What is it about warm temperatures that gets people in the mood to physically force pound upon pound of one kind of food down their throat in a limited amount of time? We don't know either, but hot off the heels of all the press surrounding the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest and its bid for gender equality comes word of another annual competitive eating event, this one for Japanese curry rice at Midtown's Go! Go! Curry. Get psyched! In the restaurant's own words, "One of the most common food in Japan, 'CURRY RICE' has become an exciting sport!"
There are three qualifying rounds (May 5th, 10th and 15th) open to walk-ins left before the main event on May 28th, in which five competitors will chow down on special 5.5-ounce "Wanko"-sized plates of curry rice, racing against each other and the five minute and fifty-five second clock. Organizers have promised a top-secret finalist all the way from Japan, and plan to live-stream the gluttony on the Go! Go! website. Preemptive potential NSFW/ life warning: though competitors will be disqualified for vomiting during the competition, it's always an exciting possibility.
What does organizer Kazuka Nagao think of all the hype surrounding the hot dogs at Coney Island? "We've had women who tried the qualifying round but none of them have made to the final. When we have enough female participants, we might separate the category, but not for now. Japan also has a long history of competitive eating, so hopefully in the future we will have more women and participants from Japan! I am very impressed that so many American participants have been handling Japanese curry and rice well," she says. The grand prize is a $500 American Express Gift Card, plus $55 worth of Go! Go! Curry meal tickets, because there's no such thing as too much curry rice.
