He’s coming! Wait, no ... he’s not coming. No wait — he’s here!
Viral social media food reviewer Keith Lee sure has kept Atlanta on its toes. On March 30, he announced to his followers he’d be returning to Atlanta for a “redemption” tour after a visit in late 2023 sparked much controversy.
On Tuesday, he backpedaled, informing his 16.1 million TikTok followers that he was going to delay his review of Atlanta restaurants. But Lee also divulged that, after speaking with Atlanta-based friends, he decided to do a “community giveback” and would be giving away free food.
“As you see in the background, we are in Atlanta at the moment,” he said during the recording as the camera cut to a view of tall trees visible through his car’s rear window as evidence. “But we only gonna be here for a few days.”
Lee later shared he would be would be doling out free food at noon Wednesday at Selena S. Butler Park in Atlanta’s Sweet Auburn District to the first 500 people in line.
Even before Lee and a few local food trucks had arrived, a large crowd had amassed with a line snaking around the park with the area packed with cars.
Around 12:45 p.m., a woman came out to announce that, due to the large and growing crowd size, Lee needed to take the event to another location.
Word and people traveled quickly to the new address: Za’Acai Cafe at 590 Piedmont Ave. As a line began to form near Za’Acai’s gated lot, there were audible screams as attendees caught early glimpses of Lee and his family as they prepared to address the crowd.
Credit: Mike Jordan
Credit: Mike Jordan
Shortly after Lee’s arrival in a black SUV, two colorful Lamborghini SUVs were also allowed to pull into the lot, belonging to two other popular social media personalities, Kai Cenat and Fanum of the Any Means Possible (AMP) crew of content creators. The two influencers gained fame from streaming live video game content on the social app Twitch, and now publish videos on a YouTube channel with more than 5.4 million subscribers.
When Lee finally appeared on the rooftop, along with his wife, Ronni Lee, Cenat and Fanum, the crowd cheered with delight, and all cellphones pointed up at the food reviewer, who was all smiles and gratitude.
“Thank y’all from the bottom of my heart,” Lee said from the roof. “I want all of y’all in a picture,” he added, causing members of the crowd to quickly shift position in order to be included in photos being taken of Lee and company from above ground.
Soon after the photo op, fans formed lines in front of food trucks giving away free meals, including jerk chicken and Philly egg rolls from Eggroll Boyz, and frozen treats from My Favorite Ice Cream Truck.
Credit: Mike Jordan
Credit: Mike Jordan
Enrique Clemente, who is a manager at Red Pepper Taqueria in Dunwoody, said he found out about the event from a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. When asked what he thought about Lee’s return to Atlanta, Clemente said he hopes Lee’s second trip will be better than his first.
Debra Johnson-Jones, a self-described foodie, said she heard about the event from her daughter but was already a fan of Lee. “He is really good at describing restaurants and his experiences in everyday places to eat,” Johnson-Jones said. “So when she told me he was going to be here, I said, well, let’s go on an adventure and find him so we can see him.”
In addition to the free food, Lee, Cenat and Fanum gave away eight pairs of the new Nike Air Max 95 404 Day sneakers, just released for this year’s 404 Day celebrations, to children who were invited to a special meet-and-greet.
Credit: Mike Jordan
Credit: Mike Jordan
Lee was much like the social media representation of himself that the public sees on Instagram and TikTok. After giving out the sneakers, he walked Cenat and Fanum back to their cars, then stopped to speak with fans, offering selfies and taking time to listen to their opinions.
Back inside after the event ended, while discussing their plans for the evening, Lee made time for a brief interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
“I wasn’t expecting this kind of reception,” Lee said when asked how he felt after pulling off such a random-but-successful event in the city he’d placed at the bottom of his review list in 2023.
“(After) the first experience we had in Atlanta, I didn’t think nobody was going to show up. But the fact that people showed up and showed out, I’m just thankful, man.”
Lee also praised the AMP crew for showing up with Nike to distribute the shoes for children. “That’s my guy,” he said of Cenat. “But I’m very low-key, so you wouldn’t know who I’m friends with. I’ve got true friendships. I’m not a person who says ‘I do this, you do this; let’s hang out.’ Anybody you see around me are people I really like talking to and hanging out with.”
Lee was recently seen with another famous Atlantan, rapper Cardi B, who joined him on a taste test of instant ramen noodles.
Lee also played his future plans for Atlanta close to the vest, after the announcement that he would complete another full review sometime after changing plans for a Toronto visit.
When asked when exactly the “Redemption Tour” would occur, he smiled and replied, “When we’re supposed to be here. God is amazing.”
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