I got into Chicago on Friday for my grade school friend's wedding. It was a great wedding and fun to see old and close friends I grew up with. I'll write more about this later since I don't have much time right now. I just wanted to mentioned some stories and talks I had with the Joe and Joong Bae. These guys are still hilarious. Joe came in from LA and Joong from Atlanta. We talk about life, food, philosophy, food, old stories, and food.
On Friday during the rehearsal dinner, Joe was full from eating but some people came late and asked for a plate of kung pao chicken in front of him. He took the plate, scooped some of the food onto his plate, and passed it on to them. He then replied, "I have fat man's disease. If food is in front of me I have to have at least some of it."
During the dinner, Joe stated some of his random comments:
"There were two times I know I was the heaviest person in the country. When I went to Kenya and Haiti. Kenya is uncertain since I know there are some fat warlords there."
"One time Joong and I had a four hour conversation on who would win in a fight. First it started as a joke and then it turned into a serious discussion. Joong would be like, 'Come on, Joe. Be serious, I would kill you...' We went back and forth on why one person would be able to beat up the other person."
Conversations eventually led to how much food Joong can eat. Joe said one time Joong came over and said he was hungry. He didn't have much food except corn, so Joong ate 8 stalks of corn. I really don't know how much that is, but Joe insists it's a lot of food. I thought about it and one stalk is probably about a can of corn. For me it would just be strange to just sit there and eat 8 cans of corn. Anyway, then Joong and Joe went to a hot dog stand and Joong ate two hot dogs and fries. Then they went to their friend's to eat duk man doo gook (dumpling & rice cake soup) and Joong ate two giant bowls of it (see EATING STORIES III). Joe said this was one of the most amounts of food he saw Joong eat.
Showing posts with label big guys. Show all posts
Showing posts with label big guys. Show all posts
Sunday, July 27, 2003
Monday, July 21, 2003
Random Asian Shorts... And Putting a Face to One of the Big Guys
I received various emails on an Asian American video called "Fobman" that a group called New True Talent produced for this year's UCLA's Korean Culture Night. I assume this is a UCLA student group that does various short productions. I definitely give the kids credit on their effort, creativity, and production. The storyline was a little weak at the beginning, but the second half makes it an overall decent short.
I also wanted to help put a face and more information on my friend "Joe" that I've been writing about ever since I started blogging. I recently found out he has a website and blog (jumbo + body = joe). To help verify the truth of my stories and for continuity sake, I just wanted post parts of his own description from his website:
Mostly Useless Information about Me
......
My all time favorite pigout food: Yes
Restaurant: Any place that has the letters b-u-f-f-e-t after the name
Joe cracks me up. He also made this rap spoof video for his church last year. I heard it had more than 10,000 downloads within the first three weeks or so without really publicizing it. I couldn't find the link to the Sony site that had the best download method, but just try the link on his website. Anyway, I guess it just spread around the Korean American Christian community throughout the U.S. Joe has always been a gifted musician and great rapper ever since I've known him in high school.
I also wanted to help put a face and more information on my friend "Joe" that I've been writing about ever since I started blogging. I recently found out he has a website and blog (jumbo + body = joe). To help verify the truth of my stories and for continuity sake, I just wanted post parts of his own description from his website:
Mostly Useless Information about Me
......
My all time favorite pigout food: Yes
Restaurant: Any place that has the letters b-u-f-f-e-t after the name
Joe cracks me up. He also made this rap spoof video for his church last year. I heard it had more than 10,000 downloads within the first three weeks or so without really publicizing it. I couldn't find the link to the Sony site that had the best download method, but just try the link on his website. Anyway, I guess it just spread around the Korean American Christian community throughout the U.S. Joe has always been a gifted musician and great rapper ever since I've known him in high school.
