chef's kiss

chef's kiss

English

Etymology

From the stereotypical association of the gesture with a French or Italian chef.

Noun

chef's kiss (plural chef's kisses)

1. A gesture in which the fingers and thumb of one hand are pinched together, kissed, and then blown away, signifying that something is delicious or exquisite.
   • 1975, Frederick Exley, Pages From a Cold Island (New York : Random House) →ISBN) pp. 175–6:

     They would sample a spoonful of the sauce, go Ahhh, blow a French chef's kiss, and make their suggestions as to what little touch would lift it to the airy regions of perfection.

   • 2017 September 6, Matthew Schneier, “Rachel Comey Wants to Show You Her Clothes. But First, Dinner Is Served.”, in The New York Times‎:

     Some are, like the actress Tavi Gevinson, 21, who reviewed the experience by bringing her fingers to her lips and smacking a “chef’s kiss,” […]

   • 2019, Amanda Push, "Chang Thai Durango is the latest gold-at-the-end-of-your-chopsticks heaven", DGO, 15 August 2019 - 28 August 2020, page 18:

     The cheese Rangoon was worthy of a dramatic chef's kiss.

   • 2020, Latonya Banton, "Aye And Latonya Presents: Top 5", Aye, Issue 3 (2020), page 30:

     But the songs on this album makes me give it a chef's kiss.

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:chef's kiss.

Interjection

chef's kiss

1. (Internet slang) Used to express (sometimes sarcastically) that something is exquisite.
   • 2019, Derek Baker, in "The Gauntlet staff's best of 2018", The Gauntlet (University of Calgary), January 2019, page 22:

     And when Jacobin tweeted that "Gritty is a worker." Ooohh boy. *chef's kiss*

   • 2020, "So, Mallorca needs to be on your bucket list STAT", Cosmopolitan (South Africa), March 2020, page 119:

     Try the bluefin tuna, the crispy nori roll with wagyu steak tartare (so good), and the yuzu mousse (lemon, cream and thyme crumble disguised as a whole lemon) for dessert. *Chef's kiss*

   • 2020, Erin Docherty, "Scents of Identity", Men's Health (Australia), April 2020, page 63:

     While this has all the vibrant bergamot and zesty lemon you'd expect from a classic Mediterranean scent, the woody, leathery notes gives it an unexpected, contemporary twist – it's a true celebration of the brand's strong Italian roots *chef's kiss*.

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:chef's kiss.