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Epic Meal Time

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Epic Meal Time
Says EpicMealTime, and to the left of the text is a silhouette of a skull wearing a bandana with crossed knives underneath.
Epic Meal Time logo
GenreCooking show, comedy, parody
StarringHarley Morenstein
Alex Perrault
Tyler Lemco
David Heuff
Josh Elkin
Ameer Atari
Country of originMontreal, Quebec, Canada
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducerEvan Rimer
CinematographySterling Toth
Camera setupCanon 7D digital single-lens reflex camera
Original release
NetworkYouTube (October 2010–present)
Revision3 (April 2011–present)
ReleaseOctober 17, 2010 (2010-10-17)

Epic Meal Time is a YouTube cooking show known for creating extremely high-calorie meals, generally out of meat products (with more emphasis on bacon) and including alcohol. It debuted in October 2010, and since then has started to release an episode every Tuesday.[1] It is hosted by Harley Morenstein and a group of his friends. They are now represented by The Gersh Agency and Brillstein-Grey Entertainment,[2] and have signed with Internet television network Revision3.[3] Epic Meal Time won the 2011 Shorty Award in the Food Category.[4][5]

History

The idea for Epic Meal Time was created when a friend filmed Morenstein eating a Wendy's hamburger that contained six beef patties and eighteen bacon strips to the theme song from The Terminator. They posted the footage on YouTube, where it gathered thousands of hits.[6] They decided to film the first episode of Epic Meal Time, titled "The Worst Pizza Ever!". In the episode, they created a "fast food pizza" containing KFC popcorn chicken, a Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme (taco), a McDonald's Big Mac and chicken nuggets, a Wendy's Baconator and french fries, an A&W Teen Burger (bacon cheeseburger) and onion rings, and a cheese pizza. The entire meal totaled 5,210 calories and 286 grams of fat. It was posted on YouTube on October 17, 2010.[7]

Morenstein admits the show is "Jackass in the kitchen", and Epic Meal Time's logo is closely modeled after the American stunt and prank show's own skull and crutches logo.[1]

The group approached Comedy Central, Spike TV and the Discovery Channel about creating a television program out of the show.[6] They are currently signed with Revision3, an Internet-based television network.[3]

Format

Each episode features Morenstein as host. He uses hip hop slang frequently, and his profanity is bleeped out by bird calls.[1] The episodes are filmed with a Canon 7D digital single-lens reflex camera.[8] The episode begins with Morenstein, other recurring Epic Meal Time members, and occasionally other guests, cooking the meal itself. Most of the meals are meat-based, with alcohol and bacon often included. When they add more components to the meal, counters at the bottom right side of the video display the increasing number of calories, and grams of fat and protein. Episodes end with a group of people eating the meal, often very messily and sometimes incorporating unusual serving utensils like wooden paddles and hockey sticks.[9]

Cast and crew

The Epic Meal Time cast and crew is made up of a number of men in their twenties.[10] The host, narrator, and co-creator is Harley Morenstein, a 25-year-old former substitute high school teacher from Montreal.[1][11] He co-created the show with Sterling Toth, who acts as the cameraman.[12] Also frequently involved is Alex Perrault, a personal trainer known for wearing reflective aviator sunglasses in most of the episodes. Morenstein refers to him as "Muscles Glasses". There is also Concordia University student Tyler Lemco, as well as David Heuff, Josh Elkin and Ameer Atari.[10] Evan Rimer is their producing partner.[2]

Others have made appearances in episodes, such as Canadian house musician Deadmau5 in the May 3, 2011 episode "Cheesy Grilled Cheese Tower".[13]

Reception

The show has become extremely popular, receiving millions of views per episode, prompting Mortenstein to quit his job as a teacher and Toth to quit his as a graphic designer.[1][14] Morenstein explained the popularity by saying, "In this day and age, I feel like there's a big emphasis on organic foods or a lot of negative media in regards to obesity and stuff like that. We are there eating this, and [viewers] are eating vicariously through us."[15]

