Nowadays, plating at high-end restaurants can be just as important as the food itself. But, here's the thing: Funnily enough, you can make pretty much make anything look like a Michelin star-worthy, food porn photo-ready dish. And, Instagrammer Chef Jacques LaMerde (which roughly translates to Jack Shit) is proving it, one fancy-ass plate at a time.
He uses junk food like bolgona, corn dogs, "Spongebob zoodles," ketchup, mustard, Hostess cupcakes, Chef Boyardee beef ravioli, and more to make his culinary masterpieces, which can only be (self)-described as "#gastroart."
Each post pokes fun at the serious nature of the fancy restaurant scene: "HUGE BUMMER BROS!!! JUST GOT SLAYED IN A YELP REVIEW AND U KNOW WUT IT RLLY HURT MY FEELINS!!! HOW M I SUPPOSED 2 KNO THERE IS GLUTEN IN COMBOS???!!! WUT AM I? BILL NYE ??!!! DANG LESLIE FROM CAMBRIDGE, U RLLY TORE ME UP !!! STILL RUNNIN THIS TIGHT DISH THO !!!! PEPPERONI COMBOS, SMASHED SWT POTATO, PHILLY ONION DIP, HARISSA, MACRO BASIL, FERMENTED SEABEANS, FOREST PLANTS !!!!" @chefjacqueslamerde wrote to his followers.
The best part is that LaMerde (who so far remains anonymous) is really pulling it off. If you glance at any one of his plates quickly, it truly looks like a $60 dish that warrants a New York Times write-up. Look closer, and you might spot some rogue Cheetos or Bagel Bites. Check out a couple of our favorite dishes from LaMerde below. (Quartz)