Daddy's Gourmet Shop-Chapter 228 - 220: Never Able to Eat Your Cooking Again
The winter night always arrives particularly early, with rows of streetlights on both sides of the road already lit up, resembling luminous pearls scattered along the bustling street.
Approaching seven o’clock.
The guests of Delicious Restaurant gradually dispersed.
Many customers who had finished eating were exiting while holding onto the door.
"Ouch, I’m so full! I can barely walk now."
"Hey, hey, hey, the person behind me, don’t rush! And don’t push me! I need to walk slowly."
"Hiccup~"
The sound of hiccups rose continuously, like a band playing music.
However, it didn’t draw the curious attention of passers-by.
Hmph.
Because this scene happened at the entrance of Delicious Restaurant, they had already seen it so many times that it was a familiar sight!
In the kitchen, as the ingredients were sold out, Huang Tao also had some free time.
After washing his hands next to the sink, he walked out of the kitchen while taking off his chef’s hat.
Before leaving, he didn’t forget to give a reminder: "Xu Hao, Zifeng, I’ll leave it to you to tidy up the kitchen~"
Lin Zifeng grinned as he watched his boss’s back: "Don’t worry, Boss, we’ll make sure it’s as good as new."
However, what puzzled him...
In recent days, as he tidied up the kitchen with Xu Hao, as long as he used a cloth to wipe the stove and the range hood, they gleamed as bright as new, not to mention the oil and soy sauce smells that could be cleaned off instantly without leaving any scent?
So miraculous!
He shared this perplexity with Xu Hao and Ding Suqin, and although they shared the same confusion, none of them could figure it out. They concluded that their boss must have chosen equipment and materials with excellent anti-pollution properties.
And Huang Tao, upon hearing this, merely smiled without explaining.
In reality, he couldn’t say that his restaurant had a system with an 80% permanent cleanliness level, so even a simple wipe with a cloth would make things shine and look brand new?
Even if he told them truthfully, they probably wouldn’t believe it and would just think he was joking!
Since that was the case, he might as well let them come up with their own reasons and convince themselves.
It saved him the trouble of explaining.
Just as Huang Tao stepped out of the kitchen, a sudden and familiar alert sounded in his mind:
[Ding!]
[Congratulations to the host for excellently completing the side quest: In one week, Dongpo Pork was recognized by fifteen fellow chefs, all of whom were chefs and head chefs from star-rated hotels.]
[Won Perfect Level featured cuisine lottery once, is the lottery to be drawn now?]
This...
He hadn’t figured out how to complete this task yet!
How was it completed?
He couldn’t comprehend it despite all his pondering!
Of course, he wouldn’t foolishly think this was the result of the system malfunctioning.
Could it be the delivery boys who showed up in recent days were hired by those head chefs?
Undoubtedly!
They must have been hired.
Otherwise, when these delivery boys heard there was no Dongpo Pork, they all left.
At this moment, a customer dining at the restaurant saw Huang Tao coming out of the kitchen and looked at him with some sorrow: "Boss Huang, your Yellow Croaker Noodles and Dongpo Pork along with other dishes are just too delicious. If I can never eat your food again, what should I do~"
Huang Tao: "..."
The way that was said was too ambiguous!
People who didn’t know might even think he had some incurable disease...
Looking at this somewhat sentimental customer, Huang Tao couldn’t help but offer a comforting word: "Don’t worry, I’m in good health, you’ll definitely be able to eat it again in the future."
Huang Tao’s reassurance didn’t help at all; instead, it made the customer feel even worse: "But what should I do when I’m going back to my hometown after New Year?"
"I just realized, I’m here for work, and in another month, I’ll have to go back to my hometown. I don’t even know if I can come here for work tomorrow."
"Thinking about this suddenly makes me feel bad, Boss Huang, could I have another bowl of Yellow Croaker Noodles?"
Huang Tao: "..."
He strongly suspected that this customer said such sentimental words just to eat another bowl of Yellow Croaker Noodles.
He apologized: "I’m sorry, today’s ingredients are completely sold out. If you want to eat, come tomorrow at noon!"
"Boss Huang, when will you open a branch?"
