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Culinary Class Wars aired its last two episodes on October 8, 2024, on Netflix. Episode 12 saw a showdown between Korean-American celebrity chef, Edward Lee and up-and-coming chef, Napoli Matfia aka Kwon Sung-jun. Matfia, who won the title, posted an apology for Edward Lee on Instagram.
In episode 12, during their final battle, Napoli Matfia said that he would "crush" the Korean-American chef. Viewers found it unsettling as Edward Lee is a winner of the renowned competition, Iron Chef America, was a judge on Gordon Ramsey's Culinary Expert, and cooked for President Joe Biden at the White House in 2023. Nevertheless, the chef was humble throughout the show, winning hearts.
Meanwhile, viewers felt that Napoli Matfia's comment seemed inappropriate as Edward Lee is a veteran chef in the cooking industry. Napoli Matfia, whose real name is Kwon Sung-jun wrote in his post that he behaved immaturely on the show and apologized as per the translation provided by Allkpop:
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"Before sharing my joy, I want to start by offering an apology and expressing my gratitude. Even though I'm not young, I acted and thought somewhat immaturely. Throughout the show, I received much advice from those around me to remain humble. To avoid feeling intimidated or overwhelmed, I ended up putting on more bravado," he wrote.
Napoli Matfia continued that although he said it for the sake of the game's competitive nature, he didn't mean it as disrespect.
"Watching myself on the show, I realized I came across as arrogant and lacking, which has become a moment of reflection for me. My comment, 'I'll crush you,' was intended as a motivational push for us to give it our all in the final challenge, but I now realize it came off as arrogant and thoughtless. I want to sincerely apologize once again. (...) Lastly, this year has been one of immense learning."
Culinary Class Wars finalist Edward Lee wins the internet with his humility and creativity
Culinary Class Wars episode 11 was a showdown of one's endurance as the top 7 semi-finalists had to cook tofu dishes for over 4 hours non-stop till only one remained. The winning contestant then competed against Napoli Matfia in the final as the latter already qualified for the finale in episode 10.
Despite his age, Edward Lee cooked non-stop for 4 hours and created 5 unique tofu dishes that even judges Paik Jong-won and Ahn Sung-jae had never tasted before. Viewers were impressed by the Korean-American celebrity chef's consistent creativity. He served each of his dishes with a personal anecdote.
In episode 12 of Culinary Class Wars, while serving his final dish, he expressed his feelings in a letter to reveal the inspiration behind his dish. This resonated with the audience as they lauded him and flooded social media, calling him their winner.
Culinary Class Wars was hosted by Netflix and judged by Korean celebrity chef, Paik Jong-won, and three-star Michelin restaurant chef-owner of Mosu Seoul, Ahn Sung-jae. The show aired a total of 12 episodes where 100 chefs competed against each other.
80 chefs from all across South Korea were put in one team called the "Black Spoons." Each of them was given a nickname to hide their real names. Only the winner could reveal their real name by the end of the show. However, 60 out of 80 Black Spoon chefs were eliminated in the first round of Culinary Class Wars.
Meanwhile, 20 celebrity chefs were brought together and called the "White Spoon" chefs. Each of them was introduced by their real name. Several among them are owners of Michelin-star restaurants like Michelin-star chef Fabrizio Ferrari and Joseph Lidgerwood.
Additionally, celebrity chefs like Choi Hyun-seok, Edward Lee, veteran Lu Chinglai, Hwang Jin-seon, Jang Ho-joon, Jung Ji-sun, Kim Do-yun, Kim Seung-min, Lee Young-suk, Nam Jeong-seok, Oh Se-deuk, Park Joon-woo, and Seonkyoung Longest were among the 20 White Spoon chefs who competed against the final 20 Black Spoon chefs in Culinary Class Wars.
Culinary Class Wars is available on Netflix.