Sunday, June 29, 2003
Big Guys... Eating Stories III
Taken and edited from an email from one of my good friends and close friend of Joe and Joong:
"I remember one warm & muggy night back in Chicago when I was roaming the streets of the vicious north side with my good friend Joong... when Joong said, "I'M HUNGRY". Now people, there are very few things that strike fear in my heart (i.e. KKK rally, extreme heights, great white sharks, a stampede of buffalos). But when Joong says he's hungry, take cover. I literally trembled. From there he proceeded to go on a flurry of inhalation that still astounds me. First, we stopped at Arby's where Joong quickly downed 5 out of 5 roast beef sandwiches and a large order of curly fries. Then, we stopped at Taco Bell where Joong gulped down 2 burrito supremes, 4 hard tacos, and a nachos bellgrande. I think he might have even had a bag of cinnamon twists. I know. It's amazing isn't it? I mean only a Silverback Gorilla could eat that much right?
Well Joong ain't no ordinary Silverback, cause he wasn't done. From Taco Hell, we drove north to our compadre Jimmy's house (Lake Forest). There, Jimmy's mom proceeded to feed us duk-mandoo gook. I guess she aportioned the servings according to our size, because Joong's bowl was seriously the size of a toilet bowl. He ate every last drop. He likes to say that he was trying to be polite, but we all know that JoongBae eats what he wants to eat. At the end of it all, he wasn't even phased. I'm pretty sure he could've eaten Wisconsin that night if he wanted to. Let me recap. In the span of approximately 1 hour, Joong ate 5 roast beef sandwiches, a large order of curly fries, 2 burrito supremes, 4 hard tacos, nachos bell grande, and a giant (and I mean giant) bowl of duk-mandoo gook.
I kid you not. The legend is real. All that you have heard is true. Don't doubt anything anyone ever tells you. Because our dear friend can truly eat."
"I remember one warm & muggy night back in Chicago when I was roaming the streets of the vicious north side with my good friend Joong... when Joong said, "I'M HUNGRY". Now people, there are very few things that strike fear in my heart (i.e. KKK rally, extreme heights, great white sharks, a stampede of buffalos). But when Joong says he's hungry, take cover. I literally trembled. From there he proceeded to go on a flurry of inhalation that still astounds me. First, we stopped at Arby's where Joong quickly downed 5 out of 5 roast beef sandwiches and a large order of curly fries. Then, we stopped at Taco Bell where Joong gulped down 2 burrito supremes, 4 hard tacos, and a nachos bellgrande. I think he might have even had a bag of cinnamon twists. I know. It's amazing isn't it? I mean only a Silverback Gorilla could eat that much right?
Well Joong ain't no ordinary Silverback, cause he wasn't done. From Taco Hell, we drove north to our compadre Jimmy's house (Lake Forest). There, Jimmy's mom proceeded to feed us duk-mandoo gook. I guess she aportioned the servings according to our size, because Joong's bowl was seriously the size of a toilet bowl. He ate every last drop. He likes to say that he was trying to be polite, but we all know that JoongBae eats what he wants to eat. At the end of it all, he wasn't even phased. I'm pretty sure he could've eaten Wisconsin that night if he wanted to. Let me recap. In the span of approximately 1 hour, Joong ate 5 roast beef sandwiches, a large order of curly fries, 2 burrito supremes, 4 hard tacos, nachos bell grande, and a giant (and I mean giant) bowl of duk-mandoo gook.
I kid you not. The legend is real. All that you have heard is true. Don't doubt anything anyone ever tells you. Because our dear friend can truly eat."
Thursday, April 10, 2003
Big Guys... Eating Stories II
Joe and Joong had favorite buffets to go to while in Chicago. One place was this Chinese buffet in Glenview. It was this small, semi-rundown place with excellent food. We would go there and stuff ourselves. I would typically eat 4 or 5 plates stacked and Joe 5 or 6 plates. But Joong was on another level. One time he ate 7 plates, but also with 11 bowls of rice! He asked the waiter for one more, but the owner, this older Chinese woman, came out and started yelling at Joong.
"No more rice for you! Nor more rice for you!"
Joong got the message, so he just finished up and we left. I think he went for a Taco Bell run soon afterwards.
