Destinacija / Destination
by by a huge portrait of him. And, of course, he’s pictured in the pose for which he’s known around the world – sprinkling salt with his arm twisted to resemble a swan’s neck. And then, as the maître d' leads you to your ta- ble, you can't help but consider that you find yourself in an explosion of extravagance, complete with huge chandeliers, massive, ornately dec- orated pillars, chairs and booths up- holstered in white leather. The restau- rant continues with a closed terrace that has a similar ambience, before leading to the highlight of the ven- ue: a garden with a pool surround- ed by flower boxes containing swan- shaped floral arrangements. By now it will have already started to become clear to you that Nusr-Et is an eat- ery where everything is accentuat- ed, but somehow even the count- less large-format photographs of the owner (some with him in the style of Marlon Brando’s Godfather) contain a fun flair and fit the space just enough to make you feel com- fortable. Great help in creating this im- pression is provided by an entire ensemble of waiters, who seem to simply buzz around you, providing you with their constant undivided at- tention. It is particularly interesting that your meat isn’t served by “reg- ular” waiters, but rather by special- ly trained staff members who make dramatic and sharp movements as they slice the meat in front of you and then serve large cuts that you share with others at your table. If you are lucky, like we were, that moment
can be even more interesting, as you could find yourself being served by Nusret Gökçe himself. If he happens to be at the restaurant – and you’ll find out very quickly if he is – this Turkish restaurateur will move from table to table, putting on a little show for everyone and winning you over in the process. He is short and slim, but comes across as a fury of energy. He resembles a matador preparing to get to grips with a bull, as do his exaggerated movements. He waves the knife and bangs on the board on which the meat sits, while beside him stands an assistant holding a huge bowl filled with salt – that’s be- cause the grand finale of this theat- rical serving is the moment he grabs the salt and sprinkles it as though it’s some magical spice. Those with more refined taste buds could provide all sorts of de- tails about the pricey meat that’s served at this restaurant, but that is on the backburner at this place, where you’re really paying for the entire experience. The menu in- cluded a selection of five different steaks, three of which were perfect. One was only okay, while the fifth one, the one wrapped in gold leaf, didn’t entirely justify the epithet of the star of the evening. Quite sim- ply, there was nothing particularly special about that cut, and the gold didn’t add any magic touch to it, oth- er than the momentary feeling of tasting something extravagant. A similar impression was left by the “golden” ribs, but the dessert that followed was worth remembering.
There was no deviating from Turkish tradition here, so baklava was served. And what a baklava it was! It is also served with coordinated pomp and choreography. Hot baklava, served in a large, round, baking tray, is cut into triangular pieces and then separat- ed to make room to add homemade, hand-made ice cream. Such flavour perfection will remain with you for a long time, and we really must pay all compliments to the pastry chef. Just like the story of his restau- rant and unique food, it is interest- ing that Nusret actually started his career literally from scratch. His fa- ther was a miner, and their Kurdish family of seven struggled fiercely just to survive. A poor financial situation at home forced him to leave school in the 6 th year and start working as a butcher’s apprentice. He worked and saved until he was 26, when he took everything he had and head- ed to Buenos Aires, where meat is almost a religion. It was there that he learnt to work with steaks from some of the world’s best chefs. He re- turned home a year later and opened his first Nusr-Et restaurant in Istan- bul's Etiler neighbourhood, with just eight tables and 10 employees. When you know that story and pass through the whole experience that is dining at his restaurant, it becomes clear to you just how Salt Bae succeeded in building his empire. Apart from restaurants, the latest of which opened this May in New York’s popular Meatpacking District, his business also encompasses food deliveries, though naturally those are very expensive and exclusive deliv- eries. His people will deliver direct- ly to your door a 200-gram filet mi- gnon that costs 65 euros or a bag of salt that he’s personally signed which costs 30 euros. He also owns a burg- er restaurant in New York and a lux- ury hotel in Istanbul. And he achieved all of this de- spite mediocre reviews from critics and various mudslinging over the high bills that people end up hav- ing to pay at the end of the night. And yet, everyone comes back to eat there again, because the experience is truly unique...
Zamahuje nožem, lupa o dasku na kojoj se nalazi meso, a pored njega stoji pomoćnik sa ogromnom činijom punom soli He waves the knife and bangs on the board on which the meat sits, while beside him stands an assistant holding a huge bowl filled with salt
Istanbul » Istanbul | 95
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