A special kind of film.

This film doesn't tell a story, it shows you its message instead. There is hardly any kind of development yet the mood is so overpowering and the cinematography is so breathtakingly beautiful that it leaves a profound impression nonetheless.

The ratings are quite low, and in my opinion this is not surprising at all. This film is odd in that it has no real plot, there is hardly any dialog and if you expect romance you'll mostly be left disappointed. It shows you tiny snippets of characters' back stories, but leaves them unexplored and unexplained. The film gives you ideas about topics that are important and worth thinking about. However it doesn't explore them, only taking note of their existence and then leaves it to the viewer to come up with their own conclusions and thoughts about them.

This film avoids imposing opinions, it stimulates thought processes and thus it can be either very impactful or very boring, depending on how you approach it as the viewer and how much the addressed topics resonate with you.

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Great characters, great acting but unfortunately a poorly structured storyline

Dating in the Kitchen is one of those dramas that has very obvious strengths but unfortunately also glaring weaknesses. The acting is great and the soundtrack is decent - at least for a CDrama. I don't understand why CDramas only ever use 2-3 songs and play those on repeat throughout the show. A bit more diversity like in KDramas certainly wouldn't hurt imo.

One of the main downsides of the show however, is its messy story line. At times I got the impression that the writers themselves didn't really know where they wanted the story to go. There were quite a few sub plots in the drama which unfortunately all lacked depth. The - for CDrama standards - rather few episodes certainly didn't help either.

Story:
About the first quarter of the drama is food porn at its finest. The cooking and the dishes take the spotlight. However, once the leads start to grow closer the cooking begins to take a back seat. Different challenges and plots lines get introduced: The FL's relationship to her colleagues at the hotel, her family, love rivals and finally the ML's family situation, all while the second couple's story line runs on a side lane.

Now, by no means would I call this a cluttered story line, it's actually pretty basic. However, for some reason it all just doesn't really fit together, the plot lines are poorly connected and the drama lacks purpose. For example, in hindsight the conflicts between the kitchen staff didn't do anything for the story nor for character development. In fact, the other chefs never appear again, once their plot line is over. Same thing with the love rivals, their presence is so weak, they didn't do much to advance the story either. At first I thought the FL's grandpa would play a bigger role, but he's also never seen again once his part is finished.

In conclusion, the story feels very unstructured and at times random, like the writers just made stuff up along the way. The final plot line that could have carried the drama was left mostly unexplored by being cramped into the last 4 episodes without being given any room to have a proper impact. Instead it was used as a cheap means to add drama at the last minute.

Characters / Acting:
This is where the drama shines. Both main actors do an amazing job, especially the main actress. Her character was so life like and full of emotion. While the FL's character is a little bit childish, it's not to the point of it being annoying and thank god, she is not one of those living fountains, spending 90% of a drama crying. Her emotions are very diverse, she laughs, she gets angry, she cries a few times, but it all feels genuine. -- On a side note, some people found her to act stupidly in the final few episodes, however in my opinion, she actually stays true to her character throughout the show. (To avoid spoilers I will write my reasoning in the comments)

The ML is equally great. He is basically two characters in one. In business settings, he is detached, cool, calculative and downright bad ass. However, once off work he is quirky, a bit shy and very warm but also insecure. Overall he is a very interesting and authentic character. In addition, he deals with problems in a very mature and straight forward way, a trait which I very much appreciate in male leads.

The side couple was both funny and quirky and both actors did a decent job in bringing out their characters' personalities. Especially the female character experienced quite a bit of growth and development.

Finally, I especially liked the FL's uncle. He's funny, a bit mean, likes to tease his niece but on the other hand also cares for her a lot, gives her advice and protects her. He is my favorite character in the show.

Conclusion:
Overall I'm disappointed. Not because Dating in the Kitchen is a bad drama, but because it could have been so much better. I loved the characters, the acting, the setting. If it wasn't for the story which is all over the place, I would have given this drama a solid 9/10, however, as it stands it's just barely enough for a 7.5/10 and this already generous.

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Can't understand the hype

While the first half was still rather decent the second half was a complete let down. The FL and the OST kind of saved this from being an absolute wreck, however about everything else was subpar at best.

The male lead actor didn't do a particularly good job. He only ever had one expression on his face - no nuances whatsoever. The character felt completely flat and boring, I got no emotional response whether he was supposedly sad or happy or angry. As for the character, it was about as badly written as it was acted. It wasn't clear in any way why the FL fell in love with him in the first place (apart from a pretty face he had nothing going for him). He started out as an arrogant jerk with trust issues and ended up as a creepy stalker. To whoever thought this is a type women should be attracted to I would recommend some counseling. The only interest the FL should have had in him would have been as a patient. As a psychology major his dire need for therapy should have hit her in the face. Instead she went off to date him, you got to love drama logic.

The secondary couple (?) had about as much impact on the story as had the FL's friend - none. In general the support cast didn't leave much of an impression on me. The only exception might have been Xiao Lu, however her only role seemed to be acting as a messenger between Nian Qin and Wu Yan, making the FL aware of all the ML's 'great qualities', the 'good intentions' he supposedly had as well as telling her about his tragic past.

The drama's only saving grace was it's above average soundtrack as well as some very well-written poetic quotes, however this wasn't enough for me to feel like my time watching this was well spent. I expected a lot more, especially if I consider the high ratings.

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