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Folks in Philadelphia rallied around a man eating a rotisserie chicken for his 40th-straight day on an abandoned pier Sunday, after the eater invited citizens to cheer him on though a cryptic flier posted around the city.
Alexander Tominsky began the bizarre food challenge on September 28, sharing updates to millions on social media along the way, as citizens quickly became captivated by his questionable eating habits.
Tominsky, a waiter at local steakhouse Barclay Prime, said he first set out on the undertaking because ‘it seemed like the right thing to do’ – and he has since stayed true to his word, consuming one store-bought roast chicken daily for the past six weeks.
Thirty-nine birds – and a bit of anguish – later, the Philadelphian was poised to conquer his goal Sunday, and subsequently invited citizens to watch him take down the final fowl in a fateful eat-off on an abandoned pier along the Delaware River.
Sure enough, hundreds showed up to the makeshift venue despite vague directions offered in a flier posted by Tominsky, 31, ahead of the demonstration, which asserted the get-together was ‘not a party’ and to be held at 12pm sharp.
Like clockwork, residents descended on the nondescript pier to watch Tominsky demolish his 40th chicken in the same amount of days, with adults seen getting on other adults’ shoulders to catch a glimpse of the action.
Photos and footage from the scene show Tominsky, calm as can be, seated before his fellow city dwellers as he scarfed down the crowning chicken with nothing but some seltzer to wash it down.
After roughly 40 minutes, the local restaurant worker was seen triumphantly showing off the last morsel to revelers who gathered – before swiftly scarfing it down, much to the delight of all those in attendance.
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Folks in Philadelphia rallied around a man eating a rotisserie chicken for his 40th-straight day on an abandoned pier Sunday, after the eater invited citizens to cheer him on though a cryptic flier posted around the city
Alexander Tominsky, pictured, began the bizarre food challenge on September 28, sharing updates to millions on social media along the way, as citizens quickly became captivated by his questionable eating habits
Thirty-nine birds – and a bit of anguish – later, the Philadelphian was poised to conquer his goal Sunday, and subsequently invited citizens to watch him take down the final fowl in a fateful eat-off on an abandoned pier along the Delaware River
Sure enough, hundreds showed up to the makeshift venue despite vague directions offered in a flier posted by Tominsky, 31, ahead of the demonstration
Subsequent footage shows Tominsky reveling in the applause from his fellow Philadelphians, who banded together the day after the city’s hometown Phillies bowed out of the World Series in an ill-fated Game 6 against the Houston Astros.
Now a local hero, Tominsky successfully put a cap on a nearly six-month quest that saw him eat a total of two-score chickens every day since September 28 without fail – and without any seasoning or sides that would have made the ordeal any more appetizing.
Tominsky’s struggles were documented by photos showing him grow increasingly less impressed with his plate full of plain chicken, and quickly garnered the attention of many online – with thousands eventually offering words of encouragement and others urging Tominsky to press forward with his food journey.
Now a local hero, Tominsky successfully put a cap on a nearly six-month quest that saw him eat a total of two-score chickens every day since September 28 without fail – and without any seasoning or sides that would have made the ordeal any more appetizing
Welcoming locals IRL to his 40th straight day of chicken eating, Tominsky’s flier announcing the November 6 exhibition offered citizens on simple message: ‘Come See Me Eat An Entire Rotisserie Chicken.’
The occasion, the vague notice noted, was to be celebrated at noon ‘on that abandoned pier by Walmart.’
The alert would go on to offer photos of Tominsky eating his now-trademark chickens, but not a name or contact information to go with it.
Tominsky, pictured here dining on one of many birds, had asserted the get-together was ‘not a party’ and to be held at 12pm sharp
Thirty-nine birds – and a bit of anguish – later, the Philadelphian was poised to conquer his goal Sunday, and invited citizens to watch him take down the final fowl in a fateful eat-off on an abandoned pier along the Delaware River – via this cryptic flier
Relying on his newfound internet celebrity, the food worker relied on an online-fueled word-of-mouth campaign as to specifics about which pier or which Walmart citizens would descend on – information he said, to a Philly native, is already obvious.
‘November 6th will be the 40th consecutive day that I have eaten an entire rotisserie chicken. 12 o’clock noon.’ the notice, stylized emphatically in all caps, noted – before alluding to the professional nature of the occasion, with, ‘This is not a party.’
The venue Tominsky was referring to was one particular pier along the Delaware River in South Philadelphia, near one of the superstore’s locations on Christopher Columbus Blvd.
‘November 6th will be the 40th consecutive day that i have eaten an entire rotisserie chicken. 12 o’clock noon.’ the notice that announced the event, stylized emphatically in all caps, noted – before alluding to the professional nature of the occasion, with, ‘This is not a party’
When asked by foodie outlet Takeout about the vague call to arms for his planned ‘non-party,’ Tominsky had said Philadelphians would be able to find the venue if they were familiar with the city.
