"I had a rough prediction, but I knew it.

"Right? We've talked about it a few times. The topic of the round of 16 was cold cooking. The theme of the quarterfinals is probably."

"You said it would be a warm dish. Chef Haru said this, but you were really right. He's got a good feeling about it.”

A small pub near the hotel.

Jamie, sitting at a small bar table with about five people, gulped down a beer.

Evening the day Bacon finished his quarterfinal presentation.

The three people who couldn't get together yesterday gathered today because they were sorry.

Of course, Tanaka will buy rice and alcohol.

Oh, my god.

Jamie drank beer one after another to see if he was drinking well today.

It's already my third drink, but I guess I wasn't drunk, so I emptied it quickly and ordered another one.

He looked very happy, of course for a reason.

"Kkkk, I know I'm not supposed to say this, right? I can't help but stretch my shoulders this time. That's exactly what I do!"

Here's the theme of the quarterfinals that Bacon told us today.

[Warm Cooking]

Does it mean that a warm dish deserves to come out because a cold dish is served?

I don't know why or what purpose the judges chose this topic.

But warm cooking was a fairly comfortable and easy subject for most chefs. The reasons were also the same as before.

Cold dishes are quite small in number.

But in other words, whatever you make, it means that most of them are warm dishes.

asked Haru, who was nibbling at the sausage served as a side dish.

"By the way, isn't hot food a comfortable topic for any chef? Does Chef Jamie have his own special thing?”

"If it's special, there's something special. Actually, there's a sauce for my spleen.”

"Oh, sauce! What sauce is it?"

"I can't tell you right now! Later. I'll let you know on the day of the competition. Kkk. I promise you, I'll be at least third this time."

"I'm worried. It's just the beginning.”

"I'll do my best. Anyway."

Haru and Tanaka were worried first, compared to Jamie, who was about to break through the sky due to his lack of confidence.

Comfortable for all chefs, in other words, meant you had to play with your skills.

In addition, I knew for sure as I proceeded to the round of 16 yesterday. The chefs out here are way above imagination.

"I was a frog in a well...I feel right here that …."

I thought I knew most of the spices, ingredients, and dishes.

But looking at the ingredients and dishes made by chefs from all over the world.

There were a few things I didn't know. There was even a dish that didn't even taste completely right.

"Well, then I'll get going. It's a little late."

The eyes of the day when we were talking soon turned to the desk clock in the pub.

It's almost 11:30. I wanted to go back.

"Are you leaving early again today?”

"Hey, stay till the end of the day! I love the atmosphere!"

"I'm sorry. I'm tired."

"Chef, what kind of Cinderella are you? I always go in fast."

"Haha, that's a joke. Anyway, thank you for your hard work. See you tomorrow."

A day of polite greetings rose from the seat.

The two chefs left in the pub looked at the back of the day and raised their hands to greet.

I had to cook for the children because it was going to be 12 o'clock soon.

And there was a day where I didn't really like that pub-like atmosphere.There was a moment of silence where he left.

"Whatever."

"Well, that's possible. I'm busy."

"No, it is. Like I said last night, I don't know. Doesn't Jamie feel anything like that? It's like keeping a distance from us."

"Street? Hmm...Maybe it's because Chef Tanaka keeps saying that."

"It's suspicious, though. Who knows what he's going to do behind his back? Anyway."

Tanaka's expression changed slightly.

When he told Jamie about the day, he tilted his head slightly uplifted.

I think it's wrong and I think it's right. But at the same time, it's very persuasive.

I didn't know it was because I was drunk.

"Chef Haru…….”

"Anyway, I don't know. We'll have to wait and see."

"Well, all right. Anyway, I'm going to have some more drinks. Do you want to make a toast?"

"Well, sure."

Jump!

The glasses of the two men collided coolly.

Tanaka couldn't figure out what he was thinking, and Jamie just seemed thoughtless.

And one day.

"Hmmm, this is the most comfortable thing. Korean food is the best. Every day is new."

He came back to the hotel and was humming and making bulgogi.

* * *

Choi Han-seok, who was hanging around the side of the day, pushed his head.

You look so happy. You didn't like bulgogi very much, did you?

"That's true. It's been a while since you came to America. It's been a while since I had Korean food. It makes me excited. I guess I'm Korean as expected."

I wonder if this is soul food or something.

"Korean soul food, right? I'm a little sad that we don't have kimchi, but the kids are going to eat it.”

Even in America, it was very easy to get ingredients for bulgogi.

