Glory comes in the form of cash prizes and being permanently immortalized on a plaque to be hung on the tavern's wall.
"We're thinking 10," Julie Lias, who owns Miles Inn with her husband Denny, said of the possible winning tally.
Charlie Boy No. 1
I ordered mine plain because that's how the competitors will do it at 3 p.m. on Saturday.
Called a tavern or loosemeat, a Charlie Boy follows a basic formula: a scoop of spiced beef (about 1/5 of a pound) cooked loose so it remains pebbly on the bun, garnished with pickles, onions and mustard, most often covered with cheese and never served on a plate.
Charlie Boy No. 2
For decades patrons of the Miles Inn, 2622 Leech Ave., have bit into wax paper wrapped Charlie Boys.
There are two things Lias can't tell you about the loosemeat sandwich -- the secret recipe for cooking the meat and how the concoction came to be.
"It started back with Charlie Miles," she said. "That's about all I know about it."
The historic tavern that dates back to 1925, when John Miles ran a corner grocery store from the building.
The now famous Charlie Boy takes its name from John Miles' grandson Charlie, who was named after his father Charlie Miles. The story goes that rather than call Charlie 'junior' they called him Charlie Boy.
Charlie Boy No. 3
Only once in my life have I ever chomped down three Charlie Boys. It was during Christmas break from college and I was in the pub for well over eight hours.
I skipped breakfast to prepare for my own personal Charlie Boy eating contest. Chance Norton, on the other hand, devoured half a box of cereal and a half gallon of milk. For lunch he took down a large pizza and an order of cheese sticks.
"You just eat and eat and eat 'till you can't eat again, and then a half hour later eat again. I'm eating like six times a day," Norton said of pre-eating contest preparations.
Norton is an unlikely competitive eater. The 22-year-old Sioux City resident stands 6'3" and weighs 162 pounds. He first caught the competitive eating bug as a teen, and in 2004 was crowned the hot dog eating champion at the North Dakota State Fair, finishing 23 wieners and buns in five minutes.
The bartender at Bev's on the River is currently "training" for another hot dog eating competition in October.
Charlie Boy No. 4
This is the point when Charlie Boys stopped being delicious.
"When I get to that point I chase everything with water. That helps me force it down," Norton, who doesn't aspire to join the professional eating ranks, said.
Professional? Professional eating falls under the governing body Major League Eating, which presides over a pastime it claims is the world's fasting growing "sport."
"It definitely is a sport," the former high school hockey player said. "No one can just walk in off of the street and do well in a competition. Some of it is natural God-given talent, but you also have to train. You got to want it."
And it's popular.
In July, 1.5 million people turned on ESPN to watch 23-year-old Joey Chestnut defeat Takeru Kobayashi at Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest, the Super Bowl for competitive eaters. Chestnut walked away with the title and $10,000 in prize money after swallowing 59 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes.
Charlie Boy No. 5
Vomiting was my main concern as I unwrapped my fifth sandwich. And, for some reason I started to sweat.
"I don't want to go into detail, but during an eating contest you're going to start to gag and stuff," Norton said. "It's then you have to just force it. Whatever you do don't throw up."
Throwing up or any regurgitation results in automatic disqualification from nearly every eating contest. Projectile vomiting is also a concern for Lias. That's why she decided to hold Saturday's eating contest outside in the parking lot of the bar.
Consuming mass quantities of beef, or any food, doesn't come without risk. Choking is always a concern, but intestinal injuries are expected to become more common as more people competitively eat.
According to Dr. James Hartje, a local gastroenterologist, the threat of gastric rupture does exist, as do long-term damages to the digestive capabilities.
"The big problems occur if the stomach doesn't empty," Hartje said. "If we're just talking about stuffing your face with a bunch of Charlie Boys, you're going to get bloated and vomit."
Charlie Boy No. 6?
Lias and the rest of the bar were slightly impressed with my consumption of five sandwiches.
"I'd say most guys who come in here order two of them. There are some who take down three of four, but not too many," Lias said.
My original plan was to take down 10 Charlie Boys in one sitting. After finally finishing my fifth in slightly under 30 minutes, I threw in the towel rather than throw up my stomach's contents on the bar.
Now, does anyone know how to get the taste of peppered beef out of a mouth?
That's how the folks at Miles Inn are billing Saturday's first-ever Charlie Boy eating contest.
Ten minutes is how long 12 contestants will have to take down as many of the iconic loosemeat sandwiches as they can.
Glory comes in the form of cash prizes and being permanently immortalized on a plaque to be hung on the tavern's wall.
"We're thinking 10," Julie Lias, who owns Miles Inn with her husband Denny, said of the possible winning tally.
