God of Cooking

Kaya read his comment in the Starbook several times with a strange expression.

Although he wrote the long comment as politely as possible and with restraint, she felt his message to the guy named Nam-hoon was very poignant.

She saw Min-joon upset several times in the past. She saw him getting angry with Peter, and he got upset with her. Although she saw it on a TV cuisine program, she saw him growling at a bully riding roughshod over a street vendor in Thailand.

But when she read his comment, she realized that he was more upset at this moment than any other time until now.

“Hey, Kaya, how do they react in foreign countries?”

“Well, let me ask you this. How would you deal with this kind of comment in Korea?”

“I don’t know. Some might feel satisfied after reading Min-joon’s poignant comment, but others might chastise him for being so rude to a giant in the gourmet circles.”

“What’s wrong with Min-joon being young? Can’t a young man say anything?”

“Oh, let me tell you something. Here in Korea, they put a lot of emphasis on one’s seniority. And that man has a lot more fans than you think. I feel it’s awkward to compare the number of fans between my brother and that man, but he has a large following in Korea.”

“I don’t like that guy. How can a giant like him have such a big mouth?”

“Well, a man’s social status doesn’t make him great, but it gives him an air of authority,” said Ara, shrugging her shoulders.

Suddenly, there was some noise in the living room. Having heard Min-joon saying something inaudibly, Kaya went to the living room to speak to him, but he closed one of his eyes, smiling at her. Was it because he didn’t want to make the other family members concerned?

As if she also read his mind, Kaya bit her lips and whispered, “See you later.”

Min-joon smiled awkwardly. His travel to Korea might have been happy and peaceful, but it was not because of the pros and cons about his friend’s restaurant and the exchange of comments between the gourmet giant and him. Even if Kaya blamed him, he had nothing to defend.

Even after they got out of the house, Kaya didn’t speak to him for a long time.

It was when she threw her exhausted body onto the bed that she spoke to him.

“I didn’t know you would be so upset like that.”

“Because I am a human, too.”

“Don’t you have any regrets? Lots of people might blame you without any reason.”

“Well, the moment people come to know our names and faces, we are open to their criticism, no matter what we do,” he said in a calm voice. Kaya didn’t dare rebuke him.

Honestly, she was in more trouble than him before. She just felt his unusual behavior this time was new to her.

“Can you solve the problem well?” She asked anxiously.

“Well, I’m not sure if I have to solve this or fight.”

“I don’t know. I know you are always better than in solving the problem. I trust you.”

When she said that, he buried his head on the pillow silently. There was a moment of silence. Then he said quietly, “What would you do if I posted the comment recklessly without thinking deeply?”

Kaya replied, “You’re going to get a good scolding, of course.”

***

[Famous chef Min-joon Cho’s remarks, who allegedly has a perfect palate, are stirring a ripple. It all started with his simple mention of Pyongyang cold noodles. When he praised the noodles that gourmet as well as former famous chef Nam-hoon Lee once had criticized harshly, the gourmet disparaged Min-joon’s comments as shallow, but Min-joon again took issue with it... ]

Nam-hoon turned off the TV suddenly. He sighed after annoyingly staring at the black TV screen, where nothing could be reflected except for his face.

‘How can a young chef like him be so arrogant and conceited? Who knows if he has really a perfect palate?’

In fact, his review of Pyongyang cold noodles was not as harsh as they thought. What he pointed out in his initial review was that the noodles didn’t taste as good as before. That was the gist of his comment, nothing more or nothing less. But those who read his comment began to spread rumors that he left a very bad review of the noodles, saying it was a garbage dish that nobody should eat.

But he made the mistake of acting emotionally, blinded by anger. He felt more frustrated with the attitude of those who trusted Min-joon more just because he was a world-famous chef than him who had decades of gourmet experience.

“Professor Lee, how about apologizing to him?”

“Did you mention ‘apologize’ just now?”

He stared at his assistant with a cold expression.

The assistant flinched and said, stepping back, “Your opponent is tough. He is a world-famous chef. Regardless of whether he has a perfect palate or not, people just believe in it.”

“So, do you want me to kneel down before him? Don’t talk bullshit!”

“That’s not what I mean. Do you really need to go out in the rain? Wait a minute. Then it’ll be over soon. They won’t pay attention to this stuff for long.”

“Do you know how the students on the campus look at me? I’m not just a gourmet. I’m a gourmet with chef experience. I can’t be pushed over by a gourmet, let alone a chef.”

The assistant fully understood him, but he knew if Prof. Lee insisted on confronting Min-joon, it’s most likely him who would be in for lots of criticism.

So, the assistant said slowly again, “It might be better if you look beaten by somebody sometimes. They don’t point their fingers at the loser. They even think the loser is cooler than the winner.”

“Maybe so. But now I’ve come too far. If I had wanted to, I would have conceded my point when Min-joon came up with his first response. And...”

