Job is easy to stomach for TV show host
TRAVEL CHANNEL | Adam Richman takes on eating challenges from coast to coast
Many men have made sacrifices for their art. But Adam Richman, the Travel Channel's newest host, sacrifices his stomach.
On "Man V. Food," a new series premiering at 9 tonight, Richman travels the country taking on food challenges -- you know, the eat-43-chili-dogs-and-get-a-free-T-shirt kind of challenges.
(Jean Lachat/Sun-Times)
Richman has taken on the Sasquatch burger in Memphis. A 3-pound sundae in Vermont. He has eaten a 20-ounce burrito in under 20 minutes.
So a trip to Chicago was a no-brainer.
"The food defines the region," the self-taught food fanatic said during a break in filming at Al's Beef on Taylor Street. "At no point on the show do I espouse eating like this 24/7. But when you're traveling, you want the experience."
He takes his culinary anthropology seriously. At Al's, Richman faced off against a double-meat, double-cheese reuben -- and triumphed in half an hour.
"I think I may have moved some organs around," he admitted.
"You've gotta love a place that's making sandwiches the same way they did 70 years ago, and, God willing, will be in another 70 years," he said.
Richman, 34, was raised in Brooklyn and earned a master's degree from the Yale School of Drama. His irresistible charm is part folksy, part intellectual, part stand-up comedian.
Women want to hug him. Men want to . . . well, consume atomic hot wings with him at a rapid speed.
As an actor, Richman landed guest stints on "All My Children" and "Law & Order: Trial by Jury." (Fittingly, on "Joan of Arcadia," he played "Butcher God.")
In between, he educated himself on eating. In 1995, he started a journal detailing his travels, the restaurants he visited and what he learned.
So as soon as he heard about "Man V. Food," he got on the phone to his agent.
He found out he got the gig when he was at a McDonald's.
"I don't know many people who got their dream job," Richman said. "Maybe the quality control officer at Playboy. I count my blessings."
One of those blessings is "a little bit of a cast-iron stomach," he said. "I love spicy food -- like you're licking a comet."
Since this is the first season of "Man V. Food," it remains to be seen how Richman's physique will hold up. Many competitive eaters specialize -- in chocolate, say, or pizza. But Richman doesn't choose his missions.
Even more daunting: Every challenge seems to involve ginormous quantities.
"But the quantity is accompanied by quality," said Richman, who relishes dining at the very best chow huts. "It's not just abject gluttony."
His only hope is to make the most of his days off. His trainer is merciless.
"She made me puke my first session," he confessed. "I work out like a beast."
But it's all worth it, says Richman, who is collecting free T-shirts and racking up photos on the walls of all the best joints across the country.
He already feels like a winner. The title is "Man V. Food," after all.
"And food," Richman says, "it ain't your day."