Bites and Sips: Lion’s Mane Mania and Churro Fever

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Menu Newsmakers I: Lion’s Mane Roaring

As mushrooms continue their steady move across menus, they’re transitioning from stalwart supporting players to starring roles in a range of dishes. Their growing popularity reflects their right time/right place combination of meaty texture, flavor compatibility, ready availability and health halo. Initiatives like The Blended Burger Project that advocates combining chopped mushrooms with ground meat have been picking up steam, and chefs have become more experimental with mushroom varieties. The bar menu at newly launched Bacchus in Milwaukee, for example, features Tempura Maitake Mushrooms finished with togarashi and miso mayo. And in New York City, Alessa Cucina E Bar offers a first course of Cremini Caps with blue crab, mascarpone, fontina and bread crumbs.

The mushroom of the moment is definitely lion’s mane. Named for its notably shaggy appearance, lion’s mane has a pleasing, seafood-like taste and texture. It’s also highly promotable. At The Chapman, a stylish operation that has been heating up the dining scene in Winter Park, Fla., Crispy Bang Bang Lion’s Mane swaps out the typical shrimp in favor of mushrooms; the appetizer gets its explosive flavor from spicy ssamjang chile aïoli. The menu at Third Kingdom in New York City is focused entirely on mushrooms, like Lion’s Mane Dumplings that are plated with daikon sauce and micro cilantro. In suburban Minneapolis, Ingredients Café offered Lion’s Mane Cannelloni as an Italianate winter special. The pasta was crowned with mozzarella and a sauce of creamed spinach.

Pride of place, however, goes to Blue Plate Catering in Chicago, which took home the gold in the inaugural Global Street Food Competition. The winning entry, Lion’s Mane Crème Brȗlée is an unexpected twist on the classic that combines the typical dessert ingredients with the atypical addition of lion’s mane mushrooms. The custard is topped with mushroom “dirt,” a clever mélange of Oreo crumbles and porcini powder with a sunny garnish of citrus marigold blossoms.

Menu Newsmakers II: Churro Variations Surging

Churros, the simple flour-water-salt mixture that is typically deep-fried and dusted with cinnamon and sugar, have stood the test of time. Of Arabic origin, the pastry was widely adopted throughout the Iberian Peninsula, where it is still consumed with hot chocolate as breakfast fare or a late-night pick-me-up. Now, across the Atlantic, churros are providing a real spark to modern menus.

American diners can start their day with Churro French Toast at Flying Biscuit Cafés throughout the Southeast or Churro Pancakes at Miguel’s Jr. locations in Southern California. Last year, Dunkin’ rolled out a Churro Donut, a cake doughnut rolled in cinnamon and sugar, as a sweet springtime promotion.

Churros liven up snack time, too. Responding to customer demand, Burger King brought back Churro Fries for a limited time in December, and Great American Cookies celebrated fall with Caramel Churro Cookies, made with caramel chips and cinnamon-sugar crunch. And speaking of sweet stuff, Taco Bell and the iconic, New York-based brand Milk Bar recently set the internet on fire with a super-sweet collaboration. Available for a limited time, the Milk Bar Birthday Cake Churros are filled with vanilla icing and finished with Milk Bar’s signature pink sprinkles.

Churros have also become a reliable starting point for beverages. Once again, Taco Bell led the charge when it tested a line of Churro Chillers in late 2023. Since then, the brand has been refining the slush recipes and is currently testing flavors like Wild Strawberry, Mexican Hot Chocolate and Caramel Café, with the hope for a large-scale release later in the year. Meanwhile, coffee juggernaut Dutch Bros rolled out the Churro Freeze last summer, which blended coffee with ice cream and caramel. The indulgent concoction was garnished with cinnamon-sugar Soft Top (the chain’s signature aerated milk topper) and crowned with churro bits.

Also on the coffee side, Dunkin’s Churro Donut LTO was accompanied by the Churro Signature Latte, made with espresso, milk and churro syrup. And just last month, McDonald’s announced an expanded line of churro-based beverages at its CosMc’s concept. Joining the existing Churro Cold Brew Frappé are new options, including Churro Latte, Cold Brew and Shaken Espresso. Whether the churro will become as deeply entrenched in the U.S. as it is in Spain remains to be seen. Regardless, its simple form and easily adaptable flavor profile make it a fun building block in creative foods and beverages alike.