Han Garak Links His Altoran Appearance to Garak Market Memories and Back-Rib Soup

Trot singer Han Garak brought together the story of his stage name, memories of working at Garak Market, and a back-rib soup on episode 598 of MBN's cooking program Altoran, which aired on June 21. The broadcast featured Han Garak alongside Seo Hee-cheol and Lee Dae-hwan, all three of whom came from the audition program Mumyeong Jeonseol.

After first making his name on an audition stage, Han Garak moved into the setting of a cooking entertainment table. The episode did not present him only as a singer known for his voice onstage. It also connected his name to the background behind it and to the working years that shaped his everyday life before this latest television appearance.

The name Han Garak is known as a stage name given to him by a composer. On the broadcast, however, the detail that lingered more strongly was the fact that he had once worked at Garak Market.

Garak can call to mind a musical melody, but for Han Garak it was also the name of a place where he worked to earn a living. His appearance on Altoran shifted the steady singing and the image of a performer trying to stand onstage again, which viewers had seen on Mumyeong Jeonseol, into a more ordinary and personal setting.

Episode 598 of Altoran was arranged as a special table of fortifying foods built around the idea of meeting heat with heat. Han Garak presented a back-rib soup in which homemade ginger syrup was used to control the meat's unwanted smell. Seo Hee-cheol prepared zucchini stew, while Lee Dae-hwan took charge of garlic-loaded steamed pork belly.

The setup drew attention because three performers who had competed on the Mumyeong Jeonseol stage were now gathered around one table. For Han Garak, the Garak Market experience, his stage name, and the back-rib soup were linked in a single line of storytelling. Seo Hee-cheol and Lee Dae-hwan also brought their own work experiences and home-cooked food stories into the broadcast.

Han Garak first drew attention in February, when he sang Because I Am a Man on the opening episode of Mumyeong Jeonseol. His move from an audition program to a cooking entertainment program became another moment that widened public recognition of him.

For a trot singer, the place where he must ultimately be recognized again is the song. On June 21, Altoran left Han Garak's name connected with memories of his Garak Market days, the present act of preparing a meal, and the face of a singer preparing to stand onstage again.