Man v. Food

All those overly dramatic reviews just have to be written by health freaks. My God, get over it, it's a TV show, nobody is ever invited to follow him, or try it at home. people watch it over here in Ireland & the UK too, and we don't have such massive obesity problems. if your kids are so easily influenced by what they see on TV, switch it off!

I love watching the mounds of crap that these restaurants conjure up. BUT, it is true that he kisses ass a little, I've never once seen him say something was terrible or even just not great. Everything he eats is "Awesome" and it is the over Americanised exaggerating (like every challenge has a crowd of overly eager - possibly actors - behind him) that ruins it in the end.

Watch it on a full tum and you won't go hitting the fridge ;)

There are a lot of shows on television that travel to a variety of locations to show off the different foods that we can eat, but Man V. Food is far and away the best of the bunch. Host Adam Richman travels the country to find the great pig-out places all over our great land. He also tackles a food challenge in every city he visits, ranging from 15 dozen oysters in New Orleans, to a giant burger challenge in Boston, to the Don Juan Taco Challenge in Austin, Texas(You have to watch the reruns on the Travel Channel to view the winner). Sometimes the winner is man, sometimes the winner is food. No matter who reigns victorious it is still an extremely entertaining half hour, even if you are not a big fan of these types of show. What sets it apart from other shows in this category and other shows period, is the host, Adam Richman. First of all, I can say, Adam can eat. You can clearly see after watching a few episodes that he is also having a lot of fun in what I would classify as one of the top twenty jobs in the United States. He gets to travel, he gets to eat. What else can I say. Beyond that he is intelligent about food, he is extremely funny for someone who has just downed seven pounds of burger and fries, and the viewer even gets to learn a little food history. Beyond that, its just fun to sit on the couch and say "I can do that" or "There is no @#$*& way I could eat that." So if you want to watch the best show on TV right now, turn to the travel channel. And Adam, if you ever want to try the Carnivore Pizza Challenge again, Give me a call. Great show.

For a couple of years now they're showing more and more Cooking- and Food-shows on German (private) Television, something that has been lacking for quiet a few years (this is, unless you enjoy a 60-something lady cooking "Toast Hawaii", a combination of toast, ham, cheese and a slice of pineapple). Gordon Ramsays "Kitchen Nightmares", Andrew Zimmerns "Bizarre Foods", Bourdains "No Reservation", to name but a few. Among one of the more entertaining of those shows is "Man v. Food" which, in my opinion has some very positive features, but also some rather negative aspects. Let's start with the bad first: For one, Adam Richman isn't the most charismatic of presenters. Quiet the opposite: occasionally he comes across as pretty obnoxious, something between a hyped-up Frat-brother, wanna-be Hip-Hopper and a professional glutton. Sure, the variations of the concept are limited, but then again: there are only so many ways with which to stuff food into one orifice within a limited time. During the final, "challenge"-segments, it occasionally also hurts the taste-buds to see plates of food, that look definitely delicious, being so mindlessly destroyed within a limited time. But maybe that's only the food-snob within me speaking.

Which brings us to the good: Many Europeans, who have never visited the US, have the preconceived notion that Americans live on Hamburgers, Steak and the occasional fried chicken alone. Apart from the mindless gluttony of the challenges, the show gives some very nice travel-tip for outsiders, showing them that there is another world apart from McD's, Burger King and (for the obesity-conscious) Subways. "Man v. Food" gave me quiet a lengthy list of "to-dos" when I visit the States the next time and once I sit down at the Orochon-Ramen-house in Little Tokyo, I'll do so on recommendation of "Man v. Food". However, no "challenge" for me. See, I do enjoy enjoying my food and taking less than an hour for a good meal does seem like swallowing in haste.

In other words: Thanks for the recommendation, Mr. Richman, as well as for the freak-show.

As far as the more "exotic" food-shows go, I'd give it a 6/10

Adam Richman was fantastic, Casey a bit rubbish.

A series of it's time, but now we have the internet and YouTube which has much more extreme food challenges on.

Half cooking show, half strange competition show. It started the competitive eating awareness and gave birth to watching men eat too much food in a way the killer from Se7en would find agreeable in the first kill - Gluttony.

Beard vs Food on YouTube is the UK version, wildly popular as he does food in the UK and over the globe.

It's very entertaining and will make you want to pick up your phone and order Uber Eats/Just-Eat. But with the obesity crisis, do we need this in 2024?

I still like this show but I miss Adam. Casey is a funny guy but Adam was a better host than Casey. Casey loses too many challenges. Adam won the majority of his challenges.