In March 2011, Morenstein and Toth won a Shorty Award in the food category. The Shorty Awards recognizes social media and Twitter fan-favorites. Epic Meal Time won ahead of Twitter phenomenon Ruth Bourdain and shows like Food Network's Bitchin' Kitchen.[4][5]

Parodies

The show has spawned parodies. One parody was created by a group of vegans, in which a tofurkey meal is made with tofu, edible seaweed, spaghetti, soy sauce, and other ingredients. The parody was posted on the blog of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, who described Epic Meal Time as "nasty" and "gluttonous".[16] A parody show entitled Regular Ordinary Swedish Meal Time shows a group of Swedish people preparing traditional Swedish cuisine in an over-the-top manner.[17] Another parody, "Epic Meal Time - Kids Edition", shows a young boy creating a macaroni and cheese meat lasagna in a similar style as Epic Meal Time.[18]

Merchandising

Epic Meal Time currently sells a line of branded t-shirts. In interviews, Morenstein and Toth have also discussed the creation of a cookbook and an iPhone app.[19]

Appearances

Epic Meal Time appeared in their first late night interview with on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on March 17, 2011, where they created an "inside-out" shepherd's pie variation (made with mashed potatoes, Kraft Dinner, pastrami, prosciutto, Velveeta, bacon, and barbecue sauce) that was shaped like a car.[20] The team have also appeared on other Youtube channels, including in a skit with Freddie Wong entitled "Epic VFX Time".[21]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Boone, Mike (19 January 2011). "Men gone wild -with food". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  2. ^ a b Hibberd, James (2 February 2011). "YouTube hit Epic Meal Time cooking a TV show". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  3. ^ a b "Epic Show Addition on Revision3". Revision3. Retrieved 3 May 2011.
  4. ^ a b "The Year's Best Food". Shorty Awards. Sawhorse Media. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  5. ^ a b Friar, Christine (25 April 2011). "Epic Meal Time's Drunk Interview At The Shorty Awards (VIDEO)". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  6. ^ a b Kerridge, Charmaine (3 February 2011). "Canadian YouTube hit Epic Meal Time headed to TV". National Post. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  7. ^ Morenstein, Harley (host); Perrault, Alex (host); Toth, Sterling (cameraman) (17 October 2010). The Worst Pizza Ever! (YouTube) (Web show). Canada: Epic Meal Time. Retrieved 16 February 2011.
  8. ^ Stern, Marlow (18 March 2011). "Epic Meal Time Creators on Their Future Plans". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
  9. ^ "Epic Quebecois Time". The Score. Retrieved 19 April 2011.
  10. ^ a b Horowitz, Julia (25 January 2011). "Montrealers grab YouTube fame with Epic Meal Time". The Brock Press. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  11. ^ Katz, Neil (27 January 2011). "Epic Mealtime's 87,000 Calorie "Slaughterhouse" is Probably Worst Thing You Could Ever Eat". CBS News. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  12. ^ Forbes, Paula. "Epic Meal Time: A Bunch of Dudes, Just Making it Happen". Eater National. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  13. ^ Goodman, William (3 May 2011). "Epic Meal Time and music producer Deadmau5 create a "Cheesy Grilled Cheese Tower" Read more: http://www.cbsnews". CBS News. Retrieved 3 May 2011.
  14. ^ "An epic star is born". The Suburban. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
  15. ^ "The Conversation: Epic Meal Time". ABC News. 14 January 2011. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  16. ^ Subramanian, Sunny. "'Epic Meal Time' Goes Vegan!". The PETA Files. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  17. ^ Forbes, Paula. "Regular Ordinary Swedish Meal Time Spoofs Epic Meal Time". Eater National. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  18. ^ Goodman, William (28 April 2011). "Parody: Epic Meal Time (Kids Edition)". CBS News. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  19. ^ Forbes, Paula. "Epic Meal Time: A Bunch of Dudes, Just Making it Happen". Eater National. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  20. ^ Friar, Christine (18 March 2011). "Epic Meal Time Do Leno, Make Giant Meat Car". Urlesque. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  21. ^ "Freddie Wong and Epic Meal Time Join Forces". Stuff I Stole from the Internet. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
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