The Food Porn Superstars of South Korea
March 22, 2015 3:09 AM Subscribe
In Korea, people can tune in on their laptops and cell phones any time, any day and watch people eat—and talk about eating. These "online eaters" are neither chefs nor restaurateurs, but the stars of the South Korean digital food phenomenon: Mukbang.[SLYT]
Some Makbung stars (often referred to as BJs) YT channels:
Some Makbung stars (often referred to as BJs) YT channels:
Didn't I read this article about Muk-bang star Diva on Metafilter? Can't find it now.
posted by Omnomnom at 3:45 AM on March 22, 2015
posted by Omnomnom at 3:45 AM on March 22, 2015
Opening at around 0:45 reminds me of that scene in Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi - you know the one.
posted by arzakh at 3:45 AM on March 22, 2015
posted by arzakh at 3:45 AM on March 22, 2015
I can totally get into this considering how much time I waste on watching Let's Plays and gaming related spectatoring.
posted by Foci for Analysis at 4:11 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Foci for Analysis at 4:11 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
I looked up the first guy's top viewed video and it's this... how does he eat so much? Is this the life of a professional eater...
posted by xdvesper at 4:41 AM on March 22, 2015
posted by xdvesper at 4:41 AM on March 22, 2015
how does he eat so much?
I cant speak for the quantity, but those noodles (불닭볶음면) will put a hump on a camel's back. They are so spicy that they give me tunnel vision and affect my hearing. Phew!
Also, I doubt he makes much money. It looks like he lives in a goshiwon or something, look how tiny that room is. College student, maybe?
posted by Literaryhero at 5:22 AM on March 22, 2015
I cant speak for the quantity, but those noodles (불닭볶음면) will put a hump on a camel's back. They are so spicy that they give me tunnel vision and affect my hearing. Phew!
Also, I doubt he makes much money. It looks like he lives in a goshiwon or something, look how tiny that room is. College student, maybe?
posted by Literaryhero at 5:22 AM on March 22, 2015
All these people, eating alone in their apartments, longing for some kind of human companionship while they engage in one of the most basic activities of daily living. Mukbang allows for that without the 'risk' of one-on-one human interaction.
Mukbang seems like a symptom of a much larger societal dysfunction.
posted by leotrotsky at 6:11 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
Mukbang seems like a symptom of a much larger societal dysfunction.
posted by leotrotsky at 6:11 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
It's not a phenomenon that I would have expected, but then I wouldn't have guessed that youtube makeup and beauty videos would be such a huge thing, either.
how does he eat so much?
The pot looks bigger because it is closer to the camera, but that is still a huge mound of food.
posted by Dip Flash at 6:29 AM on March 22, 2015
how does he eat so much?
The pot looks bigger because it is closer to the camera, but that is still a huge mound of food.
posted by Dip Flash at 6:29 AM on March 22, 2015
As foreseen by Kilgore Trout.
posted by Rat Spatula at 7:08 AM on March 22, 2015
posted by Rat Spatula at 7:08 AM on March 22, 2015
This link is more ummm.. palatable to me now that I know there is a food/k-pop link...
posted by wallstreet1929 at 7:27 AM on March 22, 2015
posted by wallstreet1929 at 7:27 AM on March 22, 2015
Is it a deliberate thing that the sounds of eating are so emphasized? To my American ears it's disgusting, but perhaps that's exactly what people are watching these videos to hear? The crackling and smacking almost reminds me of the whole ASMR fad. Just needs more binaural whispering.
posted by Nelson at 8:15 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Nelson at 8:15 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
Considering that this is happening in the country with one of the highest national population densities in the world and also one of the highest internet connection speeds, maybe we're witnessing the formation of some internal organ of the post-singularity super-organism.
posted by XMLicious at 8:36 AM on March 22, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by XMLicious at 8:36 AM on March 22, 2015 [2 favorites]
From Omnomnom's (!) link: "For Koreans, eating is an extremely social, communal activity, which is why even the Korean word 'family' means 'those who eat together,'" says Professor Sung-hee Park of Ewha University's Division of Media Studies. She believes its the interactive aspect of eating broadcasts that's so appealing to these lonely hearts.
A friend taught and lived in Korea for about 4 years recently. She said that one thing that made her uncomfortable was the relative lack of dining options for solo eaters, something that really surprised me (aside from the US, it's certainly not true for Taiwan or Japan). When I went there briefly, I got what she meant: most restaurants, even in Seoul, are Korean restaurants, which serve large amounts of food to groups. I was on my own and I did OK by eating in trendy cafes near universities/buying food at bakeries or convenience stores, but the only times I wound up eating Korean-style food was when I met up with former classmates and they took me out. (This also suddenly made the price and size of certain dishes at California Korean restaurants finally make sense to me.)
If it's relatively difficult for individuals to eat out and people feel weird about eating alone at home, but modern society and economy means that not everyone lives in a family/other group...the videos make a certain amount of sense (outside of the Rule 34 sense).
