Alexander Tominsky Rotisserie Chicken Challenge

Overview

Alexander Tominsky Rotisserie Chicken Challenge is a performance art piece in which Philadelphia resident Alexander Tominsky ate a whole plain rotisserie chicken every day for 40 days. Promoted via word-of-mouth, a cryptic poster and online chatter, Tominsky's challenge attracted considerable attention in late 2022, culminating when Tominsky ate his 40th and final chicken on November 6th, 2022, at an abandoned pier outside of a Walmart.

Background

Alexander Tominsky, a waiter at a Philadelphia steakhouse, said he started the challenge because "it was the right thing to do."^[1] His first public Twitter post about the challenge was posted on Day 11, October 8th, 2022, and received just under 260 likes (seen below).^[3]

Tominsky continued to post a picture of himself, the rotisserie chicken he aimed to eat, the bottle of seltzer water he would use to wash the bird down with and the raw vegetable he ate as a side dish every day throughout the 40-day challenge. These posts usually received an average of around 100 likes.

Developments

In late October 2022, Tominsky then put up fliers around the city of Philadelphia in advance of the 40th day of his challenge. He posted an image of his flyer (seen below) on October 27th, 2022, earning just over 1,100 likes in one week. ^[4]

A few days later, on November 2nd, 2022, Twitter user mikeyii took a picture of Tominsky's flyer in Philadelphia and posted it, earning over 100,000 likes in less than four days. Following the viral tweet, buzz and anticipation started to build as word of the Rotisserie Chicken Challenge spread online.^[5]

As the November 6th event approached, online chatter steadily increased surrounding the final day. In a November 2nd interview with The Takeout (a food magazine), Tominsky further elaborated on his reasoning, saying he is doing it "for the people" and planned to accept no sponsorships or money.^[2] He shared that while the challenge was trying for his mental and physical health, he aimed to see it through to the end.

November 6th, 2022, 40th Chicken Eating

Tominsky finished his final chicken on November 6th, 2022, at an event at a pier in South Philadelphia that was described as "not a party." Tominsky posted a picture of his setup to Twitter on the 6th, which showed a red carpet rolled out to the white-clothed table where he feasted (seen below), receiving just over 1,300 likes in three hours.^[6]

Before a crowd, purportedly numbering in the low hundreds, Tominsky silently ate his chicken and drank his seltzer. As he finished, he pumped his fist in the air. A post by Twitter user @florrymusicband that day captured Tominsky's celebration (seen below), earning almost 300 likes in two hours.^[7]

Online Reactions

Generally, posters online strongly associated Tominsky's chicken challenge with the spirit of his hometown of Philadelphia and his home state of Pennsylvania. His account was followed by the official account of John Fetterman, Democratic candidate for Senate coinciding with the challenge in October and November 2022.

Posters such as Twitter user @drewskywlkr, who attended the event, associated the challenge with Philadelphia, praising the city's spirit in a November 6th tweet (seen below), which received just over 1,500 likes in two hours.^[8]

External References