Man Sets World Record by Eating at 18 Michelin-Starred Restaurants in 24 Hours

Eric Finkelstein, 34 years old, now holds the world record for visiting the most Michelin-starred restaurants in 24 hours after going through fancy caviar, steak tartare, grilled scallops, and other upscale dishes throughout New York City. You can say that he had a lot on his plate – at least for a day.

A World Record Involving Eating

The Michelin tire company has been rating fancy restaurants all over the world since 1926 to help inspire more people to travel. Receiving a star from Michelin is considered a major accomplishment for restaurant owners. They let customers know that this eating place is worth going to for its excellent food. Restaurants are rated by Michelin inspectors with one, two, or three stars, with three being the highest possible score.

Eric Finkelstein, who works as a healthcare IT consultant, set a world record by visiting 18 establishments that were rated by Michelin on October 26. The record was announced on December 26, 2022. He ate his way through some of the finest restaurants in the city and he had been preparing for this for months. Speaking of records, Finkelstein is a bit of a record-setting fiend. He also holds two other Guinness World Records – one for the largest table tennis ball mosaic flag, and one for the longest table tennis serve.

Eric Finkelstein Likes Breaking Records

So, when it was mentioned in a post about the previous record for the most Michelin-starred restaurants visited in 24 hours, which was 12, he couldn’t help but try to beat it. He grew up reading Guinness World Record books. He decided to start going for the record in his late 20s as he considered himself an adult version of continuing to be a child, similar to the pranks he liked to be involved with in college.

Back in August 2021, Finkelstein submitted his official application to Guinness World Records. The organization accepted him in April 2022. Then, he dove into planning by contacting Michelin-starred restaurants all over the city to get reservations and tracked down individuals who could serve as witnesses for the world record. He even created a detailed timeline and map of his planned route. He did it on his first attempt, as it took him roughly 11 hours, spending $494, and eating an estimated 5,000 calories.