No whey! The rise of the protein shake

A drink once aimed at bodybuilders has become a billion-dollar industry, with even Michelin-starred chefs getting in on the act

- Sammy Gecsoyler

I always thought my first foray into high-end culinary territory would involve sitting in a fancy restaurant. Instead, I'm in a fitness studio watching my "Michelinstarred" shake come together in a blender. Inside is a scoop of vanilla protein powder, the flesh of a guanabana (a tropical fruit that tastes like a cross between a mango and a banana) and almond milk. Saffron foam is sprayed into a plastic cup and sprinkled with blue spirulina before the pale protein mixture is poured on top.

The resulting shake, which was developed by the Michelin-starred chef Miller Prada for Hermosa, a luxury protein powder brand sold in Barry's, a chain of fitness studios, is like a drinkable lava lamp, with white, blue and yellow swirling softly in the cup. Erika Tamayo, the founder of Hermosa, spritzes a coffee-scented liquid on the lid and then tells me how to drink it to get the "full Michelin experience". Place the straw about midway in the cup and suck (it should taste like an ice-cream), before shoving it down full-throttle to get a hit of the "moodenhancing" saffron.

So, pomp aside, how does it taste? Pretty good. Would I get it again? Maybe. The main thing holding me back is the hefty £11 ($14.50) price tag - though this seems to be the going rate for a fancy shake.

These visually attractive, nutrientpacked health drinks took off with the viral rise of the LA-based luxury wellness grocery stores Erewhon. While shoppers there can feast on a single strawberry imported from Japan for $20, or guzzle a bottle of "hyperoxygenated" water for $26, it's the mega-viral smoothies, which can cost more than $20 a pop, that have catapulted the brand to social media stardom. Most of them aren't proteinbased, but their striking look and use of ingredients that can apparently give you glazed skin or even cognitive support have inspired a flock of imitators.

Erewhon has raked in huge profits as a result: $171.4m in 2023.