Question of the Day - 18 March 2011

This is a timely question on a number of fronts, not least the recent news of the Sahara's impending (May 16) closure -- time is limited for anyone who still does want to take on the mammoth "Bomb Burrito" challenge -- a 24-inch, six-pound entrée intended for six to eight people, but free if you can handle it solo (otherwise, $19.95). There have been some other additions and subtractions since we last tackled this subject; here's the current lay of the land.

• Graziano's Pizza (8410 W. Desert Inn) is the continuation of a family-run pizza tradition that began in 1969 in New York. Their 24" Monster Pizza Challenge was upgraded not so long ago from 8 to 10 lbs of dough, mozarella, sauce, veggies, and meat ("to make it more of challenge. The challenge is to eat it with the help of a friend and so far, many have tried -- including one solo contestant who made it down to the last two or three slices and had to call it quits -- but only a half-dozen or so have succeeded. Successful contestants are rewarded with a T-shirt each, their photo in the Hall of Fame, and ... two large pizzas (ha! presumably you don't have to eat them on the same day as the challenge). Be warned, if you try and fail, that's about $45-worth of pizza you're looking at.

• The Longhorn Casino (5288 Boulder Highway) serves a one-pound "Monsterburger" and a 1 1/2-pound, 22-inch Vienna hot dog (a local bakery was recruited to make special buns). Both sell for $9.99 and that's not waived if you finish 'em, but you do get a certificate.

• At the gourmet end of the spectrum, Brand Steakhouse at the Monte Carlo is home to Chef Brian Massie's "Ultimate Steak" challenge. An entrée available for two (40 ounces for $92), for four (80 ounces for $178), and for six (120 ounces for $267), it's served with potato gratin and two signature sauces and if you eat the 120-ouncer all by yourself, it's on the house. A few people have completed the challenge, but when we once asked Chef Massie if he'd ever tried it himself, he replied in the negative and that he had no intention of ever attempting it.

• Kady's Coffee Shop at the Riviera has a new "Hot Taco Challenge": a foot-long taco with a sauce extract that tops out at a whopping 6 million on the Scoville scale (to give you some context, cayenne pepper tops out at only 50,000 SHU). Once mixed and on your taco, apparently the sauce simmers to a mere 750,000 SHU. Must be 18+ and sign a waiver to try this challenge. If you finish it, it’s free, you're immortalized in the Hall of Flames, and you receive a certificate with photo. If you fail to finish, it's duly noted in the Hall of Shame and you pay the bill of $7.99.

• Emily's Café at Club Fortune Casino last year introduced the "Colossus Burger Challenge," which consists of a gigantic burger, complete with 12 patties, available for $19.99 between 11 a.m. and 10 p.m. If you finish it solo in 20 minutes or less, you'll receive the meal and a t-shirt for free and have your photo placed on the café's wall. If you finish it in more than 20 minutes, you'll still receive a t-shirt. Several people have already successfully conquered this one.

• Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill at Harrah's has a 4 lb 8 oz "Big Dog Daddy" burger, which is 10.25 inches high by 8 inches in diameter. It costs $29.95, consists of two-pound beef patty, 4 ounces of cheese, 4 ounces of lettuce, tomato and onion, 2 ounces of pickle and a 10-ounce bun and feeds six. Finish it by yourself, including the 32-ounce beer and 16 ounces of "freedom fries" that it comes with, and they'll give you a T-shirt.

• Sammy Hagar's Cabo Wabo Cantina in the Miracle Mile Shops entered the food-challenge fray back in 2010 with their "Can't Drive 55" Dollar Nachos. This "appetizer" (you're meant to eat something else afterwards??!!) is piled high with 20 toppings, including chipotle sauce, queso, mixed cheese, black beans, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, olives, poblano peppers, pickled and fresh jalapenos, taco meat, carnitas, fajita chicken, carne asada, shrimp, sour cream, salsa, guacamole, and pico de gallo. It's available on request for $55, but if you can finish the eight-pound dish solo in less than 55 minutes it's free, plus you'll be inducted into Sammy Hagar’s Macho Nacho Hall of Fame and receive a complimentary Cabo Wabo T-shirt.

