Chef Kwon Sung-joon Joins SBS 'Young Talent Discovery Infinity' as Judge

Chef Kwon Sung-joon, known as the 'Napoli Mafia,' makes a surprise appearance as a judge on SBS's 'Young Talent Discovery Infinity.'

In the second episode airing on the night of the 9th at 9 PM, three 14-year-old culinary prodigies with exceptional skills in different fields will showcase their talents in a fiery 'taste debut.' The 3MCs, Cha Tae-hyun, Mimi, and Mimiminu, are left in awe by the impressive presence of the contestants from the start.

Cha Tae-hyun teases, “The prodigy we are introducing this time is the first of its kind. There has never been a prodigy from this field on 'Young Talent Discovery.'” The revealed stars are three 14-year-old boys aspiring to be next-generation chefs. Mimi quickly becomes engrossed, exclaiming, “Aren't they like 'black and white chefs'?” The studio is instantly filled with anticipation.

The three 'culinary prodigies' include Lee Yeon-woo, the 'Goseong Knife Boy' with remarkable Japanese cuisine skills, Jung Jun-woo, the 'Cooking Genius' who knows meat prices by heart, and Park Eun-chong, who has mastered Korean, Western, Chinese, Japanese cuisines, and food processing theory. As their cooking routines are shown in a VCR, Mimiminu notes, “Our prodigies never give up!” sparking interest in their determination.

As the atmosphere heats up, Chef Kwon Sung-joon makes a surprise entrance as a judge. He states, “I don't consider these kids as children. I see them as 'chefs,'” promising a rigorous and detailed evaluation. Observing their cooking process, Chef Kwon praises, “Their style is clean and fundamentally strong,” and adds, “They remind me of Chef Son Jong-won.” Curiosity builds around who will be chosen by Chef Kwon. Additionally, the episode will feature an update on Kim Yo-han, who appeared as a 'piano prodigy' 10 years ago, delighting viewers.

The first episode of SBS 'Young Talent Discovery Infinity,' aired on the 2nd, recorded an average viewership rating of 3.5% (Seoul metropolitan households) according to Nielsen Korea, with peak ratings reaching 4.6%. It also ranked first among all programs excluding news in the target demographic of '2049' with a 0.8% rating.

SBS 'Young Talent Discovery Infinity' episode 2 airs on the 9th at 9 PM.

Reporter Kim Se-a, Ten Asia haesmik@tenasia.co.kr