Banquet of Chefs (3)
The ‘Banquet of Chefs’ filming set.
The chefs scored the dishes out of 100 points and submitted them to the production crew.
“......”
Silence followed. The studio was filled with taut tension. The chefs' expressions were unreadable.
Stranger still was MC Jo Young-ho. Jo Young-ho, who until a moment ago had been chattering away excitedly, no, subtly teasing me to liven up the mood, had suddenly gone quiet from the moment he tasted a bite of my steak.
“......”
Unable to stand his prolonged silence any longer, the PD stepped in to push the hosting along.
“Mr. Jo Young-ho, what are you doing? You need to keep things moving!”
At the PD's voice, Jo Young-ho gave a start, readjusted his grip on the mic, and forced a smile.
“Ah, ahaha! Yes! I was just, just lost in thought for a moment. My apologies!”
He cleared his throat and resumed hosting.
“Alright, all the chefs have finished tasting. Truly... I think we're going to get an unpredictable result that completely exceeds my expectations!”
He called Seo Jin-woo and me back to the center of the studio. We stood side by side. Seo Jin-woo's face was slightly flushed, and I just calmly gazed at the camera.
“Great work, both of you. Now it's the highlight of our show, right? Let's hear the chefs' unfiltered reviews.”
At his words, the first to take the mic was Chef Kim Gyeong-cheol of ‘Modern Bistro Seoul.’ He was a rising chef who'd recently been drawing critics' attention by presenting the trendiest food in Seoul.
Chef Kim Gyeong-cheol looked me straight in the eye and began.
“Chef Do Eun-seong's dish was... truly one of the most shocking experiences of my cooking life, one I could count on one hand.”
He looked at me.
“Mr. Do Eun-seong, is it really... true that you've only worked as a junior for one week?”
“Yes. It's true.”
“And you've never formally learned cooking?”
“Yes. I haven't.”
I held the mic and answered briefly.
“I see.... I think maybe that's exactly why this dish could come about. A boldness that isn't trapped in a mold, you could say.”
Chef Kim Gyeong-cheol nodded and spoke in a low voice.
“Rotten wine and doenjang... Honestly, when I first saw the ingredients, I thought, is this possible? Is he out of his mind? It was an unimaginable combination. I even... actually thought Chef Do Eun-seong used the rotten wine because he couldn't tell it was rotten.”
At his words, small laughs burst out from the audience.
“But after one bite, my thinking completely changed. Ah, this man. He used the rotten wine on purpose. Honestly, the rotten wine sauce was shockingly delicious. Not to mention the exquisite balance. The rotten wine's, that is, the oxidized wine's sharp acidity met the doenjang's deep, rich umami and created an unexpected synergy.”
His voice gained strength.
“It went beyond simple saltiness or sourness to create a complex, multilayered flavor. And on top of that, the layers of flavor that exploded in my mouth as it blended perfectly with the steak's rich juices... with every bite, I was so sorry to see it disappear. I really enjoyed it.”
It was the highest praise.
When his review ended, applause and cheers burst out among the audience. These were the same people who'd been laughing at me just a few minutes ago.
“Yes. Thank you for Chef Kim Gyeong-cheol's review.”
MC Jo Young-ho tried to move on to another chef's review. Then the PD picked up a mic.
“Ah, um- we need to hear the review for Chef Seo Jin-woo too.”
Chef Kim Gyeong-cheol, seemingly realizing his slip, quickly took the mic again.
“Ah, yes. Chef Seo Jin-woo's dish... there isn't much to review at length. He was faithful to the basics and technically flawless. Very decent, quite tasty. Yes. That's all.”
Hearing his review, Seo Jin-woo's face stiffened.
The other chefs' reviews were similar. The chefs heaped praise on me, but their evaluations of Seo Jin-woo were mostly bland and unenthusiastic. The nuance was, ‘A well-made model answer, but nothing more.’
“Alright, now we'll reveal the scores!”
MC Jo Young-ho moved back and forth between Seo Jin-woo and me, under the focused lights, building up the tension.
“So, what choices did the chefs make? First, we'll reveal the score for Raviola's Chef Seo Jin-woo! Raviola's Chef Seo Jin-woo! Total score... out of 100.......”
The MC caught his breath for a moment.
“...85 points!”
It wasn't a bad score. No, it was actually a good score. Normally, a score like this would be enough to aim for the win.
Seo Jin-woo also let out a sigh of relief and lightly clenched his fist.
“Next... Chef Do Eun-seong's score!”
The MC looked at me. I calmly gazed at the camera.
“What scores did the ten chefs give Chef Do Eun-seong's radical dish? Chef Do Eun-seong's total score is......!”
MC Jo Young-ho built up the tension as much as possible.
“The score of Chef Do Eun-seong, who's only formally held a pan for one week, is......!”
With that one word from his mouth, every gaze in the studio was drawn to me.
“A whopping 97 points!”
MC Jo Young-ho shouted excitedly.
“Unbelievable! This is only the third time in ‘Banquet of Chefs’ history that a score of 95 or higher has come out!”
As soon as the score was revealed, the studio stirred.
“...97 points. Does that make any sense?”
“How... does he get 97 points with rotten wine and doenjang? Just how delicious is it?”
“Then isn't first place basically confirmed?”
“I mean, a cook who's only held a pan for one week got a whole 97 points?”
Seeing my score, Seo Jin-woo's face contorted in an instant.
