by Kandiss Edwards
January 2, 2026
Lee explained that he is fascinated by Mr. Tenderism Johnson and was curious about the smoked selections.
Viral sensation Walter “Mr. Tendernism” Johnson missed a generous $4,000 tip from TikTok food critic Keith Lee.
Lee, known for his generosity and city-to-city food tours, pulled up to the Destination Smokehouse, where “Mr. Tenderism” works. In a TikTok video, Lee detailed his visit and attempt to meet the BBQ aficionado known for his fall-off-the-bone meat, but was abruptly stopped by venue security.
“We could not get to Unc. Security said he was done for the day; he was filming something. I believe he was filming a podcast. We had $4,000 in cash they didn’t take,” he said.
Lee explained that he is fascinated by Mr. Tendernism Johnson and was curious about the smoked selections.
“My whole mission today is to see, in my opinion, is the food actually Tendernism or do I just love watching Unc. Let’s find out together.”
The created sample rated the food as moderate, with Oxtail rated the highest at 9.5 on Lee’s scale of 1-10. Lee said security intervened and prevented the planned gesture from taking place, despite his offer of the money and request for a meet-and-greet.
“For me, the standout is absolutely the oxtail, but past the oxtail, the standout is Unc.”
Lee praised Johnson’s passion for the restaurant’s food and his ability to embrace the swift, overwhelming love shown on social media.
“Not only in my opinion is it extremely hard to get people engaged like that, to show your true personality, to be yourself, no matter how fast things take off in this space. I don’t think he intended for it to go the way it’s going. I think he just wanted to show his love for food and his love of what it is that he is doing.”
Unable to bless Johnson, Lee handed out $4K to customers entering the establishment. Lee is not the first creator to visit Johnson to evaluate the tenderness of the assorted meats at Destination Smokehouse.
Beloved creator Jordan The Stallion also visited the restaurant to collaborate with the internet’s Uncle. Like Lee, Jordan found each selection so delicious that he flung his eyeglasses across the room.
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