Pasta (TV series)
| Pasta | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster for Pasta | |
| Genre | Romantic comedy |
| Written by | Seo Sook-hyang |
| Directed by | Kwon Seok-jang |
| Starring | |
| Opening theme | "Pasta Intro" by Moon Seong-nam |
| Ending theme | "Lucky Day" by Every Single Day |
| Country of origin | South Korea |
| Original language(s) | Korean |
| No. of episodes | 20 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Lee Un-jeong |
| Producer(s) | Son Ok-hyun |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Release | |
| Original network | Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation |
| Original release | January 4 – March 9, 2010 |
| External links | |
| Website | |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 파스타 |
|---|---|
| Revised Romanization | Paseuta |
| McCune–Reischauer | Pasŭt'a |
Pasta (Hangul: 파스타) is a 2010 South Korean television series starring Gong Hyo-jin, Lee Sun-kyun, Lee Ha-nui and Alex Chu. The workplace romantic comedy is about the dreams and struggles of a young woman who aspires to become an elite chef.[1][2][3] It aired on MBC from January 4 to March 9, 2010 on Mondays and Tuesdays at 21:55 for 20 episodes.
Plot
Seo Yoo-kyung started her career as a kitchen assistant at La Sfera restaurant for 3 years. Her dream is to become an Italian cuisine chef. She eventually works her way up to become a chef. One day, the La Sfera restaurant newly hires Choi Hyun-wook, a chef who went to culinary school in Italy. Upon his arrival, the female chefs are fired one by one and Yoo-kyung finds herself to be the last woman standing. She's fired several times but comes up with ways to be rehired by Choi Hyun-wook. Eventually she's rehired permanently when she wins a blind taste contest. The newly hired president, Kim San hires his friend and celebrity chef Sae-young as a co-head chef to work with Hyun-wook. It turns out that Sae-young and Hyun-wook used to date each other when they were both studying at the Italian culinary school. But they broke up after Sae-young sabotaged his wine by boiling it to win a cooking contest. They turn into rivals and try to outdo each other in making the finest Italian cuisine. Working alongside two celebrity chefs, Yoo-kyung feels small and insignificant. She gradually develops feelings for the charismatic Hyun-wook. However, restaurant owner Kim San begins to become attracted to the spunky Yoo-kyung and the relationships between them become fraught with complexities.[4]
Cast
Main characters
- Seo Yoo-kyung, played by Gong Hyo-jin[5][6][7]
- The daughter of a Chinese restaurant owner whose mother died of cancer, she dreams of becoming a celebrity chef. Having graduated from a lowly culinary school, she starts the series as a kitchen assistant for 3 years at La Sfera. She has a spunky attitude and she finally gets promoted to cook in the first episode, but after a new head chef, Hyun-wook, is hired, she is fired. She is able to return to her job, thanks to the restaurant manager who intervenes on her behalf. But Yoo-kyung has a long way to go until she will earn any respect from chef Hyun-wook for her cooking skills. She makes an effort to learn as much as she can from Hyun-wook and he, in turn, starts to grow fond of her. However, when Kim San, the restaurant owner of La Sfera, returns, her relationship between Hyun-wook and Kim San change abruptly.[8]
- Choi Hyun-wook, played by Lee Sun-kyun[9][10][11][12]
- A chef who rose to the top of his profession after starting at the bottom in an Italian restaurant in Sicily. Offered a hefty salary and housing from the La Sfera restaurant, he decides to become the head chef of the establishment. He detests female chefs after having a bad experience in the past and proclaims, "There will be no women in my kitchen". When his ex-girlfriend Sae-young joins him at the restaurant as co-head chef, he frequently quarrels with her and then makes up as they create wonderful cuisine for patrons.[13]
- Oh Sae-young, played by Lee Ha-nui
- She's Yoo-kyung's role model as well as her roommate. Sae-young has her own cooking show and is the most celebrated female chef in Korea. During her years in Italy where she went to culinary school, she dated Hyun-wook and ruined his recipe to win a grand prix cooking contest. After returning to Korea, she instantly became a celebrity chef but when she's reunited with Hyun-wook, she has conflicted feelings towards him.
