From celebrity chef to dim sum queen: Meet the Top 8 of 'Culinary Class Wars' (Part 1)

As "Culinary Class Wars" draws to its end, here's all you need to know about four of the final eight, ranging from a master of Chinese cuisine to a veteran celebrity chef.

A top 8 contestant on "Culinary Class Wars," “Triple Star” chef Scott Kang [NETFLIX KOREA]

And then there were eight.

Netflix Korea's survival show “Culinary Class Wars” is headed toward its end as its list of 100 chefs is now whittled down to just four high-powered White Spoon chefs and four lesser-known Black Spoon chefs.

They will continue battling in the last batch of new episodes set for release on Tuesday. The final winner will receive 300 million won ($223,000).

A top 8 contestant on "Culinary Class Wars," chef Jung Ji-sun [NETFLIX KOREA]

Every one of the chefs is a fighter — not just on the show, but also in real life. A look into each finalist's background and work reveals that the fierce spirit powering the show’s drama may have been just a sliver of their realities.

So before the grand showdown, here's all you need to know about the final eight.

Choi Hyun-seok With smart strategies that won all the team challenges, veteran celebrity chef Choi Hyun-seok proved that he is a survivor who earned his fame in the game.

With no university degree or study abroad experience like most chefs, Choi started working right after high school in the back kitchens of local Italian restaurants. His first workplace, which inspired his spaghetti vongole on “Culinary Class Wars,” La Cucina in Yongsan District, central Seoul, is still open today.

Known for his sense of humor and good instincts on television, he arose as one of the best recognized celebrity chefs in the country and starred in over a dozen shows. In a 2015 cable food series “Olive Show,” Choi evaluated “Culinary Class War” judge Ahn Sung-jae’s chicken curry panini.

Today, Choi is the chef-owner of high-end fine dining restaurant Choi Dot in Gangnam District, southern Seoul. He is also the chef of a small burger chain Co. 190, a vegan restaurant Dahlia Dining in Gangnam District, and a Chinese fusion restaurant Central Reducer in Seongdong District, eastern Seoul.

Jang Ho-joon

Japanese chef Jang Ho-jun beat “Yakitori King” during the second Black versus White round with a katsu sando, a Japanese sandwich with pork cutlet. He put a twist on the dish by replacing the usual protein with nakji (small, long-arm octopus) and fish cakes and won over both the judges during blind tasting. He smoothly moved up to the top 8 as part of two winning teams led by Choi Hyun-seok. Jang placed 5th in the latest round with a baked whole onion dish he sells in his restaurants.

As much as he is a talented chef, Jang is also a successful businessman, sitting as CEO of his own F&B company Negi which currently operates seven restaurants. They include high-end Japanese restaurants Negi Live in Seongdong District and Negi Sukiyaki in Jongno District and more casual places like the fish cake bar Modern Odeng in Gangnam.

Growing up in the southern coastal city of Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang, he boasts a deep understanding of seafood, even opening a modern hansik restaurant, Negi Silbi in Jongno District, central Seoul, that pays homage to his hometown sea specialties.

Before starting his own business, Jang built his career working at the kitchens of local five-star hotels Grand Hyatt and Ritz Carlton.

Jung Ji-sun

Jung’s confidence paired with her skill in “Culinary Class Wars” affirms her longtime nickname “The Queen of Dim Sum.” A trailblazer in an industry dominated by men, particularly in Chinese cuisine where cooking methods are often described as “rugged” and “aggressive,” her career reflects her fighting spirit on the show.

She put herself through school at Yangzhou University’s Department of Culinary Arts in China. After graduating, she returned to Korea and began work at a Chinese restaurant inside the now-closed Palace Hotel in Gangnam District.

Now over two decades into her professional chef career, she is a representative Chinese cuisine chef in Korea with three published books and various TV appearances. She also runs the popular casual Chinese restaurant Tian Mimi in Gangnam and Hongdae with her husband and is a mother to a 10-year-old son.

“Triple Star” Scott Kang

Selected as the most likely winner of “Culinary Class Wars” by the show’s participants, Scott Kang, or Kang Seung-won, has been featured as a strong contender on the show since day 1.

His precision and attention to detail closely mirror one of the show’s judges, Ahn Sung-jae, who runs Korea’s only three-Michelin-star establishment, Mosu. Kang, like Ahn when he was younger, worked at Benu, a three-star American dining restaurant in San Francisco. He then worked for Ahn as Mosu’s sous-chef.

Currently, he is the chef-owner of high-end contemporary fine-dining restaurant Trid in Gangnam District. Dishes infuse various cuisines and local seasonal ingredients to craft innovative outcomes like whole wheat noodles served with soy sauce from soy-marinated crab, butter and kani-miso and buttery tartlets with housemade crème fraîche, Mexican style barbecued pork neck and guacamole sprinkled with cilantro and smoked paprika powder.

The list continues in our second article, "From maniac to 'matfia:' Meet the Top 8 of 'Culinary Class Wars' (Part 2)." Click here to read more.

BY LEE JIAN [lee.jian@joongang.co.kr]