Epic Meal Time

Epic Meal Time is a Canadian YouTube cooking show known for creating extremely high-calorie meals, generally out of meat products (with particular emphasis on bacon) and including alcohol (especially Jack Daniel's). 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 multi-channel network Collective Digital Studio.[3] Epic Meal Time won the 2011 Shorty Award in the Food Category.[4][5]

For the Epic Meal Time app, see EpicMealTime (video game).

Epic Meal Time
Epic Meal Time logo
GenreCooking show (food porn), comedy, parody
Created by
Starring
  • Harley Morenstein
  • David Heuff (2010-2015)
  • Josh Elkin (2010-2015)
  • Ameer Atari
  • Mike Assor
  • Danny Harroch
  • Adam Sand
  • Mike Santos
  • Lemme Kno
  • Alex Perrault (2010-2013)
  • Tyler Lemco (2010-2013)
  • Shawn Dascal (2010)
Country of originCanada
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes350 (list of episodes)
Production
ProducerEvan Rimer
CinematographySterling Toth
Camera setupCanon 7D digital single-lens reflex camera
Release
Original network
Original releaseOctober 17, 2010 (2010-10-17) –
present
External links
Official website

The series began in Montreal, Quebec, the group's place of origin, but episodes have been filmed in California, where guest stars including Tony Hawk, Kevin Smith, and Arnold Schwarzenegger have made appearances.

In December 2012, Epic Meal Time spawned a spin-off series titled Epic Chef, inspired by the Food Network series Chopped. In this series, two chefs battle the 45-minute clock to create a meal using three secret ingredients mixed with a briefcase full of bacon and the featured alcoholic drink of the day.[6][7]

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.[8]

It was from that video that the idea for the first episode of Epic Meal Time, titled "The Worst Pizza Ever!", came about. In the episode, which was filmed on July 9, 2010, Morenstein and his friend Alex Perrault drove around to various fast food restaurants in Montréal to purchase ingredients for said pizza. The two men purchased a box of KFC popcorn chicken, a Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme, a McDonald's Big Mac and Chicken McNuggets, a Wendy's Baconator and french fries, and an A&W Teen Burger (bacon cheeseburger) and onion rings. Using a plain cheese pizza they also purchased as a base, Morenstein and Perrault stacked the fast food items on top of and covered the entire dish in cheese, and placed it in an oven to melt the cheese and secure the fast food items to the pizza. The entire meal totaled 5,210 calories and 286 grams of fat. It was posted on YouTube on October 17, 2010.[9] On October 17, 2011, one year after their first video, they re-made their first ever meal, but this time in a cake.[10] On October 16, 2012, two years after their first video, they re-made their first ever meal, but this time as a deep dish pizza.[11]

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] An upside-down cooking pot rests on the skull, while the crutches have been replaced by crossed carving knives.

The group filmed a pilot for G4TV.[12] They were formerly signed with Revision3, an Internet-based television network,[13] before leaving the network in July 2012.

Format
Wendy's Baconators being added in the "TurBaconEpic Thanksgiving" episode, with the individual and total fat and calorie counters visible

Each episode (typically 3–6 minutes in length) features Morenstein as the host. His profanity is bleeped out by bird calls.[1] The episodes are filmed with a Canon 7D digital single-lens reflex camera.[14] 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 alcoholic beverages (particularly Jack Daniel's whiskey) and bacon strips often included. In most episodes, as components are added to the meal, on-screen counters display the calorie and fat content of each new addition and of the overall meal. In "Maximum Protein Experience", the group also included a protein counter.[15] In episodes that involve candy and no meat, bacon strips are substituted with AirHeads Xtremes Sweetly Sour Belts, which have been affectionately called "gay bacon strips" due to their rainbow color.[16]

The episode ends with a group of people eating the meal, often very messily with their hands and sometimes incorporating unusual serving utensils like wooden paddles, a chainsaw, and hockey sticks. Morenstein ends each episode with his "Next time" line, telling viewers what the group will eat next time, which is usually random and completely irrelevant to the show.[17][18] For example, in one episode, he says, "Next time, we eat Cabbage Patch Kids."[19]

Episodes
Main article: List of Epic Meal Time episodes

Cast and crew
Harley Morenstein, the creator of Epic Meal Time.

