Netizen Claims "Construction Halted"...Shares Photo of "For Sale" Banner
Im Seonggeun Says "Scheduled to Open in March...Rumors of Restaurant Being for Sale Are Also Untrue"
The Paju restaurant of Chef Im Seonggeun, who appeared on the Netflix cooking show "Black & White Chef 2," has been swept up in rumors that it is closing. A netizen reported that a banner reading "For Sale" had been hung on Chef Im's restaurant, which was scheduled to open, but Chef Im's side stated that the rumor is groundless.
On February 2, a netizen posted a photo of the exterior of Im Seonggeun's restaurant, known to be located near Simhaksan in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, on an online community under the title "Latest on Im Seonggeun's Jjageuli Restaurant."
The building is presumed to be the same one that Im Seonggeun had previously shown on his social media (SNS), and in the last photo, a "For Sale" banner hanging at the back of the building stands out.
Photo released with claims that the building suspected to be Chef Lim Seonggeun's restaurant is on the market. Screenshot from an online community.
The poster explained, "Recently, there were rumors that the construction had been halted. After that, it seems they put up the 'For Sale' banner."
In response, netizens began speculating, saying things like, "Maybe the opening schedule has run into problems," "It looks like the opening will be canceled," "Are they selling because they decided not to run the restaurant?" and "It could be an investor issue."
"The closure rumor is not true...it's just the camera angle"
In response, Chef Im's side clarified through multiple media interviews that the rumor is not true.
On February 3, Chef Im told Ilgan Sports over the phone, "The (rumor that the Paju restaurant is for sale) is not true. The photo just came out with a strange angle," adding, "The neighboring building is the one that has been put up for sale, and they put up a fence there and marked it with the 'For Sale' banner."
He went on to say, "The restaurant is scheduled to open in March, and we are separately preparing related banners."
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