Another time soon after dinner, Joong wanted a snack so he called this place called Gumby's Pizza. He asked if some of us wanted to eat. We could snack a little, so the four of us got a medium pizza while Joong ordered an extra large 20 inch pizza. Gumby's wasn't pan, but it was pretty thick and doughy. Anyway, Joong finished his and starting to eat some of ours. We didn't care because we were still full from dinner.
An amusing but not amazing story was from their roommate, Harold, from their senior year in college. Harold was very thin, an excellent student, and other things that Joe and Joong were not. He was an intellectual powerhouse. I believe he got a 42 on his MCAT, one of the highest GPAs ever in his university, and numerous accolades. Joe and Joong would mock him sometimes and say, "Come on, Harold! Stop being selfish! Just find a cure for AIDS."
Anyway, Harold was wanted to snack and make a sandwich, so he went to the corner store and bought some cold cuts, a large Roman Meal loaf, mayo, and lettuce. He got home and put the stuff on the kitchen table. He went into his room for five minutes and came out. The loaf of bread was gone. Joong was in the living room watching TV and the only other person in the apartment, so he asked, "Joong, did you eat my loaf of bread?"
"Yeah."
"That was a large loaf! Were you that hungry?!"
"No."
"Then why did you eat it?"
"I was bored."
Poor Harold. Getting his food stolen on top of getting mocked by his two roommates. I also heard that they made him split the grocery bills equally.
"No more rice for you! Nor more rice for you!"
Joong got the message, so he just finished up and we left. I think he went for a Taco Bell run soon afterwards.
Another time soon after dinner, Joong wanted a snack so he called this place called Gumby's Pizza. He asked if some of us wanted to eat. We could snack a little, so the four of us got a medium pizza while Joong ordered an extra large 20 inch pizza. Gumby's wasn't pan, but it was pretty thick and doughy. Anyway, Joong finished his and starting to eat some of ours. We didn't care because we were still full from dinner.
An amusing but not amazing story was from their roommate, Harold, from their senior year in college. Harold was very thin, an excellent student, and other things that Joe and Joong were not. He was an intellectual powerhouse. I believe he got a 42 on his MCAT, one of the highest GPAs ever in his university, and numerous accolades. Joe and Joong would mock him sometimes and say, "Come on, Harold! Stop being selfish! Just find a cure for AIDS."
Anyway, Harold was wanted to snack and make a sandwich, so he went to the corner store and bought some cold cuts, a large Roman Meal loaf, mayo, and lettuce. He got home and put the stuff on the kitchen table. He went into his room for five minutes and came out. The loaf of bread was gone. Joong was in the living room watching TV and the only other person in the apartment, so he asked, "Joong, did you eat my loaf of bread?"
"Yeah."
"That was a large loaf! Were you that hungry?!"
"No."
"Then why did you eat it?"
"I was bored."
Poor Harold. Getting his food stolen on top of getting mocked by his two roommates. I also heard that they made him split the grocery bills equally.
Wednesday, April 2, 2003
Big Guys... Making Me Sick
Last week one of my close high school friends visited Seoul with his wife. Joe and Mary (names changed to protect the innocent) just came for vacation to tour Korea and eat. A few weeks before Joe was coming to Korea he told me, "Dude, you know I'm only coming to Korea to eat, so just take me to your favorite places because I trust your taste."
Joe and our other friend, Joong, were known throughout Chicago for their incredible stomach capacity. During high school, if I ate with them, it was mainly at buffets. Chinese buffet, KFC buffet, Old Country Buffet, Wendy's buffet, Korean BBQ buffet, and so on. I know other cities don't have as many buffets or even knew that KFC actually had a buffet restaurant, but this is the City of Big Shoulders... and Joe and Joong. Though I was use to their eating habits, on rare occasions I would watch them eat and it would make me sick. Especially Joong since he was a couple levels above Joe. Joe stated that Joong had the largest stomach capacity out of anyone he has ever met.
Some background info... Joe was 6'1" and 260 lbs. during their prime eating years in college (about ten years ago) and Joong was 6'3" 290 lbs. There was a rumor on their campus that they both ate a box of ramen each in one night... 24 packs. I was talking with one of their old roommates about this and we both agreed that it was impossible. I've watched Joong eat his ramen snacks after dinner where he would take 4 packs, 8 eggs, bowls of rice, and side dishes. If he ate ramen in his usual manner, it would have been impossible. So my friend asked him later on if this rumor was true.