The main Epic Meal Time cast members are Harley Morenstein (born July 20, 1985), a Canadian, and his friend Sterling Toth.[20][21]

Morenstein is a former substitute high school teacher from Montreal.[1][22] He co-created the show with Sterling Toth, who acts as the cameraman.[23] Also frequently involved is Alex Perrault, a personal trainer whose character, "Muscles Glasses",[14][17][24][23] is known for his reflective aviator sunglasses. Concordia University students David Heuff (Cousin Dave), Tyler Lemco, Josh Elkin (Epic Mook), and Ameer Atari (Prince Atari) also appear frequently.[24] Evan Rimer is their producing partner.[2]

Income method

Epic Meal Time uses merchandising to raise money for the show, currently selling a line of branded T-shirts. In interviews, Morenstein and Toth have also discussed the creation of a cookbook and an iPhone app.[23] The episodes also contain advertisements, generated by YouTube using Google AdSense. More recently, the group has participated in referral programs for other companies such as Netflix and Gamefly.[25] Most of the referral codes are given through the Epic Meal Time website, though the group has occasionally directly mentioned them in videos.[26][27]

An EpicMealTime video game was released as an app on the Android and iOS for purchase and download on July 26, 2012.[28] The game is somewhat similar to that of Fruit Ninja and it revolves around one of the Epic Meal Time crew. The playable characters, beginning with Harley Morenstein, eat unhealthy food such as pizza, meat and bacon while avoiding and pushing away more healthy consumables, mostly vegetables. Gameplay shows the EMT member being fed and opening his mouth to receive the food that flings in from both directions, while the player then navigates the food to go to the member's mouth and pushes away healthy items. The game starts with three strikes and if the player consumes three healthy items, the game ends. There are no "levels" but simply playing for score as "games" are counted every time the player retries. Challenges can be unlocked as well as more food items, backgrounds, crew members and hats.[29]

Reception

The show has become extremely popular, receiving millions of views per episode, prompting Morenstein to quit his job as a teacher and Toth to quit his as a graphic designer.[1][30] 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."[31]

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

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.[32] 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.[33] Kings of Kaukau is a parody show created by the Hawaiian comedy troupe One Hundred Thirty Plus Zero Creative Team, which combines Epic Meal Time's style of cooking with Hawaiian culture.[34][35] YouTuber boogie2988 made a parody episode of the show entitled "Francis Meal Time: Mountain Dew Stew" which features every type of Mountain Dew as well as various types of candy and sugary sweets such as marshmallows and candy corn.[36]

Appearances

Epic Meal Time appeared in their first late night interview 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. Afterwards, actor Rainn Wilson, Leno's other guest that night, made an appearance to assist in eating it.[37] Epic Meal Time has also appeared on other YouTube channels, including a cross-over episode with The Key of Awesome in "Epic Mealtime Showdown of AWESOME",[38] and in a skit with Freddie Wong entitled "Epic VFX Time".[39] They appeared at the 2011 Comic Con, where they performed a live show.[40] In August 2011, Epic Meal Time made an appearance on the DC Shoes promo video "Ken Block's Gymkhana Four: The Hollywood Megamercial".[41] On August 3, 2013, the Epic Meal Time crew appeared on "Shark After Dark" during the Discovery Channel's Shark Week.[42]

On November 11, 2015, Josh Elkin competed in the "Superstar Sabotage" charity tournament on the Food Network series Cutthroat Kitchen. He was eliminated in the first round, but won $2,500 for Autism Speaks. In March 2016, he became one of the judges on Cooks vs. Cons, another Food Network series.

