Turkish cuisine now famous for meat fetishism

You must have heard of Nusret, "Salt Bae," the famous high-society butcher who shares videos every day on social media sharpening his knives, slapping, or caressing animal bodies. He shares photographs with raw meat decorated with roses, causing meat-eaters to suffer pangs of conscience.  

The other day, showman Okan Bayülgen snapped at Nusret. "I find such performances perverted and immoral. Whoever invests in Nusret, whoever eats his meat, the ad agency who makes his commercials, the reporters who make stories about him, are all partners in this ugliness," Bayülgen wrote. 

I could not agree more. As for others, some like and laugh at Nusret's posts, while others find these "meat performances" repellent.  

How sad that in a country that has been trying to make an international brand out of its cuisine for years, the only one of our brands that could make it to Hollywood so far is this butcher who has gained renown through the strange coarseness he demonstrates toward pieces of dead animal bodies. 

If somebody looking from the outside sees only Nusret, they might easily think our country is full of meat fetishists and we have a sadomasochistic relationship with meat products. 

In fact, Nusret became famous in Turkey in recent years before reaching international fame. It was actually his eye-watering prices that first attracted people's attention, (we know that sometimes high prices lead to fame in this country). The mentality of "if it is expensive, then it is good" filled Nusret's restaurant for a long time before he achieved global fame. 

Meanwhile, "steakhouses" have opened even in the most modest neighborhoods in Istanbul. You can now even find a "steakhouse" in Kağıthane. 

If this trend continues, I...