A video popped up in my Facebook feed a few months ago of a guy reviewing a TikTok video of someone cooking what looked like a dumpster fire of a meal. I don’t remember the meal, but the guy reviewing it at the end gave it a rating of how likely he was to eat it. That was how I got hooked on Chef Reactions.

He’s a TikTok star reacting to other user’s recipes and kitchen creations. These are short and can be a hoot.

He delivers his reactions in a monotone and curses like a true Gen Xer. It’s clear he knows his way around a professional kitchen when he laments on some of the abysmal dishes and cooking techniques he’s reviewing. I find him the funniest when he derides the meal he is reacting to and at the end admits “10 out 10 would eat.”

There are plenty of zeros out of 10s as well.

He is secretive about his identity. Wired magazine reported that’s because the 40-year-old chef has received death threats due to the reaction videos.

Yet he also shows real appreciation for those who know how to cook, and not all of his reactions are negative or even funny. Some, such as the one reacting to his grandmother’s cooking, are sincere.

You can tune into Chef Reactions at tiktok/chefreacts and youtube.com/@chefreactions.