Q 01/05

The Nathan's Famous hot dog contest is held at the corner of which two Brooklyn avenues?

A) Surf and Stillwell

B) Neptune and Ocean

C) Mermaid and West 12th

D) Brighton and Coney Island

Answer · why

A) Surf and Stillwell

Nathan's Famous has stood at the corner of Surf and Stillwell avenues since Nathan Handwerker opened it in 1916, and the July 4 contest takes place ou...

Q 02/05

The story that Nathan's contest began with four immigrants in 1916 was admitted in 2010 to be what?

A) A true story with the wrong year

B) A publicity stunt invented in the 1970s

C) A misremembered Labor Day event

D) A rival vendor's version of events

Answer · why

B) A publicity stunt invented in the 1970s

Promoter Morty Matz admitted in 2010 that he and Max Rosey had invented the 1916 tale as a publicity stunt in the 1970s; the contest's verifiable hist...

Q 03/05

Who won the first women-only Nathan's contest in 2011, eating 40 hot dogs?

A) Miki Sudo

B) Michelle Lesco

C) Sonya Thomas

D) Juliet Lee

Answer · why

C) Sonya Thomas

Sonya Thomas, nicknamed the Black Widow, ate 40 hot dogs to win the inaugural women's contest in 2011, taking the pink belt and $10,000.

Q 04/05

Which network began broadcasting the Nathan's contest live in 2004?

A) Fox Sports

B) NBC

C) Food Network

D) ESPN

Answer · why

D) ESPN

ESPN began carrying the contest live in 2004, and the network's coverage turned a Brooklyn boardwalk sideshow into a July 4 television fixture.

Q 05/05

Why was reigning champion Joey Chestnut barred from the 2024 Nathan's contest?

A) He signed a deal with a plant-based hot dog brand

B) He failed the official pre-contest weigh-in

C) He skipped the mayor's pre-contest press conference

D) He was caught soaking his buns in warm water

Answer · why

A) He signed a deal with a plant-based hot dog brand

Nathan's asked that Impossible Foods' hot dogs be exempted from his contract; Major League Eating said no, and Chestnut ate at Fort Bliss instead.