(Unpopular) Opinion: Why Does The World Love ‘Salt Bae’?

The only way you don’t know who or what the Salt Bae is if you’ve been hiding under a rock the last month. He’s the chef that salts his meat in the strangest of ways and apparently, the world loves him. The reasons for loving him are far and wide – from being a sexy butcher and chef to being someone who has found a new way to salt meat or food in general. When the world first got wind of him, there was pandemonium because suddenly he was all anyone could talk about.

But time for an unpopular opinion – the Salt Bae is really not that interesting.

I might be one of the few women – or people – in the world infuriated by the way this chef salts his meat or even cuts it. I’m old school in the sense that I like my food salted the usual way, my meat cut like it always is and my meal delivered to me with as little flourish, pomp and circumstance as possible. Then again, maybe none of the people who are fawning over this man want to eat food the way he serves it either. But their reactions and excitement says otherwise.

About Him

Salt Bae is a Turkish chef named Nusret Gökce. He’s been posting videos and pictures on Instagram of him cutting meat and meeting famous people. The first video of him salting meat that got all the attention in the world was posted at the beginning of January, and since then he’s become a meme and according to some, a ‘sex icon’. He has quite a few restaurants in Turkey and Dubai and very recently served a steak to Oscar winner Leonardo DiCaprio while the actor was visiting his restaurant in London.

The Unpopular Opinion

Like all internet famous people, the Salt Bae has become a meme, he’s been printed on t-shirts, people are praising and mocking him because that’s how the internet works. It took me almost a week to actually watch the video and the whole time I was upset by the way he was cutting and handling the meat, and let’s not forget the way he was adding salt. There is nothing hygienic about having the chef or someone else put the salt directly with their hands. Also, why would I want salt that has touched the arm of my chef in my food as well? Sure, these things might actually be happening in the kitchen, but if you can’t see it and the less you know, the better as always.

People that I’ve spoken to about this have mixed opinions, not sure if they like him or think he’s interesting. Some are quite open about the fact that they don’t get the hype, much like myself, and others are obviously in love with him, like the rest of the world.

What are your opinions about the Salt Bae? Do you love him, hate him or just don’t really give a damn – let us know in the comments below!