Prepare to take a deep dive into the life of Adam Richman, a gluttonous gladiator who,
week after week, put it all on the line in the name of good eats.
This isn't just the untold truth of an average man.
No, this is the untold truth of Adam Richman.
Did you know Adam Richman is an Ivy League alum?
It's hard to tell when you're watching him drool over meat and cheese, but it's true.
He studied drama there.
Richman graduated from Emory College of Arts and Sciences with a degree in international
studies in 1996.
Before he ever pictured himself traveling around the country gorging himself full of
delicious, and painfully large, amounts of food, he was just a lowly recent college grad
figuring out what direction he wanted his life to take.
And while Richman's life took quite the scrumptious path once he landed himself a sweet television
hosting gig, it's probably not the one he planned to take.
As a member of the Actors Theater of Louisville in Kentucky, Richman often graced the stage
in theaters around Atlanta and New York City.
In 2000, his acting career took a leap forward when he was accepted into the Yale School
of Drama.
In 2003, Richman received his coveted Masters of Fine Arts degree from the school and soon
joined three major acting unions.
"The acting that I was able to do as a result of being a Yale School of Drama graduate ended
up taking me to the Cleveland Playhouse, took me to the San Jose Playhouse."
One of those eventually offered him the opportunity to host his own food show, which Richman eagerly
auditioned for.
He nailed the audition, and from that point forward, he became a staple host in the food
TV landscape.
Social media can have disastrous results when used inappropriately.
And, if you have a solid following like Adam Richman does, all it takes is one slip-up
for the online community to tear down your scaffolding real quick.
Well, the Twitterverse and Instagram world did just that to Richman.
It all started with a photo Richman posted on Instagram showing off his weight loss.
Sounds totally innocent and encouraging, right?
Not when you add the hashtag "thinspiration" to it.
For those who don't know, the term is often used to advocate anorexia and bulimia, and
it offended quite a few of his followers.
Then things got sloppy.
He went on to respond to several comments with some alarming profanity-laden messages,
and went so far as to tell one poster no one would miss them if they grabbed, quote, "a
razor blade and drew a bath."
Richman's followup series to Man v. Food, Man Finds Food, was put on hold for nearly
a year after his social media mess.
When someone decides to begin living a vegan lifestyle, it can surprise a lot of people
around them.
"Didn't you know?
Todd's vegan."
Especially if at one point they wouldn't have hesitated to rip through a tomahawk steak
with a smile on their face, kind of like we've all seen Adam Richman do quite a few times.
So, when tabloid headlines started spreading rumors that Richman was turning away from
a carnivore lifestyle and embracing all things green and leafy, fans were shocked.
Richman quickly took to social media to ensure fans the headlines were completely false,
but he did admit he occasionally eats strictly vegan when training to play soccer.
Hitting the soccer field with a stomach full of brisket and poutine isn't what anyone wants
to do.
According to Richman, veganism is a temporary lifestyle choice he abides by when he needs
to be in especially good shape, as opposed to a gung-ho "no meat ever again" overhaul.
He didn't just tell people he still very much loved his delicious omnivore lifestyle, either.
He proved it by posting a photo of him going ham on an In-N-Out burger.
Here in the States we're inundated with football, baseball, and basketball, and our soccer league
the MLS takes a back seat to those three.
However, take a trip across the pond to Europe and you quickly realize their version of football
is an all-out religion.
And Adam Richman is totally on board with the fandom, specifically the Tottenham Hotspurs.
His passion started years ago when a friend sent him a video called 100 Greatest Goals
at the Lane, and Richman was instantly hooked.
Man Finds Food was actually split between the United States and England, which allowed
Richman to attend as many games as possible.
He was even granted a special private tour of the stadium where things got emotional.
Richman sent the coach a care package full of meats and spices landing him a new texting
buddy.
After 59 brutal challenges throughout the course of Man v. Food, Adam Richman put up
with a whole lot of physical discomfort.
It took a stomach of steel and a willingness to put up with some pretty terrible bathroom
trips to do what Richman did, but when you look at the payoff, it all seems worth it.
How much loot does an intense hosting gig like Man v. Food get you?
Well, in Richman's case, plenty.
His net worth was $10 million, which is an undeniably large chunk of change.
After the financial breakdown of everything he's done, each episode of Man v. Food earned
him $35,000.
Of course, there were also the minor roles he played in television shows like Guiding
Light and All My Children, as well as his cookbook sales.
Richman definitely put his body through the ringer over the course of his Travel Channel
show, but let's be honest, you'd probably deal with a few dozen rough nights on the
john for millions of bucks, too.
For picky eaters, there are plenty of food options that seem downright disgusting.
Adam Richman, however, has five specific foods he knows sound funky but are actually awesome.
If you have the guts to try them.
First up: tongue.
If you can get past the fact that it's... well, a tongue, you realize it's a delicate
and lean silky muscle.
Korean restaurants often have it on the menu, where it's sliced paper thin and served with
a delicious sauce like gochujang.
Caviar is next on the list.
