He criticizes that man for driving a Toyota Prius and eating sushi and tells the woman in the chorus that "I ain't even worried, you'll come running back."

He told Taste of Country that the idea came to him after he thought that "everybody hates their ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfriend, and it’d be pretty funny if maybe she went with somebody completely opposite of you.

Billy Dukes of Taste of Country gave the song four stars out of five, saying that "Moore and his songwriting partners pieced this one together with precision, leaving no rough edges for listeners to get snagged.

"[3] Kevin John Coyne of Country Universe gave the song a failing grade, calling it "drivel"[4] and finding it to be poorly done and just in bad taste.

[5] In 2017, Billboard contributor Chuck Dauphin put "Bait a Hook" at number four on his top 10 list of Moore's best songs.