What’s better than getting cozy with a warm, comforting meal and a good show? Not much beats that, especially after a long day or a long week.
If you’re looking for feel-good, low-stakes shows that let you embrace your inner foodie while eating, these five BLs fit the bill perfectly. Be warned, though—watching these without food will definitely just make you hungry.
Warning: light spoilers ahead!
1. “The Tasty Florida”
While the main draw of “The Tasty Florida” is most definitely the handsome group of men cooking delicious food, the underlying love triangle that forms is what makes you want to watch it until the very end.
Two chefs, Baek Eun Gyu (Kim Yoo Hwan) and Cha Ji Soo (Moon Kang Hyuk), run a famous rooftop restaurant and are basically like brothers. They have shared a close bond since their childhood and have since lived and worked together. However, when a new guy in town named Seo Hae Won (Cha Woo Min) enters the picture, that brotherly bond quickly turns into rivalry.
Hae Won is a university student who moves into the guesthouse below the rooftop restaurant. He eventually even starts working at the restaurant despite having little to no cooking skills. Sparks instantly fly with both brothers, but there’s only one guy that Hae Won is crushing on. A love feud in between cooking sessions and hungry customers puts the leads and their restaurant in a tricky spot.
Why it’s worth the watch:
If you want something you can watch start to finish during a single meal, this one makes that possible with episodes that average out to 10 minutes long each. The stakes are little to none, and the whole focus is on food and romance. This show has an unmistakable charm: it’s like everything you want from a short Korean BL without the stress.
Start watching “The Tasty Florida” now:
2. “Although I Love You, and You?”
Matsumoto Sakae (Kan Hideyoshi), an Osaka restaurant owner still hurting over a painful breakup, falls head over heels when a man he’s never seen walks into his restaurant for a meal. He’s immediately smitten with Soga Hisashi (Nishiyama Jun), an adorably timid, glasses-wearing businessman from Tokyo. When Soga returns for another meal, Sakae is determined to pursue him, but there are plenty of twists and turns headed his way.
To Sakae’s surprise, the two have virtually nothing in common! Soga is a sophisticated office man from the city and is into things like art. Meanwhile, Sakae likes working out and heavily values cooking, something Soga can’t do at all. In fact, much of the show’s good humor comes from Sakae’s attempts at enjoying the things Soga likes in between being appalled by his lack of cooking know-how.
Plus, more drama comes: right when Sakae is making his way into Soga’s heart through sincerity and good food, Sakae’s very handsome and very mischievous ex reappears, claiming he’s ready to fight for Sakae. The timing of it all is absolute chaos, but it’s typical BL behavior.
Will Sakae’s dedication help the two fall in love and overcome their differences, or will he give his first love a second chance?
Why it’s worth the watch:
Sakae’s cozy, traditional restaurant, with its oddball group of regulars, will truly make you wish you could go to such a comforting place. This drama will catch you off guard with its sense of humor, and the love triangle will be as much of a dilemma for you as it is for Sakae. You might recognize the lead from the more recent Japanese BL, “School Trip: Joined a Group I’m Not Close to.” If you’ve watched that already, you’ll be surprised to see him play a character that’s more goofy and outspoken.
Watch Hideyoshi in “School Trip: Joined a Group I’m Not Close to” too:
3. “All the Liquors”
In this rom-com BL, food is really a main character.
Han Ji Yu (Kim Jun Hyung) is a genuine lover of food who also happens to be fresh from a breakup. Having a little too much to drink, he stumbles into Park Ki Hoon’s (Won Do Hyun) restaurant. Drunk, he requests a meal, which Ki Hoon reluctantly prepares despite being on break.
When Ji Yu returns for another meal, the two face an immediate contrast in tastes that puts them at odds: Ji Yu loves enjoying alcohol with his food, but Ki Hoon detests alcohol so much that he doesn’t allow it at his own restaurant. What brings Ji Yu back to Ki Hoon’s restaurant again is coincidentally for work.
Ji Yu’s company is launching a new alcohol, and to promote it, they want a chef to come in and create a menu that pairs well with the drink. Given Ki Hoon’s popularity and good looks, Ji Yu’s company thinks he would be the perfect chef for their campaign. Of course, it’s left to Ji Yu to get him on board.
