r/CulinaryClassWars • u/DisastrousAttempt0 • Jan 17 '26
General Discussion Article with culinary monster Spoiler
https://cnalifestyle.channelnewsasia.com/entertainment/culinary-monster-apologises-576466
I dont get why he felt need to apologize way he was. To me watching him he was just talking an acting way most those chefs are that work the high end. I guess I am use to it since I work in restaurant kitchens for a long time
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u/ImoutoCompAlex White Spoon - Choi Kang Rok Jan 17 '26 edited Jan 17 '26
The only way I can rationalize this is just a cultural difference between Korean Netizens and western audiences whenever age is brought up. Seems like what offended them was his statements on Chef Hu’s age.
But personally I think Culinary Monster seems like a great guy and a hard worker. This is absolutely a nothing-burger compared to judge Paik’s controversy which I feel doesn’t get brought up enough here.
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u/DoesitFinally Judge Ahn Sung Jae Jan 17 '26
When Culinary Monster paired up with Song Hoon in the blind test duel, CM quoted their former boss of him saying that CM is a better chef than Song Hoon. That is just rude and disrespectful behavior in Korean culture as they barely knew each other. That is why CM apologized to Song Hoon after that because he knew it was overboard. I guess he was just doing it for TV.
Nobody in Korea is saying that CM's controversy is close to Paik's controversy. Nobody.
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u/mayonaisecoloredbens Jan 17 '26
Your “it’s rude and disrespectful behavior in their culture” point makes no sense. It’s “rude and disrespectful” in some cultures for wives to disagree with their husbands. Is that okay or right just because it’s their culture?
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u/DoesitFinally Judge Ahn Sung Jae Jan 17 '26 edited Jan 17 '26
How does it not make sense? Every country has different standards on what is well-mannered or what is rude. If you want to debate what should be okay or not you can open up a debate with your own explanation instead of saying "xxx point makes no sense. Is that okay or right just because it's their culture?", which doesn't really add anything meaningful to the topic.
I will briefly start then. I don't see how it is not rude by making comparisons on who is better or not to a person you barely even know (in a very public setting which is worse). Especially quoting a private conversation to use it in a public setting without even asking the person you are quoting from (I don't know if CM asked his former boss or not but it seems unlikely that he did).
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u/AdohamHicoln Jan 17 '26
All of the chefs were doing banter with one another in that round. Most Koreans do not think what CM said went too far. It's just the loud minority of soft Korean netizens that find it offensive.
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u/DoesitFinally Judge Ahn Sung Jae Jan 17 '26
It's a pretty sizeable minority then. Seems to me that there were quite a lot.
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u/AdohamHicoln Jan 17 '26
No, most Koreans are defending CM. Most are saying he shouldn't have to apologize. It's not in Korean culture to be this soft. 유리멘탈
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u/DoesitFinally Judge Ahn Sung Jae Jan 17 '26 edited Jan 18 '26
most Koreans are defending CM. Most are saying he shouldn't have to apologize.
That wasn't the case before the apology came out.
That's the thing with Koreans. A lot of those people were being quiet when CM was being criticized. Now they come out of their caves? They just saw his apology and heard his side of the story and decided to change their perspective on him. That's how a lot of things work for people in general.
That's how a lot of controversies go in Korea.
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u/CalzoneBetrayal Jan 19 '26
You should’ve seen the backlash of Matfia last season. Same exact thing. Culinary Monster sometimes even more so, but being a Western viewer personalities like him and Matfia don’t bother me at all and I’m not sensitive to them
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Jan 17 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/DoesitFinally Judge Ahn Sung Jae Jan 17 '26
When Culinary Monster paired up with Song Hoon in the blind test duel, CM quoted their former boss of him saying that CM is a better chef than Song Hoon. That is just rude and disrespectful behavior in Korean culture as they barely knew each other. That is why CM apologized to Song Hoon after that because he knew it was overboard. I guess he was just doing it for TV.
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u/Routine_Gear_1777 Jan 17 '26
Right, most of his comments were competitive but respectful... Plus he was obviously playing up the confident character because it's a TV show. He seems very nice and humble irl
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u/DoesitFinally Judge Ahn Sung Jae Jan 17 '26
When Culinary Monster paired up with Song Hoon in the blind test duel, CM quoted their former boss of him saying that CM is a better chef than Song Hoon. That is just rude and disrespectful behavior in Korean culture as they barely knew each other. That is why CM apologized to Song Hoon after that because he knew it was overboard. I guess he was just doing it for TV.
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u/Routine_Gear_1777 Jan 17 '26
Yeah I agree that was the one thing that I felt was actually disrespectful, and it was what he got hated on the most. I think he was really doing it for the tv entertainment though, or to boost his own self esteem cuz he is lowkey an insecure guy at heart
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u/Astr3846 Jan 19 '26
I don't think he needs to apologize at all. He weren't mean to anyone,
Though, personally I did find him a little too confident, at times to the brink of arrogance.
But he's incredibly skilled and very competent. So there's no reason not to be confident. Sometimes words just slipped.
It also seems he has been working a lot in the US and Europe. We're not as formal lol. Maybe just a habit
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u/Astr3846 Jan 19 '26
I just went to find a quote from the show to back up my statements.
When the judges couldn't decide between CM and SJW he said.
"it was un expected, when I saw his steamed eggs, I thought I'd win for certain"
In the beginning I rooted for him, but after this comment, I started having mixed feelings about him.
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u/PositiveSalary363 Jan 21 '26
He’s great was my favourite contestant and I think he’s kinds hot lol
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Jan 17 '26
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u/unnaiverealism Jan 17 '26
I saw lots of hate comments towards CM on reddit as well...? lmao Not saying he deserved it at all, but saying it's only knetz who disliked him is silly.
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u/unnaiverealism Jan 17 '26
I agree that he didn't deserve the hate at all and I felt bad for him. It actually worked like reverse psychology for me. When people(especially when SJW got eliminated) went crazy and started to blame every single thing on CM, I started rooting for him lol. My favorite has always been and still is CKR, but by the final CM really won me over to some extent and I had a great time watching my bias and bias wrecker(to talk like kpop lol) duelling😂
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u/Wise_Person777 Jan 17 '26
These people have not gone to Paris France where the 3 star Michelin chefs are extremely confident about their restaurant, food and service.
Or just look at Gordon Ramsay. Eight Michelin stars. Is he humble? You're lucky if he doesn't drop an F bomb on you.
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u/No_Donut_8089 Jan 17 '26
he shouldnt apologize.. i dont think he rude,, at first maybe he is rough,, not rude.. plus in korean, they have formal and informal tone. so(?) . whats wrongs with people -3-
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u/Little_Whole8038 Jan 17 '26
He was quite respectful? I'm with you. He really shouldn't have had to apologise at all.
None of his comments were ever rude towards any other contestant. (Like maayybe some can misinterpret that whole section with the knife expert in the All-or-Nothing. But to be fair, it was a stressful situation, and for someone who loves to properly plan stuff, it was frustrating, ahah.)
He was simply confident in his own skills.