The heat was on this weekend as 12 brave men and women stepped up to the challenge at the Houston Greek Festival: Eat as many gyros as humanly possibly in 10 minutes.
Sam Barclay from Major League Eating was once again the host, with gyros supplied by Niko Niko's on plates at the competition stand on the grounds of St. Basil the Great Greek Orthodox Church. Not sample size. No, these were the real thing, those fully loaded monsters from the popular eatery.
At stake was the Gyro Eating Championship 2013 belt and, of course, eating pride as a "Gyro Hero."
Once the contest began, the competitors, who came from Houston, Dallas, Baton Rouge and Las Vegas, immediately begin ripping off the foil and downing the spicy lamb and beef wrapped in pita bread, with onions andtzatzikisauce.
When the 10 minutes was up, Joey Chestnut, The No. 1 competitive eater in the world and former gyro eating world-record holder, was declared the winner. He set a new world record of 22.25 gyros.
Congratulations to Chestnut and all who participated. You're all "Gyro Heros."
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The contest begins with the first bites.
