Show · K-Variety
Culinary Class Wars흑백요리사: 요리 계급 전쟁
Culinary Class Wars (흑백요리사: 요리 계급 전쟁, literally "Black and White Chef") is a South Korean cooking competition made for Netflix by the production company Studio Slam (스튜디오 슬램). It is directed by Kim Hak-min (김학민) and Kim Eun-ji (김은지) and written by Mo Eun-seol (모은설).1 Each season starts with 100 chefs in two classes: 20 established "White Spoons", who compete under their own names, and 80 lesser-known "Black Spoons", who compete under nicknames. They cook through elimination rounds for a ₩300 million prize. The judges are the restaurateur Paik Jong-won (백종원) and Anh Sung-jae (안성재), chef of Mosu Seoul, which Netflix describes as Korea's only Michelin three-star restaurant.12
Netflix Korea opened applications on October 4, 2023 under the working title 무명요리사 ("Nameless Chef"), and about 600 people applied for the 100 places.34 Season 1's 12 episodes were released from September 17 to October 8, 2024. Kwon Seong-joon (권성준), who competed as the Black Spoon "Napoli Matfia", beat Edward Lee (에드워드 리) in the final. Season 2's 13 episodes followed from December 16, 2025 to January 13, 2026, and were won by Choi Kang-rok (최강록), a Season 1 White Spoon who returned as a "Hidden White Spoon".1 On January 16, 2026, Netflix announced a third season in which restaurants compete as teams of four.5 For how the show is cast, built, filmed and judged, and how its producers answered claims of unfair results, see DabPop's feature on its production.8
Season 1 was the first Korean unscripted series to lead Netflix's global Top 10 for non-English TV for three consecutive weeks. It was also the first streaming reality series to be ranked No. 1 among Korean viewers' favourite programmes in Gallup Korea's monthly survey.2 On Netflix's chart it spent six weeks in the Top 10, three at No. 1. Season 2 spent five weeks there, two at No. 1, and opened with 5.5 million views, more than any week of Season 1.6 Season 1 also won the TV Grand Prize at the 61st Baeksang Arts Awards in May 2025.7 DabPop's ranking of Korean reality shows on Netflix's chart puts Season 1 first.9
Key facts
| Korean title | 흑백요리사: 요리 계급 전쟁1 |
|---|---|
| Format | Cooking competition: 80 Black Spoons and 20 White Spoons each season1 |
| Production company | Studio Slam (스튜디오 슬램)1 |
| Directors and writer | Kim Hak-min and Kim Eun-ji; written by Mo Eun-seol1 |
| Judges | Paik Jong-won (백종원) and Anh Sung-jae (안성재)1 |
| Network | Netflix; episodes released on Tuesdays1 |
| Premiere | September 17, 2024 (Season 1)1 |
| Seasons and episodes | 2 seasons, 25 episodes (12 and 13); Season 3 announced January 16, 202615 |
| Prize | ₩300 million1 |
| Winners | Kwon Seong-joon, "Napoli Matfia" (Season 1); Choi Kang-rok (Season 2)1 |
| Netflix global Top 10 (non-English TV) | Season 1: 6 weeks, 3 at No. 1, peak 4.9M views; Season 2: 5 weeks, 2 at No. 1, peak 5.5M views6 |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | Grand Prize, Television (61st, 2025, Season 1)7 |
Appears in DabPop rankings
Sources
- Wikipedia, Culinary Class Wars (credits, format, results and episode list), retrieved 2026-10-16.
- About Netflix, 'Culinary Class Wars' Season 2 Trailer Teases New Rules, Returning Contestants, and an Even Bigger Battle of Flavor — Returning December 16 (December 2, 2025), retrieved 2026-10-16.
- YTN Star, 백종원, 100명 모아 요리 서바이벌...넷플릭스 '무명요리사' (October 5, 2023), retrieved 2026-10-16.
- The Korea Herald via Asia News Network, 'Culinary Class Wars' explores today's views on fairness: creators (October 17, 2024), retrieved 2026-10-16.
- Yonhap News Agency, '흑백요리사' 시즌3 나온다…이번엔 4인1조 식당 대결 (January 16, 2026), retrieved 2026-10-16.
- Netflix, Global Top 10, all weeks (data file), retrieved 2026-10-16.
- Soompi, Winners of the 61st Baeksang Arts Awards (May 5, 2025), retrieved 2026-10-16.
- DabPop, How Culinary Class Wars Is Made: Casting, Blind Tastings and the Rigging Questions (data as of October 16, 2026), retrieved 2026-10-16.
- DabPop, Korean Reality Shows in Netflix's Global Top 10 (data to October 4, 2026), retrieved 2026-10-16.