- Kim San, played by Alex Chu[14][15][16]
- He's the actual owner of the La Sfera restaurant, but he hides this fact and poses as a regular restaurant patron for 3 years. One day, he takes a peek at Yoo-kyung's notes and develops an interest in her. Nobody pays much attention to Yoo-kyung, who is a kitchen assistant, but Kim San watches her closely. He helps Yoo-kyung from behind the scenes unbeknownst to Yoo-kyung.
Supporting characters
- Lee Hyung-chul as Geum Seok-ho
- Lee Sung-min as Seol Joon-seok
- Choi Jae-hwan as Jung Eun-soo
- Choi Jin-hyuk (credited as Kim Tae-ho) as Sunwoo Deok
- Noh Min-woo as Philip
- Hyun Woo as Lee Ji-hoon[17]
- Jo Sang-gi as Jung Ho-nam
- Baek Bong-ki as Min Seung-jae
- Heo Tae-hee as Han Sang-shik
- Ha Jae-sook as Lee Hee-joo
- Jung Da-hye as Park Mi-hee
- Son Seong-yoon as Park Chan-hee
- Choi Min-sung as Ne-mo
- Byun Jung-soo as Kim Kang
- Jang Yong as Seo Jong-goo
- Kim Dong-hee as Seo Yoo-shik
- Yoon Yong-hyun as Gwang-tae
- Jung Dong-hwan as Choi Hyun-wook's mentor chef
- Ryoo Seung-bum as Restaurant client (cameo, ep 9)
Reception
The culinary drama, which premiered in Korea on January 4, 2010, started off with ratings around 13 percent and went on to breach the 20 percent mark. According to daily statistics released by research firms TNS Media Korea and AGB Nielsen Media Research, it recorded national viewership ratings of 21.5 and 21.2 percent, respectively, for its final episode.[18]
The show received positive feedback from viewers with its well-balanced combination of a good script, directing and acting.[19][20][21][22]
Ratings
| Date | Episode | Nationwide | Seoul |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-01-04 | 1 | 12.2% (13th) | 13.4% (9th) |
| 2010-01-05 | 2 | 11.9% (12th) | 12.9% (10th) |
| 2010-01-11 | 3 | 11.9% (14th) | 13.2% (9th) |
| 2010-01-12 | 4 | 12.7% (11th) | 14.5% (9th) |
| 2010-01-18 | 5 | 10.9% (16th) | 12.2% (12th) |
| 2010-01-19 | 6 | 13.5% (10th) | 15.4% (8th) |
| 2010-01-25 | 7 | 13.0% (11th) | 15.0% (8th) |
| 2010-01-26 | 8 | 14.9% (9th) | 17.0% (7th) |
| 2010-02-01 | 9 | 14.3% (11th) | 16.4% (11th) |
| 2010-02-02 | 10 | 15.7% (7th) | 18.2% (5th) |
| 2010-02-08 | 11 | 15.3% (6th) | 17.3% (5th) |
| 2010-02-09 | 12 | 16.2% (7th) | 17.9% (5th) |
| 2010-02-15 | 13 | 14.7% (6th) | 15.8% (5th) |
| 2010-02-16 | 14 | 16.3% (5th) | 18.3% (5th) |
| 2010-02-22 | 15 | 14.7% (7th) | 16.0% (6th) |
| 2010-02-23 | 16 | 16.3% (6th) | 18.3% (3rd) |
| 2010-03-01 | 17 | 19.7% (3rd) | 21.6% (2nd) |
| 2010-03-02 | 18 | 19.0% (3rd) | 20.5% (2nd) |
| 2010-03-08 | 19 | 19.9% (1st) | 22.3% (1st) |
| 2010-03-09 | 20 | 21.5% (1st) | 24.2% (1st) |
| Average | 15.2% | 17.0% | |
Source: TNS Media Korea
International Broadcast
| Country | Network | Series premiere | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
 Vietnam |
HTV3 | June 19, 2010 | Pasta Hương vị tình yêu |
 India |
Puthuyugam TV | பாஸ்தா (K-Series) | |
 Iran |
IRIB Namayesh | December 26, 2015 – January 14, 2016 | پاستا (Pasta) |
 Thailand |
True Asian Series | September 2011 | อร่อยรัก รสพาสต้า[23] |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Recipient | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | |
Top 10 Asian Stars | Gong Hyo-jin | Won |
| Lee Sun-kyun | Won | |||
| MBC Drama Awards[26] | Best Couple Award | Lee Sun-kyun and Gong Hyo-jin | Won | |
| Best New Actor | Alex Chu | Nominated | ||
| Top Excellence Award, Actor | Lee Sun-kyun | Nominated | ||
| Top Excellence Award, Actress | Gong Hyo-jin | Won | ||
References
- ↑ Choi, Ji-eun (December 29, 2009). "Lee Sun-kyun says not pressured by new image in Pasta". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Han, Sang-hee (December 29, 2009). "TV Dramas to Look Forward to in 2010". The Korea Times. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Oh, Jean (January 4, 2010). "Six dramas revamping 2010 lineup". The Korea Herald. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ "Pasta". MBC Global Media. Retrieved November 13, 2012.