Yes, they're fish eggs, but those tiny spheres of flavor pop open in your mouth to reveal
an exciting oceanic flavor.
Richman recommends you stick to the smaller eggs if you're not a fan of fishy flavors.
Richman also implores people to try sweetbreads.
"No, they're not sweet, and no, they're not bread."
In reality, it's pancreas, one of the body's offal meats.
The texture is subtle, creamy, and rich.
Another creamy and rich dish that's won over Richman's heart is pate.
Describing pate as a "meat mousse" may not entice people, but that's exactly what it
is.
Richman says spreading it on toasted bread or pairing it with a sweet marmalade will
turn pate-doubters into pate-lovers.
Finally, Richman rounds out his list with sardines.
The name conjures up images of slimy filets with an obnoxiously strong smell, but he says
if you avoid the canned stuff and go to a professional fishmonger, they'll present you
with flavor-packed sardines that'll keep you craving more.
Adam Richman went through plenty of suffering during his stint as Man v. Food's host.
You just had to tune in for one episode to see the grimace on his face after every hard-fought
battle.
But there's one that stands out as the most painful, by far.
It was the "Fire in Your Hole Wing Challenge" at a place called Munchies 420 Cafe in Sarasota,
Florida.
The challenge was 12 wings completely doused in a sauce containing jet black ghost chili
extract, and it was one of the few food challenges Richman never completed.
However, there was a legitimately unfair reason behind the "L" he was forced to put up, and
Richman doesn't hesitate to tell the story.
The cafe's head chef was fitted with a microphone prior to starting, and before the wings hit
Richman's table, the kitchen team was heard whispering about adding the entire bottle.
Aside from the kitchen's move to overspice the wings being unfair to Richman, what they
did was completely reckless.
It resulted in Richman cowering in the backroom with a swollen tongue and nasal passages,
on top of crippling stomach pains.
"My eyes won't stop watering, and my tears burn… ugh!"
When Adam Richman was initially bested by the "Suicide Six Wings" challenge in Brooklyn,
New York, he made it a point to eventually return and prove he was not the same man who
walked out with his head held low that fateful losing day.
Sitting down at a table surrounded by eager spectators, the Man vs. Food host loudly decrees:
"This one isn't for a shirt.
This one isn't for a picture on a wall.
This one's for pride."
That it is, Mr. Richman.
The glistening wings of doom stared up from the plate with aggression, but that didn't
stop our hero from jumping in head first, ready to conquer them with whatever strength
he could muster.
It was close, but Richman withstood the fiery fury and threw the final bone down onto the
plate in one an act of epic glory.
He probably felt some discomfort afterwards, but he soothed his pride.
Many of us know what it's like to completely overindulge in one of our favorite foods,
and the outcome is always horrendous.
Suddenly, this amazing culinary delight we've loved for years is so hideous we can't bear
to think about the flavor anymore.
"Roast beef and a baked potato, mmm!"
During one challenge, Adam Richman forever ruined one of his favorite foods: oysters.
At the Acme Oyster House in New Orleans, Richman dared to join the 15 Dozen Club: the pantheon
of epic eaters who could suck down 15 dozen oysters.
Richman beasted his way through all 15 like a boss, but those slippery mollusks were never
the same for him again.
He couldn't even touch oysters for three years.
If Man v. Food aired in a prime time slot on VH1 or MTV, Adam Richman might have impressed
viewers not only his food knowledge but with his hip-hop insight, as well.
You would never know it by watching his Travel Channel programs, but the guy has a real passion
for urban music.
He unveiled his encyclopedic knowledge of it as a guest on the Sway in the Morning radio
show, showing a whole new side of everyone's favorite foodie.
Sway Calloway, the host of the show, invited Richman on as a featured guest to answer questions
about his Man v. Food hosting gig, give cooking tips, and discuss music.
At one point, it came time to put Richman's knowledge of rap to the test with four difficult
questions.
He slam dunked three of the four, which impressed everyone in the studio.
"Not only that, they were also in Krush Groove back in the day… that'd be The Fat Boys."
That wasn't even the first time Richman appeared on Sway in the Morning, either.
On another episode, Richman actually spits some hit fire into the mic and has everyone
in the room stoked.
"There it is!"
Hey, if his hosting gigs ever end, he could always take up a career as Eminem's hype man.
Adam Richman's eaten more food than most people in the world will ever experience.
As amazing and unique as many of those culinary experiences were, when you sample such a vast
array of flavors, you're bound to come across some stuff that churns the stomach.
So, what was Richman's least favorite food ever?
A fermented bean dish from Japan, and it sounds pretty atrocious.
Natto is its name, and when Richman describes it on an episode of Sway in the Morning, it
sounds pretty repulsive.
"It looks like someone else ate it before you, I didn’t like this, and then gave it
to you to eat."
Richman went on to say it smells like, quote, "earth, snot, and is horrible."
Funny enough, the dish is actually considered a superfood in Japan and is supposed to be
quite delicious, if you can get over the bizarre consistency and, apparently, smell.
Hey, to each their own.
Some might rant and rave about the stuff, but Richman's appetite is not on board.
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