Omakase, bagels, barbecue, 'Culinary Class Wars': Food trends in 2024

Restaurants run by chefs who appeared in Netflix's "Culinary Class War" came into the spotlight this year, while the most popular dining trends were sushi omakase, bagels and Korean barbecue, according to the 2024 gourmet trend report published by restaurant reservation platform Catch Table on Friday.

The trend analysis is based on reservations made between January and October to determine customers' dining habits and preferences.

Riding the wave of the Netflix cooking battle show, Via Toledo Pasta Bar -- a traditional Italian pasta bar owned by black spoon chef Napoli Matfia, who was the winner in the show -- became the "most saved restaurant" on the application this year.

This year also saw continued popularity in the leave-it-to-the-chef ordering style, reflecting diners' desire to experience the creativity of chefs and quality food. Sushi omakase was the most popular dining category, remaining the top choice for a second consecutive year. Italian cuisine, dining bars, hansik -- or Korean food -- and hanwoo beef omakase were other popular dining categories.

Noodle dishes, such as cold "naengmyeon," saw the biggest surge in attention among users, followed by chicken and duck dishes, Thai cuisine and hot pot-style shabu-shabu, according to the food trend report.

The longest wait was at the London Bagel Museum, which has branches in Seoul's Jongno, Gangnam and Jamsil neighborhoods, to name a few. The store is famous for offering bagels ranging from sweet to savory to those with abundant fillings.

Montan Jeju, which specializes in straw-grilled aged beef short ribs and pork neck and that opened in August last year, had the most reservations. It was followed by the Buffet at Inter-Burgo in Daegu, Osteria Orzo in Seoul's Hannam-dong and Saladaeng Temple in Seoul's Seongsu-dong.