Las Vegas is well-known for taking excess to new, often glittery heights. It’s the kind of place where you can book a $40,000 a night hotel suite or take a casual 855-foot plunge off the STRAT. It’s also the home of some truly exorbitant Las Vegas food challenges. From pizzas to burgers to ramen, adventurous foodies will find no shortage of culinary conquests.
Related: 7 Places for Ginormous Food and Drinks in Las Vegas
Banana Split Challenge
We’ll start off with an easy one. Head over to Cream Me Ice Creamery in the Arts District and take the banana split challenge. All you have to do is eat two full bananas and six scoops of ice cream with four sauces, whipped cream, sprinkles, nuts, and a cherry on top in 15 minutes and the sweet treat is free.
Cereal Challenge
If you’re the cuckoo-for-Cocoa-Puffs type, you have to try the Cereal Challenge at Cereal Killerz located inside Planet Hollywood. You’ll have 60 minutes to devour one monster bowl of more than 130 different cereals. (Luckily, this food challenge doesn’t require you to finish the accompanying gallon of milk.) In addition to a free meal, if you win you’ll also get a $50 gift card, a free T-shirt, and a spot on the Cereal Wall of Fame.
Champion Burrito Challenge
Also located at the Miracle Mile Shops is La Salsa Cantina, a Mexican restaurant and bar. If you’ve got the cojones (and are at least 21 years old), you can attempt the Champion Burrito Challenge. Finish a 35 ounce burrito, plus a 48 ounce house frozen margarita and you’ll get a free “El Champion de la Cantina” T-shirt and a keepsake yard long margarita glass—not to mention a brain freeze.
Cowboy Challenge
Burger fans will love this one. To win the Cowboy Challenge at PBR Rock Bar & Grill, you’ll need to chow down on a two pound beef burger decked out with half a pound of cheddar cheese, a half pound hot dog, and half a pound of PBR’s signature chili. You’ll also have to round off your meal with four fried pickles, a pound of fries, and a 24 ounce milkshake. If you finish, you’ll win a $50 PBR voucher, a free PBR T-shirt, and $25 vouchers for each of PBR’s sister restaurants, Rockhouse and Chayo Mexican Kitchen. If you lose, you’ll be out $99 and your dignity.
Death Wings Challenge
You’ll need to beat the clock and overcome extreme heat levels to win the Death Wings Challenge at Diablo’s Cantina. You have to finish 20 wings in 20 minutes to win, which sounds deceptively easy—until you find out the wings are drowning in Diablo’s Death Sauce, a very hot blend of habanero chili and ghost chili extract. If you win, you’ll get a free T-shirt and be inducted into Diablo’s Hall of Fame.
Dick’s Big T-Boner Challenge
If you’re into artery-clogging Las Vegas food challenges, why not try Dick’s Big T-Boner Challenge? All you have to do is eat two 16 ounce steaks, Dick’s Huge 12” Wiener, the Macho Nacho appetizer, a house salad, a double portion of loaded mashed potatoes, and a double order of broccoli within one hour at Dick’s Last Resort. Your prize? Indigestion and a free meal. Oh, and the servers will roast you mercilessly whether you win or lose.
Do It In Public Challenge Burger
The Do It In Public Challenge Burger at Public House inside the Luxor is a race against the clock. If you can conquer four massive double cheeseburgers, a basket of loaded fries, and a 22 ounce milkshake in 30 minutes or less, your meal is free. You’ll also get a souvenir T-shirt to commemorate your gluttony.
Double Down Pizza Challenge
There’s eating a whole pizza, then there’s eating a whole 7 pound pizza. The Double Down Pizza Challenge at Slice of Vegas inside Mandalay Bay requires you to finish an entire double-stacked, 18 inch pizza with fresh marinara, mozzarella, capicola, salami, pepperoni, bacon, ham, yellow onions, mushrooms, and jalapeños in one sitting. The grand prize is a $100 Slice of Vegas gift card, a free T-shirt, and your face plastered on the wall of fame. Losers will be charged the full $50 for this cheesy monstrosity.
Get Stacked, Get Yolked Challenge
If you want to win this breakfast food challenge at Stacks & Yolks, you’ll need to finish 10 pancakes and 10 scrambled eggs in an hour or less. That may not sound too difficult…until you learn that each pancake has a diameter of roughly 9 inches and is about ¾ of an inch thick. If you can finish all 8 pounds of food in less than 60 minutes, your $40 meal is free and you’ll get a free T-shirt.
