'Black and White Chef 2' Choi Gang-rok and Kim Do-yoon Return as 'Hidden Silver Spoon'... Ahn Seong-jae's Sharp Critique Explodes

Netflix's original entertainment program 'Black and White Chef: Culinary Class War' Season 2 has made a glamorous return after about 1 year and 3 months. The dishes, including soju made from self-distilled makgeolli, stacked with thinly sliced pork belly, and egg crepes filled with jeonggakbok, captivated viewers' attention.

⬦ The Return of 'Choi Gang-rok and Kim Do-yoon'... The Hidden Silver Spoon Shook the Board

The first three episodes released on the 16th continued the buzz from Season 1, forming a fierce competitive structure with an even stronger cast. The monk Seonjae, a master of temple cuisine, and Chef Hudeokjuk, who led the Chinese restaurant 'Palace' at the Shilla Hotel, along with Michelin-starred restaurant chefs Lee Joon, Son Jong-won, Kim Hee-eun, Sim Seong-cheol, Kim Seong-woon, and Kim Geon participated as silver spoons.

The black spoon camp was also filled with chefs of impressive backgrounds. Sous chefs from the Michelin 3-star restaurant French Laundry, pioneers of molecular cuisine in Korea, and chefs running popular Korean restaurants abroad made significant appearances.

While Season 1 showcased a competition between 80 black spoons and 20 silver spoons, Season 2 features 80 black spoons, 18 silver spoons, and 2 hidden silver spoons, totaling 100 participants. Chefs Kim Do-yoon and Choi Gang-rok, who appeared in Season 1, returned with the special status of 'hidden silver spoons' to compete in the first preliminary round against black spoon participants.

As impressive as the participant lineup was, the spectrum of cooking also expanded. Various cooking methods and ingredients, including barbecue, temple cuisine, Southeast Asian dishes, and molecular cuisine, stimulated viewers' palates.

⬦ "It's a technique from 20 years ago" Ahn Seong-jae's Sharp Critique vs. "Shortened Words" Baek Jong-won

Judges Ahn Seong-jae and Baek Jong-won made their reappearance. Unlike Season 1, Baek Jong-won seemed to have reduced his presence, likely aware of the controversies that had arisen. He focused on straightforward evaluations rather than light jokes or advice with participants, filling the screen with scenes of him tasting hamburgers while wearing gloves or sampling dishes in a banquet format.

In contrast, Ahn Seong-jae added tension to the program with his sharp evaluations. After tasting molecular cuisine, he boldly declared, "The nitrogen technique and isomalt technique are outdated. It reminds me of cooking from 20 years ago," and made bold elimination announcements. The competition showcased the elimination of chefs with impressive careers one after another, emphasizing that taste comes before fame.

The program also paid attention to the efforts and emotions of chefs who had not received formal training but had built their skills on-site. Scenes of black spoon participants, such as 'Yoon Joo-mo who brews alcohol' and '4-pyeong loner', shedding tears after receiving survival announcements resonated with viewers.

⬦ From Episode 3, 'Black and White War' Begins... 1:1 Showdown Without Rank Starts

From Episode 3, the 'Black and White War', a one-on-one showdown between silver and black spoons, began and unfolded rapidly. When selecting a region on the national map, local specialties appeared, and dishes were prepared using them. A fine dining competition between silver spoon Chef Son Jong-won, who holds a Michelin 1-star in Western cuisine, and black spoon 'Three-Star Killer', as well as a cooking competition between silver spoon Seonjae Monk and black spoon 'Pork Bone Soup that Went to New York' that highlighted the original flavors of the ingredients took place.

Season 1 of 'Black and White Chef' recorded the global No. 1 for three consecutive weeks in the non-English show category, making it the first Korean entertainment show on Netflix to achieve this. Attention is focused on whether Season 2 can continue the success of its predecessor.