Forget about hot dogs. In D.C., the competitive eating competition that marks Independence Day involves lots and lots of Z-Burger burgers.
At the Tenleytown Z-Burger, 12 contestants bellied up to tables with dozens of burgers and waited for the countdown to chow down during the 14th Annual Independence Burger Eating Competition.
When the announcer said “go,” the eaters smooshed beef patties between two buns into their gaping maws, using water to get the chewed food down. Some placed their hands in front of their faces to keep the chewed-up mush in their mouths.
“There is nothing like an old-fashioned burger eating contest,” said Peter Tabibian, owner of Z-Burger.
He said six hundred burgers were cooked up for this event alone.
Molly Schuyler downed 34 burgers to defend her title as the person with the most wins. This year marks her ninth first-place finish in the competition.
“It’s really fun,” Schuyler said while holding a $2,000 prize check. A total of $6,500 in cash prizes went out to the top ten finishers.
Dan “Killer” Kennedy of West Decatur, Pennsylvania, kept down 32 burgers to take second place in the competition.
“I felt slow today, maybe it was the heat, or they changed the buns up a little bit which made them a little more difficult to eat,” Kennedy said.
But he considers Schuyler his best friend and says their fun rivalry will continue. He recently defeated her in a doughnut eating competition.
Andrew Puhl, also of West Decatur, Pennsylvania, came in fourth place after he consumed 27 burgers. He said while he wanted to win, of course, he enjoyed being a part of “the show.”
“That close a grouping of finishers, that puts on a good show,” Puhl said.