On October 11, 2016, Ameer Atari competed on the Food Network series Chopped, in an episode whose contestants all hosted online cooking shows. He was eliminated in the first round ("Appetizer").

Lawsuit and controversy

In 2011, Harley and Darren Morenstein attempted to lock out co-creator Sterling Toth claiming that Toth wasn't fulfilling his role as cameraman and chief technician, to the detriment of the company. Toth responded to these allegations by taking up the issue in the Québec Superior Court, where he obtained a judgement ordering the Morensteins and Nexttime Productions Ltd. to provide him with a monthly account of sales, salaries and deductions, and obtain signed authorizations for any cash withdrawals from Nexttime intended for them or members of their family.[43] Subsequent legal proceedings were settled out of court, though neither party has alluded to the exact details of the settlement. Toth was no longer part of the company following the lawsuit.[44]

In 2013, Perrault and Lemco left the show; Perrault cited conflicts with Morenstein and his brother, saying, "Essentially, I felt like I wasn’t being treated fairly considering the value I brought to the show. Other than Harley, no other member of the crew had any ownership of the company." When asked about his departure, Lemco replied, "Business got in the way of it being fun."[45]

In a video blog, Morenstein explained that he co-created the Muscles Glasses character and Perrault was an actor hired to fill that role. Following Perrault's departure, Morenstein expanded the Muscles Glasses character into a spin-off series titled The Legend of Muscles Glasses, which chronicles the adventures of different men from different eras wearing the Aviator sunglasses.[46]