‘If you’re from Philly, you’d know,’ Tominsky told foodie-centered news outlet Takeout. ‘It’s not too hard to find.’
When asked why the assertion this ‘is not a party,’ a modest Tominsky, with his eyes on the prize replied: ‘I’m not trying to make this- it’s just me eating chicken, really.’
To make his challenge even more pronounced, Tominsky, a purist, chose to eat each morsel, weighing roughly two pounds apiece, in one sitting without any condiments – picking the ‘plainest’ birds possible.
Tominsky told local news agency Billy Penn, who tracked the server down ahead of his last supper Sunday, of his efforts: ‘I mean, nothing’s a challenge without a little bit of pain and without a little bit of pain, it’s hard to understand what it feels like to feel good.’
Tominsky started the food challenge on September 28, documenting his meals all the way, to millions on social media captivated by his questionable eating habits
Since then, the Philly resident has stayed true to his word and has consumed one store-bought rotisserie for nearly six weeks straight
Photos show the 31-year-old server seemingly growing increasingly less thrilled with his decision by the day
Tominsky, who has lived in Philadelphia for eight years and goes by ‘Smooth Recess’ on Twitter, had said that he is excited for his quest for chicken supremacy to come to a close Sunday – while revealing that the road to get there has not been an easy one.
‘It’s really, really getting to be challenging,’ Tominsky admitted of the anguish he’s faced in the days ahead of his final sitdown. ‘On both my mental health and my body.’
Speaking to Billy Penn, Tominsky conceded that the challenge had been ‘pretty easy’ weeks ago when he began, but ‘now, it’s really taken a toll on my body.’
‘I have had so much sodium and have felt really dizzy at times and my stomach is just bloated,’ the steakhouse server explained, having documented his chicken-eating ways since Oct. 9 – or Day 11 of his rotisserie experiment.
‘But over the last two days,’ Tominsky added, with a glimmer of excitement in his eyes, ‘I went to the pier where I plan to eat my last chicken in front of hopefully thousands of people, and I [felt] pretty good’ – equating the sensation to something of ‘an adrenaline rush.’
Tominsky, pictured here eating his 30th bird a little over a week ago, urged his online followers to visit the pier at noon on Sunday to see him scarf down his 40th and final bird
Tominsky, who has lived in Philadelphia for eight years and goes by ‘Smooth Recess’ on Twitter, said that he was excited for his quest for chicken supremacy to come to a close on Sunday – but also conceded that the road there has not been an easy one
Tominsky then urged his online followers to visit the pier at noon on Sunday to see him scarf down his final bird.
As to the type of chicken for the planned finale, Tominsky – whose self-imposed trial has seen him indulge in chickens from Shoprite, Walmart, Boston Market, and more – will go for a bird from his favorite local market, Rittenhouse, near where he works.
‘While the chicken is barely seasoned,’ Tominsky told Billy Penn, ‘I’ve come to prefer this and it has become my go-to.’
As for why he decided on 40 for his goal, Tominsky said the marker was somewhat slipshod.
To make his challenge even more pronounced, Tominsky ate each two-pound morsel in one sitting without any condiments – while picking the ‘plainest’ roast chickens possible
‘I was going to go seven,’ the server explained. ‘Then I hit seven, then I felt like 30 days would be good.’
Once he hit 30, Tominsky recalled, he said he decided that after receiving such encouragement from his newfound fandom, that ’40 makes more sense.’
‘And I think that people agree,’ he added earlier this week.
And apart from growing increasingly sick of chicken, it’s been relatively smooth sailing for Tominsky ever since, taking photos of his journey along the way, often at the local beer garden The Frosted Mug – always equipped with his own fork and knife.
While it’s been business as usual for Tominsky, who has evolved into a sort of rotisseries chicken connoisseur over the past several weeks despite admitting he doesn’t much care for chicken, has admitted that even he is a bit nervous about the planned finale Sunday.
‘To be honest with you, I’m just so nervous about the event, I really am. I have the whole city behind me. I’m afraid the adrenaline will affect my consumption.’
And despite the well-documented struggles, Tominsky said he will push onward – asserting, ‘I’m going to give it everything I can. For the city and for the world.’
Despite the well-documented struggles, Tominsky, a server at a local steakhouse, said he will push onward – asserting, ‘I’m going to give it everything I can. For the city and for the world’
Fellow foodies anxious to witness history but not near the pier where Tominsky downed his final chicken flocked online to track his progress on his Twitter.
The event had an impressive turnout, drawing hundreds upon hundreds of eyes – after a tweet from Tominsky announcing the event drew in more than 100,000 likes and nearly 9,000 retweets.
As for the importance behind his seemingly insignificant quest, Tominsky said he was glad to see a positive response on social media amid his efforts – further stating that he aimed to unite people through a common meal during whatever unrest may be occurring around the country.
‘I knew that this was going to be very powerful, I knew it was something very special,’ Tominsky said. ‘And it is uniting all people, no matter what background they come from, their political point of view, race, sexual orientation.
‘It’s just a great thing.’
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