Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen ate 'hallucinogenic' mushrooms in China — restaurant calls it 'extremely magical day'

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a CNN interview that she ate "hallucinogenic" mushrooms at a restaurant in China but noted that she was "not aware" that the food could have psychoactive properties.

After landing in Beijing, Yellen's delegation was spotted eating dinner at restaurant Yi Zuo Yi Wang (In and Out, no correlation to the American chain), according to CNN. The restaurant reportedly specializes in Yunnan food, a regional cuisine from southwestern China near Vietnam.

The story broke when a food blogger on Chinese social media wrote about seeing Yellen's entourage at the restaurant.

“When I walked by their table on my way to the washroom, I slowed down to take a glance at the dishes they ordered,” said Weibo user Pan Pan Mao, CNN reported.

The restaurant confirmed the presence of the American group and wrote “US Treasury Secretary Yellen was here” in Chinese.

“Speculating from the timestamp on the news, it was true that she came (to the restaurant) right after landing in China. Our staff said she loved mushrooms very much," the restaurant claimed.

"She ordered four portions of jian shou qing (a Yunnan wild mushroom species). It was an extremely magical day.”

CNN host Erin Burnett reported that the treasury secretary "set off a frenzy" after ordering the dish "that contains what are apparently magic mushrooms."

"Now these wild mushroom dishes are selling out at those restaurant's branches across China," Burnett claimed. "What was it like? The mushroom experience," the host asked.

"I went with a large group of people and the person who arranged our dinner did the ordering," Yellen answered. "There was a delicious mushroom dish, I was not aware that these mushrooms had hallucinogenic properties, I learned that later."

"Later like when you were sleeping and having visions, or?" Burnett jokingly suggested.

"I read that if the mushrooms are cooked properly, which I'm sure they were at this very good restaurant, they have no impact," Yellen specified.

The U.S. government’s long-term credit rating decreased from AAA to AA+ under the leadership of Yellen. The announcement came after the Treasury had passed the $1.3 trillion mark for borrowing in the first half of 2023.

This reportedly put the United States on pace for nearly $3.2 trillion in debt issuance in just one year, nearly double that of 2022.

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