Upon hearing this, the customer felt a bit disappointed, but thinking further, their eyes lit up as they asked: "By the way, Boss Huang, why don’t you open a branch at my hometown? Business would definitely thrive."
"Brother, where’s your hometown?" another customer asked with a smile.
"My hometown is in the corner of Northeast." The customer replied and continued to look expectantly at Huang Tao: "Boss Huang, open a branch in my hometown."
This request was really something Huang Tao couldn’t fulfill.
Not to mention that he didn’t have any plans to open a branch for now, even if he did, it wouldn’t be that far.
He apologized again: "I’m sorry, I currently have no plans to open a branch."
"Ah!"
The customer listened with a little regret and shook their head.
But they didn’t say much because whether to open a branch or where to open it is up to Boss Huang, as a customer, they couldn’t interfere and could only hope for the best.
Huang Tao walked to Xuanxuan’s table and saw her concentrating on braiding Barbie doll’s hair.
And it must be said, the braids looked quite proper and stylish!
This focused look made him reluctant to disturb.
So he quietly sat beside her, silently accompanying her.
At this point, he remembered he still had a lottery to draw!
Since the task was completed, he decided to give it a try and see what he could win this time?
With a thought in mind, he said "lottery" in his head, and a round lottery wheel appeared in his mind.
It was similar to the previous lottery wheel, except the dish names on the wheel seemed to differ.
He took a quick glance.
There were Braised Pork with Dried Vegetables, Yellow Croaker and Snow Vegetable, Sweet and Sour Spare Ribs, Pan-Seared Shrimp, Hot and Sour Shredded Potatoes, Kung Pao Chicken, White Cut Chicken, Steamed Pork, Mushroom and Bok Choy, Mapo Tofu, Squirrel Mandarin Fish...
Various local specialties were all available, and there were many he hadn’t even heard of!
Soon.
The lottery wheel started to spin slowly, faster and faster, faster and faster...
As Huang Tao looked at the stop button that appeared beside him, he was without hesitation, without a second thought, and immediately pressed down with his mind.
The spinning of the wheel slowly came to a halt.
Finally, the pointer gently stopped on a square.
[Congratulations to the host for winning the featured dish... Honeyed Ham.]
[Honeyed Ham recipe...]
[Honeyed Ham ingredients...]
For a moment, a multitude of experiences flooded into Huang Tao’s mind.
Honeyed Ham is a traditional dish of Jiangnan, it is also found in Suzhou, and belongs to Jiangsu and Zhejiang Cuisine.
In the Zhejiang Cuisine system, Honeyed Ham, as a sophisticated dish, should rank among the top five, not at all inferior to Dongpo Pork, West Lake Vinegar Fish, and beggar’s chicken.
The taste is sugary sweet, and all materials used have a rich sweetness.
The main ingredient is Jinhua Ham, which is selected from the hind leg of a black pig with large fat and tender meat, processed through salting, shaping, leg turning, washing, drying, and air-drying processes, taking months to complete.
The finished ham has a bright yellow skin, resembling bamboo leaves, with rosy red meat and rich aroma, exceptionally pleasing to the eye.
It is known for four exceptional qualities: its striking and beautiful appearance, bright meat texture, unique fragrance, and pleasing flavor.
Authentic Honeyed Ham is made using the best part of the ham, commonly known as top-section meat, along with white lotus seeds, pine nuts, and honey as aids, and long steaming, ultimately creating a delectable fusion of sweet and salty Honeyed Ham.
Huang Tao didn’t expect to be so lucky, drawing Honeyed Ham in one go.
It seemed today was indeed favored by Lady Luck!
Xuanxuan turned her head and found her dad sitting beside her. The next second, her eyes widened in surprise.
"Daddy!"
She sweetly called out.
Huang Tao came to his senses and reached out to touch Xuanxuan’s cheek, smiling in response: "Hey!"
Xuanxuan plunged into his embrace: "Daddy, when did you come? How come I didn’t notice!"
Huang Tao replied with a smile: "I came over a moment ago, saw you focused on playing, so I didn’t call out to you."
Saying this, he lifted Xuanxuan up, placed her on his lap, and leaned over to kiss Xuanxuan’s face: "Come, let Daddy give you a kiss."
Making Xuanxuan burst into giggles.
