God of Cooking

Description

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30-year-old Jo Minjoon has always wanted to become a chef.

He started his culinary career late in life, however, and is currently chopping onions at a restaurant.

Regretting his life choices, he wishes he could go back to change it all and falls asleep.

Meanwhile, someone out there is willing to give him another chance and send him back in time.

How will he use the new powers he obtained from this mysterious being?

Associated Names
One entry per line
GoC
요리의 신
Related Series
N/A
Recommendations
God of Music (13)
Top Management (8)
Gourmet Food Supplier (5)
I Don’t Want to Be Loved (5)
Beauty of Thebes (4)
I’m in Hollywood (3)
Recommendation Lists
  1. TOP of the toppers, BEST of the bestest
  2. want read
  3. Isekai w slow life no harem tags
  4. Collection
  5. KR Novels Recommended by a Picky Reader

Latest Release

Date Group Release
05/10/21 Yado Inn c286
05/08/21 Yado Inn c285
04/27/21 Yado Inn c284
04/19/21 Yado Inn c283
04/12/21 Yado Inn c282
04/05/21 Yado Inn c281
03/29/21 Yado Inn c280
03/22/21 Yado Inn c279
03/15/21 Yado Inn c278
03/08/21 Yado Inn c277
03/04/21 Yado Inn c276
02/23/21 Yado Inn c275
02/23/21 Yado Inn c274
02/12/21 Yado Inn c273
02/12/21 Yado Inn c272
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99 Reviews sorted by


creepycatisawesome
creepycatisawesome rated it
April 9, 2021
Status: c100
I didn't like it. Mainly because the main character is s*upid. It deserves 3 stars but I am giving it one because it is way too overrated. At least it is not a novel good enough to get more that 4 stars for even those who like it considering translation and grammar. I'll say it's fine for a leisurely read but that's all to it.

I give it three stars.

Give it a shot if you are interested in a unique trope about cooking competitions
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estelionsharluluasheelvinchancecelenalia
Awkward and pretentious, and the cooking-related exposition is usually nonsense. Unsure if these two problems can be attributed to bad writing or poor translations.

What I can confidently blame on the writing is the bland protagonist, the nonsensical system, and how the stakes feel low.

Neither the premise nor the writing ever grips me.
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Last sovereign
Last sovereign rated it
February 25, 2021
Status: c83
I love this novel!! I feel like they could have used the fact that 80 percent of taste is from smell in the god tongue excuse so he can say the food levels without tasting it. Though it is just as good without it
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clmbheat
clmbheat rated it
August 8, 2020
Status: c260
This is my favorite novel and I wish it would get updated quicker but nothing I can do about that lol.

Now the story is very much a basic MC gets an OP skill and he stifes forward to be the best. And its good, like really good! The protagonist is very dedicated and uses his skill to get better, not just to breeze through things. Though he did do that once in the competition, but that was more for him to accept that he has said OP skill and using... more>> it isnt cheating since he learns with it rather then let the skill be his end all. Also keep in mind that the food is very Asian and Western heavy. Why? Well its what most people would assume an ASIAN person to know and want to learn, their countries cooking and western fine dining. They dip their toes on Latin American foods but overall its Asia and the west. Now most side characters that don't interact with the MC barely grow but that isnt that bad, I would rather see the growth happen to those close to him so that he isn't the 3D person. Besides that you may have to Google a lot of foods or ingredients in the earlier chapters, they are left in Korean and if you are not familiar with the words you will be lost on what is being cooked. <<less
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Kirisaki_Linari
Kirisaki_Linari rated it
July 30, 2020
Status: c260
I don't have much say in this cause the other reviews already express what I was supposed to write. But one thing is for sure, this is a great read. It is just some paragraphs confused me. But nonetheless it's amazingly written. And the pacing is totally okay.
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Zul03
Zul03 rated it
June 19, 2020
Status: --
This is a great novel. But it makes me sick. By the story', MC have inferiority complex. It's disappointment because after he more confident he have inferiority again. It's sick
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octoprince
octoprince rated it
December 10, 2018
Status: c200
It's very interesting if you like food. The MC is interesting and while his ability seems overpowered at first, he still has to face challenges and doesn't win all the time. He makes mistakes and he has to work to improve his skills, he also realizes that his ability has limits and that his love for cooking goes way beyond the use of it. His interactions with the other characters are fun to read and you can see their personal growth. I particularly like his relationship with Anderson.

