Chapter 165
Chapter 165
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 165
Chapter Title: Mother-Son Army Stew House
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After a brief standoff, the son—who'd been sitting in one corner of the empty shop, fiddling with his phone—suddenly sprang to his feet.
"Ah, hello!"
He looked completely caught off guard, like he had no idea we were coming. No controversy over him staging anything, then.
Still, you'd think he'd have known filming was happening this month. Dressed like he was just popping to the convenience store down the street, not even an apron in sight.
He had a clear mask on, but since there were no customers, it was dangling loosely by one ear. Wearing it like that defeats the purpose.
Sensing my gaze scanning him up and down, he shrank back a bit and averted his eyes.
"Customers? ...Oh my!"
Late to the party, the mother—arguably the real owner of the place—emerged from the kitchen. She'd glanced out into the dining area absentmindedly, then froze at the sight of the crew and me.
"Oh dear. You really came without any warning!"
"Haha. Caught you by surprise, huh?"
These were folks who'd mustered the courage to revamp their shop, so I flashed a friendly grin and broke the ice.
Not everything can catch my eye perfectly, of course. If it did, I wouldn't even need to be here.
'Shortcomings are to be expected.'
What matters is their willingness to improve going forward.
Ignorance is forgivable, but knowingly slacking off? That's on them.
So, they need a chance to learn and fix things.
"You're even more impressive in person than on TV."
"You think so?"
"Of course~! Jun-beom, what are you doing? Show them to a seat!"
Urged by his mother, the son hurriedly adjusted his mask and got moving.
"Th-this way, please."
He gestured awkwardly to a table off to one side. He still seemed unsure if this was a dream or reality.
While he set up the basic side dishes and the butane burner, I read the large menu plastered on the wall.
'Army stew specialist, so mostly army stew with various noodle add-ons.'
Nothing fancy about the lineup. Better than clumsily tacking on unrelated dishes.
I placed my order as he set down the water glasses.
"One small army stew, add a ramen noodle side, and plain rice too, please."
"Got it. One small army stew, one ramen noodle add-on, one plain rice."
He dashed to the kitchen to relay it, and soon the clatter of activity echoed from within.
He hovered nearby, unsure what to do with himself, so I asked about something that had bugged me since I walked in.
"Is your mom from Uijeongbu? Or did you two used to live there?"
My question left him flustered. He answered in a voice thick with tension.
"No, nothing like that."
"Not at all? You didn't live there?"
"Nope."
"Did you learn the recipe there, then? Maybe buy it off someone?"
"Nah. Mom developed all the recipes herself."
The more we talked, the less sense it made. I cut straight to it.
"Then why'd you put 'Uijeongbu' on your sign?"
"Because Uijeongbu's famous for army stew..."
"I know that much. But neither you nor your mom have any connection to the place, so I'm asking why you named it that."
"......"
He clammed up like a mussel. I could guess without him saying.
'Just slapped it on for the heck of it.'
Honestly, what do they think a shop name even is?
I gave him serious advice, face stern.
"You can't do that. Change the name. People will think you learned army stew there or have roots in Uijeongbu. It's false advertising—straight-up lying."
"Yes......"
"Starting with a lie like that, why would anyone trust you enough to eat here? Trust is everything in food service. No guarantee you won't skimp on ingredients either if you're faking the sign."
"W-we've never done that."
"Even if you haven't, do you think customers will believe it?"
"......Sorry."
Repeated scoldings left him deflated, head bowed.
"Whatever else, change that sign."
"Yes, sir."
That should get through. Moments later, the army stew arrived.
"One small army stew~."
Mom called, and the son rushed to grab it.
He set the hefty pot on the burner and lit the flame.
The added ramen noodles went off to the side.
"Let it boil a bit, then toss in the ramen noodles."
"Got it. You two head to the control room as per production instructions."
"Yes."
"Yep!"
They scurried out, leaving just me and the army stew.
I stirred it vigorously with the ladle first, checking the ingredients.
