Man vs Food!

Man vs Food is probably one of the best shows to come out of the Travel Channel. The Fiance and I love it. It chronicles host Adam Richmand traveling the country, sampling local food favorites and taking on fantastic food challenges. He's eaten a 72 oz steak in Amarillo, a monster burrito in Las Vegas, and a dozen milkshakes in St Louis.

And now ... he's coming to Springfield, IL!

That's right, my little hometown will be featured this week on the show. Adam will be sampling local faves like the Horseshoe (which I have raaaaaved about before, and will be our rehearsal dinner fare) and the Cozy Dog corn dog. He'll be taking on the Fire Brand Chili challenge at the Joe Roger's Den Parlor, which is one of the oldest eating challenges in the country, and just about as bad as it sounds, Being that the last cool thing that happened in Springfield was Abe Lincoln, this was a pretty big deal for me.

The Fiance, not being a Springfieldian, is also surprisingly enthusiastic. That, my friends, is because he loves horseshoes. I introduced him to the sandwich early in the relationship and he was hooked. If you miss the show, a horseshoe (or if you're not as hungry, the half-sized ponyshoe) is an open-faced sandwich consisting of Texas toast, meat of choice, crinkle fries, and creamy cheese sauce. It's one of those foods where you know you're probably harming yourself by eating it, but man, it hurts so good. My personal fave is bacon and tomato. The Fiance? You guessed it: buffalo chicken.


We are particularly enthused to watch the show in part because we have recently booked our rehearsal dinner at one of the many Springfield eateries that have the 'shoe on the menu (seriously, even Steak n Shake sells them there). Since most of our bridal party and family are from out of town, we thought having a dinner that revolved around the local specialty was a great way to welcome everyone in for the occasion. We'll be serving buffet-style, a horseshoe bar if you will ... and we will.

What kind of local flare or specialties are you incorporating into the festivities?

Be sure to watch! You can bet your cheese sauce that our DVR is already set! The show airs at 8 pm, CST on the Travel Channel. Yay Springfield!