South Korean celebrities' pop-up venture with Auckland's Baduzzi proves a hit

MasterChef NZ judge Michael Dearth's inherited 100-year-old recipe has apparently made waves in South Korea after a reality TV show took his central Auckland eatery's dish to a pop-up venture in Seoul.

Pop-Up Landing Operation was a project where Korean celebrities travelled to various countries to discover local eateries and invite them back to open a stall in a trendy mall, Hyundai Department Store, which specialises in pop-ups.

Although the filming happened several months ago and it started airing on the KBS2 network in July, some New Zealanders are only now getting to find out about what about their mission as the network uploads the episodes with English subtitles on YouTube.

Despite interest from most of the business owners who received an offer from the celebrities after taste-testing, the decision was made to take 11-year-old Baduzzi's traditional meatballs and rotolo pasta for the event.

"I'm not lying when I say, if the basic is this good, this is the best meatball I've had ... it can't be compared with any meatball in Korea," Park Se-Ri, a renowned former professional golfer and one of the programme's hosts, exclaimed.

Dearth, who is of Italian descent, says he was told the show was supported by Michelin-starred chefs, and they substituted lamb with beef to suit the tastebuds of most Koreans.

"But the technique and the braising of the meatballs and the texture of the meatball and the marinara sauce, the tomato sauce, was my mother's recipe … and I had a tasting and I was like you don't have to change a thing. It's amazing. I was shocked at how great they recreated my mother's recipe."

At the launch, crowds of people lined up early to have a taste of the international delicacies on offer. Helping drive even more interest was the addition of special guests, like K-pop idol TWICE's Tzuyu, packing the meals for customers.

"I've had so many people contact me and be like … oh my god, so and so is selling Baduzzi meatballs, this is so bizarre," Dearth says.

"Apparently out of all the concepts, because there was a concept from Hong Kong, a little sweet bun, there was a little egg roll from Tokyo, there was a hot dog from LA, and apparently Baduzzi had the best sales.

"I've had people from Korea contact me and they've come into the restaurant because of this show, because there's a big Korean community here."

With the right opportunity, Dearth says he would be open to branching out to Seoul.

Stars surprise Korean Aucklanders

Korean Aucklanders and Kiwi fans of K-content were surprised to see the likes of legend Park Se-Ri, Brian Joo (of first generation K-pop idol duo Fly to the Sky) and comedian Kim Hae-joon had visited several hotspots in the city, including The White Lady, Giapo Ice Cream, Muzza's Pies and Shakespeare Regional Park.

Sous chef Connor Kim, who has worked at Baduzzi for three years, was surprised when they walked through the door.

"I still can't believe it because when I was in Korea, I still don't have an experience like this … [After the show aired] everyone asked me 'oh, you're working there, right?' And like 'have you seen like the [celebrities]?'"

Likewise, the Korean staff at Naris Hair, near The White Lady, instantly recognised the stars, greeted them from afar and cheered them on. They believed the show might entice gastronome Koreans to visit.

Tourism New Zealand international general manager Angela Blair says the show was a fantastic opportunity to showcase the country's landscapes, food scene, and fresh, local ingredients.

"According to our research, over 5.9 million people in Korea are dreaming of a holiday to New Zealand and this exposure is incredibly beneficial for promoting [New Zealand as a] destination."

New Zealand has welcomed 70,000 visitors from Korea in the 12 months to July 2024, up from 73 percent on 2023 arrivals.

Why didn't the burgers and pies make it to the pop-up?

Among the challenges was logistics and communication. The TV show had shown interest in New Zealand's seafood, like a mussel dish from The Occidental and blackfoot pāua at Auckland's Fish Market, but realised exporting them freshly would be an issue.

Dearth says that at one point even he thought he might have to give up on the proposal, because of communication challenges, but he managed it with the help of his Korean staff members. One of them was his cook, who by chance ended up going back to Seoul and taught them the recipes.

For The White Lady's Max Washer, taking his burgers abroad would have been a dream.

While he is a bit gutted it did not happen, he reminds himself that the authentic taste and identity of his 76-year-old burger joint could not be delivered. He was told Korean beef was about three times more expensive, and he was not comfortable with the idea of freezing his burgers and transporting them or downsizing the portions.

Washer is still ambitious about exploring markets abroad and says he is happy to have promoted tourism at least.

John Williams Junior of Muzza's Pies, which Se-Ri likened to gimbap as a convenient parcel of food, had spoken to the TV crew about costings and even planning travel around his basketball coaching.

However, after conflicting opinions with his father who founded the business, Williams decided it wasn't worth doing.

Still, he believes the opportunity has opened new doors as he is expecting another film crew later this year.