He started to laughed. "People are SO STUPID! Who could eat a box in one night in a normal manner? Joe and I, we split the box."
Obviously I laughed when I heard this, but started to get those queasy feelings from back in high school just visualizing Joong slurpping down that ramen.
There was a chicken wing & burger place that I still consider the best in the world, Buffalo Joe's in Evanston, IL. We use to think that they drugged the sauce in high school because after a few weeks you started to crave it again. It wasn't your typical hot sauce place. Most chicken wing places have a Tabasco-y base and I think most of them taste the same. You can go to places with the various flunky sauces (e.g. Thai, pizza, taco, etc.) but it isn't the same. Buffalo Joe's was this rich, buttery, hot sauce that just melted in your mouth.
Anyway, they had these party pans (larger 10-15 years ago, got cheaper as they made more money) that served 7-10 people, which was a "single", and a "double" that served 15-20. Usually 4 or 5 of us would eat a single party pan when we were hungry. On one rare occasion my friend, Pete, and I had a single pan with some struggle. Before I gained 40 lbs. after college, I was one of those thin, voracious eaters. At other places, with 10 cent wings nights, I could typically eat 40-50 wings, but I was just an ant compared with the colossus Joong was. One time he ate a whole single by himself, which usually had 120-150 wings! Joong, Joe, and Joe's younger brother would typically have a double party pan that had twice as many.
More stories for a later time...
Joe and our other friend, Joong, were known throughout Chicago for their incredible stomach capacity. During high school, if I ate with them, it was mainly at buffets. Chinese buffet, KFC buffet, Old Country Buffet, Wendy's buffet, Korean BBQ buffet, and so on. I know other cities don't have as many buffets or even knew that KFC actually had a buffet restaurant, but this is the City of Big Shoulders... and Joe and Joong. Though I was use to their eating habits, on rare occasions I would watch them eat and it would make me sick. Especially Joong since he was a couple levels above Joe. Joe stated that Joong had the largest stomach capacity out of anyone he has ever met.
Some background info... Joe was 6'1" and 260 lbs. during their prime eating years in college (about ten years ago) and Joong was 6'3" 290 lbs. There was a rumor on their campus that they both ate a box of ramen each in one night... 24 packs. I was talking with one of their old roommates about this and we both agreed that it was impossible. I've watched Joong eat his ramen snacks after dinner where he would take 4 packs, 8 eggs, bowls of rice, and side dishes. If he ate ramen in his usual manner, it would have been impossible. So my friend asked him later on if this rumor was true.
He started to laughed. "People are SO STUPID! Who could eat a box in one night in a normal manner? Joe and I, we split the box."
Obviously I laughed when I heard this, but started to get those queasy feelings from back in high school just visualizing Joong slurpping down that ramen.
There was a chicken wing & burger place that I still consider the best in the world, Buffalo Joe's in Evanston, IL. We use to think that they drugged the sauce in high school because after a few weeks you started to crave it again. It wasn't your typical hot sauce place. Most chicken wing places have a Tabasco-y base and I think most of them taste the same. You can go to places with the various flunky sauces (e.g. Thai, pizza, taco, etc.) but it isn't the same. Buffalo Joe's was this rich, buttery, hot sauce that just melted in your mouth.
Anyway, they had these party pans (larger 10-15 years ago, got cheaper as they made more money) that served 7-10 people, which was a "single", and a "double" that served 15-20. Usually 4 or 5 of us would eat a single party pan when we were hungry. On one rare occasion my friend, Pete, and I had a single pan with some struggle. Before I gained 40 lbs. after college, I was one of those thin, voracious eaters. At other places, with 10 cent wings nights, I could typically eat 40-50 wings, but I was just an ant compared with the colossus Joong was. One time he ate a whole single by himself, which usually had 120-150 wings! Joong, Joe, and Joe's younger brother would typically have a double party pan that had twice as many.
More stories for a later time...
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