Which U.S. restaurants have served cultivated meat and are those menu items still available?
Executive summary
Two U.S. restaurants—Bar Crenn in San Francisco and China Chilcano in Washington, D.C.—are the documented, early public venues to place cell‑cultivated chicken on tasting‑menu plates after U.S. regulatory approvals; reporting from MIT Technology Review, CBS News, Forbes, Scientific American and others chronicles those rollouts and the constrained, experimental nature of availability [1][2][3][4][5].
1. The short list: who actually served cultivated meat in the U.S.
The narrow, corroborated roster includes Bar Crenn, which partnered with Upside Foods to serve small portions of cultivated chicken, and China Chilcano, where Good Meat (a subsidiary of Eat Just) supplied cultivated chicken as part of tasting menus curated by chef José Andrés—multiple outlets documented both openings as the first commercial restaurant appearances in the U.S. after federal signoffs [1][2][3][4][5].
2. How those launches worked—and why they were limited
Both companies chose an upscale, controlled roll‑out: Upside Foods provided one‑ounce samples at Bar Crenn and Good Meat offered tasting‑menu portions at China Chilcano, with early seatings selling out rapidly and some events limited to invited guests and media; the constrained launch strategy reflected limited production capacity and regulatory steps that allowed restaurant sales first, not immediate supermarket distribution [1][2][3][4].
3. Are those menu items still available? The reporting’s limits
Contemporary reporting around the time of the launches describes dishes being served and reservations filling quickly, but none of the sources provide a definitive, up‑to‑the‑minute menu status beyond those initial openings; articles state the chicken was on menu/tasting menus at those restaurants during the rollout and that broader retail availability would follow only after scaling production, which was projected to take years [1][2][3][4]. Given that the source set documents availability primarily during the 2023–2024 launch window, definitive confirmation that the items remain on regular menus today is not contained in the provided reporting [1][2][3].
4. Broader reality: not a fast‑food revolution (yet)
Fact‑checks and industry summaries emphasize that only two U.S. companies—Upside Foods and Good Meat—had regulatory permission to sell cultured chicken at the time of these reports and neither had deals to supply major fast‑food chains; social‑media claims that lab‑grown meat was widespread across chains were debunked because distribution was intentionally narrow and production capacity limited [5][3][4].
5. Critics, incentives, and the PR layer
Coverage includes pushback and caveats: some researchers and advocates question long‑term environmental benefits and commercial viability, and industry players acknowledge monitoring environmental impacts as scale increases [6][2][4]. Reporting also highlights that celebrity chef partnerships—such as José Andrés’ board ties to Good Meat—serve both culinary and reputational aims, meaning early restaurant placements carried marketing value for startups as well as genuine product demonstrations [1][5].
6. What to watch next if following availability
Journalistic and scientific pieces point readers to three practical indicators that will determine whether cultivated items move beyond a few tasting‑menu entries: measurable increases in production capacity, new distribution agreements beyond pilot restaurants, and additional regulatory approvals for other species and retail sales; the available sources frame the restaurant launches as a first step rather than an endpoint [3][4][1].