With the clock ticking, Ji Yu must do everything he can to convince Ki Hoon, despite knowing Ki Hoon doesn’t want anything to do with alcohol, let alone be put in the limelight. This all turns into a hilarious challenge for Ji Yu, but it also doesn’t stop him from consistently enjoying delicious meals.
Why it’s worth the watch:
Along with an opposites-attract romance that’ll make you giggle, there’s no doubt “All the Liquors” will have you craving food every episode. It all just looks so good, and the pure delight Ji Yu takes in eating is adorably uplifting. He definitely has the potential to be a mukbanger.
Start watching “All the Liquors” now:
4. “Our Dining Table”
Believe it or not, this story actually starts with an oddly massive rice ball.
This comforting drama starts at a park, where Hozumi Yutaka (Inukai Atsuhiro) eats his lunch alone. Yutaka is a salaryman who lives by himself and is distant from pretty much everyone, from his coworkers to his family. His routine is going to work, eating his lunch, going home, and repeating it all the next day.
This time, Yutaka’s uneventful lunch is disrupted by a little boy named Tane (Maeyama Kuga). Tane is amazed by Yutaka’s large rice ball, and Yutaka shares it with him. Tane’s older brother Ueda Minoru (Iijima Hiroki) appears soon after, looking for Tane.
Minoru initially intimidates timid Yutaka, but when Minoru asks him to teach him how to make the rice ball for Tane, Yutaka ends up at their home, giving a cooking lesson. As they continue to meet up to cook and eat together, an unexpected slow-burning attraction builds between Minoru and Yutaka.
Why it’s worth the watch:
“Our Dining Table” is, hands down, one of the most comforting Japanese BLs out there. It feels honest and deep without having super high stakes or lots of drama. The cooking sessions throughout the show are fun to watch (you might even learn a tip or two!), and the adorable Tane is definitely the star of the show.
5. “Old Fashion Cupcake”
Two seemingly different and distant office co-workers find an unlikely connection over food in “Old Fashion Cupcake.” If you’re looking for something to inspire your next food trip in Japan, this show will get you off to a good start.
An almost 40-year-old Nozue (Takeda Kouhei) is highly regarded at the office, but in reality, he feels unfulfilled in his life. Because of his age, he calls himself an old man and thinks he’s past the age of enjoying things that young people enjoy. Meanwhile, Nozue is completely unaware that his younger coworker, Togawa (Kimura Tatsunari), has a crush on him.
When Togawa notices that Nozue is troubled, he makes it his mission to help him embrace his youth by encouraging him to try things he’d usually associate with young people. Their first stop is a pancake shop whose typical customers are young women.
Togawa is clearly a foodie at heart, so he has no problem savoring the food in front of him. He encourages Nozue to ignore what is expected of him and of his age and just enjoy the food. This marks the first of many food dates to follow as the two embark on a journey of making the most out of the small joys in life.
Why it’s worth the watch:
This story isn’t super complex, but it’s the way it’s simple and realistic that makes it feel so cozy and nostalgic. The romance between Togawa and Nozue is steamy yet subtle and tasteful, and the older, more mature leads give this BL a different vibe from those that center on teenagers or young adults. “Old Fashion Cupake” is a message to anyone, of any age, that it’s never too late to try something new, embrace your youth, or fall in love.
Start watching “Old Fashion Cupcake” now:
Asya’s a BL-biased Soompi writer with a love of K-pop and all types of Asian dramas. Some of her favorite shows are “Psychopath Diary,” “Mr. Unlucky Has No Choice but to Kiss!,” “Light On Me,” “The Untamed,” “Go Go Squid!,” and “Cherry Magic!“
Currently watching: “Popular Serizawa Acts Weird Around Me,” “Match Point,” “Nour,” “Mr. Fanboy,” “Unlucky Bae,” “Class Crush Crisis,” “Boy, with Caution,” and “Fool in Love.”
Looking forward to: “Love Scandal,” “Magic Lover,” “The Love Matter,” and “School Trip: Joined a Group I’m Not Close To Season 2.”