Dating in the Kitchen (2020)

This is a truly believable age-gap love story.

I firmly believe that whether one likes or dislikes an age gap in a relationship is subjective and depends on one's age, life experience, and physical attraction. In the specific case of this drama, Zhao Lusi's youthful and vivacious character with a high-pitched voice is paired with a mature and older male character, creating an alluring contrast. I thoroughly enjoyed watching this drama but understand that individual preferences may vary.

I absolutely adore characters that are absolute geniuses in their respective fields. It's a pure delight to watch them in action. And there's nothing quite like a drama that features a genius chef and a brilliant businessman defying all odds, including social class and age difference, to fall deeply in love with each other. It's a perfect story that leaves me absolutely spellbound.

I absolutely maintain that a better-looking or more attractive male lead would have been a grave mistake in casting, and would have detracted from the authenticity of the story. It's a well-known fact that businessmen generally don't achieve success at a young age, and how many of them are really model-worthy? I can't think of a single one. So, in my opinion, the casting was spot-on.

Although ML was not conventionally attractive, it does not mean that he was unattractive. He just did not fit the typical male actor look that we usually see paired with Rosy Zhao. I must say, I found it incredibly refreshing and completely believable.

I want to give a special mention to the uncle character who was portrayed as a straight guy (thanks to the Chinese censorship who forbid lgbt+ charactes in dramas) but had all the mannerisms of a gay man. He was absolutely hilarious.

Overall, it was an excellent drama that I'll definitely watch again with pleasure.

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A déguster !

Une comédie romantique chinoise comme je les aime. J'ai passé un excellent moment !

Déjà l'histoire, certes c'est une comédie romantique, donc forcément, il y a une romance. Mais finalement pas que... Et j'ai apprécié ! Il y a des rebondissements tout du long, mais qui ne durent jamais sur je ne sais combien d'épisodes. Et jusqu'au dernier épisode rien n'est simple, mais du coup je ne me suis carrément pas ennuyée.

J'ai trouvé d'ailleurs la deuxième partie du drama encore meilleure que la première, au lieu de s'essouffler comme parfois cela peut arriver.

Ensuite le couple principal : On aborde un sujet sensible et c'est très bien : La différence d'âge. A partir du moment où les gens sont adultes, et consentants, l'amour n'a pas d'âge. Et j'ai trouvé cela magnifiquement bien traité par les deux personnages. Le lead masculin ne m'attirait pas du tout, mais au final, leur romance m'a tellement touchée, je les ai tellement adoré à construire cette histoire que tout le monde essaie de détruire, que j'ai finalement été complètement embarquée. Clairement, ils ont faits vibrer quelque chose en moi.

Le petit plus : J'ai adoré le côté culinaire. Les images sont superbes, surtout au début du drama. C'est dommage, c'est un peu abandonné par la suite. Mais on salive devant son écran !

Une romance vraie que l'on suit, et pas uniquement sur les derniers épisodes, des affaires de famille, des sujets sensibles, le poids des familles... Bref, même si comme dans tout drama , on retrouve les mêmes ficelles, je me suis carrément laissée embarquer. A déguster sans modération ;-)

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Good Show But Not The Best

I'm going to try and not make this super long. The show was good. ML was your typical "bad boy" who fell for the "good girl". He wasn't "bad" in the sense he was evil more in the sense that he was, stone face (doesn't really show emotion) and serious. Of course, FL and ML don't fall for each other right away, but she slowly breaks down his wall. Then you have the typical "love triangle" (I'll get more into that). You also have the mother-in-law. Of course, the mother-in-law doesn't like the FL and tries to break her and the ML up multiple times. Although there are moments where the mother-in-law has a point when she is talking down on the FL.

The second half of the show is what brings the show down for me. There is way less focus on the cooking/kitchen aspect of the show and more focus on the drama.

SPOILERS!!!!!!

