Scene Snapshots: First Friday at Mercy Seat

By JASON HARPER

Guess how many dogs the winner of Mercy Seat’s Hot Dog Eating Contest this past First Friday ate? 40? No way. 20? Not even close. 13? Nope. Seven. And he was a big guy, too, according to reports. Maybe the hot dogs were really big, too, like, the size of huskies. Who can say? I missed the competitive eating, but I caught the rest of the action in the alley behind Mercy Seat Tattoo, pretty much a Midtown music-scene enclave amid the Crossroads galleries. There was art at Mercy Seat, too, an opening for Eric Easton. And outside, free beer and free music from Elkhart and the Belles.

Shaun Hamontree of American Catastrophe enjoys a free Flying Monkey.