Booker, Janus, Goldstein in Cheesecakes

Eric Badlands Booker won the World Cheesecake-Eating Championship at the Downtown Atlantic Restaurant during Brooklyn's 30th annual Atlantic Antic Festival.

Booker -- matzo ball, pea and cannoli champion -- consumed 1 4/5 nine-inch cheesecakes (approximately 7 pounds) in six minutes. Placing second was the mysterious Eater X (some say his real name is Timothy Janus), who consumed 1 1/3 cheesecakes (5.5 pounds) during the contest. In third place was Allen Goldstein with 1 ¼ cheesecakes (5 pounds).

Attending the event were eating stalwarts Double B Seiken, Hungry Charles Hardy and Mike Devito. Goldstein and Eater X fought back and forth until the final minute, when Goldstein slowed slightly, giving up the edge.

The winning eater received a trophy, a romance weekend at the Marriott Hotel at the Brooklyn Bridge, the title of World Cheesecake Eating Champion and a coveted place on the Wall of Fame of the Downtown Atlantic.

The Downtown Atlantic is a 60-seat restaurant, bar and bakery that serves “haute comfort cuisine” to the neighborhoods of Downtown Brooklyn. The restaurant’s baking facility serves the entire city. In addition to individual cheesecakes, the Downtown Atlantic offers six- and nine-inch cheesecakes and cakes made to order wholesale for all occasions.