Melbourne man hungry for food challenge glory

A MELBOURNE man with a huge appetite wants to take on Australia and then the world in food challenges made famous in America.

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HE’S A LEAN, mean eating machine and Melbourne man Ollie Ressom says he’s hungry for glory.

After reading the Herald Sun’s story on Melbourne food challenges Mr Ressom’s friends came forward to highlight his eating prowess — proud that his name tops the leaderboard of many food challenge establishments around town.

The 30-year-old from Pascoe Vale said he’s taken part in numerous eating challenges, including finishing the whopping 16-stacker burger at Mont Albert’s JD’s Burgers in an alarming 17 minutes.

(The usual time limit given to those attempting the feat is 40 minutes).

But there’s a method to his madness, the strength and conditioning coach says it’s not like he eats mammoth amounts of food every day — it’s all about moderation.

Plus, he thinks genetics has a lot to do with it too — his stomach able to quickly expand more than others.

“I’m competitive and I like eating — so the two kind of go together,” he said.

“And when it comes to these challenges, it’s not like I’m eating these meals each and every day. I like to keep lean, so I normally gradually start to eat more and more for a week leading up to the challenge.”

Ollie Ressom, from Pascoe Vale, says he's competitive and likes food — making him the perfect competitor in Melbourne's food challenges. Picture: Supplied

Always able to eat more than his family and friends, Mr Ressom said it wasn’t until taking part in his first eating challenge that he realised it was something he wanted to pursue further.

“My first challenge was at The B. East in Brunswick and I broke the record. It stood for a year — and then after a night out for dinner and drinks I had another crack and broke the old record pretty quickly,” he said.

“So I thought ‘I might give this a crack’”.

You could be forgiven for thinking he’s a little nuts — and that he’s eating himself into a heart attack.

But Mr Ressom disagrees — he trains 15 hours a week and has a keen interest in nutrition.

And says the support from family and friends has been both wonderful and surprising.

“Everyone eats, so I think it (competing in food challenges) is something they can relate to,” he said.

“And the psychological health benefits of enjoying yourself and being happy far outweigh any negative effect.”

Mr Ressom says people are surprised with his eating abilities. Picture: Supplied

Mr Ressom says he's competitive and likes food. Picture: Supplied

Not happy with resting on his laurels, Mr Ressom hopes to take his food challenge quest on the road — planning to travel to Queensland and New South Wales to hopefully knock the best of the best off each and every Wall of Fame on the east coast.

There is one burger he has his eyes on too — a 21 patty burger that also has 21 slices of cheese, 10 rashers of bacon, three potato cakes and 3 cheese croquettes.

The mammoth burger in at Launch Espresso and Kitchen in Geelong has already beaten him once — Mr Ressom unable to finish two final patties and some of the burger bun — but he’s determined not to let it defeat him again.

And after he’s taken on Australia, Mr Ressom — who goes by the name The Ressler, wants a piece of the American pie.

He hopes to make the trek to Coney Island, New York next year to take part in Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest.

“But that will take a bit of work — I’m good by Australian standards, but the American’s — I don’t think I can eat as much as them yet,” he said.

Mr Ressom says he trains a week before taking part in an eating challenge. Picture: Supplied

Ollie Ressom, of Pascoe Vale, loves a burger. Picture: Supplied

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