Salt Bae's new London restaurant shocks customers with £11 cans of Red Bull
Turkish celebrity chef Nusret Gokce - better known as Salt Bae - went viral this week after opening a London branch of his Nusr-Et restaurant chain, but customers have been shocked by the steep prices at the steak house.
Gokce became a viral sensation in 2017 after videos of him emerged showing him theatrically shower steak with salt crystals and suggestively slap steaks before putting them on the grill.
The 38-year-old used his fame to open high-end restaurants across the world, with a steak house in the UK capital his latest endeavor.
Salt Bae soon became the talk of the city, not only due to mouth-watering steaks but also by charging extortionate prices, including £9 for Coca-Cola and £11 for a can of Red Bull.
He already has branches of his Nusr-Et restaurant across the world, including in Istanbul, Dubai, Miami, Doha, Mykonos, and many more locations.
44 great british pounds for 4 redbulls… having a laugh. pic.twitter.com/xgzs8f2cEu
— Jamz (@jjamz_) September 26, 2021
A receipt from the London branch of Nusr-Et went viral this week, which showed the customers charged £44 for four Red Bulls, £38 for two portions of salad, and £45 for mac and cheese.
Another customer shared a receipt of a Giant Tomhawk steak, which is dusted with 24 karat gold, priced at a staggering £630.
The Turkish tea, however, was free.
London-based culture writer Jason Okundaye drew on his experience from going to the Nusr-Et branch in Dubai, saying that the experience was good but not exquisite enough to be classed as fine dining.
"I went to Nusr-Et in Dubai explicitly because of 'salt bae' and the food was nice but it was absolutely NOT 'fine dining; inside it could’ve been any BBQ joint," he said.
"It's cheaper to fly and have food at Salt Bae’s Turkish restaurant than to go to the London one. £9 for coke. £630 for Tomahawk steak. No thank you," one tweeter claimed.
On a portion of baklava being priced at £22, one person joked that it is priced the way it is because "DJ Khaled comes and serves it to you and teaches you the correct way to pronounce it".
Mum: WHO SOLD THE HOUSE!!?
— UK GOAT 🇬🇧🐐 (@ukgoat_) September 27, 2021
Me watching Salt Bae sprinkle salt on my 24-carat gold steak: pic.twitter.com/1LFhv7sE95
Many more praised Gokce, saying his name alone was able to draw in crowds of high-end customers.
Salt Bae's theatrics are often demonstrated by the chef in his restaurants and have proved to be a big attraction for customers.
The restaurant itself has only been rated 2.5 stars on Google reviews. Many have suspected that non-visitors have rated the restaurant based on the steep prices, despite not tasting the steaks themselves.
"SALTBAE SPILT THE SALT ON MY HEAD AND MISSED THE STEAK, THE MRS WASNT IMPRESSED!!!!!," one reviewer joked.
Many more reviewers praised the restaurant, including some who posted photos of their meals and said that meeting Gokce at his new London eatery was worth the hefty bill.
"Number 1 in steak world! Excellent experience for amazing steak, service and vibes. Welcome to London!" a reviewer wrote, posting a photo of himself and Salt Bae.
The New Arab contacted Nusr-Et restaurant and Nusret Gokce for a comment.