Dude vs Huge-Ass Burger: Dude Wins.

tales of awesome feats by Renzie Baluyut.

Ladies and gentlemen, meet Brad Sciullo-- he's 5'11" and 180 pounds. This 21 year-old chef just happened to walk into Denny's Beer Barrel Pub, took on their signature 15-pound monster burger, and lived to tell the tale.

Now that's one mammoth of a burger. If they actually made burgers out of wooly mammoths, I'd say that's it right there.

Actually, the ginormous "Beer Barrel Belly Buster" weighed a total 20.2 pounds-- including the 15-pound slab of beef, plus toppings (lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, onions and mild banana peppers), and condiments (about a cup each of mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard and relish), according to pub owner Dennis Liegey.

According to the article on G4TV's The Feed:

When asked why he did it, Brad said simply, "I wanted to see if I could." For completing this feat in under five hours (he clocked in at 4 hours, 39 minutes) Brad was rewarded with a $400 prize, a certificate verifying his accomplishment, and no less than three commemorative T-Shirts. God bless America.

Denny's Beer Barrel Pub is located about 100 miles northeast of Pittsburgh in Clearfield. It seems their life-goal is to create the biggest burgers known to man.

Their biggest so far? A 123-pound burger priced at US$379, which they rolled out of their kitchen in February 2007. This particular monstrosity has an 80-pound burger and also packs a pound of lettuce, ketchup, relish, mustard, mayonnaise, 160 slices of cheese, five onions, 12 tomatoes, 2 pounds of banana peppers, 33 pickles, and a 30-pound bun.

Check out some more pics of Brad's incredible feat of burger-slaying on Newser.com.

Cheers, everyone.

Red Box Gets Better- with Wii!

another awesome post from Renzie Baluyut.

We just had a Nintendo Wii Party at Red Box, and it was awesome.

You read that right- your favorite karaoke joint just got better. You can now play Nintendo Wii games at Red Box. Red Box was kick-ass enough as it was- you can sing your lungs out to a great selection of karaoke songs, have your own personal party, play some billiards, even have some great food in the privacy of your own room.

With the addition of Nintendo Wii units in selected rooms, going to Red Box can only mean more fun with family and friends.

To help spread the word, the guys of GeiserMaclang and Red Box threw this nice little party for bloggers. Many of us were already regulars of Red Box. As for me, well, it was my first time to get my hands on an actual Wii. Makes me thinking of getting one for myself. But until then, I know I can get my Wii fix now at Red Box.

Here's a press release from the good guys of Red Box:

No one thought that Mario, Luigi and Zelda can be found in a karaoke bar. But thanks to the innovative names behind Red Box, Filipino karaoke aficionados can now play their favorite Nintendo Wii Games while singing the latest hits from their favorite music artists.

“When deciding where to go on a night out, people now consider the diversity of activities they can do in one place. This is why we constantly expand our offerings. We want to give the market all the fun they want without going through the hassle of moving from one place to another,” says Paolo del Rosario, Marketing Director of Red Box.

Nintendo Wii will now be part of Red Box's long list of choices for leisure and recreation. Starting this October, selected rooms in Red Box will be equipped with Nintendo Wii consoles where karaoke lovers can alternate between the microphone and nunchuck controllers.

And to jumpstart this new offering, the international karaoke franchise recently gathered karaoke and Wii fanatics to a Wii Party held at Red Box Greenbelt 3. Dressed in popular Wii characters, participants were able to get a sneak peek of how karaoke can be much more enjoyable with this interactive video game.

Adding Nintendo Wii to its roster of activities attests that only an international entertainment hub like Red Box would understand that more than just getting a perfect score, true karaoke is a multi-sensory experience. As a proof of this, Red Box probably holds the most extensive song selection in the market with approximately 100, 000 songs and music videos updated on a weekly basis.

Globe-trotting karaoke enthusiasts can also settle into the plush, super-chilled rooms and enjoy munch food whipped up by their expert chefs and swill beverages from their wide array of international beers and cocktails.

Red Box also features a mix of leisure and recreational facilities that adds a sophisticated twist to any karaoke experience. Whether playing a game of pool, battling it out on the poker table or simply lounging in the karaoke bar's comfy sofa, Red Box makes sure that nobody is left out of the fun.

With the addition of Nintendo Wii, Red Box is once again setting the standards for global karaoke fun.

Experience a different level of karaoke high. Red Box has branches in Greenbelt 3 and Trinoma. For more information and inquiries, please call (+632) 757.6188 or visit www.redbox.com.ph.

Related stories elsewhere on Renzie's blogs:

• Did you know that Red Box actually serves some really good food? Read all about it on Eats n'Treats | Renzie on Food.
• Now that you can play Nintendo Wii at Red Box, are you curious to know about the best ever Wii games of all time? Check it out here on Get Your Game On | Renzie on Gaming.
• A feature on Red Box, here on Meandering Wanderings | Renzie on Travel & Leisure.

Special thanks to the good people of Red Box and GeiserMaclang for throwing an awesome Wii party.

Cheers, everyone!

Heroes Season 3 Does Way Better Online

awesome news by Renzie Baluyut

You may have heard by now how the season premiere of the third volume of Heroes came out with disappointing ratings- down 25% from the last season opener, which translated only to a little less than 10 million viewers (as tracked by The Hollywood Reporter).

But guess what? According to IMDb.com, Episode 1 of Heroes: Villains turned out to be a huge hit online- particularly among those who watch pirated copies of TV shows off the internet.

How huge is huge? According to the website TorrentFreak, the day following the NBC broadcast, Heroes was downloaded over a million times by BitTorrent users all over the world, making last Tuesday one of the busiest days ever for many torrent sites.

Now this may come as a surprise: the head honchos at Heroes actually believe that these torrents actually help the show, particularly outside the United States, as the downloads help build a fan base before the program airs on local TV.

In fact, according to Heroes executive producer Jesse Alexander,

"People watching shows such as Lost and Heroes on BitTorrent is the present world reality...TV networks have to recognize this, give their viewers more ways to interact with the shows, and find ways to generate revenue from every member of the global audience."

Photos courtesy of TV.com.

Cheers, everyone!