Once the competition... more>> arc is over, there are still a lot of interesting, competitive and fun developments so it doesn't get boring, don't worry !

When it comes to romance though, I find the female lead irritating. When they were rivals/friends it was fine, but now I find the parts where she doesn't appear way more interesting than all the lovey-dovey-bickering-tsundere moments. <<less
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kkgoh
kkgoh rated it
September 8, 2018
Status: c6
Fairly entertaining concept (about time someone did a leveling-up type novel on cooking). I found the start of the novel pretty fascinating, especially since Shokugeki (japanese manga) is such a popular read right now.

But the fatal flaw for me is introducing religiosity into the novel.

... more>>
Spoiler

At chapter 6 MC reveals he's Protestant, starts giving grace prior to the meal. Then I dropped it since now I'm half-expecting this scene to happen at every meal in what is a cooking novel.

[collapse]

While I'm highly respectful of different religions (explored both Christianity and Buddhism for dozens of years), introducing a polarized aspect as part of the MCs character in a novel with the idea that it WILL persist just kills it. I now expect that EVERY meal will involve MC giving grace.

I get that majority of Koreans belong to the Christian faith. But this has no bearing on the plot and seems to be a random insert (I'm guessing the author is likely religious and just wanted to make it reflect himself in some way).

But I probably should have expected it when the title has the word "God" as the prefix. I.e. Rather than Cooking God, it's God of Cooking. <<less
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TypicalTakesa
TypicalTakesa rated it
July 23, 2018
Status: c194
This novel was great so I'm giving it a 4/5 :D

The characters are hard to hate, especially because of their determination and personalities.
Spoiler

Also, the MC didn't win the cooking competition in one shot like an overpowered character would, which I'm glad about.

[collapse]
The romance in the story wasn't overbearing, and even though any romance usually makes me sick, this story was an exception.

If you enjoy somewhat realistic novels, then this is a good one to read.
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elbert134
elbert134 rated it
July 3, 2018
Status: --
This is excellent. The characters, especially the MC. He has a goal. He was given another shot in life to pursue his dreams, and he has done just that. And to the reviewer saying there are no other types of food.... there are 733 chapters. Youve read only 114. Why rush and judge so early? Be patient.
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Croixe
Croixe rated it
April 26, 2018
Status: c188
I love this novel, so much so that I would recommend anyone and everyone to read it.

There are many things it does right, but if there is one thing that stands out, it is the main character Jo Minjoon's mindset. He has a cheat-system that enables him to basically steal the recipe of any meal he eats, know the exact quality of a dish and ingredients, check the cooking ability of every single person, etc. (To avoid spoilers), and what does he do with it? He takes every single step... more>> and effort to make it so that he does not need to use the said system. He does rely on it every now and then as he accepts his current shortcomings, but he aims to disregard the system entirely.

Also, I saw a review giving this one star for "an unforgivable flaw, I am very surprised that no one noticed this issue before because for me it was very obvious." to which he is pertaining to the novel not mentioning EVERY SINGLE NATION'S FOOD PROFILE. Apparently, if you are to make a cooking novel, you have to include every single country's food since that is common sense to this guy. The author is apparently "an idiot who did not do enough research".

While it would be appealing to have more diverse food profiles, that review is plain s*upid. Even documentaries about cooking do not list every single food there is in the world. And you expect a fictional, fantastical novel to have them just because its setting is in the "real world"? Does that mean that a novel about fishing should include every single category, species, subcategories, etc. Of fish? I highly doubt that the one who posted that review would know even 1/8th of every single food profiles there are in the world. RANT OVER.

Anyway, read it unless you absolutely loathe cooking stuff. <<less
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rhianirory
rhianirory rated it
March 24, 2018
Status: c188
I quite like this story. It made me so hungry I actually gained four pounds while binge reading (i kept having to go get snacks because my stomach kept growling). There's no better compliment when it comes to a story that's all about cooking and food.

The people who say there's no variation in the foods presented didn't read very far into the story. Even in the cooking competition at the beginning there was variation; indian, korean, french, japanese, german, chinese, italian and many more. And that's just the competition arc.

