Viral baker LinLin’s sweet journey to success, from lockdown baking to Korean reality show

Towards the end of 2025, Charmaine Wong Szu Lin was scrolling through her Instagram DMs when a message stopped her cold. A South Korean production company wanted her to join a reality baking show. Her first instinct was deep suspicion. “Is this a scam?” the self-taught Malaysian baker, 30, recalls asking herself. It was not – the offer came from Bite Me Sweet, a baking competition that eventually aired on Viu from April to May this year. The show pairs five renowned female pastry chefs from...