Charlie Boy No. 1
I ordered mine plain because that's how the competitors will do it at 3 p.m. on Saturday.
Called a tavern or loosemeat, a Charlie Boy follows a basic formula: a scoop of spiced beef (about 1/5 of a pound) cooked loose so it remains pebbly on the bun, garnished with pickles, onions and mustard, most often covered with cheese and never served on a plate.
Charlie Boy No. 2
For decades patrons of the Miles Inn, 2622 Leech Ave., have bit into wax paper wrapped Charlie Boys.
There are two things Lias can't tell you about the loosemeat sandwich -- the secret recipe for cooking the meat and how the concoction came to be.
"It started back with Charlie Miles," she said. "That's about all I know about it."
The historic tavern that dates back to 1925, when John Miles ran a corner grocery store from the building.
The now famous Charlie Boy takes its name from John Miles' grandson Charlie, who was named after his father Charlie Miles. The story goes that rather than call Charlie 'junior' they called him Charlie Boy.
Charlie Boy No. 3
Only once in my life have I ever chomped down three Charlie Boys. It was during Christmas break from college and I was in the pub for well over eight hours.
I skipped breakfast to prepare for my own personal Charlie Boy eating contest. Chance Norton, on the other hand, devoured half a box of cereal and a half gallon of milk. For lunch he took down a large pizza and an order of cheese sticks.
"You just eat and eat and eat 'till you can't eat again, and then a half hour later eat again. I'm eating like six times a day," Norton said of pre-eating contest preparations.
Norton is an unlikely competitive eater. The 22-year-old Sioux City resident stands 6'3" and weighs 162 pounds. He first caught the competitive eating bug as a teen, and in 2004 was crowned the hot dog eating champion at the North Dakota State Fair, finishing 23 wieners and buns in five minutes.
The bartender at Bev's on the River is currently "training" for another hot dog eating competition in October.
Charlie Boy No. 4
This is the point when Charlie Boys stopped being delicious.
"When I get to that point I chase everything with water. That helps me force it down," Norton, who doesn't aspire to join the professional eating ranks, said.
Professional? Professional eating falls under the governing body Major League Eating, which presides over a pastime it claims is the world's fasting growing "sport."
"It definitely is a sport," the former high school hockey player said. "No one can just walk in off of the street and do well in a competition. Some of it is natural God-given talent, but you also have to train. You got to want it."
And it's popular.
In July, 1.5 million people turned on ESPN to watch 23-year-old Joey Chestnut defeat Takeru Kobayashi at Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest, the Super Bowl for competitive eaters. Chestnut walked away with the title and $10,000 in prize money after swallowing 59 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes.
Charlie Boy No. 5
Vomiting was my main concern as I unwrapped my fifth sandwich. And, for some reason I started to sweat.
"I don't want to go into detail, but during an eating contest you're going to start to gag and stuff," Norton said. "It's then you have to just force it. Whatever you do don't throw up."
Throwing up or any regurgitation results in automatic disqualification from nearly every eating contest. Projectile vomiting is also a concern for Lias. That's why she decided to hold Saturday's eating contest outside in the parking lot of the bar.
Consuming mass quantities of beef, or any food, doesn't come without risk. Choking is always a concern, but intestinal injuries are expected to become more common as more people competitively eat.
According to Dr. James Hartje, a local gastroenterologist, the threat of gastric rupture does exist, as do long-term damages to the digestive capabilities.
"The big problems occur if the stomach doesn't empty," Hartje said. "If we're just talking about stuffing your face with a bunch of Charlie Boys, you're going to get bloated and vomit."
Charlie Boy No. 6?
Lias and the rest of the bar were slightly impressed with my consumption of five sandwiches.
"I'd say most guys who come in here order two of them. There are some who take down three of four, but not too many," Lias said.
My original plan was to take down 10 Charlie Boys in one sitting. After finally finishing my fifth in slightly under 30 minutes, I threw in the towel rather than throw up my stomach's contents on the bar.
Now, does anyone know how to get the taste of peppered beef out of a mouth?
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Disappointed wrote on Aug 18, 2008 1:02 PM:
Diva wrote on Aug 15, 2008 5:41 PM:
From Sioux City wrote on Aug 15, 2008 5:25 PM:
Charlie Boy wrote on Aug 15, 2008 3:31 PM:
1 lb hamburger
1 small can Chicken & Gumbo Soup (the soup has rice in it, they may drain the rice, but we leave it in)
Lots, Lots of pepper.
Enjoy!! "
rcl wrote on Aug 15, 2008 2:31 PM:
www.recipezaar.com/87075 "