A plate of twice-cooked pork was completely devoured, even the garlic sprouts were eaten clean, leaving only a pool of glistening red oil on the plate.
"Delicious! I love it! Next time I'll buy the pork, and you cook it. Cook a lot, so I can eat an extra bowl of rice!" Zhou Jie was still craving more and had already started making a reservation for the next time.
"This Twice-cooked Pork With Garlic Sprouts is truly amazing! Should we put it on the menu?" Aunt Zhao asked Zhou Yan. She had now completely accepted that her cooking duties had been taken away and was starting to think about how to let customers enjoy delicious twice-cooked pork as well.
The same twice-cooked pork, but Zhou Yan's version was far superior to the usual home-style version.
The ingredients are largely the same; the difference lies in the heat control and seasoning.
Not only was it delicious, but it was also incredibly appetizing. The customers were sure to love this dish.
"It'll be on the menu tomorrow. I've already spoken to the butcher and asked them to save the second cut of pork for me." Zhou Yan replied with a smile, casually plucking two grains of rice from the corner of Zhou Momo's mouth.
"Guo Guo, we are having twice-cooked pork again tonight mah." Zhou Momo looked at him expectantly, uttering a single word: "Delicious!"
"Okay, we still have four liang of meat left over for tonight, enough for a stir-fry." Zhou Yan nodded with a smile.
"Guo Guo, you're so good! I'll love you forever! May you live to be a hundred!" Zhou Momo nestled closer, nuzzling her head against Zhou Yan's hand like a docile lamb.
"Momo, what about me? What about me?" Zhou Jie asked with a beaming smile.
"Jie Guo Guo…" Zhou Momo tilted her head and thought for a moment, "May your poop always be smooth!"
"Huh?" Zhou Jie scratched his head, "That's a beautiful blessing."
For most adults, this blessing is just as comforting as living to be a hundred.
After dinner, Zhou Jie and Zhou Yan sat under a tree by the door. He said, "Zhou Yan, I've almost mastered your 'Cross-legged Beef' recipe. If I were to make it the way you do, I'd price it sixty cents a bowl."
"If you were to sell it at the docks for sixty cents a bowl, you probably wouldn't sell twenty bowls a day. You'd earn less than you used to." Zhou Yan shook his head.
Zhou Jie got a little impatient: "Then I can't possibly sell it cheaper than you, can I? If I sold it cheaper than you, wouldn't that be deliberately undermining your business?"
Zhou Yan smiled and said, "I've actually considered this. How about you create a price tier? The Cross-legged Beef without beef is 50 cents, a 10 cents increase from before, but the taste is significantly improved. We've also added Chinese herbs, which increases the cost, but customers will find it more acceptable.
The Cross-legged Beef with beef is 60 cents, four slices of beef for 10 cents, and we won't make a single cent profit. Savvy customers will definitely choose the 60 cents Cross-legged Beef after a couple of tries, but price-sensitive customers will still have the 50 cents option."
Zhou Jie listened and thought about it carefully for a while, then clapped his hands and said, "That's a great idea! Zhou Yan, you're so clever!"
"Let's go, let's go to Jiazhou now to buy spices and Chinese herbs, so we can digest our food." Zhou Yan got up to push the bicycle.
"There are Chinese medicine shops in Suji, why go to Jiazhou?" Zhou Jie asked, puzzled.
"If our Cross-legged Beef broth fetches a good price and sells well, within three days someone will want to learn our recipe. Anyone interested can ask at a traditional Chinese medicine shop and find out what we use; adjusting the dosages will give them a very similar result. It's just a pot of soup, how much skill is involved?" Zhou Yan explained with a smile. "We'll go to Jiazhou, and the two of us can buy it from two different Chinese medicine shop. That'll give them plenty of time to figure it out, and by then you'll have built up a good reputation."
"Understood." Zhou Jie nodded.
"Actually, even if they roughly know how to use those spices and Chinese herbs, it doesn't matter. In the end, it's the details that make a dish stand out. Customers are discerning; they can tell which place is better after just one taste.
Your soup pot stands out at the docks because of your control over the broth's flavor. That's why no one in Zhou Village can compete with you."