I HATED the "love triangle" because of how DUMB the FL acted. The ML and ML2 are brothers and hate each other due to the past. At first the FL is trying to get them to talk to each other, but she always ends up in "awkward situations" with ML2 which just makes things worse. The ML tells the FL he doesn't want her hanging around ML2 (and he has a reason to hate him. The ML2 is deliberately trying to break them up and steal FL as revenge against ML) which she says she understands. Later she ends up hanging out with ML2 as a way to get him to talk to ML and mend their relationship. She ends up getting drunk and the ML2 takes her home, where he literally hands her to the ML and gives him a smirk (basically saying "ha I had your girl"). The FL wakes up Infront of the mother-in-law where she chews her out (which I'm on the mom's side on this part). She tries to call ML but he won't answer and is mad at her. She then goes to ML2 house and ask him if anything happened when he dropped her off, why would ML be mad (of course ML2 isn't about to tell the truth). She then shows up to ML job WITH ML2 and ends up in an "awkward situation" with ML2 Infront of ML. Of course, ML doesn't want to talk to her and walks away, but he turns to look back and ML2 is smirking. Then there's a moment ML2 is manipulating her into breaking up with ML. It just pisses me off how DUMB and DENSE FL is when it comes to what ML2 is doing. He is clearly messing things up but she cant see that. And OF COURSE its the ML who comes running back to her.

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Alot Cutting scene ,bad editing, just feel funny until ep 3, then boring for me

maybe i can say i droped it? i end the last 5 or 6 eps watching with skip skip , still feel funny until ep 4 and just feeling boring for the force and excessive acting ,, maybe just for me? because I can't accept acting that is too pushy, looking like a newcomer,, the feeling displayed is not felt

I think 1 scene lost? ,maybe its better if they not cut the scene (sheng nan why not call back to pay the compensation, but his assistant said she told the assistant she didnt have money)
For some scene, the flashback scene is very good, from a different camera angle showing

From Ep 4 , there was a cutting scene ( the scene not showing before, just a flashback only) ,, so some events happened suddenly without opening


At first, the acting was okay, because it was a comedy , so it was acceptable, but his performance from ep 4, acting too forced and excessive, and impressed that they were so unsuitable for being a couple

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So effing sweet... I watched this all STRAIGHT THROUGH

The age gap was a little "hmm... does he really have to be 36?" but I got over it pretty soon. And it's only because he's 36 that he's able to handle all the missteps with maturity. The female lead acts true to her age and it was interesting to see these two clash a little bit due to that (but also love and mesh really well together).

I watched this straight through. No stops. No interruptions. I did order food and eat it (while watching of course) but that was it. The best way I've messed up my sleep schedule, I won't lie. The only other drama I remember binging in its entirety is Ancient Love Poetry.

This is a drama that won't disappoint! I love Zhao Lusi but man, the male lead made me fall for him a little bit too! So freaking sweet watching them fall in love and fight for that love.

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Great characters, great acting but unfortunately a poorly structured storyline

Dating in the Kitchen is one of those dramas that has very obvious strengths but unfortunately also glaring weaknesses. The acting is great and the soundtrack is decent - at least for a CDrama. I don't understand why CDramas only ever use 2-3 songs and play those on repeat throughout the show. A bit more diversity like in KDramas certainly wouldn't hurt imo.

One of the main downsides of the show however, is its messy story line. At times I got the impression that the writers themselves didn't really know where they wanted the story to go. There were quite a few sub plots in the drama which unfortunately all lacked depth. The - for CDrama standards - rather few episodes certainly didn't help either.

Story:
About the first quarter of the drama is food porn at its finest. The cooking and the dishes take the spotlight. However, once the leads start to grow closer the cooking begins to take a back seat. Different challenges and plots lines get introduced: The FL's relationship to her colleagues at the hotel, her family, love rivals and finally the ML's family situation, all while the second couple's story line runs on a side lane.

Now, by no means would I call this a cluttered story line, it's actually pretty basic. However, for some reason it all just doesn't really fit together, the plot lines are poorly connected and the drama lacks purpose. For example, in hindsight the conflicts between the kitchen staff didn't do anything for the story nor for character development. In fact, the other chefs never appear again, once their plot line is over. Same thing with the love rivals, their presence is so weak, they didn't do much to advance the story either. At first I thought the FL's grandpa would play a bigger role, but he's also never seen again once his part is finished.

In conclusion, the story feels very unstructured and at times random, like the writers just made stuff up along the way. The final plot line that could have carried the drama was left mostly unexplored by being cramped into the last 4 episodes without being given any room to have a proper impact. Instead it was used as a cheap means to add drama at the last minute.

