Salt Bae

Salt Bae
Gökçe in 2018
Born Nusret Gökçe
1983 (age 34–35)
Erzurum, Turkey
Nationality Turkey
Occupation Restaurateur
Employer Nusr-Et

Nusret Gökçe ([nusˈɾet ɟøcˈt͡ʃe], born in 1983), nicknamed Salt Bae, is a Turkish butcher, chef,[1] and restaurateur who owns Nusr-Et,[2][3] a chain of Turkish steak houses. His technique for preparing meat became an internet sensation.[4][5][6]

Early life

Gökçe was born in Erzurum, Turkey to a Kurdish family.[7] His father was a mineworker. The family's finances forced him to leave school in the 6th grade to working as a butcher's apprentice in the Kadıköy district of Istanbul.[8]

Career

Early career

Gökçe visited several countries including Argentina and the United States between 2007 and 2010, where he worked in local restaurants for free, in order to gain experience as a cook and a restaurateur.[8] After his return to Turkey, Gökçe opened his first restaurant in Istanbul in 2010[9] and later opened a Dubai restaurant in 2014.[10]

Salt Bae meme

Gökçe became more widely known through a series of viral internet videos and memes from January 2017 which show him "suavely" cutting meat and sprinkling salt.[4]

His fame came from a viral video, "Ottoman Steak", posted on 7 January 2017 on his restaurant's Twitter account.[11] It was viewed 10 million times on Instagram, after which he was dubbed "Salt Bae" because of his peculiar way of sprinkling salt: letting it fall down on his forearm then spread on the meat.[4] Since then, Gökçe has served multiple notable individuals due to his reputation.[12][13]

Reception

The dishes served at Gökçe's establishments have received mixed reviews and have been described as "overpriced".[12] Early professional reviews in 2018 of his New York City steakhouse were generally negative.[14][15] The New York Post's Steve Cuozzo called the restaurant “Public Rip-off No. 1” and Joshua David Stein wrote in GQ called the steak mundane and the hamburgers overcooked.[14] However, from an entertainment standpoint, reviews were more optimistic.[16] Eater's Robert Sietsema states, "If you are intent on judging New York’s new branch of Nusr-Et only as a steakhouse, you’ll probably be disappointed ... If, on the other hand, you appraise the place as dinner theater, you will find it satisfying — but only if Salt Bae is in the house".[16]

In December 2017, he received criticism for a 2016 photo posing in front of an image of Fidel Castro.[17][18] In September 2018, Gökçe and the president of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro also received criticism for their actions at his Istanbul restaurant which arose due to the crisis and shortages in Venezuela.[19][20][21][22][23]

References

  1. ↑ ‘Salt Bae’ caught posing as Fidel Castro — and he just opened a Miami restaurant CARLOS FRÍAS Miami Herald DECEMBER 03, 2017
  2. ↑ "Who the Hell is Salt Bae?". TheWrap. 6 February 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2017.
  3. ↑ "Nicolás Maduro desata críticas por comer en lujoso restaurante de Salt Bae en Estambul" (in Spanish). CNN en Español. 18 September 2018. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 "Who the Hell is Salt Bae?". TheWrap. 6 February 2017. Retrieved 24 February 2017.
  5. ↑ "Simone Biles happily had food seasoned by 'the one and only' Salt Bae at Laureus Awards". 15 February 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
  6. ↑ Miller, Jenni. "Everything You Need to Know About #SaltBae".
  7. ↑ http://www.rudaw.net/turkish/lifestyle/11062017
  8. 1 2 "Nusret hayat hikayesi". Retrieved 20 March 2018.
  9. ↑ "Nusret Gökçe kimdir?". Retrieved 20 March 2018.
  10. ↑ "Nusret restaurant to open at Four Seasons Dubai - What's On". What's On Dubai. 2014-11-11. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
  11. ↑ "Instagram post by Nusr_et#Saltbae • Jan 7, 2017 at 10:44am UTC" – via Instagram.
  12. 1 2 Del Valle, Gaby (20 September 2018). "Why is Marco Rubio tweeting about Salt Bae?". Vox. Retrieved 2018-10-03.
  13. ↑ Simone Biles happily had food seasoned by ‘the one and only’ Salt Bae at Laureus Awards Alysha Tsuji, USA Today, February 14, 2017
  14. 1 2 Salt Bae Officially Goes Too Far Clint Rainey, January 25, 2018
  15. ↑ Reviews Trash Salt Bae’s New Restaurant, Calls His Food ‘Bland and Boring’ Complex magazine, Sajae Elder, JAN 26, 2018
  16. 1 2 Burton, Monica (6 February 2018). "What the Critics Are Saying About Salt Bae's NYC Restaurant". Eater. Retrieved 2018-10-03.
  17. ↑ 'Salt Bae' restaurateur slammed for Fidel Castro impersonation photo Michael Bartiromo, Fox News, 12/5/2017
  18. ↑ "'Salt Bae' caught posing as Fidel Castro — and he just opened a Miami restaurant". The Miami Herald. Retrieved 2018-10-03.
  19. ↑ Ma, Alexandra (18 September 2018). "Venezuela's president ate steak at Salt Bae's restaurant while people in his country are starving". Business Insider. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
  20. ↑ "Venezuelans outraged by Maduro's steak feast at Salt Bae restaurant". Reuters. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  21. ↑ "Maduro dines on pricey 'Salt Bae' steaks as Venezuelans starve". CNN. 19 September 2018. Retrieved 27 September 2018.
  22. ↑ "Salt Bae Serves Maduro as Venezuela Suffers". The New York Times. 18 September 2018. Retrieved 2018-10-02.
  23. ↑ "'It's a disgrace:' Miami lawmakers condemn 'Salt Bae' over serving Venezuela's Maduro". The Miami Herald. 27 September 2018. Retrieved 2018-10-02.
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