Chapter 154

Qing Mengzhu took a bite and felt her appetite return; her stomach, which hadn't been very hungry before, suddenly felt hungry.

Not only did Qing Mengzhu find the pickled plums surprisingly delicious, but Zhao Hexi was also amazed. "Why do pickled plums taste like this? They look like a culinary disaster, but I didn't expect them to taste so satisfying."

Ming Chunxi commented from the side, "It's also very refreshing."

Zhou Yan said with some pride, "That's right, it's a great appetizer that whets the appetite and quenches thirst. If it weren't for the season and the quality of the plum meat being so good, we wouldn't be able to put together such a dish."

Qing Mengzhu: "It's really delicious, it completely changed my impression of green plums."

Zhou Yan: "So don't sell your green plums, just keep them for me to use in cooking."

Qing Mengzhu readily agreed, "No problem, I won't pick them. You can pick them whenever you want."

Pickled plums were so unconventional that Qing Mengzhu couldn't help but take a picture and post it on his WeChat Moments after trying two bites.

This is also a way to warm up their farm – it's opening soon, so they need to create some buzz.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he posted on his WeChat Moments, Ming Lexin messaged him privately.

Author's Note:

P. S.: All draws are randomized by the system, it all depends on luck!

Chapter 154

Qing Mengzhu read the message sent by Ming Lexin.

Ming Lexin's main point was that a friend's daughter was pregnant and experiencing severe morning sickness, and now craved sour things. She wanted to get some pickled plums for her friend's daughter.

This wasn't a big deal. Qing Mengzhu glanced at it for Ming Chunxi, then showed the chat history to Zhou Yan: "Brother Zhou, my aunt asked if I could send these plums? A friend's daughter is pregnant and wants to eat something sour."

Zhou Yan: "Pregnant woman?"

After thinking for a moment, Zhou Yan said, "It's not safe to send food to a pregnant woman. How about I give her the recipe?"

Qing Mengzhu quickly refused. "No, no, no, how can you just give your prescription to anyone?"

Zhou Yan said very generously, "It's alright, you can find this recipe online, it's not some secret recipe."

Qing Mengzhu: "Then send it to me."

Zhou Yan: "I'll send it to you after I've sorted it out."

Speaking of pregnant women, Zhou Yan said, "I've been thinking these past few days, our dishes are so good, should we develop medicinal cuisine?"

Qing Mengzhu: "Medicinal cuisine?"

They grow Chinese medicinal herbs such as Gastrodia elata, Polygonatum sibiricum, Rehmannia glutinosa, and lily bulbs. If they were to develop medicinal cuisine, it would seem like a viable option.

Zhou Yan: "Yes, let's create something unique. For example, plums. We could develop a sour plum drink to make it more memorable."

Qing Mengzhu: "That requires careful consideration."

Zhou Yan: "We've always focused on farm-style cuisine, so developing some medicinal dishes and nourishing dishes would be a good idea. The names sound good, and the prices can be just as high."

Ming Chunxi unusually offered his opinion. "I think we can add more specialty dishes, but there's no need to formally pursue a medicinal cuisine approach. The narrower the scope, the fewer target customers we'll have, and if not handled properly, it's easy to incur losses."

Qing Mengzhu pondered for a moment, "That makes sense."

Zhou Yan: "How about we don't officially open yet, but instead have a trial operation for a while? That way we can make adjustments promptly if any problems arise."

This time, no one had any objections.

Qing Mengzhu quickly sent green plums to the daughter of Ming Lexin's friend.

The recipient received it and said they really liked their green plums, so they added them on WeChat to express their gratitude.

The farm they bought was quickly renovated, and the relevant licenses were obtained.

Zhou Yan officially resigned from his former employer and led his team to move into "Zhuxi Catering Group," where they entered the trial operation phase.

The new restaurant didn't have many customers, so they advertised directly within their large membership group, offering half-price meals during the trial period and only accepting two tables a day, one for lunch and one for dinner.

The moment the link was posted, it was sold out instantly, before they could even promote it.

The first phase of the seven-day trial operation went incredibly smoothly.

Qing Mengzhu said to Ming Chunxi, "I didn't expect our customers to trust us so much."

Ming Chunxi had anticipated this. "Reputation is built up step by step like this, and we will have an even better reputation in the future."