'Standard ham, onions, green onions, baked beans...'
Nothing out of the ordinary. In other words, safe and unremarkable.
'Army stew makes a decent drinking snack. No real bars around here either, so no reason local business shouldn't boom.'
Puzzled, I ladled some broth into a side dish and slurped it up.
"Ah."
...Found it.
The reason.
"Yes, we've got the two owners from [Mother-Son Army Stew] here! I'm your MC, Im Hye-eun."
"I'm Do Kyung from !"
"Nice to meet you~."
Im Hye-eun led the chat, and the stiff, straight-ahead-gazing mother-son duo finally mumbled their greetings.
"I'm Choi Mi-seon, owner, mom, and head chef at [Mother-Son Army Stew]... not Uijeongbu, I mean."
"I'm Park Jun-beom, son and front-of-house server."
Bows done, Im Hye-eun tossed in some small talk to ease the tension.
"First off, thanks for letting us film for [Alley Secrets]. Being our debut episode, you must've agonized over it. What made you decide to join us~?"
"Th-this alley's so narrow, we all know each other pretty well. We're close, you know."
Choi Mi-seon, the mom, spoke first.
"But the owner next door got an offer and suggested we team up. Song Woo-yeon was coming to consult personally, so it sounded good."
"Oh, so you signed on because of Song CEO?"
"Yeah, pretty much. We see him on TV all the time, and my boy here's a big fan."
"Your son’s a Song CEO fan too?"
Spotlight swung his way, Park Jun-beom paused but grinned sheepishly.
"Yeah. I was hooked on ."
"Ah~! A fan connection. How's it feel meeting him up close?"
"I'm so nervous... Still doesn't feel real."
"Hahaha. Totally get it. We prioritize reality here, so no heads-up on our arrival."
As they chatted, the monitor straight ahead flickered to life. There was Song Woo-yeon, army stew bubbling before him.
"Oh, perfect timing—Song CEO's about to taste it. Wonder what he'll say!"
-Slurp.
-......?
He slurped a mouthful of broth, face puzzled. He tried again, tilting his head—no way it screamed "delicious."
"Ah~. Looks like he's questioning the broth flavor. Mind if I ask what's in the army stew broth?"
"Nothing special. Minced garlic, sugar, soy sauce, kimchi, fine chili powder..."
"Sounds like a can't-miss combo! Curious why Song CEO's tilting his head—let's find out."
Right on cue, Song Woo-yeon crossed his arms, pondered, and spoke.
-The broth's way too sweet. How much sugar did you put in?
Staring right at the camera. Choi Mi-seon answered promptly.
"It has some sugar, but no more than two spoonfuls..."
"Yes, that's what she says. Passing it on."
Staff relayed it audibly. On-screen, Song Woo-yeon tilted his head again.
-Slurp.
-No matter how much I eat, it doesn't taste like just one or two spoonfuls... There must be another sweet ingredient. Owner, do you use any store-bought army stew sauce or powder for flavor?
"Oh, spot on!"
Choi Mi-seon jumped.
"I use that for the base, then tweak to my taste."
"Yep~."
Song Woo-yeon nodded on-screen moments later.
-Knew it. Those sauces are loaded with sugar.
"Wow, Song CEO's a wizard."
Im Hye-eun marveled genuinely as Song added:
-And it gets sweeter the longer it boils.
"Huh?"
-Tasted it before boiling—not this sweet then. Not saying it was good, mind you. Point is, ingredients here keep leaching excess sweetness.
-This onion? Gets subtly sweet when cooked, so it's contributing. And that kimchi—looks underripe. Cabbage sweetness comes out then too.
"Ah~. Store sauce, onions, kimchi— all piling on the sweetness."
Im Hye-eun chimed in. Choi Mi-seon flinched and offered an excuse.
"No, I added extra sugar 'cause Song Woo-yeon loves sweet flavors. Figured it'd suit his palate."
"Huh?"
Im Hye-eun blurted involuntarily. Her head filled with bewilderment—was that really what she just heard?