Black and White Chef Napoli Matpia and Fabri to Become Instructors at Lotte Department Store Cultural Center

Lotte Culture Center Opens Winter Semester Membership Registration from the 23rd
Offering Classes Like Revisiting Hangang Works and Cooking Classes
Lotte Mart Also Accepts Culture Center Memberships Starting the 24th

Lotte Department Store and Lotte Mart, each operating their own cultural centers, are offering a variety of courses for the winter semester. Lotte Department Store is presenting K-Culture themed lectures led by chefs 'Napoli Mafia (Kwon Seong-jun)' and Chef Fabri, while Lotte Mart is offering a wide range of classes for all age groups.

On the 22nd, Lotte Department Store announced that it will open cultural center courses themed around K-Culture and begin recruiting members from the 23rd. The reason Lotte Department Store chose K-Culture as the theme is due to recent events such as author Han Kang winning the Nobel Prize in Literature for the first time in Korea, and the popularity of the survival cooking show "Black and White Chef." Accordingly, this winter semester, Lotte Department Store has prepared courses covering the entire spectrum of K-Culture, from literature to cooking.

Chef Kwon Seong-jun (left) of 'Napoli Mafia' and Chef Fabri, who will be instructors for Lotte Culture Center's winter semester.
[Photo by Lotte Department Store]

First, literature courses focusing on the works of author Han Kang will be offered. A representative course is one where participants reread various works of Han Kang weekly together with book critic Lee Hyun-woo. In addition, there will be a book talk with Kim Mella, who won the 15th Young Writer Award Grand Prize, and a literary field trip course visiting Inwangsan Mountain, where the Yun Dong-ju Literature Museum and the poet’s hill are located, accompanied by a history commentator.

Korean cooking classes with famous chefs will also be held. The flagship course is the "Korea-Italian Cuisine Class" taught by 'Napoli Mafia (Kwon Seong-jun)', the winner of Black and White Chef. Similarly, Chef Fabri, a 15-year consecutive Michelin star chef who also appeared on Black and White Chef, will offer a course to learn year-end party dishes using Korean ingredients. Chef Kwon will teach at the Lotte Department Store main branch and Nowon branch starting January next year, while Chef Fabri will begin classes at the main branch from December. Additionally, a unique course will be offered where participants can brew traditional liquor and pair it themselves at 'Anssi Makgeolli,' the first Korean makgeolli house to be listed in the Michelin Guide.

Courses related to the annual theme of Lotte Cultural Center, "Seasonal Solar Terms," such as making Dongji calendars at a hanok located in Seongbuk-gu, will also be conducted. Furthermore, courses on painting folk paintings to welcome the New Year will be available.

Kim Ji-hyun, head of Marketing & Communications at Lotte Department Store, said, "Following this year’s introduction of various seasonal cultures of Korea themed around solar terms, the final semester, the winter semester, has been planned with courses that explore the overall K-Culture by incorporating recent trends." She added, "We will continue to devote great effort to theme selection and course composition to provide customers with special experiences unique to Lotte Cultural Center."

Representative image of Lotte Culture Center Winter Semester. [Image provided by Lotte Department Store]

Lotte Mart has prepared customized courses for all age groups for this winter semester at its cultural center. This is part of the effort to offer various programs that the whole family can enjoy at the cultural center.

First, courses for infants under 12 months have been increased by about 40% compared to the previous semester. Representative courses include "Five Senses Play Lalala Koala" and "Amazing Five Senses Jump Bebe," designed to develop infants’ sensory skills. One of the exclusive programs only available at Lotte Mart Cultural Center, the eco (ECO) five senses play class "Sunshine Smiles," has doubled the number of classes compared to the previous semester in response to customer demand.

Senior-focused courses that middle-aged and older adults can take without burden have also increased more than threefold compared to the previous fall semester. Pilates and yoga classes that provide exercise effects without straining joints and muscles are prepared. Additionally, senior model classes, personal color, and makeup courses have been planned.

Other courses include a special 3-day practical conversation course, "Marathon Preparation Tips for Beginners" by ambassador So Byung-wook of the Sejong Marathon Club, "Raising Mentally Strong Children Who Ultimately Succeed" by Lim Young-joo, head of the Parent Education Institute, and "Daechi-dong Upper Elementary Math Roadmap" by Jeong Soo-jung, director of Daechi Math Clinic Daechi Main Branch.

Um Seon-ju, course planning manager at Lotte Mart Cultural Center, said, "This winter semester has significantly expanded customized courses for all age groups, from infants to seniors, so the whole family can enjoy them." She added, "We have also prepared various online special lectures to prepare for the New Year, so we hope everyone will fill the upcoming winter with warm learning at Lotte Mart Cultural Center."

Lotte Department Store’s Lotte Cultural Center courses will run from December 1 to February 28 of next year. Registration for the winter semester at Lotte Cultural Center will be available from the 23rd depending on the region. For metropolitan area stores in Gyeonggi and Incheon excluding Seoul, members who attended the cultural center last semester can register from October 23, and new members from October 24. For Seoul and other regional stores, existing members can register from October 24, and new members from October 25.

Registration for Lotte Mart Cultural Center’s winter semester courses will be available from the 24th at 59 offline stores nationwide and through the Lotte Mart Cultural Center website. Lotte Mart will offer a 5,000 KRW discount coupon for regular course registrations from October 24 to November 8.

Customers browsing course programs at the Lotte Mart Uiwang Branch Cultural Center. [Photo by Lotte Mart]