Nusrat "Salt Bae" Gökçe, a Turkish chef and restaurateur, has been embroiled in numerous controversies throughout his career. These include:
* Posting a photo commemorating Fidel Castro's life, which sparked outrage in Miami's Cuban community
* Hosting a feast for the Venezuelan president, despite food shortages in the country
* A fire show gone wrong at his Istanbul restaurant, causing burns to a Czechoslovakian YouTuber
* Allegations of mistreating employees, including claims of taking 3% of their tips
* Critics accusing him of being arrogant and self-promotional on social media
* Negative reviews of his restaurants, citing poor food quality and high prices
* A scandal at his Boston restaurant, which was shut down due to health code violations
* Disrespecting the World Cup trophy and Argentine players during the 2022 World Cup
* Closing his New York City burger restaurant due to poor performance
As a result of these controversies, Salt Bae's restaurants have seen a decline in bookings, and he has gained the lowest number of followers on social media since his rise to fame in 2017.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. Salt Bay's restaurant closures have rapidly declined.
2. Salt Bay posted a photo commemorating the life of Fidel Castro on Instagram after his death.
3. The post was met with criticism, especially from the Cuban community in Miami, where Salt Bay had recently opened a steakhouse.
4. In 2018, Salt Bay came under scrutiny for providing a feast to the Venezuelan president, who governs a country with severe food shortages.
5. The Venezuelan president was invited to the restaurant by Salt Bay personally.
6. Protests broke out in front of Salt Bay's Miami restaurant, with signs criticizing the restaurant for supporting the Venezuelan president.
7. In 2018, a fire show went wrong at Salt Bay's Istanbul restaurant, setting four tourists on fire, including a Czechoslovakian YouTuber and model named Tina Tressnikovar.
8. Tina suffered burns to over 35% of her body and was not compensated for the incident by the restaurant.
9. The restaurant destroyed all evidence related to the incident, but later paid out $230,000 in compensation to four mistreated employees.
10. The four employees claimed that Salt Bay was taking 3% from their total tips and fired them after they confronted him about it.
11. The employees launched a wrongful termination lawsuit against Salt Bay, alleging an "authoritarian" and "dictatorial" work environment.
12. Salt Bay responded by stating that he did not take any of the employees' tips and fired them due to poor performance.
13. A former employee described the working environment at Salt Bay's London restaurant as "gold from the outside, but toxic from the inside."
14. Another employee compared the working environment to "The Hunger Games," where staff never knew if they'd be fired during a shift.
15. Salt Bay posted an $8,000 bill and a $47,000 bill on Instagram, prompting criticism about the prices at his restaurants.
16. A YouTube channel, Google Foods, ordered the $2,000 steak at Salt Bay's restaurant and stated that it was not worth the price.
17. A waiter at Salt Bay's Miami restaurant accidentally dropped a steak, prompting criticism from customers who thought Salt Bay would charge them twice for the meal.
18. In 2022, Salt Bay was criticized for his behavior at the World Cup final, where he pestered Messi for a photo and snatched the World Cup from a baby.
19. The FIFA president unfollowed Salt Bay on Instagram and launched an investigation into how Salt Bay was allowed on the field.
20. Salt Bay later explained that he was a fan of Argentina and got caught up in the moment, but would never step on the World Cup pitch again.
21. Salt Bay's self-titled burger restaurant in New York City closed down two weeks before he gave an interview about his World Cup behavior.
22. Salt Bay's Steakhouse in Greece has seen a significant decline in bookings, from 600 per day to approximately 200 per day.
23. Salt Bay's London Steakhouse has reduced its prices in an attempt to entice customers back.
24. Salt Bay has gained approximately 300,000 followers per month on social media, but this is the lowest growth he's had since first blowing up in January 2017.