“Alright, riding this momentum! Lastly, we should hear the evaluations from the two mentors too, right? How did the best chefs in Korea see their disciples' dishes?”
MC Jo Young-ho passed the mic to Chef Jeong Tae-o and Chef Yang Geon-ung.
The first to take the mic was Chef Jeong Tae-o. As if he'd been waiting, he looked straight at me and spoke.
“Chef Do Eun-seong... made a perfect dish with limited ingredients, ingredients you could even call the worst. On top of that, instead of hiding the ingredient's weaknesses, he focused on maximizing the potential that ingredient had. That was honestly a bit... moving.”
He paused for a moment and caught his breath.
“Instead of thinking the ingredient was frightening, what's the best flavor I can make with this ingredient? He was absorbed in only that thought. This, truly... I believe this is the true attitude a fine dining chef should have.”
Chef Jeong Tae-o smiled slightly.
“Watching Chef Do Eun-seong's cooking, I learned a lot too. It reminded me of old times I'd forgotten. I want to hurry back to my restaurant and make new dishes. It feels like my passion for cooking is coming back.”
The MC asked, seemingly surprised by that.
“Uh... then, don't you have anything to say to your disciple, Chef Seo Jin-woo?”
Chef Jeong Tae-o glanced at Seo Jin-woo and answered briefly.
“Well. I mean... Jin-woo cooked well, by the book.”
At his short answer, Seo Jin-woo's face stiffened even more.
The MC hurriedly moved on.
“Yes, then next, Chef Yang Geon-ung, please say a word.”
Chef Yang Geon-ung picked up the mic.
“The chefs here have already said everything I wanted to say. So, well, I don't have anything more to say.”
He looked at me.
“I just really enjoyed it.”
That was the end of Yang Geon-ung's comment.
But then, the camera filming Yang Geon-ung zoomed in on his plate. The plate was empty and clean. Very clean, at that.
MC Jo Young-ho didn't miss it.
“Whoa! Viewers! Look at this right now! Our Chef Yang Geon-ung is famous for usually eating only one or two bites! But looking at Chef Do Eun-seong's steak plate right now... this is, well... he's practically done the dishes on it, washed it clean!”
He said excitedly.
“I think this says it more clearly than any words! Chef Yang Geon-ung's true evaluation is right here!”
With that, the match between Seo Jin-woo and me ended.
“Alright, both chefs, thank you for your hard work! Please return to your seats now!”
In the following order, the remaining eight disciples also competed in turn.
And then the final results announcement. As expected, I took the final win with 97 points, and-
“Cut!”
With the PD's short shout, the long filming came to an end.
And. Just as the tension released and all the strength was about to drain from my body.
“Mr. Do Eun-seong.”
The PD called me.
“What is it?”
“Um... could you give me your number?”
***
Ha Jun-seok, main PD of ‘Banquet of Chefs.’
Before filming, as soon as Ha Jun-seok heard Do Eun-seong's career was one week, he thought it was one of two things. Either this would be a total jackpot or a total bust.
So he immediately called in the writers and went into a meeting. The goal was just one. To create a rookie character for Do Eun-seong.
Broadcasting was like that. You had to tease the person with a weakness more and dismiss them in an exaggerated way for the character to come alive, and for the show to come alive. To create a rookie character for Do Eun-seong, Ha Jun-seok deliberately wrote the MC's lines more provocatively and steered the audience's reactions. On top of that, Seo Jin-woo's provocation was a bonus.
A rookie chef of only one week, suffering all kinds of disregard on set. They set it all up, even prepared to cut him out in editing if he cooked too poorly under that pressure.
But lo and behold. Do Eun-seong was a jackpot among jackpots. He silently endured all the disregard pouring at him and in the end showed a tremendous knockout punch. Rotten wine. No one on the production crew had thought he'd used the rotten wine on purpose.
On top of that, the taste was killer. Ha Jun-seok usually didn't eat the food that appeared in filming, to maintain a PD's dignity. But he wanted to try Do Eun-seong's rotten doenjang wine steak so badly that he secretly asked a writer for some.
“This is insane.”
A taste he'd never experienced even once. Yet a taste he wanted to eat again. Above all, the taste was bold. It was a shock, like something slamming down on his head with a thud.
At that moment, Ha Jun-seok realized. Why Yang Geon-ung of all people had recommended Do Eun-seong, who'd been at it only a week. Why, even though the production crew had set this whole thing up behind Do Eun-seong's back-
“Sounds fun. Sure.”
Yang Geon-ung had said only that one line.
Ha Jun-seok went to find Do Eun-seong as soon as filming ended. This was his long-standing habit, done only when he discovered a jackpot contestant. He immediately asked Do Eun-seong for his number. With a bit of an apology, of course.
“I'm sorry for being so mean and pushing it because you've only had a week's career. I had no choice if I wanted to make the show fun. I'll trim it out as much as I can in the edit.”
“No. It's fine. It was fun, thanks to you.”
As expected. Do Eun-seong was so composed.
“Then, that's a relief. I'll make this episode really fun.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
“And I'll contact you separately soon, Mr. Do Eun-seong.”
“Why?”
“Because you're a hundred percent going to blow up.”
A hundred percent. Ha Jun-seok's instinct, honed over twenty years in broadcasting, was telling him so.
Not long after, the ‘Banquet of Chefs Special Edition’ aired. And as the PD had predicted, Do Eun-seong's rotten wine steak became the undisputed center of attention.