Napoli Mafia’s Viral ‘Chestnut Tiramisu’ to Launch at CU Convenience Store: What You Need to Know About the Culinary Class Wars

The culinary sensation, Chestnut Tiramisu, created by Napoli Matfia, a contestant from Netflix’s Culinary Class Wars, has taken South Korea by storm. As reported by Kyunghyang Shinmun on October 2, 2024, this innovative dessert is set to hit the shelves of CU convenience stores across the country. Operated by BGF Retail, the company is working to incorporate this popular dish into their food offerings.

For those unfamiliar, Culinary Class Wars premiered on Netflix on September 17, 2024, featuring a competition between 80 of Korea’s top chefs and 20 celebrity chefs, including several Michelin-starred talents. From the initial pool, only 20 chefs advanced to the next stage, known as the “Black Spoon Chefs,”who faced off against the “White Spoon Chefs.”

Among the standout contestants, Napoli Matfia participated as one of the Black Spoon Chefs, where he showcased his Chestnut Tiramisu in the eighth episode, competing in the “loser’s resurrection match.”

This episode’s challenge involved contestants crafting creative dishes using items commonly found in convenience stores, with Napoli Matfia’s Chestnut Tiramisu uniquely incorporating various CU store products.

Culinary Class Wars Fueling CU Convenience Store Sales Surge

The reality cooking series has aired a total of 10 episodes, with episodes 8, 9, and 10 launched on October 1, 2024, on Netflix. The show features acclaimed chefs such as Edward Lee, known for cooking for high-profile figures like United States President Joe Biden and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol in 2023.

The judging panel includes celebrity chef Paik Jong-won and Ahn Sung-jae, the proprietor of Mosu Seoul, South Korea’s only three Michelin-star restaurant.

Additionally, the Black Spoon chefs are initially introduced by their nicknames, with real identities revealed at a later time. Napoli Matfia’s nickname has been featured widely, while he has opted to keep his real name private for now. He honed his culinary skills in Italy before returning to South Korea to launch his Italian restaurant, Via Toledo.

Kyunghyang Shinmun has revealed that the Chestnut Tiramisu’s ingredients featured items like Yonsei Milk Marron Whipped Cream Bread and HEYROO Chestnut Get It, both of which are part of CU’s private brand offerings. Other ingredients included Diget, an Orion chocolate cookie, and the Toffee Nut Latte from Ediya.

After the airing of episode 8, CU reported a remarkable rise in sales for the ingredients utilized in the Chestnut Tiramisu recipe. The recipes were also shared through the official X (formerly Twitter) account of Netflix Korea. A CU convenience store executive remarked:

“It is not easy for sales to increase in one day, so we were surprised by the significant increase in sales.”

The report highlighted a 57.5% surge in sales of the chocolate whole-wheat biscuits featured in Napoli Matfia’s creation, while chestnut sales increased by 49.7%, and the lattes experienced a 34.0% rise as of October 1, 2024.

The final two episodes of Culinary Class Wars will be available on Netflix on October 8, 2024, with all previous episodes available for streaming worldwide.

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