• Back in 2009 LBS: A Burger Joint, the eco-friendly gourmet fast food joint at Red Rock (which also now boasts the LBS Patty Wagon food truck), added a new option to its menu: the $30 "Extreme Burger," which includes six half-pound patties loaded with American cheese, smoked bacon, a Portobello mushroom, lettuce, tomato, red onion, pickles, LBS Burger sauce, spicy mustard, herb mayo, "ghost" peppers (the hottest chili in the world, as confirmed by the Guinness Book of World Records), and a pound of French fries. Clean your plate in an hour and it's on the house.

Click this link for some other extreme eating options around town, but not that the 13" "Bachelorette" hot dog at Serendipity III at Caesars Palace, which came with 10 toppings, was discontinued in the summer of 2010. For any gluttons for punishment, here's a link to some of the many other food challenges you can find around the nation, from monster meatballs to gargantuan curries.

Bon appétit et bonne chance!

We've been remiss in updating this epic QoD, but a new challenge that just launched has prompted us to also post about the other one we know of, namely the Nectaly's Ribeye at Herbs & Rye. This restaurant used to have two ribeye challenges: the "King Kong" 60 ouncer, with three sides, for $160; and the former Nectaly's, which weighed in at 120 ounces, plus three sides, and if you finished it solo, it wasn't just on the house -- they'd actually pay you $200. But upon a recent online menu check, we see that they are now just touting a 60-ounce Nectaly's challenge, which still comes with three sides. Billed as a "steak for five," it's now priced at the much-reduced cost of $85, and is on the house if you can manage it all by yourself. Meanwhile, the newbie in town is another from Chef Brian Massie at his recently debuted Citizens Kitchen & Bar that just opened at Mandalay Bay (in the spot formerly occupied by Red, White and Blue). The "Muffalata Challenge" is a gargantuan $135 sandwich, designed to feed six people; if one person finishes it on his or her own, Chef will tear up the check. 12/29/2011 We just found another one -- and our first dessert challenge! Take the "Devo Hat Challenge" at '80s-themed I Love Yogurt (11700 W Charleston): Eat 100 oz of frozen yog and toppings in 30 minutes and it's free, plus you get your photo on the wall; fail, and it's $19.84. 03/04/2011: We just learned that Kady's Coffee Shop at the Riviera has a "Hot Taco Challenge": Jalapeno Peppers hits 8,000 SHU on the Scoville Heat Scale, and Cayenne Pepper tops out at only 50,000 SHU. The Hot Taco Challenge is a foot long taco with a sauce extract that tops out at a whopping 6 million on the Scoville Scale! Once mixed and on your taco, it simmers to 750,000 SHU. Must be 18+ and sign a waiver to try this challenge. If you finish it, it’s free. You are immortalized in the Hall of Flames and will receive a certificate with photo. If you fail to finish, then it is so noted in the Hall of Shame and you pay the bill of $7.99. Additionally, finish or fail, you can take your photo at The Hot Taco Challenge stage. 02/28/2011 Several more food challenges have now been added to the Vegas roster. Back on Aug. 8, 2010 Emily's Café at Club Fortune Casino introduced the "Colossus Burger Challenge," which consists of a gigantic burger, complete with 12 patties, available for $19.99 between 11 a.m. and 10 p.m. If you finish it solo in 20 minutes or less, you'll receive the meal and a t-shirt for free and have your photo placed on the café's wall. If you finish it in more than 20 minutes, you'll still receive a t-shirt. Several people have already successfully this one. Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill at Harrah's has a 4 lb 8 oz "Big Dog Daddy" burger, which is 10.25 inches high by 8 inches in diameter. It costs $29.95, consists of two-pound beef patty, 4 ounces of cheese, 4 ounces of lettuce, tomato and onion, 2 ounces of pickle and a 10-ounce bun and feeds six. Finish it by yourself, including the 32-ounce beer and 16 ounces of "freedom fries" that it comes with, and they'll give you a T-shirt. Click this link for other Extreme Eating options around town. Unfortunately, the 13" "Bachelorette" hot dog at Serendipity III at Caesars Palace, which came with 10 toppings, was discontinued in the summer of 2010. 10/13/2009 LBS: A Burger Joint, the eco-friendly fast food eatery at Red Rock, has added a new option to its menu: the $30 "Extreme Burger," which includes six half-pound patties loaded with American cheese, smoked bacon, a Portobello mushroom, lettuce, tomato, red onion, pickles, LBS Burger sauce, spicy mustard, herb mayo, "ghost" peppers (the hottest chili in the world, as confirmed by the Guinness Book of World Records), and a pound of French fries. Clean your plate in an hour and it's on the house, plus, the first successful gourmand will have the burger renamed in their honor and be the inaugural member of the Heroes of the Hamburger wall. 07/08/2009 The Hash House A Go Go will also be featured on "Man vs. Food" -- an inside source tells us part of the challenge was a monster double-patty, ham-and-egg-filled burger. For pics. from the Nascar Cafe shoot and more info, click here for the Daily Fiasco's take on "Man vs. Burrito." 07/24/2009 Aha! Thanks to the reader who wrote in with this tidbit: "Heard from a friend of mine at Sahara: Adam's challenge ("Man vs. Food") to the burrito at Nascar Cafe will premiere on Aug. 12th on Travel Channel." [Ed: Thanks!] 11/08/2011 We may have lost the Sahara burrito, but we have new challenges to take its place! Check out the The Bugsy Challenge at the Burger Joint at the Flamingo: Weighing in at over four pounds, it consists of six third-pound patties, American, Swiss, Cheddar, Pepper Jack, and housemade mozzarella cheese, a wheel of fried provolone, and is topped with a fried egg, applewoood bacon, cayenne peppered bacon, chorizo, sautéed mushrooms, onion rings, and special house sauce. It comes with a side of fried potato wedges covered in cheese sauce, crumbled bacon, green onion, and two strips cayenne peppered bacon. It's $45 ($40 with a players card) but it's yours for free if you can finish it in 45 minutes or less (must sign a waiver before attempting). The burger challenge at The Pub at the Monte Carlo weighs in at 8 pounds and has a $50 price tag, but it also on the house if you can finish it in 45 minutes. It comes with a 32-ounce beer, too. Or how about the Texas 3-Pound Challenge at the Tequila Bar at Bally's? It's a BBQ bacon cheeseburger, featuring a three pound Angus patty, six slices of cheddar cheese, and 12 strips of bacon! Finish in 30 minutes or less and it's free, plus you get a t-shirt and your picture on the wall of fame; fail and it's $35. Not in the mood for a burger? Try the Death Wing Challenge at Diablo's Cantina at Monte Carlo: Eat 20 Death Wings with Diablo's signature XXX-rated hot sauce and be immortalized on the wall of fame. For all those mourning the passing of the NASCAR Cafe, weep no more! Diablo's also has a 4-pound burrito challenge. It comes with your choice of beef, chicken or pork, plus beans, cheese, and red rice, for $40. Eat the whole thing and get a free t-shirt. The last one we've come across recently is the challenge at Pho 87 Vietnamese restaurant (3620 S Jones Blvd.). It's a HUGE bowl of pho, consisting of 2.5x their regular large size pho and costs $30 to order. If you finish in the allotted 87 minutes with no outside help, the pho is free, plus you keep the bowl, an $87 prize, your face on a billboard, and more. It's not easy -- that 1.5 pounds of beef and 1.5 pounds of noodles has proven too much for any Vegas customer to overcome to date, although apparently there have been a few victors at the original location in L.A.