As they work their way through the recommendations, fans are immersed in a world that feels foreign but familiar — a world that eventually includes kimchi jigi, a spicy kimchi stew, and kalguksu, a seafood and kelp broth.
When Mary Geda visited South Korea for the first time, she went in search of a bowl of kimchi jigae, as she had seen many times on screen stars.
“I cried (while eating). It was so spicy, she says. “I thought, why did I order this? They eat it so easily in every show.”
Mary, an aspiring French actor, now lives in Seoul. She was originally a fan of K-pop, but later discovered K-dramas and learned Korean. She also appeared in several cameos. “I’m lucky and I really love it,” she says.
Food was a big attraction for Mary because she saw such variety in K-dramas. Seeing the characters bond over food was familiar to her, she says, because she grew up in the French countryside in Burgundy.
