[Sportschosun, Reporter Kim Soo-hyun] Yang Chi-seung, a broadcaster and former fitness trainer, is continuing his string of new challenges by moving from the food service business into the development of a restaurant recommendation app.
On the 12th, a video titled "Yang Chi-seung, unleashed after leaving the gym for the first time in 25 years" was uploaded to the YouTube channel "YangBoss MakTube."
In the video, Yang Chi-seung introduced a restaurant recommendation app he developed himself, saying, "I made something fun."
The app is designed to recommend good-value restaurants through location-based services. Users can easily find places to eat by selecting different food categories, including Korean and Chinese cuisine.
Yang Chi-seung explained the purpose of the app, saying, "It shows all the good-value restaurants based on your location. It’s an app that introduces restaurants. These days, with prices so high, going out to eat can be a burden, right?"
He said the idea for the app came from a remark by broadcaster Jun Hyun-moo. "While I was working on a KBS program in 2019, I got the nickname 'Geolbaengi.' The concept was that I kept going around looking for cheap restaurants, and Jun Hyun-moo told me, 'Hyung, if you're going to do that, just make an app,'" he recalled.
He added, "As I kept going out to eat only inexpensive food, I started thinking, 'This could work.'" He also revealed, "I even got a patent for it under the name 'Yang Chi-seung's Geolbaengi.'"
He said he had delayed development because of a busy schedule and cost issues. "I finally got started in earnest after closing the gym this time. It was hard during COVID too, but this is an even more difficult period," he said, adding that he wanted to provide restaurant information that people could enjoy without feeling pressured in this era of high prices.
Yang Chi-seung has recently drawn attention with a series of new ventures. After entering the food service business by opening a sandwich shop in the underground shopping arcade near Gangnam Station in Seoul, he has now expanded his activities further by unveiling his own restaurant recommendation app.
Meanwhile, Yang Chi-seung previously suffered losses of about 1.5 billion won after falling victim to a real estate lease scam, which forced him to shut down the gym he had been running. He later drew public attention again after revealing that he had taken a job as an executive in charge of managing a community facility at an apartment complex in Cheongdam-dong worth more than 10 billion won.
shyun@sportschosun.com