As... more>> the MC travels he learns more about other kinds of cultures and foods (like thai and brazillian), but the story isn't only about food-p*rn; it's about the MC's growth as a chef. My guess is he'll end up with some kind of fusion restaurant by the end but right now he's still just a new disciple.

The romance isn't overdone or ridiculous and his bro-mance with anderson is pretty entertaining. The system isn't intrusive and so far the read has been enjoyable. <<less
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vaserick
vaserick rated it
February 22, 2018
Status: c185
One of the best cooking novels out there. The translation quality is not the best, but it's okay. This is not like Gourmet of Another World or Gourmet Food Supplier, where the MC is aloof and naturally the best at everything and the system provides all the best quality ingredients. The MC actually struggles making the dishes, he also comes up with the recipes himself. There are also many other chefs that the MC competes with and gets along with. Also, there are actually social relationships. (Romance, Teacher-Student, Bromance).
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Mahiro9
Mahiro9 rated it
November 17, 2017
Status: c175
While others might complain about the "lack of research" from the author, this novel still got my 5 stars.

The author put just the right amount of technical stuffs and details, which will make you learn new things without being too hard and boring to read as a documentary book.

The lack of appearance of some countries' cooking might be a problem for some people, but I didn't read this novel to read about foods being mentioned on a passing, it's better for the scope to be small but well-written enough than... more>> to have too wide a scope but not given enough focus and just written for the heck of it.

The best part about this novel are the characters and the story. The story flows well and the pacing is just right. It doesn't feel rushed nor dragged on. It also doesn't have any story loops that seem common these days, meaning the chapters aren't written just to have more chapters but for a real story to progress. The character are also well-written, having their own quirks and personalities.

It also bring about a lot of emotions as you read it, you'll feel bad or sad for some characters, touched by the touching moments, laugh at the characters' antics, and feel bubbly by the cute moments.

This might be a novel about cooking, but while the cooking part about this novel is very good, what makes this novel really great is the story and characters. Really worth the time I spent reading and waiting for new translated chapters. <<less
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stickybun
stickybun rated it
November 6, 2017
Status: c87
My review is mostly for people who are on the fence about reading. TLDR at the bottom!

In a nutshell, it's refreshing and engaging without being a 'fluff' novel. I absolutely agree that this novel is an unexpected gem! I started this series quite honestly because my stash of other novels was pretty much out, thinking "Reading about tasting and cooking... Ooookay. Seems different, there's nothing to lose by reading a couple chapters." [[Hohoho, good call, Self!]]

I think the pace is solid & steady --rather than slow-- because each chapter fits... more>> into the significant whole of the story, and good at keeping a subtle but consistent suspense without relying on cliches. It's closer to reading an actual book with the consistency of the plot. None of that business where you feel cheated after reading a chapter that was all buildup, or like the 3 different reactions to some crazy OP action from the MC.

Cons are mostly minor things like the speech and mannerisms of so-called Americans being more like the Korean MC/author's social etiquette ('please treat me well, ' 'sunbae, ' 'oppa' etc). Some of this does come from the translation quality, which I'd give about 3.5 or 4. Outweighed by the pros of believable characters with realistic growth and conflict, non-repetitive writing style, and well mixed action and introspection. Overall a well-balanced body of writing.

Miscellaneous likes:

  • The game-system aspect adds to the character development, rather than detracting or steam-rolling everything else out of the way to focus on manic leveling. It doesn't feel like too much of a cheat.
  • Reading this is like having a detailed waking daydream about food!
  • Has "feel good" components, but doesn't avoid unpleasant topics; rather, it's a warm-fuzzy from resolving conflict
  • It's easy to feel like I'm actually watching a competition show like top chef or something while reading; the characters' details seem more like getting bits and pieces of real people's back story than being a made-up character.
  • Life isn't sugar coated here. I know this is kind of beating a dead horse since I've mentioned it several times already, but it's somewhat rare to find a novel that isn't too far on either side of the spectrum. This one acknowledges darker emotions/parts of life (disability, failure, social inequality, prejudice) mostly indirectly, without dwelling on them or get preachy, and it doesn't "magically" solve them either. Just a nice tacit nod of acknowledgement and inclusion in the real-life-real-people type of problems presented in this novel. (ex. snide online comments piss off the contestants and mess with their heads a bit, but it doesn't cause a total meltdown, or give them a heaven defying breakthrough..)
  • sort of but not really spoiler;
    Spoiler
    [collapse]
    after reincarnating or whatever you want to call it, MC still struggles with and tries to work through concerns he had before his return to his past, like reconciling his parents' hopes and his own aspirations, or challenging his own ideas of what cooking is/should be if not just skill, and so on.
TL;DR version-- (as of ch. 87) good aspects far outweigh the meh ones, definitely give this a try! Expected side effects may include: becoming a closet foodie, possible keyboard drool, home kitchen turning into a disaster zone, hopefully no visits to the ER, etc... have fun, kids.

