[Premiere Ratings] Ahn Hyo-seop’s ‘Final Table’ Opens at 1.9%… Why the Genius Chef Was Furious

A fierce culinary world reminiscent of ‘Culinary Class Wars’ takes shape

JTBC’s new Saturday-Sunday drama ‘Final Table’, starring actor Ahn Hyo-seop, got off to a 1% ratings start.

According to ratings firm Nielsen Korea on the 25th, Episode 1 of ‘Final Table,’ which aired the previous day, posted a 1.9% rating among paid households nationwide, joining the fierce competition among weekend dramas.

The episode offered an in-depth look at genius chef Kang Han, played by Ahn Hyo-seop, as he returned to his home country after honing his extraordinary skills at Michelin-starred restaurants overseas. He visited ‘Familia,’ a restaurant steeped in fond childhood memories, but could not hide his disappointment at how dramatically the food had changed from what he remembered, expressing his anger in no uncertain terms. He then clashed fiercely over their culinary philosophies with Choi Song-i, played by Hong Hwa-yeon, who had been running the kitchen alone since the death of her father, Choi Seung-hyo, the restaurant’s owner-chef, igniting a conflict that will unfold in the episodes ahead.

Viewers were also drawn to the overhaul underway at Pyeongyeon Group, the country’s No. 1 food-service company, whose brand value took a devastating hit over its connection to the suspicious death of chef Choi Seung-hyo. In a bid to overcome the crisis, Pyeongyeon Group abruptly announced plans to produce a large-scale cooking survival show, ‘The Table: K-Chef 2026,’ fueling curiosity about the vivid culinary competition depicted in the drama.

‘Final Table’ is an ambitious project written and directed by director Kim Do-hoon, whose credits include the hit drama ‘The Moon Embracing the Sun’ and the well-crafted genre series ‘Royal Family.’ Before its premiere, the drama drew public expectations with its detailed depictions of professional cooking and impressive scale, evoking Netflix’s globally popular series ‘Culinary Class Wars.’ Now, attention is focused on whether it can turn its ratings around in the coming weeks.