The 2010 TV series “Bread, Love and Dreams” brings to light the life of a pure-hearted young man who overcomes various hardships and carves out his fortune to become the best baker in the country from the 1970s till the late 1980s, a period of economic development in Korea. The drama chronicles the protagonist’s childhood, adulthood and success, unfolding such subplots as his long and painful journey to locate his long-lost mother, his romance and the art of bread-making—a rare theme in Korean soap operas.

The story revolves around Kim Tak-gu, who was born as the illegitimate son of Gu Il-jung, the president of a large food company. Tak-gu lives with his mother in a remote town until he moves to his father’s house at age 12. Like his father, Tak-gu has a great talent for baking and is expected to succeed his father. Without his mother, however, he feels lonely in his father’s mansion. Worse yet, he learns his father’s official wife and her son, Ma-jun, hate him and plot to get rid of him. He decides to leave the house to live with his mother again, but his mother goes missing. Left all alone, Tak-gu goes through many difficulties but never gives up his dream of becoming an excellent baker.

Eleven years later, at age 23, Tak-gu works at a local bakery owned by legendary baker Master Pal-bong and learns baking skills and techniques as well as artisan spirit from the respectable teacher. There, he is reunited with his first love, Yu-gyeong, and his half brother, Ma-jun, who hated him so much when they were little boys. It turns out that Ma-jun is also in love with Yu-gyeong. Now the two young men, Tak-gu and Ma-jun, find themselves competing against each other to earn recognition as a baker by their father and to win the heart of the same girl. In that process, a dark secret surrounding Ma-jun and his mother is revealed. Tak-gu successfully develops new bread to save his father’s company. But he refuses to inherit the family business and returns to Master Pal-bong’s bakery to meet his long-lost mother again. Ma-jun, meanwhile, marries Yu-gyeong and finds comfort and redemption in her. The two men, after all those years of hatred and hostility, reconcile with each other by handing over their father’s company to their older sister and going their own separate ways.

The 30-episode series enjoyed huge popularity with its interesting storyline and cast, including actress Eugene, a former member of the popular girl band, S.E.S. The drama’s viewership rose as high as 50.8 percent, surpassing all the other TV programs. But it’s not just the actors and actresses or the plot that captivated audiences. Various kinds of gorgeous bread filled the screen to make the late-night viewers’ mouths water. Thanks to the drama’s popularity, sales of bread at local bakeries increased significantly, with some bakeries actually offering “barley rice bread,” which appeared in the drama. Actor Yoon Si-yoon, who performed the role of the lead character, was chosen as the commercial model of the pastry mega-corporation Dunkin Donuts.

Reflecting its extreme fame, the TV soap was one of the most popular search words of 2010 and was sold to many Asian countries, including China, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Vietnam.