Will plan to update later :) <<less
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cyanat
cyanat rated it
September 4, 2017
Status: c120
it was pretty good overall, but there were many flaws with it imo. Minjoon is a decent guy and a decent MC but theres nothing about him that makes him stand out, really? Ive never found myself rooting for hin. Hes bland.

it also seems as if every character was pretty one dimensional, which sucks because the story is very character focused. I cant tell if it was on part of the translator or the author, but the conversations seemed very stilted and awkward? It just didnt sound very western, despite... more>> the fact its set in the US.

however the story was interesting: they dont stay on one "mission" for very long, so it becomes like a series of mini arcs, which is good because theres always a new setting every few chapters. The problem is that it felt very formulaic, and I never really felt any tension or worry for the MC (partly because I just didnt care about him).

some of the side chars were pretty cool though - very tropey but they had their moments. Anderson was my fav tho lol <<less
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SayMrrp
SayMrrp rated it
July 7, 2017
Status: c154
The characters are awesome. Their interactions are what makes this story so good, in my opinion.

The food descriptions are descriptive. The romance is painfully cute.

The little bits of humor prevent me from falling asleep.

... more>> The MC is chill. However, he keeps downplaying himself because of his system.

It might get boring if you binge read ~100 chapters in one day, but it's worth it. I feel like this would be a great Korean drama... but the food aspect is probably too difficult to portray properly. Seriously. The drama.

Ah, cliffhangers are common. Watch out~ <<less
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Rosver
Rosver rated it
February 2, 2017
Status: --
It is a good read overall but I do have some complaints with it.

One thing I had a problem with is the lack of dimension. Yes, it is about cooking, but limiting it in setting (it focuses too much on characters) and culture (many cultures are not represented) really waste a lot of potential.

My second complaint are the characters. They are rather flat. I don't hate them, but they aren't really very interesting, and the story focuses a lot on them.

And there is also the pacing. Sometimes, it would just... more>> becomes so very slow. A whole series of chapter would just have them just talking about nothing. It will just become so damn boring. <<less
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Skoonting
Skoonting rated it
November 7, 2016
Status: --
How am I even enjoying this? I know nothing about cooking. I am barely able to cook pasta. Half of the time I have no clue what they are talking about in this novel, and I have to look up definitions constantly, yet still I find it extremely entertaining. I only picked this up because I was bored, but I was pleasantly surprised. The only reason I am deducting one star is because as I said, I don't know what the hell is going on most of the time.
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1life4death
1life4death rated it
September 4, 2016
Status: c33
This novel was something fresh and different from the trending heroes, immortals and VRMMO novels. As it provides a RPG element mix with cooking which is entertaining and interesting.

My only issue with this novel and why I gave it a 3/5 is because so far, even after jumping ahead, all of this still takes place in one competition. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy the behind the scene drama, romance, commentary from the judges and the competition itself. At the same time however, with a title like God... more>> of Cooking I expected more than just one competition to see the MC grow. If you don't considered the drama, romance and stages to the competition, which could be seen as "side arcs" or "mini-arcs" because the competition is the main arc itself, then this novel is rather dull.

If you take a season of a cooking competition tv series and turn it into a book, that's basically what this novel is. Which is good and bad in itself. Because their are reasons why these kind of series only have a limited number of shows as even if its entertaining, eventually the audience will lose interest the longer you drag it out. This is still a good novel and a good read but I recommend this as side novel for a rainy day. Keep in mind this is just my personal opinion so its perfectly fine to disagree after reading it yourself. Also when I mention jumping ahead I only did so for the translate chapters so things could change later down the road. <<less
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