Christina Tosi Has a Message for the Copycats: ‘Come Up With Your Own Universe’

Big food brands love ripping off ideas that were created and/or popularized by Christina Tosi. The latest Milk Bar copycat is the Lucky Charms shake from Burger King, which bears a striking resemblance to the Cereal Milk shakes that Tosi and her crew serve at Milk Bar. This week, the chef shares her thoughts on this new product: “Inspiration is one thing. Stealing is another. Be brilliant, give yourself more credit than that. Come up with your own universe.”

Back in March Ben & Jerry’s released a “Cereal Splashback” line of ice creams that were seemingly ripoffs of Tosi’s Cereal Milk soft serves, and two years ago, Starbucks rolled out bagels balls that were very similar to the Bagel Bombs that Milk Bar has served for years. Milk Bar’s parent company, Momofuku, has an active trademark for Cereal Milk as well as a bunch of other products, but, of course, you can’t own a recipe.

Although these big brand bootlegs keep popping up left and right, Tosi is officially not fazed by the competition. The chef explains: “Though I'm flattered at one level by the recent influx of copycatters, it should go without saying, you can never outdo an original!”
• Burger King's Lucky Charms shake doesn't outdo original, Milk Bar owner says [AMNY]
• Burger King Now Has a Lucky Charms Milkshake [E]
• Ben & Jerry’s Blatantly Rips Off Christina Tosi’s ‘Cereal Milk’ [E]