The World Is His Oyster! October 16, 2009

Jimmy Cerrigione of Burtons Grill South Windsor, American Mussel Sponsored Champ Represents New England in National Oyster Championship

Think you can eat two dozen oysters in sixteen seconds?! If you’re up for the challenge you’ll have Jimmy Cerrigione of Burtons Grill, an upscale-casual restaurant in South Windsor, to contend with, as he is the official New England Oyster Slurping Champion! Cerrigione got started in this interesting pastime by competing in the annual New England Oyster Festival and found himself labeled the New England Champ five straight years in a row! Traditionally, oyster slurping is the simple act of slurping oysters out of the shell into your mouth. However, some of the more timid folks will pick the oyster out with a fork. Jimmy is certainly not one of the timid ones, and he is so good at “slurping” that he is headed to the “Royster with the Oyster” National Oyster Slurping Championships, this coming October 16-18, 2009 taking place at Shaw’s Crab House in Chicago Illinois!

So who is this Jimmy Cerrigione? Jimmy has been in the Connecticut restaurant business his whole life, and therefore naturally has a love of food. He currently works at South Windsor’s Burtons Grill as a server and has been there for three years. Cerrigione happened to stumble upon his new-found talent by accompanying a friend to the Rhode Island Oyster Festival a few years ago and tried out “oyster slurping”….and the rest is history. What does it take to be graced with this title? Faster than most of us can swallow a bite of our burgers, Cerrigione earned it by sucking down two dozen oysters out of the half shell with no hands in sixteen seconds! That sixteen second time is the New England record, meaning that nobody has been able to beat Cerrigione’s time. However, Cerrigione wasn’t completely satisfied and therefore he went all the way to the National Championships and earned himself the title of National Champion in both 2006 and 2008. That means that Cerrigione is able to consume one dozen oysters faster than anyone else in the country! He is so in demand that American Mussel, who is also the clam and mussel vendor for Burtons Grill, is more than happy to be the corporate sponsor supporting Jimmy. Why are they so supportive of Jimmy? American Mussel said it simply, “He’s good, and he’s fast. He’s a good representative of the company”. And this year he is in it to win the title again!

So what is Cerrigione doing when he’s not slurping oysters? Jimmy says he enjoys being outside swimming, hiking, and camping. So if you’re interested in meeting this diverse and uniquely talented champion, go to Burtons Grill for your lunch break or for a top notch dinner. Crack a smile by telling ‘em at the door that Jimmy sent you to try the oysters! But one thing’s for sure…don’t leave this guy alone with your lunch if it contains oysters! Instead come to Chicago the weekend of October 16-18, 2009 at Shaw’s Crab House to support your local oyster celebrity and cheer him on! But don’t blink; you might miss the accomplished champ win the Championships again!

Official Website: http://www.burtonsgrill.com