Characters / Acting:
This is where the drama shines. Both main actors do an amazing job, especially the main actress. Her character was so life like and full of emotion. While the FL's character is a little bit childish, it's not to the point of it being annoying and thank god, she is not one of those living fountains, spending 90% of a drama crying. Her emotions are very diverse, she laughs, she gets angry, she cries a few times, but it all feels genuine. -- On a side note, some people found her to act stupidly in the final few episodes, however in my opinion, she actually stays true to her character throughout the show. (To avoid spoilers I will write my reasoning in the comments)

The ML is equally great. He is basically two characters in one. In business settings, he is detached, cool, calculative and downright bad ass. However, once off work he is quirky, a bit shy and very warm but also insecure. Overall he is a very interesting and authentic character. In addition, he deals with problems in a very mature and straight forward way, a trait which I very much appreciate in male leads.

The side couple was both funny and quirky and both actors did a decent job in bringing out their characters' personalities. Especially the female character experienced quite a bit of growth and development.

Finally, I especially liked the FL's uncle. He's funny, a bit mean, likes to tease his niece but on the other hand also cares for her a lot, gives her advice and protects her. He is my favorite character in the show.

Conclusion:
Overall I'm disappointed. Not because Dating in the Kitchen is a bad drama, but because it could have been so much better. I loved the characters, the acting, the setting. If it wasn't for the story which is all over the place, I would have given this drama a solid 9/10, however, as it stands it's just barely enough for a 7.5/10 and this already generous.

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I really enjoyed this drama and I'm glad I was able to watch 15-24 in one day because I would be very impatient having to wait each week. And I also think I'd probably lose interest if I waited too long.

PROS
I really enjoyed this drama but it's not something I'd go back and watch. Gu Shengnan was a very funny character at the start and really liked the comedy scenes. Zhao Lusi really matches this kind of role. Lu Jin and Gu Shengnan's comedy dynamic is very enjoyable. Plotwise, it was very light and something I'd put it on during a holiday to binge through with a cup of hot coffee. I also loved Li Man's character and her story with Lu Jin because it felt very real to me. It's very normal for her to grow feelings for Lu Jin and for years, she did nothing but stayed by his side. And when another girl shows up, it's her instinct to fight for it. I think she was very mature. She did try to call Lu Jin to her room and the way he rejected was very mature too. The best part was that OST was really really great and Zhao Lusi sang it!!

CONS
Although Gu Shengnan and Lu Jin were funny together, I always felt the chemistry between the two was lacking. I couldn't really see the process of them falling in love. I couldn't feel the romance in their acting. The whole plot was quite okay until the whole half-brother showed up and tried to snatch Gu Shengnan. Totally unnecessary although I liked the actor that played Lu Zheng, he's quite cute. In the latter part of the drama, I could see Gu Shengnan and Lu Jin's romance progressing but it's just I can't really connect to them. The story between Gu Shengnan's best friend and Lu Jin's secretary was absolutely horrible. I feel like they're detached from this whole drama and I pretty much skipped all their scenes.

All the dramas have their flaws and I try not to pay attention to them because it's just how the dramaland is today. And 'Dating in the Kitchen' is fairly the better ones among them. I would totally recommend to other people, especially if you are a fan of Zhao Lusi's comedy or just light-comedy in general!

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I expected a lot according to the rate
But This drama started shallow then from episode 5 it became nice
Then during the events it became just OK no more,
It was good enough to keep me watching
But wasn't good enough to make me hooked or enjoying as I expected

I saw the FL character was shallow and annoying many times
The brother's Story inter the drama so late in my opinion
The drama missed depth and strong plot.

The romance was nice
The acting was brilliant.
I enjoyed it a little
But this drama for me just to watch once

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Good start but somewhere along the way fizzled out.

The start of this show was great. A young baby faced cutiepie Shengnan and manly Lu Jin had great instant chemistry from the start. But along the way the story telling lost its momentum and the show faded into being a run-of-the-mill boring cacophony.
The second couple also seemed meh and not worth to be emotionally invested. The last act of family discord and brothers fighting actually took show in wholly unsatisfying kind of mode.
The scenes of food being prepared were the best scenes in this drama. Never a cooking drama was so yummy and delicious. But by 12-13th episodes there were no food scenes to be seen anymore. It felt like the drama lost an important cast member.
So all in all it left me unsatisfied and irritated. The blame lies squarely on shoddy screenwriting. I mean you have two such charismatic actors and yet you managed to make it boring.

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