In the early 2010s, a Turkish butcher without any official experience in cooking was quietly constructing something in the Etiler neighborhood of Istanbul. It was a tiny restaurant. The majority of the clients were locals. The idea was straightforward: premium meat, striking cutting at the table, a show as much as a meal. Nusret Gökçe left school in the sixth grade, worked as an apprentice butcher in Istanbul, then traveled to Argentina and the US in his early twenties, working for free in restaurant kitchens to observe and learn. He was unknown outside of Turkey. A 36-second video followed.
Gökçe uploaded a video to Instagram in January 2017 with the title “Ottoman Steak.” He reached into a little bottle of salt and let the grains fall from his fingertips, down his forearm, and onto the flesh below after slicing a piece of beef in it with practiced ease. It was a dramatic gesture. Exact. A little odd. After American musician Bruno Mars tweeted about it the following morning, the video received almost three million views in just 48 hours. He was dubbed Salt Bae by the internet. And with that name came something that neither culinary school nor butcher training could have produced: instantaneous worldwide fame.
Key Information: Salt Bae (Nusret Gökçe)
| Field | Details |
|---|---|
| Real Name | Nusret Gökçe |
| Nickname | Salt Bae |
| Born | August 9, 1983, Erzurum, Turkey |
| Nationality | Turkish |
| Profession | Chef, restaurateur, social media personality |
| Estimated Net Worth | $70 million – $80 million (various estimates) |
| Restaurant Chain | Nusr-Et Steakhouse |
| Number of Locations | ~22 globally (reduced from 30+ at peak) |
| Instagram Followers | 35+ million |
| Viral Fame | January 2017 — “Ottoman Steak” video went viral overnight |
| Key Property | Maçka Palas (Park Hyatt Istanbul), purchased 2019 for ~£42 million |
| London Restaurant Revenue (2024) | £10 million turnover — but recorded a £5.4 million pre-tax loss |
| U.S. Locations (2025) | Reduced from 7 to 2 (New York and Miami) |
| Known Menu Item | 24-carat gold-plated steak — prices up to £680 per steak |
The meme was followed by the money. In Miami, New York, London, Beverly Hills, Dubai, Las Vegas, Mykonos, and other locations, Gökçe opened Nusr-Et restaurants. The chain had over 30 sites across the globe by the early 2020s. Gold-leaf-covered steaks, theatrical performances, celebrity appearances, and bills that prompted people to take pictures and share them online out of both surprise and fury were all part of the concept’s spectacle. After opening in September 2021, the London Knightsbridge branch generated £7 million in revenue in its first year, which increased to £10 million by 2024. According to reports, a group of four spent $108,000 on a single trip to Dubai. The bill was shared on Instagram by Gökçe, who wrote, “Money comes, money goes.” Not everyone was pleased with it. However, it maintained the brand’s presence in the discussion.
Gökçe’s estimated net worth is between $70 million and $80 million, but the truth is that it’s hard to say for sure. The Nusr-Et Group and its investors, such as the Doğuş Group, which is owned by Turkish billionaire Ferit Şahenk, are responsible for a large portion of his possessions, including the ancient Maçka Palas building in Istanbul that houses the Park Hyatt hotel and serves as his personal residence. His Mykonos villa, which he bought for approximately £1.8 million and renovated for almost £850,000, is located next to his Nusr-Et Mykonos property and serves as a promotional backdrop. The brand and the assets are closely related. Sometimes it’s difficult to distinguish between personal wealth and business. Additionally, he owns a speedboat anchored along the Bosphorus, a Ferrari, and a collection of Rolls-Royces—details that appear to be personal affluence but also double as constant advertising for the restaurant empire.
The more recent photo doesn’t look as good. The seemingly unstoppable US expansion has mostly unraveled. Nusr-Et had seven locations in the United States during its height. There were just two left by the middle of 2025: the financial district of Miami and midtown New York. Dallas, Las Vegas, Boston, and Beverly Hills all closed. The UK company, which was the legal owner of the American assets, posted a pre-tax loss of £5.4 million for 2024 after taking a £6.6 million write-down on those losses. As customers’ tolerance for £600 steaks started to wane, revenues at some locations fell by about 30%. The chaos was exacerbated by reports of tip stealing, challenging working conditions, and hygienic problems. In order to save money, the London restaurant reportedly shut off the heating during busy service hours, even though the steaks it served were more expensive than the average person’s monthly rent.