Nam-hoon stared at him and said, “My review wasn’t wrong. I didn’t like the Pyongyang cold noodles. The soup was just bland, without any rich taste. I don’t have any intention of being humbled by that phony young chef.”

The assistant sighed. Obviously, Nam-hoon was convinced that he wasn’t wrong.

Biting his lips, he slowly opened his mouth, “Bring me a laptop. Let me write something.”

“What are you going to write about?”

“Let me show him what a real gourmet is.”

The assistant felt heavy as if a stone was placed on his chest. He once liked Lee’s stubbornness because he would not give in when he believed he was right. But his stubbornness at the moment would only ruin himself.

But the assistant couldn’t say anything anymore because he knew he could not break his stubbornness. He just hoped Lee could beat the monster-like young genius named Min-joon.

“Here you are.”

“I’ve been involved in this field for decades.”

“I know.”

“I’m not shaken by anybody. Do you think I’ve achieved my success without any effort? I’ve gone through ups and downs. I’m not foolish enough to be fooled around by a young guy boasting of a perfect palate.”

“So, what are you going to do?”

“Well, he and I have to determine who is the real gourmet.”

Then he put his hand on the keyboard.

***

“I want to try all the food in Korea.”

As soon as Kaya opened her eyes in the morning, she mentioned food instead of saying hi to Min-joon. He pulled the blanket over his body as if he felt cold and rolled over. She sat on his waist and said, “Wake up. It’s already 7 o’clock.”

“Hey, 7 o’clock is not late at all.”

“Of course, I would say it’s still early if it’s a day off or a workday, but we’re free here today.

We don’t have many days to stay in Korea, so get up quickly. I’m hungry.”

“Aren’t you preparing breakfast for me?”

“Are you serious?”

“Ooops! Sorry, let me get up in three minutes. Oh, no, four minutes.”

He mumbled, burying his face on the pillow. He was tired both mentally and physically.

It had been only a few days since he came to Korea, but he began to feel exhausted.

Kaya felt sorry for him. Letting out a sigh, she pulled his chin gently.

“Don’t you want to eat anything?”

“No.”

“What do you want to feed me, Min-joon?”

“Water. I like the water purifier in this house.”

“You wanna get hit, right?” She said coldly.

After all, he got up, bursting into laughter. He looked around, sweeping up his messy hair.

“What do you want to eat?”

“It’s cold. I want to eat something warm.”

“Yeah, let’s go out.”

He raised himself right away. She looked at him with a confused expression.

“You are not washing your face before going out?”

“Nope. We’ll be back quickly after having breakfast.”

“In America, you always wash and wash...”

“That’s not my area. This is my area.”

“Just wash your face. When people recognize you, they always take a picture of you with cameras.”

“Oh, you’re right...” He sighed

In America, especially in Los Angeles, there were so many famous people that people hardly paid attention to him. Of course, customers visiting his restaurant were different, but he didn’t feel uncomfortable because of his fans while walking around the street.

But it was different in Korea. Was it because people were so addicted to the so-called internet culture? There were more people who recognized him than he expected. Besides, lots of people pretended to know him and stopped him to get his autograph or took pictures with him.

Eventually, when he washed and came outside, Jemma and Kaya’s parents did not accompany him. Of course, they must be tired because it was early in the morning, but it seemed they wanted to help the two enjoy dating more.

“Which restaurant are you going to take me to this time?”

“One place comes to my mind.”

“You are not going to take me to a restaurant selling sliced raw octopus, right?”

“You said you liked it, did you?”

“Apart from the taste, I really couldn’t see its wiggling on the plate. So, I really don’t want to eat it again.”

She shook her head, revealing her teeth as if she was afraid even to think about it.

“You aren’t forcing me to eat something like that, right?”

“Well, that was a fine dish, compared with the penis stew you fed me.”

“That’s such an old story! I didn’t feed it to you! It’s the judges, not me, who fed it to you.”

“That’s enough.”

“Where are you taking me now?”

“It’s a rice and soup restaurant. I went there as a kid a few times. After I moved, I didn’t go.

I don’t know if it’s still there.”

“Don’t you know that road leading to the restaurant?”

“Did you forget that I have a good memory? We’ll be there right away. Don’t worry.”

However, it had been almost an hour since he began to find the restaurant, but he couldn’t.

Eventually, he pulled over and opened his mouth.

“Let me turn on the navigation.”

She didn’t feel good even after he finally found the place and stepped into it.

She sniffed several times and looked around, asking, “What the hell is this smell? Is it steamed beef?”

“Ah, it’s beef broth. Lots of ingredients are mixed in a steamed ox head. It’s very delicious. I guarantee.”

Having said that, he looked around. Unlike Min-sok’s Pyongyang cold noodle house, there were lots of customers.

Looking at the earthen pot, he uttered an exclamation.

[Ox head rice soup]

Freshness: 97%

Country of origin: (There are several ingredients, so it is hidden)

Quality: High

Cooking score: 8/10

‘Wow, this house has 8 points!’ Min-joon exclaimed.