Salt Bae Shares Photograph Of What He Used To Look Like

Salt Bae is one of the most famous chefs in the world, recognised for his tight t-shirts and gold-rimmed sunglasses. But he's now shared some snaps of what he looked like before he became a global meme. Have a look for yourself:

The meat connoisseur, real name Nusret Gokce, has restaurants all over the world, from Miami to Los Angeles and from Istanbul to Dubai.

His most recent - and very expensive - incarnation of the swanky Nusr-Et Steakhouse launched in Knightsbridge, London, last week.

And ahead of the grand opening, the 38-year-old shared a snap of him working in a butchers when he was just a young boy, looking decidedly different to how he does now.

The photo was shared with the caption: "Please say good luck to me for tomorrow's opening in London."

Well, by the looks of the videos on his channel of people queuing up to get inside his new place, it would seem things are going pretty well so far.

However, people were left stunned this week when a customer posted a photo of their eye-watering bill on social media after dining in the new restaurant.

According the photo, their visit cost them a whopping £1,821.40. Gulp.

So what does that kind of coin get you? Well, a giant tomahawk steak will set you back £630, a golden burger is £100, and two Cokes are yours for £18.

The tweet was shared by @StevoTheMadMan, who said: "#Nusret Who's Rolling to The Knightsbridge Branch?

"£18 for 2 cokes.

"Must be .2 of Coke."

But while he's known for cooking for the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Simone Biles, Bae said it hasn't always been this way.

Having left primary school at the age of five because his family couldn't afford the fees, he says he spent his life working hard to make a success of himself.

Speaking previously about his childhood, Gokce told NBC: "Since I was 14, I worked more than 13 hours a day as a kitchen runner for a butcher.

"My life hasn't changed now. I still keep going to work from the morning until midnight."

At the age of 27, he saved up enough money to open up his first restaurant in Istanbul, which had just eight tables and less than a dozen members of staff.

He explained: "I was always wishing and wishing to open up a restaurant.

"Without much money, I traveled to Argentina to see the meat industry and after that, I wanted to travel to the United States, but I was refused a visa five or six times, but I never gave up."

Topics: Restaurant, Dubai, Twitter, Los Angeles, London

Dominic Smithers

Dominic graduated from the University of Leeds with a degree in French and History. Like you, Dom has often questioned how much use a second language has been. Well, after stints working at the Manchester Evening News, the Accrington Observer and the Macclesfield Express, along with never setting foot in France, he realised the answer is surprisingly little. But I guess, c'est la vie. Contact us at [email protected]

@SmithersDom