Had you been sailing on the beautiful Danube River near the quaint little town of Backa Palanka, Yugoslavia, on January 13th, you probably would have enjoyed a trip ashore for a free meal at the town's expense.
That day, the good citizens of Backa Palanka cooked up a big, actually monstrous, pot of the local culinary delicacy — fish goulash — served in an 880-gallon cauldron, in an attempt to get into the Guinness Book of Records. The ingredients for the feast consisted of 3700 lbs of fish, 660 lbs of tomatoes, 770 lbs of onions and 330 lbs of spices. Total cost of the meal was estimated to have been close to $4400 U.S.
The weight of garlic used was not disclosed, but is believed to have been large enough that chefs chopping the pungent cloves had to wear protective clothing and breathing apparatus.
It is unlikely that passing sailors who did pause for lunch at the free fish feast would have continued their cruise up the Danube into Hungary hungry.
