Team USA goalie Aerin Frankel is a star on the ice. But her side hustle has built the Olympic a 50,000-follower base on Instagram.

The 26-year-old was a crucial point for Team USA Women's Hockey’s gold medal run in the Milan Olympics. In the finals, she made 30 saves, preserving the US’s lead.

However, Frankel didn’t have to rely on hockey to build her brand. All it took was reviewing Caesar salads on Instagram.

The Front Office Sports News took it to X on March 4, posting a clip of the athlete discussing Caesar salad. The caption read, “U.S. Women's hockey goalie Aerin Frankel built a 50K+ follower Instagram account reviewing Caesar salads on her page, 'Pain by Romaine.’"

Frankel is the first goaltender in Olympic women’s hockey history to record 3 shutouts in one tournament and the first American goalie to shut out Canada at the Olympics. But on her Instagram account with 50k followers, she rates Caesar salad.

“For me, the most important thing, I guess, are the good crisp green romaine and a very good dressing,” said Frankel. “I think other stuff, like bacon, chicken is amazing, but got to have good dressing and some good romaine.”

However, there is something that isn’t off the table.

Becoming a Full-Time Food Influencer

Frankel was asked if, post-hockey, she could see herself as a full-time food influencer beyond Caesar Salads. And the Olympic gold medalist did not hesitate to answer that it’s not off her radar.  

“I’m such a foodie, and I love trying new restaurants and doing food reviews with my friends and trying different types of foods”, Frankel said. “But I have never even thought that Pain by Romaine would have this viral moment, so I guess now nothing is off the table.”

Which started as a passion project in 2024, found massive stability in 2026. And in 2025, Frankel shared similar sentiments with PWHL. Highlighting that a friend’s espresso martini review page inspired her to have her own.

“A friend of mine has an espresso martini account, and I figured since I order Caesars all the time, why not do that?” she said. “It started as a joke, but now people send me their own pictures and reviews. It’s a fun little side thing.”

But moving forward, it might not be a “joke” or a “side-thing” anymore. Do you think she’ll actually pursue that lane? Comment it down.

Read more at She Got Game!

Written by

Deblina Roy

Edited by

Sagnik Bagchi