Zhou Jie nodded repeatedly, exclaiming, "What you said makes perfect sense."
"Why don't you change the name of your signboard too? Let's call it Zhou Ji Qiao Jiao Niu Rou. May be we can grow this business into a big and successful one, and by the time the millennium is over, it'll be a decades-old brand." Zhou Yan suggested.
"I don't know anything about brands, but if you're willing to let me use your signboard, I'm definitely willing." Zhou Jie grinned. "In that case, I won't use yours for free. I learned how to make Cross-legged Beef from you, so from now on, I'll give you 20% of the profits from the stall."
"I don't want your money. How much can you make from a stall? You'll have to split this with Brother Haizi; both of your families rely on this income."
"But…"
"If you're going to open a shop in Jiazhou or Chengdu in the future, then you can talk to me about sharing shares to me." Zhou Yan interrupted him with a smile. "However, I'll still invest then, acting as a hands-off boss and waiting for the year-end dividends."
"Okay." Seeing his resolute attitude, Zhou Jie didn't insist further. "Once we figure out the ropes of business, we'll find a storefront. We brothers can partner up and make it big!"
The two rode their bicycle towards Jiazhou, chatting along the way.
Zhou Yan actually thought highly of Zhou Jie. He was reliable, worldly-wise, and his ability to stand out among the numerous soup pot stalls at the docks and build a stable customer base was proof enough of his competence.
What he lacked was vision and a grasp of future direction.
The dish "Cross-legged Beef" was enough to support a restaurant, and in later generations, it became one of Jiazhou's signature dishes, on par with Sweet-skinned Duck, Bo Bo Chicken, and Spicy Hot Pot.
Zhou Yan wasn't satisfied with just opening a single Cross-legged Beef shop, but he could let Zhou Jie handle it. He would invest and provide advice, while Zhou Jie would manage the operations, and they could collect their year-end dividends.
Once Jiazhou's tourism industry develops, the time-honored Cross-legged Beef restaurant can earn a considerable amount annually.
This is the best way he can think of to maximize resource utilization, helping trusted people around him grow and improve their lives, while also reaping substantial rewards from their growth.
Back from Jiazhou, Zhou Yan divided up the spices and Chinese herbs, while Zhou Jie carried the things back to prepare for tomorrow's business upgrade.
Today's gossip was explosive; through a series of lively conversations, Zhou Erwa Restaurant's reputation was thoroughly established, and that evening, many customers who had heard of its fame went straight to Zhou Erwa Restaurant.
Zhao Dong brought a lunch box, wanting to pack up a portion of braised pork ribs, saying he wanted to take it back for his two children and his mother to try.
While waiting for his food at the door, he kept talking:
"Try it! Even the factory director says the food here is good."
"Old Qian, have a bowl of Cross-legged Beef before you go back, and I guarantee your wife will bring you foot bath water tomorrow."
"Which dish is good? There's really no difference! If you want something to eat with rice, order the crucian carp with perilla leaves and the minced beef with double peppers; if you like braised dishes, the braised beef with dried bamboo shoots is amazing; if you have kids at home who are craving something sweet, order the braised pork ribs…"
"The factory canteen? Even a dog wouldn't eat there unless they changed the head chef!"
The workers: "…"
You're so high and mighty!
What about them eating at the factory canteen everyday?
However, after Zhao Dong's enthusiastic promotion, quite a few people actually decided to go in for a meal.
Zhao Dong was beaming. He was overjoyed that Sun Meili and Wang Defa had been taken away today; he felt a sense of satisfaction, like he'd finally gotten his revenge.
Zhou Yan, the one who had instigated the incident, was now his friend, so it was only natural for him to promote his friend's restaurant.
Of course, Old Xu was in a bad mood; it was uncertain whether he'd even come to work tomorrow.
Zhou Dong had mentioned it today, saying that if Old Xu was really in a bad mood, he could get him a day off tomorrow.
Anyone in this situation would be in a bad mood.
Zhou Yan had heard from Zhao Hong, who brought in a lunch box, about Zhao Dong's help in promoting the restaurant, so he gave this enthusiastic salesperson a few extra pieces of ribs when packing them.