- ↑ Han, Sang-hee (January 5, 2010). "Heroines Line Up for Dramas in 2010". The Korea Times. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Kang, Myoung-seok (March 4, 2011). "INTERVIEW: Actress Kong Hyo-jin - Part 2". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Kang, Myoung-seok (March 4, 2011). "INTERVIEW: Actress Kong Hyo-jin - Part 3". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Choi, Ji-eun (March 9, 2010). "Character Seo Yu-kyung on TV series Pasta". 10Asia. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
- ↑ Beck, Una (April 7, 2010). "INTERVIEW: Actor Lee Sun-kyun - Part 1". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Beck, Una (April 6, 2010). "INTERVIEW: Actor Lee Sun-kyun - Part 2". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Beck, Una (April 6, 2010). "INTERVIEW: Actor Lee Sun-kyun - Part 3". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Wee, Geun-woo (December 9, 2010). "INTERVIEW: Actor Lee Sun-kyun - Part 1". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Choi, Ji-eun (January 14, 2010). "Choi Hyun-wook sets La Sfera on alarm in Pasta". 10Asia. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
- ↑ Oh, Jean (March 29, 2010). "Alex, behind the scenes of Pasta". The Korea Herald. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Kang, Myoung-seok (April 1, 2010). "INTERVIEW: Clazziquai's Alex - Part 1". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Kang, Myoung-seok (April 1, 2010). "INTERVIEW: Clazziquai's Alex - Part 2". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Wee, Geun-woo (February 2, 2010). "MY NAME IS: Kim Hyun-woo". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Kim, Lynn (March 10, 2010). "Pasta makes proud exit from small screen". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Choi, Ji-eun (January 28, 2010). "REVIEW: MBC TV series Pasta - Episode 8". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Wee, Geun-woo; Kim, Sun-young (February 11, 2010). "REVIEW: MBC TV series Pasta". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Kim, Lynn (March 11, 2010). "REVIEW: TV series Pasta - Final Episode". 10Asia. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ↑ Choi, Ji-eun (December 31, 2010). "2010 10Asia's Awards: Writer & Actor of the Year". 10Asia. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
- ↑ วินนี่ย์หมีพูห์ (September 17, 2011). ""Pasta"...เป็น serie ครบเครื่อง กลมกล่อม เหมือน Pasta รสเลิศ ที่ปรุงมาเป็นอย่างดี". Pantip.com (in Thai). Retrieved August 13, 2016.
- ↑ Kim, Lynn (June 18, 2010). "Kong Hyo-jin makes top ten Asian actors list in China". 10Asia. Retrieved April 28, 2013.
- ↑ Kim, Lynn (June 21, 2010). "Kim Nam-joo wins grand prize at award ceremony in China". 10Asia. Retrieved April 28, 2013.
- ↑ Hong, Lucia (December 31, 2010). "Kim Nam-joo, Han Hyo-joo win grand prize at MBC Acting Awards". 10Asia. Retrieved April 28, 2013.
External links
- Pasta official MBC website (Korean)
- Pasta at HanCinema
- Pasta at the Internet Movie Database