Chefs set to battle for culinary title

The South Korean cooking competition Culinary Class Wars — streaming on Netflix — releases its two final episodes today as fans around the world are eager to know who will win this reality hit.
Competing for the title of South Korea’s most-skilled chef, Culinary Class Wars involves 100 chefs cooking against each another. With its class-evoking twist, the 100 competitors are split into the White Spoons, the elite chefs who are already famous (many are Michelin-starred), and the Black Spoons, the underdogs who during the competition are only referred to by their alias.
Revealing their real names has to be earned as they win cooking wars later in the show.
So before the show wraps up today, let’s have a look at some of the top cast.
Ahn Sung-jae
Founder of Mosu restaurant in Seoul, Ahn Sung-jae is one of two judges of Culinary Class Wars. This year, his restaurant ranks 41 on the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurant List announced in March. He also won the Inedit Damm Chefs’ Choice Award.
His restaurant, Mosu, focuses on French haute cuisine that incorporates Korean ingredients. Mosu earned three Michelin stars in 2022. It is now the only three Michelin-starred restaurant in South Korea.
Paik Jong-won
The other judge of Culinary Class Wars is Paik Jong-won, a celebrated restaurateur, author and TV personality. His YouTube channel, Paik Jong Won, featuring food from around the world has 6.4 million followers. His videos featuring street food from Bangkok were released around a year ago and garnered millions of views.
Paik is the CEO of Theborn Korea which operates dozens of franchises including Paik’s Noodle, Paik’s BBQ and Hanshin Pocha in the United States.
Edward Lee
Winner of Iron Chef: America, Edward Lee was recruited by the White House last year to prepare a state dinner. The Korean-American chef was nominated for several James Beard Awards which recognises chefs, restaurants, writers and journalists in the United States. In 2019, his book Buttermilk Graffiti: A Chef’s Journey To Discover America’s New Melting-Pot Cuisine won an award.
Jung Ji-sun
Known as the queen of dim sum, Jung Ji-sun is the founder of Tian Mimi, a restaurant chain that focuses on Sichuan-style cuisine and dim sum dishes.
Lu Ching Lai
The grand master of Chinese cuisine, Lu Ching Lai has almost 50 years of cooking experience. He is known for putting a modern twist on traditional Chinese dishes. His Michelin-starred restaurant Lai Ching Heen is at the Regent Hotel in Hong Kong.