Plant-based restaurants are becoming more popular among Gen Z, prompting restauranteurs to adjust to this health-conscious diet. As a result, these restaurants offer plant-based meat alternatives on their menus, writes Bret Thorn for Nation’s Restaurant News.
Philadelphia-based chain Hip City Veg has been hopping on the maitake mushroom trend. It’s now introducing the fungi to the popular menu item the Philly Cheesesteak. Founder and CEO Nicole Marquis said that mushrooms are an ideal meat substitute due to their chewy texture and meaty flavor.
Maitakes don’t come cheap. Marquis has a direct relationship with growers in Kennett Square. She buys them in bulk and trains her staff to take proper care of them in order to reduce waste. Hip City Veg also dips them in gluten-free rice flour to give them a crispy texture in place of a chicken patty.
American mushroom consumption has sky-rocketed in recent years, jumping 16 percent over the past decade.
Read more about how restaurants are pivoting to mushrooms in Nation’s Restaurant News.
Kennett Square Mushroom Festival.
