The second season of Culinary Class Wars introduces the Hidden White Spoon twist, forcing the previous season's champions to face a ruthless redemption challenge where survival depends on the unanimous approval of the judges.
SEOUL – South Korea's most popular culinary survival series has returned for a second season, once again featuring judges Paik Jong-won and Ahn Sung-jae, a new group of rookie and star chefs, and a surprising twist: the return of contestants from the hit first season.
Stars: Paik Jong-won, Edward Lee, Bobby Foley
Since its premiere in September 2024, Culinary Class Wars became a phenomenon, pitting amateur cooks on the black team against star chefs on the white team in culinary challenges and individual elimination rounds.
When the season finale aired in October 2024, the series made history by becoming the first Korean entertainment program on Netflix to top the non-English language TV series rankings for three consecutive weeks.
SEOUL – South Korea's most popular culinary survival series has returned for a second season, once again featuring judges Paik Jong-won and Ahn Sung-jae, a new group of rookie and star chefs, and a surprising twist: the return of contestants from the successful first season.
Since its premiere in September 2024, Culinary Class Wars became a phenomenon, pitting amateur cooks on the black team against star chefs on the white team in culinary challenges and individual elimination rounds.
When the season finale aired in October 2024, the series made history by becoming the first Korean entertainment program on Netflix to top the non-English language TV series rankings for three consecutive weeks.
The rest of the show's structure remains largely unchanged, at least in the first three episodes. As before, contestants on the black team present their signature dishes for evaluation, and those who pass the test advance to individual showdowns against members of the white team. “Since the first season was so well-received by such a large audience, it came with a great deal of responsibility and pressure,” Kim said during a press conference held on December 17.
“We spent a lot of time thinking about it, but we felt that making changes just for the sake of change might be detrimental to the show,” she added. “Instead of forcing changes, given the great success of the first season, we focused on refining and developing the elements that resonated with the audience, replacing the weaker parts with something new. We believed this approach would allow us to create a more complete and polished program.”
Co-producer Kim Eun-ji described the first season as a source of confidence for both the contestants and the production team.
“Some chefs who had declined to participate in the first season were encouraged this time and voluntarily applied for the show. For our part, during the first season, we didn't dare to contact Chef Hu Deok-juk or Venerable Seonjae to offer them a role, but this time we mustered the courage to do so. We are deeply grateful that they accepted so readily,” she commented.
Among the notable contestants on the white team is renowned chef Son Jong-won, owner of two Michelin-starred restaurants, one specializing in Korean cuisine and the other in Western cuisine.
Son commented that he joined the program after considerable deliberation, and the production team admitted that it took some effort to convince him.
“I spoke very confidently and said I trusted the program, but in reality, I was very worried,” Son said. “Just as the first season boosted the restaurant industry when it was going through a rough patch, I hope this season will contribute to revitalizing it again.”
Chef Hu, a contestant on the white team with 57 years of experience in Chinese cuisine, considered his participation an opportunity for exchange.
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