References
  1. Boone, Mike (19 January 2011). "Men gone wild -with food". Montreal Gazette. Archived from the original on 22 May 2011. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  2. Hibberd, James (2 February 2011). "YouTube hit Epic Meal Time cooking a TV show". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  3. "Our Partners". Collective Digital Studio. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
  4. "The Year's Best Food". Shorty Awards. Sawhorse Media. Archived from the original on 10 May 2011. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  5. Friar, Christine (25 April 2011). "Epic Meal Time's Drunk Interview At The Shorty Awards (VIDEO)". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  6. "The Birth of Epic Chef". Epic Meal Time. 2012-12-17. Archived from the original on 2012-12-21. Retrieved 2012-12-21.
  7. Tepper, Rachel (2012-12-14). "'Epic Chef,' Food Competition Show From Epic Meal Time, Features Talented Chefs And Gross Challenges (VIDEO)". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2012-12-21.
  8. Kerridge, Charmaine (3 February 2011). "Canadian YouTube hit Epic Meal Time headed to TV". National Post. Archived from the original on 10 July 2012. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  9. Morenstein, Harley (host); Perrault, Alex (host); Toth, Sterling (cameraman) (17 October 2010). The Worst Pizza Ever! (YouTube) (Television production). Canada: Epic Meal Time. Retrieved 16 February 2011.
  10. Morenstein, Harley (host); Perrault, Alex (host); Toth, Sterling (cameraman) (18 October 2011). Fast Food Pizza Cake (YouTube) (Television production). United States: Epic Meal Time. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
  11. Morenstein, Harley (host); Perrault, Alex (host); Toth, Sterling (cameraman) (16 October 2012). Fast Food Pizza Cake (YouTube) (Television production). United States: Epic Meal Time. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
  12. Morenstein, Harley (host) (1 November 2011). "Pilot Announcement". Twitter. Retrieved 4 November 2011.
  13. "Epic Show Addition on Revision3". Revision3. Archived from the original on 4 May 2011. Retrieved 3 May 2011.
  14. Stern, Marlow (17 March 2011). "Epic Meal Time Creators on Their Future Plans". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
  15. Morenstein, Harley (host); Toth, Sterling (cinematographer) (1 March 2011). Maximum Protein Experience (Television production). Epic Meal Time. Retrieved 15 June 2011.
  16. Morenstein, Harley (host); Toth, Sterling (cinematographer) (17 May 2011). Candy BBQ (Television production). Epic Meal Time. Retrieved 19 October 2011.
  17. "Epic Quebecois Time". The Score. Retrieved 19 April 2011.
  18. "Meatball Deathstar". Epic Meal Time. Retrieved 5 May 2011.
  19. Morenstein, Harley (host); Toth, Sterling (cinematographer) (1 February 2011). The Sloppy Roethlisberger (Television production). Epic Meal Time. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
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  21. Boone, Mike (January 19, 2011). "Men gone wild -with food". The Gazette. Archived from the original on May 22, 2011. Retrieved August 19, 2011.
  22. 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.
  23. Forbes, Paula. "Epic Meal Time: A Bunch of Dudes, Just Making it Happen". Eater National. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  24. Horowitz, Julia (25 January 2011). "Montrealers grab YouTube fame with Epic Meal Time". The Brock Press. Archived from the original on 15 February 2013. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  25. "Epic Deals". Epic Meal Time. Archived from the original on 23 June 2011. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
  26. Morenstein, Harley (host), Toth, Sterling (cinematographer) (24 May 2011). Ninja Turtle Soup (Television production). Epic Meal Time. Event occurs at 1:50.
  27. Morenstein, Harley (host), Toth, Sterling (cinematographer) (6 June 2011). Epic Hors D'Oeuvres (Television production). Epic Meal Time. Event occurs at 3:14.
  28. Molecube. "Epic Meal Time - Android Apps on Google Play". google.com. Archived from the original on 12 November 2014. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
  29. George Wong. "Epic Meal Time game now on Android and iOS". Ubergizmo. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
  30. "An epic star is born". The Suburban. Archived from the original on 2 March 2011. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
  31. "The Conversation: Epic Meal Time". ABC News. 14 January 2011. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  32. Forbes, Paula. "Regular Ordinary Swedish Meal Time Spoofs Epic Meal Time". Eater National. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  33. Goodman, William (28 April 2011). "Parody: Epic Meal Time (Kids Edition)". CBS News. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  34. "Kings of Kaukau: Indulgence Kingdom on YouTube". Lee Ward Community College. 2012-04-01. Missing or empty |url= (help)
  35. "Epic Kaukau Time". Eater.com. Retrieved 2 June 2011.
  36. "Francis Meal Time - Mountain Dew Stew (Epic Meal Time Parody)". YouTube. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
  37. Friar, Christine (18 March 2011). "Epic Meal Time Do Leno, Make Giant Meat Car". Urlesque. Archived from the original on 22 March 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  38. "Epic Mealtime Showdown of AWESOME". (YouTube) (Television production). Retrieved 24 January 2011.
  39. "Freddie Wong and Epic Meal Time Join Forces". Stuff I Stole from the Internet. Archived from the original on 8 June 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  40. "Epic Meal Time Live Show During Comic Con!". Archived from the original on 2012-03-11. Retrieved July 4, 2011.
  41. "Gymkhana FOUR". DC Shoes. 2011-08-16. Archived from the original on 2011-11-18. Retrieved 2011-11-16.
  42. "Harley Morenstein on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
  43. Corriveau, Chantal (August 22, 2011). "Toth c. Morenstein 2011 QCCS 4220". SOQUIJ - Intelligence Juridique. Quebec Superior Court. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
  44. "sterlingtoth comments on I'm the co-creator of Epic Meal Time, lawsuit survivor and now app developer, Sterling Toth. AMA!". reddit. Retrieved 22 January 2015.
  45. Manarino, Matthew (2013-08-15). "Former Members of Epic Meal Time Cite Poor Treatment and Broken Promises as Reasons for Leaving". New Media Rockstars. Retrieved 2014-06-18.
  46. Morenstein, Harley (host) (22 January 2014). A PSA - Where is MusclesGlasses & The Dawn of The Legend of MusclesGlasses (YouTube) (Television production). United States: Harley Morenstein. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
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