Unexpected reason 'Culinary Class Wars 2' winner Choi Kang Rok closed his thriving restaurant: "The customer cried"

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[Financial News] With 'Culinary Class Wars Season 2' having wrapped up, public attention is now focused on why winner Chef Choi Kang Rok is not running a restaurant.
On Netflix's 'Culinary Class Wars 2', which released its final episode on the 13th, Choi Kang Rok and Culinary Monster (Chef Lee Ha-seong) faced off in a last showdown under the theme of 'a dish for myself', with Choi Kang Rok ultimately taking the win and bringing the series to a close.
Right after the show ended, public interest shifted to the restaurants run by the chefs who appeared on 'Culinary Class Wars 2'. According to a restaurant reservation app, the restaurants of the show's chefs are reportedly fully booked for at least several weeks, as viewers rush to try the dishes featured on the program.
By contrast, despite being the winner, Choi Kang Rok currently does not operate a restaurant, prompting a flood of reactions lamenting that people cannot taste his food even if they want to.
In 2013, after appearing on 'MasterChef Korea 2', Choi Kang Rok opened the restaurant '136 Gil Yookmi' in Nonhyeon-dong, Gangnam District, together with Chef Kim Kyung-min, but he has since handed over management rights to another chef.
Recalling that period, he said that one day he saw a customer crying in the restaurant and asked why. "They said they had come all the way here and were so disappointed by the taste that they cried," he recounted. "I had done my best and served food I poured my heart into, but being told it was disappointing left me with nothing I could do except tell them, 'Please don't cry.'"
He went on, "Running a restaurant is this difficult. It made me think that if I ever open my own place again, I should do it only after training and honing my skills much more."
From 2022 to 2024, Choi Kang Rok ran Neo, an omakase-style Japanese pub located in Samjeon-dong, Songpa District. After 'Culinary Class Wars Season 1' was released in September 2024, Neo enjoyed huge popularity, becoming the most searched restaurant on reservation platforms. However, it is reported that Choi closed the restaurant to pursue new challenges, including television work.
moon@fnnews.com Moon Young-jin Reporter