Earlier this year, we reported that Salt Bae planned to open a new burger restaurant in Dubai's DIFC. Now, the viral social media star and man behind popular steakhouse Nusr-Et, whose real name is Nusret Gokce, has shared a first glimpse over Instagram Stories of the eatery, which looks about ready to open.
In a string of videos shared with his 23.7 million followers, Gokce shared a first look at the restaurant we believe is called Saltbae, as well as a peek at a few signature burgers and shakes. In the first post, taken at 1.19pm yesterday, we see him removing a very soft-looking slider bun from an oven. About two hours later, he sits down at a very long metal table chowing down on burgers. "Wet burger – this is not only a burger, this is signature you must try," he wrote.
The next post, taken at 6pm, shows him inside a rather minimalist, industrial-style venue, all grey-topped surfaces and slate floors, showing off two crazy shakes – one topped with baklava and the other covered in edible gold.
In February, Gokce announced he would be opening a burger joint in New York City later this year. He already has four branches of Nusr-Et Burger in Istanbul. But we believe his Dubai spot is set to be a new concept entirely, although a neon sign shown in the video pays homage to his other locations.
DIFC's public register shows the company will trade under the name Saltbae Restaurant Limited and that it is set to open in Gate Village 2, where high-end Mexican restaurant Peyote used to be before it closed last year.
If the popularity of the world-famous chef's original Dubai restaurant at Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach is anything to go by, we can safely assume this new burger joint is going to be a hit.
Any celebrity worth their salt dines at the restaurant while in the emirate, including the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio, Rio Ferdinand and even Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai.
Saltbae joins the growing list of soon-to-open DIFC restaurants that includes Spanish rainforest-inspired spot Amazonico, French Riviera party spot Baoli and New York-born French-Vietnamese hotspot Indochine.
