2023-06-20 05:38:00
Salt Bae closes ‘worst restaurant in NYC’ following scathing criticism
6/20/2023, 7:38 am
Theft, sexism and a lot of salt: The opening of his burger branch in New York is not without its difficulties for star chef Nusret Gökçe. After a long series of allegations and unconvincing cuisine, “Salt Bae Burger” is now closing its doors in New York.
Three years following being named “Worst Restaurant in NYC,” Manhattan’s Salt Bae Burger is closing. As several international media reports, the restaurant is said to have ceased operations last month following numerous controversies and sometimes devastating criticism.
Nusret Gökçe, founder of “Salt Bae Burger” and known by the eponymous nickname, rose to international fame in 2017 with a video. Taking to Instagram, the Turkish celebrity chef and butcher posed theatrically tossing flakes of salt from his forearm onto his dishes – the video went viral. Like the British newspaper “The Guardian” reported, the salt crystals brought the entrepreneur more than 52 million followers on Instagram. Meanwhile, Gökçe has built up an international chain of Nusr-Et steakhouses with more than 20 locations.
In 2020, just before New York went into lockdown, Gökçe opened his Salt Bae store on Park Avenue in the Big Apple. The launch was not without controversy. As “The Guardian” further reports, the restaurant was confronted with accusations of sexism because a free “ladies’ burger” with appetizer-sized pink buns was only offered to women. The management said they wanted to compliment the ladies and that the campaign was well received in Dubai.
“Salt Bae Burger” lured customers with a $99 gold milkshake and a $100 burger wrapped in gold foil. The ambience also caused immense confusion. Eater critic Robert Sietsema described the store as saying, “It had the charm of an airplane hangar”.
Sexual harassment and wage theft
Scott Lynch, a Gothamist critic, was even more vocal. He “had the unfortunate opportunity of eating several sad portions of hospital food a few weeks ago and everything I’ve had at Salt Bae was even worse,” he said. The menu, he wrote, is framed in metal like a tombstone “apparently marking the death of all that is pleasant regarding eating.”
The inexpensive wet burger, Lynch added, is “actually just a lean slab of meat sitting in a soggy, uncomfortably sweet bun. It’s also tiny, but you can’t eat more than one bite anyway.” Lynch called “Salt Bae Burger” the worst restaurant in town.
In addition, the company behind the Nusr-Et restaurants faced several lawsuits prior to the opening of Salt Bae Burger. According to the US company’s report “Business Insider” The allegations ranged from sexual harassment to wage theft.
The era of the controversial restaurant is now over. But Salt Bae doesn’t see himself as a butcher or restaurant owner anyway. He sees his work as art, he just makes art out of meat, he once announced to the New York Times – maybe the loss of his New York branch won’t weigh so badly then.
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