What Happened to Salt Bae? The Decline of the Viral Chef

You remember the guy who flicked salt like he was conducting an orchestra. For a few years, Nusret Gökçe — Salt Bae — was everywhere, a meme so sticky it turned a Turkish butcher into a global luxury brand. But the story has soured fast: his pricey steakhouses are closing, and the man himself is facing a reckoning that started with a single, cringe-inducing moment on a football pitch.

Instagram followers: 50.3 million ·
Year of viral meme: 2017 ·
Price of signature steak: £600 ·
Real name: Nusret Gökçe

The basics of the Salt Bae story are straightforward.

What has happened to Salt Bae?

The rise of the meme

• In January 2017, a video of Gökçe seasoning a steak with theatrical flair went viral, spawning the Salt Bae meme (Onmanorama).
• He leveraged that fame to build the Nusr-Et steakhouse chain, opening flagship locations in New York, London, Dubai, and beyond (Dallas Business Journal).
• By 2023, the chain had seven U.S. locations (Beverly Weekly).

Recent closures and losses

• On January 30, 2025, Nusr-Et announced its Dallas location would close, citing a strategic shift “focused on high-growth, high-potential markets” (Dallas Business Journal).
• Around the same time, the Las Vegas location on the Strip was closed, with plans to reopen elsewhere (Eater Las Vegas).
• By June 2025, the Beverly Hills location had shut down after four years of operation (Here in Beverly Hills).
• That left only two U.S. locations operating: Miami and New York City (Here in Beverly Hills – but first occurrence kept; later use rephrased).
• Reports also emerged that his London restaurant saw profit fall by more than 30% in a single year (AS USA).
• Nusr-Et’s New York location on East 60th Street was among those closed, leaving the chain’s global footprint visibly smaller (Eater Las Vegas – but first occurrence kept; later use removed).

The pattern is unmistakable. The brand that once drew crowds now faces empty dining rooms and shuttered doors.

What was the downfall of Salt Bae?

Overpricing and quality issues

• Nusr-Et built a reputation for eye-watering prices, with a signature steak going for £600 and gold-leaf desserts costing hundreds more (Onmanorama).
• Negative reviews on platforms like Yelp and TripAdvisor piled up, citing average food quality relative to the premium price tag (AS USA).
• Social media backlash turned from adoration to ridicule, with diners sharing unflattering photos of their meals alongside the cost (Onmanorama – but first occurrence kept; later use removed).

Public controversies

• The 2022 FIFA World Cup final in Qatar became the reputational turning point. Gökçe entered the pitch without permission during Argentina’s celebration, grabbed the World Cup trophy, and posed with Lionel Messi (Onmanorama – but first occurrence kept; later use removed).
• FIFA later investigated how he gained access to the field (Onmanorama – but first occurrence kept; later use removed).
• He later apologized, saying, “It was my mistake. I’ll never touch the World Cup again” (Story District).
• Coverage described the incident as “cringeworthy” and widely viewed as intrusive, marking the beginning of the end for his brand (AS USA).

That moment, frozen in time, reshaped public perception irrevocably.

Is Salt Bae a millionaire?

Net worth estimates

• Gökçe’s exact net worth is not publicly disclosed, though estimates from various outlets suggest a figure in the tens of millions (AS USA).
• He built a global chain of luxury steakhouses spanning the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East, with locations in Dubai, Mykonos, and Riyadh (Onmanorama – but first occurrence kept; later use removed).
• The record losses sustained in 2024-2025 may have significantly reduced his personal wealth (AS USA).

Luxury lifestyle

• Gökçe is known for a lavish social media presence, featuring private jets, supercars, and designer brands (Onmanorama – but first occurrence kept; later use removed).
• His Instagram following of 50.3 million remains a valuable asset for endorsements and brand deals.
• Despite the closures, he continues to operate high-end venues in Dubai and Turkey, which reportedly still draw crowds.

The math is simple: fewer restaurants mean less revenue, and a tarnished brand means fewer diners willing to pay premium prices.

Why is Salt Bae closing?

Location closures

Five U.S. closures occurred between early 2025 and mid-2025, including Las Vegas in early 2025 and Beverly Hills in June 2025 (Beverly Weekly).

• Dallas: Closed January 2025, citing strategic shift
• Las Vegas: Closed January 2025, to reopen elsewhere
• New York (East 60th Street): Closed May 2025
• Beverly Hills: Closed June 2025 after four years

Financial struggles

• Customer demand dropped significantly after the World Cup incident (AS USA).
• The chain reported record losses in 2025, with the London location alone seeing profit drop by more than 30% (AS USA).
• Reports describe the closures as a “broader U.S. decline” that reduced the chain from seven U.S. locations in 2023 to two by mid-2025 (Beverly Weekly).

The lesson for the industry is that hype cannot substitute for substance.

Why was Salt Bae cancelled?

Backlash over prices

• Criticism over pricing amplified as diners began sharing their experiences online, with the £600 steak becoming shorthand for excess (Onmanorama – but first occurrence kept; later use removed).
• Negative reviews on TripAdvisor and Yelp highlighted mediocre food quality, with many saying the experience was not worth the cost.
• Social media backlash turned the brand from aspirational to a punchline.

World Cup controversy

• The 2022 World Cup incident became a viral moment in its own right, but for all the wrong reasons (Onmanorama – but first occurrence kept; later use removed).
• Reaction was sharply negative, with many accusing Gökçe of trying to insert himself into a moment that wasn’t about him (AS USA).
• FIFA’s investigation added an element of official scrutiny (Onmanorama – but first occurrence kept; later use removed).

For a brand built on spectacle, losing the audience’s goodwill is a death sentence.

What did Salt Bae do to Messi?

The 2022 World Cup final

• After Argentina defeated France in the 2022 FIFA World Cup final in Qatar, Gökçe ran onto the pitch (Onmanorama – but first occurrence kept; later use removed).
• He grabbed the World Cup trophy and posed for photos with Lionel Messi and other Argentine players (Onmanorama – but first occurrence kept; later use removed).
• The moment was widely condemned as disrespectful and intrusive (AS USA).

Public reaction

• The incident generated a firestorm of criticism on social media, with many calling for Gökçe to be banned from future events.
• He later apologized, acknowledging the mistake: “It was my mistake. I’ll never touch the World Cup again” (Story District).
• FIFA launched an investigation into how he gained access to the pitch (Onmanorama – but first occurrence kept; later use removed).

The incident involving football superstar Neymar Jr (another athlete who knows the weight of public scrutiny) shows how quickly the tide can turn.

“It was my mistake. I’ll never touch the World Cup again.”

— Nusret Gökçe (Salt Bae), in apology for the 2022 World Cup incident (Story District)

“The incident was widely viewed as intrusive and marked the beginning of the end for his brand.”

— AS USA, in its coverage of the World Cup moment

The trajectory of Salt Bae’s career offers a stark lesson in the fragility of internet fame. Gökçe built a global brand on a single viral moment, but when that brand became a liability, the fall was as swift as the rise. For the restaurateur, the choice is clear: adapt to a market that has moved on, or risk being remembered as a meme that overstayed its welcome. For the broader celebrity restaurant industry, the implication is that meme-driven fame cannot replace quality and value — and when customers feel taken for granted, they will vote with their wallets. Much like the career of Tyson Fury, Salt Bae’s story shows that fame built on a single moment is fragile without a solid foundation.

The financial troubles behind Salt Baes restaurant closures have been widely reported, with his London steakhouse alone losing £5.5 million in 2024.

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