In ‘What Do You Do When You Play?’, Yoo Jae-suk became a fan by sharing secret restaurants with Matsushige Yutaka from ‘The Lonely Gourmet’. The chemistry between the two, who became meal friends while growing more alike, sparked a hot response.
The episode aired on the 22nd featured the popular Japanese drama ‘The Lonely Gourmet’ protagonist Goro-san, Matsushige Yutaka, and actress Shim Eun-kyung in the ‘Suspicious Gourmet’ segment, led by dessert enthusiast Joo Woo-jae in the ‘Sweet Gourmet’ segment.
The key indicator of channel competitiveness and topicality, the 2049 viewership rating for ‘What Do You Do When You Play?’ recorded 3.1%, achieving the overall number one spot among all programs for three consecutive weeks on Saturdays. The viewership rating in the metropolitan area was 4.6%, ranking first in the same time slot. The highest one-minute rating was 6.4%, during the scene where Yoo Jae-suk took out his personal phone to take a commemorative photo with Matsushige Yutaka and Shim Eun-kyung, exchanging gifts. (Nielsen Korea metropolitan area standard)
Meeting Matsushige Yutaka at a dried fish restaurant, Yoo Jae-suk expressed his admiration as a true fan and was happy to witness the mukbang of ‘The Lonely Gourmet’ in the front row. Yoo Jae-suk expressed a sense of intimacy by saying, “We look alike,” but Matsushige Yutaka humorously rejected the resemblance, asking, “You mean the glasses, right?” Matsushige Yutaka, who dislikes raw fish but occasionally eats sashimi and sushi, found Yoo Jae-suk’s picky eating habits amusing, saying, “You’re a strange picky eater, aren’t you?” Lee Yi-kyung attempted to slander him, saying that friends and family shake their heads at him, and Yoo Jae-suk lamented, “They must misunderstand me.”
Lee Yi-kyung asked Matsushige Yutaka if he knew Yoo Jae-suk. Matsushige Yutaka compared him to a very famous Japanese comedian, Akashiya Sanma, saying, “In Korea, Yoo Jae-suk is at the same level (National MC).” Lee Yi-kyung proudly mentioned, “(Yoo Jae-suk) has won 20 grand prizes.” Matsushige Yutaka humbly responded to the expression of being a national actor in Japan, complimenting, “Shim Eun-kyung is famous in Japan,” creating a warm atmosphere.
Meanwhile, Joo Woo-jae, who usually gets teased by his older brothers for being a foodie, was eager to wash away his past grievances. The sugar-limited foodie, ‘Sweet Gourmet’ Joo Woo-jae, declared, “It’s time for revenge,” and set off on a ‘Sweet Road’ with Ha Ha, KCM, Park Jin-joo, and Mi-joo. The ‘Korean food faction’ Ha Ha and KCM complained about Joo Woo-jae’s course of eating ‘morning desserts’ like cookies and cakes from the morning, and Joo Woo-jae promised to give them kimchi for the second round. However, it turned out that the kimchi was not what they expected. A new menu item made by rolling cream cheese in seaweed like gimbap was introduced, creating a twist.
The final destination of the ‘Sweet Road’ was a temple. The members eagerly searched for mountain vegetable bibimbap, but the monk said it was past mealtime, leaving everyone in despair. Ha Ha lamented about dessert nightmares, but the monk prepared an unexpected MZ dessert, Dubai chocolate, to accompany the tea. In the meantime, KCM asked the monk, who mentioned he was conducting a temple matchmaking event, “Have you gotten married?” which led to an awkward moment. Ha Ha ordered KCM to eat the Dubai chocolate as a punishment, and KCM knelt down to apologize, causing laughter.
While Ha Ha was immersed in sweetness, shouting for soup, Matsushige Yutaka was trying Korean soul food, oxtail soup, for the first time. Matsushige Yutaka, who spotted Yoo Jae-suk eating rice mixed in the broth with the meat set aside, followed suit and enjoyed the oxtail soup 200%. Yoo Jae-suk requested, “I feel like I’ve become close with you, so please share your favorite restaurants.” Matsushige Yutaka shared a secret okonomiyaki restaurant in Sakai, Osaka, and even invited him. Lee Yi-kyung, trying to outdo Yoo Jae-suk, insisted, “I’m really going,” while Yoo Jae-suk promised, “I will go on a gourmet road to Japan later,” scheduling a reunion of the two national stars.
After finishing the meal, Shim Eun-kyung mentioned that something seemed stuck in her teeth and tried to excuse herself, but Lee Yi-kyung kept holding her back, showing kindness in exchange for attention. Yoo Jae-suk, watching this, joked, “I think Eun-kyung will be sick because of Yi-kyung today.” Shim Eun-kyung expressed her feelings about being with Lee Yi-kyung with a ‘vibrating bell laughter’ that made everyone burst into laughter. Yoo Jae-suk said, “I usually don’t take commemorative photos, but I should this time,” and took a selfie with Matsushige Yutaka and Shim Eun-kyung on his personal phone, creating a warm moment.
Meanwhile, the preview for the next broadcast featured the members of ‘What Do You Do When You Play?’ going on a winter awakening project to find herbs with Kim Seok-hoon, raising expectations. ‘What Do You Do When You Play?’ airs every Saturday and will be broadcast at 6:30 PM, five minutes later than the usual time, starting in March.
[Kim So-yeon, Star Today Reporter]
