Food Stall: Customers Chase Me across the Country-Chapter 246 - 247: Fame Exceeds Reality

"Everyone, guess hard. There will be prizes for correct guesses."

Old Di had a look of calm assurance: "Whoever guesses right, next time I’m in their city, I’ll invite them to join me for a restaurant exploration."

Upon hearing this, the fans got a bit excited and started brainstorming intensely.

"The only condition is high looks, high enough to make Old Di this confident. Could it be an idol or a celebrity from the entertainment industry?"

"Or perhaps a face-eating internet celebrity?"

"Ah, come on, Old Di hasn’t shown many faces in his videos. This is really hard to guess; give us a hint, will you?"

"Exactly, give us a hint—is it a man or a woman, or what industry?"

"Do we even need a hint? I already know who it is. Old Di went to Taotao Residence; that’s in Guangfu. To simultaneously satisfy being in Guangfu and having high looks, and having intersections with Old Di—other than Wang Fan, Boss Wang, who else could it be?"

As soon as this guy’s analysis was out, the fans in the live streaming room also caught on.

"What the heck? That’s not impossible, is it?"

"This wave is truly a dream collaboration?"

"Don’t bring up irrelevant stuff; quickly aim the camera at Brother Wang, I’m ready to dig in!"

"Hurry up! Stop dawdling!"

Old Di shouted in shock and said: "Amazing, you guys figured it out. That’s right, I ran into Boss Wang tonight, and now I’ll let Boss Wang greet you all."

Saying this, he slowly turned the camera towards Wang Fan.

Wang Fan smiled and greeted: "Hello, everyone."

A simple sentence, and the live streaming room exploded.

"World-class beauty! Watching a chef like this really whets the appetite."

"Old Di isn’t using beauty filters, is he? Does he really look like this?"

"Why would Old Di’s face need beauty filters? It’s full of wrinkles like a chrysanthemum; Boss Wang really looks like this, I’ve seen him on-site, tall and handsome!"

"This is a handsome guy from our great Northeast."

"Alright, most of the dishes are up, let’s proceed with the tasting and review session now."

Di Renjie announced, then aimed the camera at the dishes: "There’s no use complaining; we’re food bloggers, not depending on looks to get by, hahaha."

Di Renjie felt really satisfied in his heart, letting those who kept dissing his looks and suggesting he shoot more food, less face, have their way today!

"Ah, damn it! Who wants to look at food, watching it every day is boring. Give us Boss Wang back!"

"Although I’m male, I still find looking at Boss Wang’s face more appetizing. If Boss Wang needs, I’m available."

"Get lost, upstairs! Us girls aren’t extinct yet!"

Di Renjie no longer cared what people were saying in the live stream room, he just started eating his dishes independently.

He picked up a piece of reddish roasted meat, displayed it before the camera, and then put it in his mouth.

After tasting it for a while, he said: "Roast meat platter, 98. This meat’s texture is very elastic, with a slight hint of meat odor. Let’s try another piece of roast meat."

He picked up a piece of golden crispy roast meat, displayed it again, then put it in his mouth, chewing it with a "crunch crunch" sound, the sound alone indicating how crispy the meat was.

"This roast meat is very crispy, the meat has excellent elasticity, the texture is soft, and the flavor is well marinated, I quite recommend this roast meat, let’s rate it three stars."

Wang Fan found it rather interesting listening to Di Renjie eating and reviewing, coincidentally the server also brought a dish he ordered.

He gave Zhuo Qianqian a piece, and also took one himself.

The first dish he anticipated was a signature dish called Stir-fried Grouper Fish, priced at 98 yuan, but the quantity was admittedly a bit small.

A plate wasn’t much larger than a palm, barely containing about ten pieces of fish, with the rest being Dutch peas and two pieces of bell pepper for garnish.

This was entirely different from what he imagined.

Is the plating in a century-old brand really so casual?

Wang Fan hadn’t eaten yet, but saw the foodie already looking disdainfully at the fish on her plate.

He found it amazing; since he met Zhuo Qianqian, he had never seen such a look of contempt on her face, including for street snacks which she enjoyed thoroughly.

How bad does it have to taste?

Wang Fan extended his chopsticks, not reaching for the plate but taking the piece from Zhuo Qianqian’s plate and putting it in his mouth.

The foodie never wasted food, if he hadn’t taken it, she probably would have frowned while eating it.

Once the fish entered his mouth, Wang Fan understood why Zhuo Qianqian had that expression.

The sauce was too thick, the heat overdone, the freshness of the Dutch peas didn’t adhere to the fish slices, making the taste cloying instead.

With another chew, he could clearly feel the fish’s overcooked, entirely without the freshness and tenderness unique to grouper fish.

Wang Fan picked another piece, still the same feeling, confirming it indeed came from the same pan.

A big question mark appeared in his head, a century-old brand’s signature dish... truly?

At this moment, a server brought two plates of Frozen Sweet and Sour Pork in, although puzzled why five people would order two portions, he didn’t ask.

Wang Fan moved the grouper aside a bit and pushed the Sweet and Sour Pork towards Zhuo Qianqian.

Di Renjie had already set up his position and put a piece into his mouth.

"The Sweet and Sour Pork’s texture and flavor are quite good, but personally, I cannot accept this serving style; the ice beneath makes the meat’s exterior a bit cold and chilled pork inside can be quite unpleasant. Frankly, form outweighs practical significance."

Di Renjie was renowned for speaking his mind; his reviews were exceptionally sharp.

Wang Fan watched his Sweet and Sour Pork, finding it amusing. This time the plate wasn’t small, but underneath was a thick layer of ice cubes, with a small pile of meat on top, estimated at over twenty pieces.

If this meat were any other, it’d be fine, but just ordinary pork at this price, Wang Fan reckoned if this were in their Northeast, this restaurant wouldn’t survive past the next day.

Looking at Zhuo Qianqian’s lackluster interest after picking a piece, Wang Fan, while appreciating the aesthetics of the Sweet and Sour Pork, abandoned any fantasies.

Di Renjie looked at Wang Fan, smiling as he asked: "Boss Wang also got the Sweet and Sour Pork; do you want to talk about this dish’s situation?"

Wang Fan replied: "The exterior is cold, inside is hot, the crispy texture isn’t bad, the temperature variation is quite innovative."

Di Renjie burst into laughter: "Didn’t expect young Boss Wang to have such high emotional intelligence, all the upsides of the dish have been said by you, the rest I’m afraid won’t be nearly as flattering."

Wang Fan shrugged, opting to stay silent, mainly because he really didn’t know what else to say. As Di Renjie mentioned, continuing would only point out a multitude of flaws.

Regarding this journey to Taotao Residence, Wang Fan felt it could be summarized as arriving with high spirits and leaving disappointed.

He had no expectations for the remaining dishes, considering how the signature dish turned out, how could the others be good?

Wang Fan at this moment truly grasped why more and more people detest those so-called internet celebrities and trendy spots.

The packaging and hype are too excessive, but the real thing completely fails to live up to the packaging and hype.

It’s like chatting online with someone who looks like Dilireba, only to meet someone resembling Malzahar face-to-face, a discrepancy that’s truly unbearable.

I think I better not admit to having the identity of an internet celebrity; I can’t stand the embarrassment!

Wang Fan silently thought to himself.

His first visit to a century-old restaurant concluded hastily; if fans asked him how the place was, he could only say: "It’s alright, but not worth a special trip, there are plenty of places that can produce this taste, even comparing to street ones, this has no obvious advantage."