Hell Challenge
The Hell Challenge at Wing King is not for the faint of heart. In order to win, you’ll have to eat 12 Hell wings, which are tossed in a sauce rated over 9 million Scoville units of heat (for context, a ghost pepper is about 1 million Scoville units). Not only do you have to finish all 12 wings in 20 minutes, but you must also lick all the remaining sauce off your fingers (no wiping mechanisms allowed), and you cannot ingest any other food or liquids during the challenge. If you win, a video of your triumph will be posted online and you’ll get 100 free non-Hell wings delivered to your home for the big game.
Inferno Curry Challenge
Mint Indian Bistro offers their own take on hell with the Inferno Curry Challenge. This insanely spicy curry, which comes with your choice of fresh veggies, chicken thigh, or boneless lamb, is marinated with ghost pepper, Carolina reaper, and Trinidad Moruga Scorpion chili. If you finish your meal, you will be featured on the Wall of Flame, you’ll get a $50 Mint Bistro gift card, and you’ll be entered into a drawing to win complimentary dinner entrées for a year.
Omoide’s King Tonkatsu Challenge
Omoide Noodles and Bowls presents a food challenge fit for a king: the King Tonkatsu Challenge. To win, you’ll need to finish a monstrous platter that includes three slabs of tonkatsu (about 4.5 pounds’ worth) drenched in curry sauce and a large bowl of rice within 20 minutes. Winners will get a free meal, a free T-shirt, and be immortalized on the Wall of Fame.
Quadruple Bypass Burger Challenge
The Quadruple Bypass Burger at the controversial Heart Attack Grill packs quite a punch at just under 10,000 calories. Challengers must devour four half-pound beef patties, twenty strips of bacon, eight slices of American cheese, a whole tomato, and half an onion served on a lard-coated bun. Rumor has it that the nurses on staff will give you a wheelchair ride to the parking lot if you win—and a public spanking if you lose. (If four patties sounds too easy, you can always up the ante with the Octuple Bypass Burger.)
Shinigami Challenge
Are you hungry enough to finish the Shinigami Challenge at Shokku Ramen? You’ll need to slurp up 24 ounces of Tonkotsu broth with a spice level of about 4 million Scoville units, plus more than 3 pounds of noodles and toppings in 8 minutes or less. If you make the cut, you’ll get a free meal, a $25 Shokku Ramen gift card, a social media shout-out, and your photo will be added to the Wall of Warriors.
Super Torta Cubana Challenge
Bring your appetite to La Vecindad for the Super Torta Cubana Challenge. This four pound torta comes with sausage, ham, eggs, melted cheese, spicy salsa, milanesa, carne asada, grilled chicken, chorizo, lettuce, jalapeños, avocado, bacon, and beans in between a crispy sandwich roll. If you can finish the whole torta in 23 minutes or less, the sandwich is free and you’ll earn a spot on the Wall of Fame.
Victory Lap Challenge
At Sickies Garage Burgers & Brews, the sickest thing you’ll find on the menu is definitely the Victory Lap Challenge. This gargantuan sandwich includes a patty melt, grilled cheese sandwich, pulled pork, bacon, some more patty melts, a couple of fried eggs, fried jalapeños, fried pickles, and boneless chicken wings smothered in Sriracha and barbecue sauce. If you can finish the whole thing in addition to a side of fries within 60 minutes, you’ll get a free meal, free T-shirt, and a place on the Sickies wall of fame.
Windy City Sears Tower Challenge
Windy City Beefs N’ Dogs brings Chicago to the West Coast with the Sears Tower Challenge. You’ll have to finish a 7.2 pound beef and sausage combo sandwich loaded with cheese, hot and sweet peppers, and a bag of fries in 30 minutes or less. Winners will receive the sandwich free of charge, a free T-shirt, and online recognition in the Windy City hall of fame.
There’s Always Something to Eat in Las Vegas
From exclusive celebrity chef restaurants on the Las Vegas Strip to casual eateries open 24/7, there’s always something to eat in Las Vegas. Be sure to check out our restaurant directory for the full lineup of Sin City fare. For more insider info about the best and brightest our city has to offer, follow Things To Do in Las Vegas on Facebook.
