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All this technology requiring intense digital detoxes, and yet, we still haven’t figured out how to download food. For K-drama fans, this limitation feels painfully real. Almost every show features characters feasting on dishes that look so lip-smacking you can almost taste them through the screen. Currently, one series has been catching everyone’s eye: Netflix’s Bon Appétit, Your Majesty.
Based on Park Kuk-Jae’s web novel Yeonsankunui Chefro Salanamki, the show follows a talented modern chef who time-travels to the Joseon era. There, she meets a tyrant king, and her contemporary dishes captivate his royal palate—though surviving palace politics proves no easy feat. With a fun mix of romance, comedy, and culinary delight, it’s a thoroughly enjoyable watch, featuring a likeable protagonist and a cast that makes every meal look irresistible. The series may have ended, but it leaves viewers with a lingering craving—for both the food and the characters themselves.
This culinary temptation isn’t unique to Bon Appétit. Watching Korean shows often leads to an inevitable problem: your regular Indian meal suddenly feels a little boring. Ramyun dripping with tteokbokki sauce, kimchi on the side, and vibrant banchan make us raid the kitchen for noodles and try to recreate the magic, often with hilariously imperfect results. And thanks to YouTube tutorials, even the most novice home cooks can attempt these dishes.
The South Korean cultural wave—popularly known as Hallyu—found plenty of new takers during the pandemic. Before that, Korean food and drama had a smaller, niche following in India. Today, however, it’s practically everywhere: cafes serving bibimbap and Korean fried chicken pop up in major cities, K-pop-inspired menus trend on Instagram, and fans stock up on gochujang and instant ramyun at local supermarkets.
If you’re ready to indulge your taste buds from the comfort of your couch, here’s a K-drama watchlist guaranteed to leave you hungry:
1. Wok of Love (2018)
A passionate chef opens a Chinese-Korean fusion restaurant with a former gangster-turned-cook and a talented sous chef. Amidst romantic entanglements and kitchen rivalries, the trio battles rival restaurants while serving mouth-watering dishes.
2. My Lovely Sam Soon (2005)
Kim Sam Soon, a talented pastry chef, navigates heartbreak and career challenges while running her own bakery. The drama blends humor, romance, and delicious desserts as Sam Soon finds love in unexpected places.
3. Let’s Eat (2013-2018)
An insurance salesman with a love for gourmet food forms bonds with neighbors over elaborate meals. Each episode celebrates different Korean dishes, exploring comfort food, personal stories, and the joy of eating alone or together.
4. Chocolate (2019-2020)
A talented chef and a compassionate neurosurgeon bond over food, opening a café that heals both body and soul. Their shared love for cooking and healing brings warmth and romance into this heart-touching story.
5. Mr. Queen (2020-2021)
A modern-day chef finds himself trapped in the body of Queen Cheorin in the Joseon era. Hilarity ensues as she introduces modern cooking techniques to the royal kitchen while navigating palace intrigue and forbidden romance.
6. Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha (2021)
A dentist relocates to a coastal village where she meets a jack-of-all-trades handyman. Their lives intertwine as the drama celebrates small-town life, heartfelt meals, and Korean seafood specialties that enrich both relationships and community ties.
7. Tastefully Yours (2025)
A romantic comedy about two chefs competing in a culinary contest while developing feelings for each other. Their rivalry is spiced with laughter, and every dish they prepare is as expressive as their evolving relationship.
8. Link: Eat, Love, Kill (2022)
A chef inexplicably begins feeling the emotions of a woman he has never met. Through food, he uncovers her life story, forging a connection that blurs the line between empathy, love, and culinary expression.
9. Sweet Munchies
Park Jin-sung, who is a owner of a late-night bistro, faces a crisis that may lose his place; the lies that he commits for saving money eventually hurt his neighbors and he slowly starts to understand what is more important than money.
10. How Are You Bread?
Starring K-pop icon SUHO, the plot revolves around Han Do Woo, a talented chef who owns a bakery, manages to gain a reputation for being able to grant wishes with his pastries.
11. Mystic Pop-up Bar
Only open late at night, a mysterious outdoor bar can travel to different worlds and heal customers through their dreams.
12. The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince
Eun-chan is often mistaken to be a boy due to her appearance. So when she gets hired at a coffee shop, she keeps the ruse going. Problems arise when her manager starts falling in love with her.
So, the next time you find yourself craving a dish from your favorite K-drama, why not try making it at home? After all, as the saying goes, "Food is the ingredient that binds us together."
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