(whimsical music)
- Okay, and then we'll move down into the kitchen.
(upbeat music)
(grunting)
- Focus, focus.
- Elliott, what are you doing here so early?
- Because it's our meat lover's episode,
and you guys entered me into
the meatball eating competition here at Bar Roma.
And I am in it to win it.
(grunting)
55, 56...
(jaunty music)
First of all, I want to thank you
for letting me come in here.
Just getting my breath out.
- [Julia] Seems you are ready.
- Very polite for you to say,
but I'm clearly-- - Don't be shy.
- not ready.
(upbeat accordion music)
For those who haven't been to Bar Roma before,
tell me a little bit about what you guys do here.
- We are a neighborhood restaurant.
Meatballs are our specialty.
- Do you like the meatballs here?
- I love them.
- They're so much better than my mom made.
- It's a lot of sauce, which I appreciate.
- There's four different flavors available,
so there's something for every palate.
- Beef meatball, chicken meatball,
pork meatball, veggie meatball.
It's Beyond Meat.
- Here, there's a meatball happy hour, right?
- It's Monday through Sunday, 5 to 6:30.
- Half price meatballs.
- [Julia] Half price appetizers.
- Great happy hour specials.
Like, we've tried every meatball.
- It's just not your typical Italian meatball.
- There's three in a portion,
so it's great to be able to share.
- [Elliott] What meatballs are we making today?
- The Manzo meatballs.
- They're a really thick, hearty meatball.
It's not light, so I'm kinda worried
about the contest that you're gonna be in
a little bit later.
- Let's talk about that.
What are the rules?
- Three and a half minutes,
eat as much as you can.
(people cheering)
- I think you could probably do 10 or 12.
You have a big iron stomach.
I'll give you nine.
- Good luck with eight.
- I'd shoot for 12.
- Lucky 13.
- Thirteen in three and a half minutes?
- Yes, yep.
- 18.
Each one in four pieces, five seconds each.
You can do 18.
- What the (bleep) is wrong with you?
- Just hurry it up.
- We hear lots of amazing things
about the meatballs that you make here.
- Best selling one is the beef.
- And that's what we're gonna make?
- Yep.
(upbeat music)
The beef is coming from L&L Meats, Southside Chicago.
We have 12 pounds of ground beef in here,
and we're gonna add 12 eggs.
So usually it's one egg per pound of meat.
I think the thing that makes
the beef meatballs unique is the addition
of the braised beef cheeks.
- So that's bringing a different depth
of flavor to it. - We're talking about
five, six hours of slowly braising.
And then we chop.
Great, and then we have caramelized onions here,
and then we're gonna add some bread
which has been soaked in milk.
- It's almost a travesty that the only thing
I'm gonna be thinking about later on
when I'm eating these is just how many
I can shove into my gullet.
- Well, you're gonna eat to win today.
- That's the plan. - We have fresh chopped
Italian parsley is gonna go in.
We have two cheeses, Parmesan and pecorino.
A little dried oregano.
- Wouldn't be an Italian meatball
without some oregano.
- [Alfredo] I think it feels nice.
Now what we're gonna do is start scooping.
We'll get some new gloves.
- While your dad's not here,
I must crush you.
Hold me best friend, hold me back.
Yeah, you just watch out.
- [Alfredo] We're gonna do about 40 meatballs per pan.
- This is a workout, I'm getting hungry.
This means I need to fulfill that
need to eat, that need to destroy.
- Just gonna do a little roll,
right back on to the pan.
Then we're gonna bake these about 20 minutes.
- With your blessing, I think I'm gonna go
and prepare and get ready.
It's time to not lose.
Let's do this!
- First of all, happy meatball day.
(people cheering)
Meatballs must be eaten one at a time.
It's just for keeping accurate score
of what actually is a meatball.
There will be no credit given
for partially eaten meatballs.
Each of you has been assigned a counter.
The competition will last exactly
three and a half minutes.
The winner walks away with $100 cold, hard cash,
and a swag bag full of gift cards.
There's all kinds of excitement and goodies.
All right, counters ready?
- [Counters] Ready.
- And go!
(people cheering and clapping)
Hey we got two minutes left!
(burping)
One minute left, guys, one minute!
30 seconds left.
Five,
four,
three,
two,
one.
(people cheering and clapping)
- I'm so full.
- [Announcer] And the meatball eating champion is
Teddy D, with a whopping 21 meatballs.
- Holy meat lovers, that's a lot.
At least I made the top five.
And, a participation award.
(whimsical music)
Oh, thank you!
The battle field after a defeat.
Nevertheless, I've got a bottle of wine.
Most importantly, those meatballs are incredible.
They're full of flavor.
They've got so much meat packed inside them.
They're dense.
Those beef cheeks as well.
Send me out the extra meat with that red sauce,
which is dynamite.
However, I don't wanna see another meatball
for at least 12 hours.