A record that stood for nearly 22 years at Wintzell’s Oyster House has fallen. Kristen Amy McElheny, 33, put away 223 raw oysters in less than an hour last week, breaking the women’s eating record that had hung on the wall of the downtown Mobile institution since 1997.
The previous mark of 215 oysters belonged to Beth Larimore Carter, who set the record on May 1, 1997. Carter’s name held the top spot for almost 22 years to the day before McElheny stepped up to reclaim it, finishing with 10 minutes still left on the clock.
McElheny, a former America’s Junior Miss participant, said she had wanted to hold the record since she was a child. In the lead-up to her attempt, she solicited sponsorships from several area businesses on behalf of the Distinguished Young Women program, raising more than $5,000 for scholarship funds in the process. Wintzell’s has long served as an informal proving ground for competitive eaters in the Mobile area, and the oyster-eating record is one of the restaurant’s most closely watched traditions.
The feat adds a new chapter to a local tradition that blends appetite with charity, and it comes during a busy stretch of springtime food events across the region.
Among them is the 17th annual St. Mary’s Knights of Columbus Crawfish and Bluegrass Extravaganza, set for Saturday, May 18. Gates open from 3:30 to 8 p.m. for the rain-or-shine event, which pairs all-you-can-eat crawfish with several hours of live bluegrass music. Advance tickets are $20 and available at Mobile Popcorn and St. Mary’s school, with the price rising to $25 on the day of the event. Tickets for kids ages 13 to 18 are $15, and children 12 and under get in free.
The following day, Fairhope Brewing Company hosts its sixth annual Suck It, Cancer crawfish cook-off on Sunday, May 19, from 2 to 5 p.m. at 914 Nichols Ave. Sponsored by Bryant Bank and D.I.P. Seafood-Mudbugs, the event will put roughly 1,000 pounds of crawfish on the line as teams compete to see who can boil the bug best, with proceeds benefiting the American Cancer Society. Tickets are $15 and include all the crawfish attendees can eat, along with live music from Stephen Sylvester.
Meanwhile, downtown Mobile diners have a new spot to watch for. Truman’s Diner is under construction at 14 S. Conception St. and is getting closer to an opening date. The 1930s-style diner plans to serve up classic Southern fare once it opens its doors. Owner Bill Appling had initially targeted an early spring launch but is now aiming to seat customers sometime in June. In the meantime, progress updates have been trickling out on the diner’s social media pages, giving curious locals a preview of what to expect from the historic building.
Together, the record-breaking oyster run and the string of upcoming crawfish events underscore just how central food remains to community life across the Mobile Bay area, whether it’s a decades-old eating record or a new diner preparing to open its doors.