Just past six o'clock, only braised pork ribs and crucian carp with perilla leaves were left on the menu; all the other dishes were in the sold out section.
Zhou Yan had ordered eighty crucian carp today; even if a few were left over, they could be kept in the tank overnight without any problem.
He prepared twenty servings of braised pork ribs today, and they still have six servings left. This dish is selective; female workers and children like it more, but it's a bit pricey and not very appetizing, so fewer people order it.
However, the peak customer flow had already passed, and the factory workers who were supposed to go home for dinner all gone. The few remaining customers hesitated, seeing only these two main dishes left.
Just then, two men in black Zhongshan suits entered, chatting casually, followed by two little boys.
"Factory Director, Deputy Factory Director you're here." Aunt Zhao greeted them immediately.
"Yes, Sister Zhao, the factory director, the two children, and I are just having a simple meal." Lin Zhiqiang replied with a smile.
"Aunt Zhao." Lin Jingxing and Lin Bingwen greeted politely, but their eyes were already glancing into the shop.
"Little Guo Guo!" Zhou Momo waved her little hand at them from her high stool.
"Sister Momo!"
The two of them immediately ran over, one taking out candy and the other taking out oranges, they were very generous.
"Thank you, little Guo Guo." Zhou Momo accepted the candy and oranges, then turned and took a bag of Ding Ding candy from the cabinet, picking out the two largest pieces and handing them to the two boys. "Here, have some Ding Ding candy."
"Thank you."
The two little boys took the candy and immediately popped it into their mouths.
"So sweet!"
"Sister Momo's Ding Ding candy is so delicious!"
The two boys ate the candy, praising it as they ate.
Lin Zhiqiang watched his two sons surrounding the little girl, a smile on his face.
He hadn't expected that at thirty eight, his two sons would still be urging him to have a third child.
Not to mention the current policy didn't allow it, what if he had another son?
Of course he loved a sweet, soft little girl. When Meng Anhe was pregnant with their second child, they both dreamed of having a daughter.
These days, the couple is frequently away on business trips, with Meng Anhe even busier than him, leaving their two sons practically unsupervised.
Meng Anhe went to Rongcheng this morning. When she took the boys to school, they kept insisting on eating at Zhou Yan's restaurant.
They couldn't stop craving Zhou Yan's braised pork ribs, just like their cousin sister.
These two little devils are very observant. Last night, when they got home, they even pried open his mouth to smell if he was secretly eating outside, repeatedly warning him not to eat alone.
Their mother had already paid, so Lin Zhiqiang naturally couldn't be left out.
The factory director happened to be an hour late because of the cafeteria's accounting, so he invited the director to have a casual meal together.
Normally, Wang Hongliang would have refused.
But upon hearing that they were going to eat at Zhou Yan's restaurant, he agreed without hesitation.
The two found an empty table and sat down. Looking at the menu on the wall, they both frowned.
"Only two dishes left?"
Wang Hongliang had wanted to try the braised beef with dried bamboo shoots again; the bamboo shoots were so fragrant, he'd been craving them all day at work.
Zhou Yan came out of the kitchen upon hearing the commotion, smiling as he explained, "Factory director, Uncle Lin, there were quite a few workers coming for dinner today, so we've almost sold out of our dishes. We only have a few servings of braised pork ribs and a few crucian carp left."
Wang Hongliang looked at Zhou Yan and smiled, "The crucian carp with perilla leaves and the braised pork ribs are good dishes. How about you stir-fry a simple vegetable dish for us too?"
"Yes, Little Zhou, we'll have a crucian carp with perilla leaves, a serving of braised pork ribs, and a vegetable dish." Lin Zhiqiang nodded in agreement. Although it was a simple meal, two dishes weren't enough for four people.
One plate of pork ribs wasn't even enough for the two teenagers.
"There's still a piece of second cut pork left in the kitchen. How about I stir-fry some Twice-cooked Pork With Garlic Sprouts for you? I plan to put this dish on the menu tomorrow." Zhou Yan guessed what the two were thinking and said with a smile, "There's not much meat, just a little over three liang. Please taste it and give your feedback."
Wang Hongliang's eyes lit up, clearly showing interest.
Hearing this, the other customers nearby all turned to look.
...