Who is Kwon Seong-joon? All you need to know about Culinary Class Wars winner

Culinary Class Wars announced the winner of the pilot season of Netflix's cooking competition - Chef Kwon Seong-joon - famously known by his nickname, Napoli Matfia. On Tuesday, October 8, Netflix unveiled the last two episodes of Culinary Class Wars.

The top 8 finalists, including Edward Lee, Napoli Matfia, Triple Star, Cooking Maniac, Jung Ji-sun, Auntie Omakase #1, Choi Hyun-Seok, and Jang Ho-jun, competed to showcase their cooking skills and techniques for one last time.

After winning the 'Cook Your Life' challenge, Napoli Matfia faced Korean American Chef Edward Lee in the final 'Signature Dish' challenge and triumphed as the show's winner, bagging a winning prize of a whopping 300 million KRW. Kwon Seong-joon's specialty lies within Italian Cuisine and he is known to be fluent in Italian, according to Korea JoongAng Daily.

He runs Toledo Pasta Bar in Yongsan, Seoul, bringing his passion for Italian food and the country to the South Korean audience. Toledo Pasta Bar offers a seven-course Sicilian dinner, including different types of pasta and risotto, with an appetizer and dessert. Kwon Seong-joon began his journey as a professional chef at a two-star Michelin restaurant called Dani Maison, on Ischia Island in Naples.

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More about Culinary Class Wars winner Kwon Seong-joon, aka Napoli Matfia

Kwon Seong-joon named himself Napoli Matfia (Korean: 나폴리 맛피야) and showcased his love for Naples through a bisque risotto pasta during the first round of Culinary Class Wars, focusing on the historical significance of the region. Notably, the word 'Matfia' is a combination of 'Mafia' and 'Mat' (meaning 'taste' in Korean).

Black Spoon Chef Napoli Matfia gained massive attention from the South Korean audience following his win in the show's 'Convenience Store Mission,' where he prepared the Chestnut Tiramisu using the Yeonsei Milk Marron Cream Bread and HEYROO Chestnut Deuktem from the CU convenience store.

Due to the surging demand from fans, Netflix’s official social media shared the recipes of the three dishes that won the mission. Furthermore, CU has reportedly decided to sell Seong-joon's tiramisu in their stores, according to Daily. The Chestnut Tiramisu will be available for pre-order from October 8 to 10 on Pocket CU, while it will be available in stores across the country from October 12, 2024.

While sharing his thoughts on winning the Netflix show in episode 12, Kwon Seong-joon said,

“Today, I achieved my dream. I've lived my life going back and forth between the kitchen and home, wondering if this was the right path, if living like this made sense, and if cooking was all I should be doing. Now, having won, I realize those ten years weren't wrong. I'll continue to live as a chef, moving only between the kitchen and home.”

On October 7, during the official press conference of Culinary Class Wars attended by all eight finalists and the production, Kwon Seong-joon shared interest in appearing on the show again if there were to be a second season:

"If I'm invited to season 2, I'd join as a 'white spoon' contestant. I aim to make history as the first competitor to take part in two consecutive seasons and achieve great results. I'm confident I can make it to the top 3.”

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About Culinary Class Wars

Culinary Class Wars is a cooking battle show presented by Netflix, in a series of 12 captivating episodes. In a similar pattern to Physical: 100, 100 contestants compete against each other for the show title and 300 million KRW.

The contestants are divided into two groups—Black Spoon Chefs with 80 members (non-celebrity chefs) and White Spoon Chefs with 20 members (popular celebrity chefs)—creating an intense competitive environment.

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All twelve episodes of Culinary Class Wars are available on Netflix for streaming.