A full TV commercial featuring chef Ahn Seong-jae, a promotional ambassador for Korean pork, has been released, drawing reactions from users on online communities.
On the 28th, one online community shared a campaign video titled, “A global ingredient, close at hand: Korean pork.”
The ad highlights the appeal of Korean pork through close-up visuals of meat cooking and juices running. In a segment labeled “Superfood,” it also presents a nutritional angle, describing Korean pork as a daily ingredient that provides protein and essential nutrients and supports a balanced diet.
Some commenters, however, pointed to Ahn’s recent “wine switch” controversy and compared the timing to Baek Jong-won, CEO of Theborn Korea, who previously faced criticism over disputes about the Korean pork content in his “Baek Ham” product.
Comments included, “A Korean pork ad at this timing feels loaded,” and “It’s like Korean pork showed up as a grim reaper.” Some users argued over whether the ad’s release coincided too neatly with recent controversies.
The debate follows a dispute involving wine service at “Mosu Seoul,” a fine-dining restaurant operated by Ahn.
A user identified as A wrote on a Naver cafe that after visiting Mosu Seoul and ordering an expensive wine, a different wine was served. A said, “The sommelier who served us explained the wine while holding a bottle labeled as a ‘2005’ vintage, and the explanation was also for 2005. But after tasting the wine and looking at the wine pairing list, I realized only then that a 2000 vintage should have been served.”
Mosu Seoul posted an apology on its official social media account on the 23rd, saying, “We bow our heads in apology regarding the matter recently shared through online communities.”
The restaurant said, “On the 19th, during the wine pairing service, accurate guidance was not provided to the customer, causing confusion. We also sincerely apologize for not providing a sufficient explanation during our response afterward, which caused great disappointment.” It added, “After the incident, we separately apologized to the customer, and (the customer) accepted it generously, but in light of the expectations placed in our restaurant, we take seriously that the process was still not sufficient.”
Some users who saw the apology said they remained dissatisfied.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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