Jeong Ho-young secures 1st place with 1.5 million won in sales

Chef Jeong Ho-young and Song Hoon's team secured 1st place with overwhelming sales in a morning business battle held at Incheon International Airport, confirming their advancement to the finals. Meanwhile, Lee Yeon Bok showed incredible resilience, climbing into the top 3 by utilizing clever menu and promotion strategies despite being assigned to a poor kitchen lacking proper burners.

In the 10th episode of the tvN variety show 'Street Restaurant Fighter' aired on the 23rd, the 4th round mission, 'Airport Morning,' took place at the Incheon International Airport food court. The mission involved conducting business during peak hours from 6:00 AM to 9:00 AM, with only the top 3 teams surviving based on net profit—calculated by subtracting ingredient costs and bidding costs from total sales. Each team was allowed to hire one additional part-time worker and competed in a blind format.

The key variable of this round was the 'bidding war,' where teams had to secure not only their food supplies but also their store locations and promotional tools. Each team had to bid for a desired spot among different stores selling Korean cuisine, Chinese cuisine, Thai food, hot dogs, or *jeon* (Korean pancakes), and they also secured promotional items through an auction. Since the bidding amounts were deducted from final sales, strategic judgment regarding cost-effectiveness was more important than simply securing a prime location.

The most notable figure in the battle for spots was Choi Sang-hyun of 'The Sauce.' Rather than trying to win a desired spot, Choi attempted to drive up the bidding prices of competing teams, a tactic known as 'trolling.' Hong Seok-cheon even labeled him a 'villain who only raises prices.'

In particular, when Lee Yeon Bok entered the competition for the Chinese restaurant spot, Choi judged that Lee would not be able to give up the location and aggressively drove up the bid. However, the result was unexpected. When the price soared to 400,000 won, Lee gave up the Chinese restaurant spot without hesitation. Instead, he won a *jeon* restaurant spot, which other teams had overlooked, for only 10,000 won.

For Lee, a professional Chinese chef, a *jeon* restaurant spot without a burner was a potentially fatal condition. However, Lee had already planned to utilize the communal kitchen. He offset the disadvantageous conditions by using the money saved from the store bidding to secure an LED electronic signboard for promotion.

The problem was the communal kitchen. There was a complex path between Lee's store and the communal kitchen, and by the time he arrived, other teams had already preempted most of the communal cooking utensils. In particular, when it was captured that Choi Sang-hyun's team was using three pots, Lee's team could not hide their frustrated expressions.

When Wang Byeong-ho of Lee's team requested, "Just give us one pot," Choi's team instead proposed exchanging it for the large pot occupied by Lee. In a later interview, Wang shared the absurd situation, saying, "Since they had three, I asked for just one, but they asked for the large pot instead." Ultimately, the negotiation failed, and both sides focused on their own cooking.

The menu Lee chose was the unexpected Chinese cold noodles. He used the adverse condition of lacking burners as a criterion for menu selection. He explained that he chose Chinese cold noodles by noting that airport users sweat and feel the heat while moving, saying, "Since there is no fire, we'll go with something refreshing." He also increased the menu's competitiveness by pairing it with mandu and spicy *samseon jjamppong* as a set.

In practice, Lee's calculation worked. Due to the nature of the airport food court, customers ordered by looking at the food images and menus displayed on kiosks rather than the actual location of the store, so the disadvantage of being in a corner was minimized. Combined with the effective promotion using the LED signboard, Lee's team quickly climbed the rankings.

Lee entered the race for 3rd place, chasing the leading Jeong Ho-young/Song Hoon team and the Kim Hoon team. He essentially compensated for the clear penalty of the poor cooking environment through menu composition and promotion strategies.

On the other hand, the Jeong Ho-young/Song Hoon team recorded 1.5 million won in sales and was the first to secure a ticket to the finals. Their menu also overlapped with the Kim Hoon team's as they both served *kimchi* stew, but the earthenware pot (*ttukbaegi*) placed in the store won by Jeong became an unexpected deciding factor.

Jeong used the earthenware pot to enhance the temperature and visual appeal of the *kimchi* stew, which particularly drew positive responses from foreign customers, widening the gap with competing teams. The difference in sales between them and the 2nd place Kim Hoon team was as much as 800,000 won. Even with the same menu, the strategy of differentiating through cooking tools and presentation led to an overwhelming result.

Ultimately, the 4th round was not decided by cooking skill alone. Success depended on which stores were chosen, how menus were composed, and how teams converted unfavorable environments into strategic advantages. Jeong secured an early spot in the finals through stable operations and menu competitiveness, while Lee proved his veteran status by chasing the top rankings despite near-worst kitchen conditions.

The teams advancing to 2nd and 3rd place will be revealed in the next episode. Following the Jeong Ho-young/Song Hoon team, attention is focused on who will grab the final tickets in this intense survival competition.