The "increasingly virtual" bit at the beginning of the above article seems needlessly sensationalistic to me. Korean society is obviously changing rapidly, but I bet the average Korean spends more time with other human beings than the average SF Bay Area resident. I don't know quickly the restaurant scene is going to change; my bet is pretty quickly, as more and more Koreans travel abroad etc. Keep in mind that South Korea had international travel restrictions until 1988 and has only recently allowed some Japanese media/pop culture in.
Please forgive/correct any mistakes above: total outsider perspective.
posted by wintersweet at 8:39 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
A friend taught and lived in Korea for about 4 years recently. She said that one thing that made her uncomfortable was the relative lack of dining options for solo eaters, something that really surprised me (aside from the US, it's certainly not true for Taiwan or Japan). When I went there briefly, I got what she meant: most restaurants, even in Seoul, are Korean restaurants, which serve large amounts of food to groups. I was on my own and I did OK by eating in trendy cafes near universities/buying food at bakeries or convenience stores, but the only times I wound up eating Korean-style food was when I met up with former classmates and they took me out. (This also suddenly made the price and size of certain dishes at California Korean restaurants finally make sense to me.)
If it's relatively difficult for individuals to eat out and people feel weird about eating alone at home, but modern society and economy means that not everyone lives in a family/other group...the videos make a certain amount of sense (outside of the Rule 34 sense).
The "increasingly virtual" bit at the beginning of the above article seems needlessly sensationalistic to me. Korean society is obviously changing rapidly, but I bet the average Korean spends more time with other human beings than the average SF Bay Area resident. I don't know quickly the restaurant scene is going to change; my bet is pretty quickly, as more and more Koreans travel abroad etc. Keep in mind that South Korea had international travel restrictions until 1988 and has only recently allowed some Japanese media/pop culture in.
Please forgive/correct any mistakes above: total outsider perspective.
posted by wintersweet at 8:39 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
The first time I read the article about Diva, linked above, I wondered whether she has an eating disorder. Four large pizzas consecutively, and she's still that petite. But I guess some people have a crazy metabolism?
posted by Omnomnom at 9:15 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Omnomnom at 9:15 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
She said that one thing that made her uncomfortable was the relative lack of dining options for solo eaters, something that really surprised me (aside from the US, it's certainly not true for Taiwan or Japan).
I have a former classmate from college and grad school who is half-African American and half-Korean, who has taught English in South Korea for many years. I can't locate his post on Facebook about the webcam gals who eat on camera, but I think the discussion in his Facebook thread said it's linked to a strong taboo against eating alone in Korea. The taboo can work in two ways. If you watch somebody eat while you eat alone, you can make yourself feel better. On the other hand, it can also be viewed as a way of putting the "porn" in food porn, because the aloneness of the eating is precisely what makes it "naughty" and erotically charged.
posted by jonp72 at 9:36 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
I have a former classmate from college and grad school who is half-African American and half-Korean, who has taught English in South Korea for many years. I can't locate his post on Facebook about the webcam gals who eat on camera, but I think the discussion in his Facebook thread said it's linked to a strong taboo against eating alone in Korea. The taboo can work in two ways. If you watch somebody eat while you eat alone, you can make yourself feel better. On the other hand, it can also be viewed as a way of putting the "porn" in food porn, because the aloneness of the eating is precisely what makes it "naughty" and erotically charged.
posted by jonp72 at 9:36 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]
I am totally fascinated by this stuff but couldn't even begin to try and analyze it. It always reminds me of this comic, though.
posted by StopMakingSense at 10:01 AM on March 22, 2015
posted by StopMakingSense at 10:01 AM on March 22, 2015
One of the themes in the k-drama Let's Eat was how difficult it is to eat out as a single person in Korea. Which still doesn't stop it from showing a whole lot of food porn.
Trailer
eating jajangmyeon
eating fried chicken
eating mandu (dumplings)
posted by needled at 11:41 AM on March 22, 2015
Trailer
eating jajangmyeon
eating fried chicken
eating mandu (dumplings)
posted by needled at 11:41 AM on March 22, 2015
The mandu clip from Let's Eat felt actually seemed quite pornographic.
As a counterexample, my favourite YouTube chef, Maanchi, is Korean-American, makes Korean food, and always makes a point of eating what she makes at the end of the episode. American and European TV chefs are rarely seen eating the food they make, so combining this with the discussion about Korean eating habits, maybe Maangchi is trying to seduce me?
FYI, her recipe for kimchi is unbeatable.
posted by sixohsix at 7:29 AM on March 23, 2015
As a counterexample, my favourite YouTube chef, Maanchi, is Korean-American, makes Korean food, and always makes a point of eating what she makes at the end of the episode. American and European TV chefs are rarely seen eating the food they make, so combining this with the discussion about Korean eating habits, maybe Maangchi is trying to seduce me?
FYI, her recipe for kimchi is unbeatable.
posted by sixohsix at 7:29 AM on March 23, 2015
Just across the ocean in Japan, Kodokuno-Gurume is a popular show where a Japanese business man eats alone at a restaurant. Yes, that's the show. That's it. He just eats food, alone, and talks about how good it is in a reverential voice-over.
posted by sixohsix at 7:35 AM on March 23, 2015
posted by sixohsix at 7:35 AM on March 23, 2015
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posted by playeren at 3:38 AM on March 22, 2015 [1 favorite]