Prepare your insides for a vinegar-infused attack tomorrow at the Carnegie Deli's semi-annual pickle eating contest (or just watch from the sidelines). Either way, the 20th anniversary of the competition is taking place tomorrow, in a weather-proof tent on the sidewalk in front of the famed deli, where ten contestants will line their guts with as many full sours as they can handle over the course of five minutes. Sound appetizing? You could be one of them.
The contest is free and open to the public—all you have to do is show up around 10:30, a half an hour before the staring bell sounds, and sign a release in case of choking. (Don't worry, there's an ambulance parked next to the restaurant for the amateurs who can't handle extreme pickle inhalation.) Each contestant will be given a bowl with five lbs of pickles, which is weighed at the end of the five minutes to determine the winner. The record currently stands at 3.8 lbs, and is held by none other than Curtis Sliwa, founder of the Guardian Angels and reigning salt chugging champion.
"I will tell you something: it's more fun to watch than to eat," said Steve Liebowitz, CPM (that's Chief Pickle Maven) of sponsor United Pickle Products Corp. "It's absolutely nauseating." Find out for yourself tomorrow—the contest is scheduled to start at 11, and last year drew some 500 onlookers, so arrive early for a good, juicy spot.
