In the competitive eating world Randy Santel is recognized for his remarkable gastronomic feats and this time around tackled the Barnyard Challenge at Georgia Boys BBQ in Longmont on Oct. 10.
Santel, a YouTuber and professional eater with a massive fan base, set up shop in the Longmont location around dinner time to undertake the epic Barnyard Challenge, which consists of a monstrous barbecue club sandwich with a spicy wing knockout at the end.
According to Cheri Wright, the marketing director of Georgia Boys BBQ, Santel initially reached out to them. He was well aware of Raina Huang, another seasoned food challenge participant and YouTuber, who visited their Greeley establishment last October and completed the challenge in an impressive 25 minutes. It seemed like Santel aimed to surpass Huang’s record.
“He has quite a following. We had quite a few of his fans at the restaurant watching him take on the challenge. So that was a lot of fun,” Wright said.
Santel’s team documented the entire challenge for his YouTube subscribers, which added to the excitement. It seemed like Santel was determined to take on the challenge the moment he set foot in the door and attempted not only to devour the massive Barnyard Sandwich but also attack a homemade banana pudding dessert.
“I believe he did that because his mouth was on fire. Our wings are really hot in the challenge,” Wright said. “But yeah, honestly, I don’t think it was the amount and size that got him. It was the heat on the wings. He was struggling with that.”
The Barnyard Challenge, the other star of the event, is a colossal barbecue club sandwich like no other. This titanic meal must be completed in under an hour to be free for the challenger, a feat that only a handful have conquered.
The culinary behemoth commences with a towering chicken sandwich on Texas toast, followed by layers of brisket, pork and a cheese sandwich reminiscent of grilled cheese. This towering stack sits atop a bed of pan-cut fries, crowned with six extra-hot ghost pepper chicken wings, creating a colossal meal weighing in at over four pounds.
Surprisingly, the Barnyard Challenge is a common enough item on their menu to prepare and gets served up every once in a while to ambitious challengers. Wright explained that the ghost pepper sauce is exceptionally spicy and homemade, making it a challenge even for people who are tough when it comes to hot sauces.
Wright also spoke of the feedback they received from the event, emphasizing Santel's appreciation for their challenge and the positive response it garnered. Santel was highly complementary about the food and even extended a couple of shoutouts to Georgia Boys BBQ on social media, much to their delight, considering his substantial online following.
“One of the things that he said is that sometimes he has restaurants that he goes to, and they get upset when he actually wins the challenge. Well, we love it when people win our challenge, we think it’s great,” Wright said.
Wright believes that it promotes their store when folks attempt the challenge because it’s genuinely enjoyable for them to try and do it. She thinks it helps people become aware of what they have to offer and certainly generates interest in the restaurant itself.
“It helps show people the variety of food that we offer because it is such a combination of food that goes in there. Some people come and get it just because they like to try all the different meats and different sandwiches. Even though they know that they may not be able to finish it, it’s a pretty big skillet of food,” Wright said.
For those who might find the Barnyard Challenge a bit too ambitious, Wright offered a welcoming message that Georgia Boys BBQ is not specifically about extreme food challenges but also about providing a diverse menu to cater to all tastes.
“He’s a nice guy, he really just kind of came across as just a regular guy who loves his job,” Wright said. “He’s a big dude, too.”