The meat was marinated yesterday, so carrots and onions. Just chop the green onions and stir-fry them, and that's it.

There was a little bit of seoritae left after the round of 16, so I put it in a pot and cooked bean rice deliciously.

The reason why today's menu was bulgogi out of the blue was quite simple.

Ike and the children told me that Haru had played the round of 16 and that they wanted to try Haru's country's food.

Come to think of it, it's been a while since I had Korean food, so I happily agreed.

Besides, there was one more coincidence.

- It's certainly fascinating. I guess America is called a nation of races for no reason. Some of them are Korean.

"My father said he was Korean. …but he's gone."

I found out while talking about Korean food. There was an 8-year-old boy next to Ike who was always attached.

But the father of this child said he was none other than a Korean.

After moving over to Korea as a worker, he/she died in an accident when he/she got stuck in a machine while working at a meat processing factory.

There was an American mother left, but just looking at her child's death and being next to her day.

It wasn't hard to guess what happened afterwards.

The same was true of most of the other children.

Honestly, I'm glad that it's calmed down a little now, but the children on the streets abandoned here had different depths of resentment.

"I don't know if it's because it's America, or if it's just a bunch of kids. To be honest, I don't know anymore."

God is the only one who knows that. I don't know either.

Betrayed by family, abandoned, starved...….Although the depth of the resentment was deep, the weight of the children's resentment itself was not that heavy, so the children were little bit angry every time a day cooked for them.

No matter how much I am human, I know that resentment is a relative thing.

Looking at children eating happily and calmly telling shocking stories, I felt like my chest was so complicated that it was blocked.

Yumi didn't talk much about children.

It was a day where I knew her personality well, so it wasn't that hard to sympathize with how Yumi would get hurt.

The meat was marinated in advance, so the dish was completed shortly after.

Around the time I thought the rice was done with moxibustion, there was a knock on the door.

Children who returned to the human body after 12 o'clock knocked.

Uncle Haru!

We're here, Haru!

Wow, wow. It smells so good! I've smelled this before. My dad used to make it for me!

"Yes, yes. Taeyoung's dad used to cook this for me. The name is Bulgogi, but fortunately, I think my uncle got it right.”

Taeyoung was the Korean name of the 8-year-old child that I mentioned earlier.

A mixed-race child looked a lot like his father.

"You're hungry, aren't you? Let's come in and sit down. I'll bring you rice soon.”

Yes! Yes!

Children stamping their feet as if it's hard to wait.

When I brought bulgogi and rice, I put meat on the rice with my small hands like bracken and enjoyed it.

Ike took care of the children first in the meantime.

He accepted children's complaints that they didn't want to eat beans, and even scooped rice with a spoon and put it in their mouth.

'Ike's grown up a lot. It's amazing.

In the past, he even said he wanted to help the day by using ghosts.

I didn't look like a child at all.

The same is true now.

Ike was eating with Taeyoung. Since I was talking like this.

It's good, right?

Yes, it's delicious. As Ike said, it tastes the same as my dad used to.

Taeyoung, do you still hate your dad?

-Dad... -I hate you. I used to hit my mom. My mom is having a hard time because I don't come in at night.

But you cooked delicious food for Taeyoung and made a lot of money for him. Wouldn't it be harder for him to know that Taeyoung hates him this much?

-That's... -But...…. But I'm still a father.….

In a way, it was a day's work.

Does it mean that Ike, who is the same child, knows children's minds better?

Ike was touching Taeyoung's heart while eating.

I sympathize with his resentment. Food brings out memories.

-Whew... I wanted to tell my dad, I wanted to tell my mom I'm sorry. Me too, I wanted to...….

It's okay, but there's still a chance. I know where mom and dad are waiting. Taeyoung, you can go back if you want. To meet my parents.

To meet my mom and dad...….

If I see you again, I'm sure you'll speak well, right? I'm sorry. And.

And I love you. I'm sure I' I promised Ike hyung.

-Okay,yeah,thank you. Taeyoung.

Ike swept Taeyoung's hair.

If I had been there for a day, would I have been able to sympathize with Taeyoung's resentment this much?

No, maybe I didn't even know what a grudge was.

Children were more delicate than I thought. Because I saw something that adults can't see.

'Oh, this guy's gonna go again today.’Fewer and fewer children came to visit the day after each date.

It was a really good thing, but I had one worry.

Ike, what the hell.

What should I do with a child who is saved but heartbroken?

No, how a day can help.

It was a night of deep thought.

Bulgogi was cold but still warm.