Qing Mengzhu rubbed his hands together, eager to try. "Then we'll have to see what we're capable of."

During the trial operation, Zhou Yan personally came over to discuss the menu with them.

They want to offer high-end cuisine, specializing in upscale farm-style dishes, and their menu will be quite different from other restaurants.

They also use high-end ingredients such as ham, abalone, and Sichuan peppercorns, but they emphasize the combination of high-end ingredients and fresh vegetables from the countryside.

Zhou Yan: "Take a look at the menu. Each table will have three or four different dishes. Let's practice first."

Qing Mengzhu took the thick leather menu, opened it, and read, "Ham and pepper pickled plums, bamboo shoots with roast beef, charcoal-grilled pork neck wrapped in green beans... All the dishes seem quite unfamiliar."

Zhou Yan: "It's just that it has a name that's not very familiar to people. Once people feel familiar with it, they won't think it's high-end."

Qing Mengzhu handed the menu back to him. "That makes sense, let's do it your way."

On the first day of the trial operation, Zhou Yan quickly led his team to get busy in the kitchen.

New place, new team, new tools—you have to adapt to everything. If you don't prepare in advance, it's easy to get overwhelmed.

Qing Mengzhu was invited to visit the kitchen and found that Zhou Yan was indeed a chef with management experience. With so many people, everyone had their own role in making hot dishes, cold dishes, and barbecue, and they quickly got the hang of it.

Qing Mengzhu's family doesn't grow too many vegetables; most of them have to be transported from outside.

Fortunately, they are located in Vine City, where transportation is very convenient. Even air freight is not a problem, so the vegetables they bought today arrived early this morning. Now, counting and storing them is not difficult at all.

Qing Mengzhu couldn't cook and didn't have the relevant licenses, so she couldn't do anything herself. She just put on her hat and watched from the kitchen.

Zhou Yan was making sauce, frying pork chops, and stewing soup. The aroma wafted out in waves, making Qing Mengzhu's mouth water.

Zhou Yan could tell at a glance that Qing Mengzhu was craving it, and kept urging him on:

"Want to try some steak?"

Would you like a roasted pigeon leg?

"This is braised duck in soy sauce. I started making it the day before yesterday. I used some peppercorn leaves that I picked from your field. Would you like to try it and see if you like it?"

Qing Mengzhu, holding a small bowl, ate until her lips were greasy. "It's so delicious! The flavor is rich and intense. Brother Zhou, your cooking is amazing!"

Zhou Yan: "What's your favorite dish?"

Qing Mengzhu without hesitation, "Soy sauce duck! The aroma of this soy sauce duck is so rich and unique, it just lingers in my mouth."

Zhou Yan asked the other people who were tasting the food, "What about you?"

Most people exclaimed in unison, "Pesto duck!"

Some people said, "Ham and pepper strips pickled with green plums, sour, spicy, salty, and fragrant, give me a plate, I could enjoy it for an entire afternoon."

Someone else commented, "Chicken marrow and bamboo shoots! This dish is so fresh, and the ingredients are excellent."

After hearing what everyone had said, Qing Mengzhu asked curiously, "Brother Zhou, what about you?"

Zhou Yan smiled and said, "I like mulberry leaves in soup; they're fresh and delicious, and they really give you a feeling of spring."

They tasted the dishes and summarized their findings.

Around 11:00 AM, Zhao Linling, the lobby manager, came over to remind the diners that they had arrived.

Zhou Yan and the others then quickly prepared lunch.

All the ingredients have been prepared, and the preliminary work has been completed. It can be served after a little cooking.

Zhou Yan led the team in their work, his movements methodical and efficient, demonstrating his considerable skill.

As the owner, Qing Mengzhu had no intention of entertaining the diners and was about to tell Zhou Yan that she was leaving.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Linling came over carrying a box of loquats and said to Qing Mengzhu, "Boss, it seems there are some of your friends among the diners. They said they'd like to give you some loquats."

Qing Mengzhu glanced at the box of white loquats, wondering, "Did the diners introduce themselves?"

Zhao Linling smiled, "It's a young lady surnamed Xu, and she's probably pregnant."

Qing Mengzhu then realized that this must be the daughter of Ming Lexin's friend.