Photo Credit: Anthony Mair
The Talon Club at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas is making a bold move by offering their VIP clientele a bowl of fungus.
The Cordyceps fungus is the main attraction in the “caterpillar soup” and it’s valued at $14,000 per gram and $50,000 per pound. The ingredient is part of a group of hideous, bac parasitic fungi containing over 400 species.
“Their hosts are usually insects but they can also infect other fungi. One species parasitizes ants and can change its victim’s behavior. The cordyceps impels the ant to climb up a stem where it dies. From this elevated vantage point, the fungus’s fruiting body grows out of the victim’s body, allowing the spores to be more widely distributed by the wind. Some species, such as the caterpillar fungus, are considered to have medicinal properties in China and Tibet,” sites BBC.
Photo Credit: The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas
A hideous ingredient, yes, but a rare and beneficial one. It has been reported that the “caterpillar fungus” is historically rare due to their select seasonal growth locations of choice. Particularly in altitudes 3,800 meters above sea level in exclusive parts of the world where the caterpillar fungus can survive after reproduction.
The Cordyceps is handpicked. It makes a quick trek from the Himalayan Mountains and travels to Las Vegas. It is in the kitchen of The Talon Club that it’s turned into the “Cordyceps Soup”.
Photo Credit: Anthony Mair
It is also believed to have extremely powerful healing properties, for example, acting as a natural cancer treatment, anti-aging supplement and even rumored as an aphrodisiac.
If you’re brave enough and have access to The Talon Club, the VIP private gaming room at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, you’ll order the $688 soup. The Cordyceps soup features black-skinned chicken breast, longan berry, and red date in an earthy, tea-like broth if you believe the quarter ounce of Cordyceps found in your bowl is more for those who possess an acquired taste.
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