Chapter 35 Chapter 35 The first day of business. (First update)...
Having made up his mind, Lin Zhi instructed Lin Sen and his wife to go to the Commercial and Taxation Bureau tomorrow.
Before a shop in this dynasty could open for business, it had to go to the Commercial Tax Bureau to go through the formalities, register, and then join the corresponding guild to facilitate the government's tax collection and management.
So the next morning, Lin Sen and his wife went out after breakfast. Before leaving, they said they would go to the market and buy two chicks.
"Since we are going to the market, let's hire a maid to wash the dishes and arrange for her to come when the business opens." Lin Zhi sent her parents to the door, then remembered something and gave special instructions.
Although their shop is big enough for three people and there is no need to add more people, Lin Sen has to be responsible for the incoming and outgoing goods and help with the processing of ingredients, and the remaining chores should be left to Song Jiaoniang.
However, Linzhi knew that although Song Jiaoniang's eyesight was poor, she still liked painting and needlework, so she didn't want her to hurt her hands.
"Okay." Lin Sen nodded.
Linzhi watched the two of them leave, then turned back to the house but did not do anything idle. Instead, she sat at the table, spread out a pen and paper, and began to think seriously.
There are many food shops on this street. According to her observation, the largest ones, Fu Rong Zhuang, Xie Da Mutton Restaurant and Dong Ji Restaurant, are doing business in a very fierce competition. The prices of dishes are often undercutting each other.
It would be impossible to compete head-on with just the limited capital of his own, so Linzhi gave up the idea of opening a restaurant from the beginning.
The second is a slightly smaller shop, which mainly makes steamed buns and steamed buns, and serves them with soups from the drink shop. Its customers are minor officials who are in a hurry. This area is very special. Because there are many government offices around it, it is open as usual at noon and sells lunch, unlike other streets that often close for lunch.
This custom is naturally closely related to the habits of the diners. Since the previous dynasty, wealthy merchants and dignitaries from outside have begun to eat lunch, and in the current dynasty, more and more people have also become fond of eating lunch, especially officials and wealthy families, who basically eat three meals a day.
Especially in government offices like the Dali Temple and the Street Office, which often require officials and runners to go out on official business, the officials and runners need to replenish their physical strength and have higher requirements for lunch than other places.
Therefore, Linzhi decided to focus on lunch. If their family wanted to stand out, they had to seize the need of officials and servants to eat well and be full in a short period of time, and at the same time pay attention to the income differences between officials and servants.
According to these requirements, Linzhi wrote and drew, and finally his eyes fell on the two options of "rice with gravy" and "noodle soup".
"Rice bowl, or a noodle shop..."
Linzhi held the brush and thought intently: Although there are similar rice dishes nowadays, for example, in "Dongjing Menghualu", there are restaurants in Bianjing City selling fried fish rice, so-called raw and cooked rice, and Chunmu rice - rice with meat sauce, but these "rice dishes" are all served as a dish in restaurants, and there are no specialty shops.
Compared to the relatively "rare" noodles, soup noodles - or various types of noodles - are developing in full swing. For example, there are two soup noodle shops on the entire street where they are located.
Firstly, Linzhi prefers industries with less competition. Secondly, rice with toppings is convenient and easy to make, and can also be packed and taken away.
If you make soup noodles instead, I'm afraid that even if the noodles don't become soft and mushy, the taste will change.
Third, shops specializing in rice bowls can change to small dishes in the future and gradually transform into specialized restaurants, or add other foods such as steamed buns and dumplings, and go the route of affordable foot shops.
"As expected, rice with toppings is more suitable."
Linzhi thought for a moment, then raised her hand and crossed out the item of soup noodles. She also wrote the words "oyster sauce" on the paper to remind herself not to forget about the promotion.
She thought and wrote down the names of several rice dishes on the paper soon.
Linzhi stopped writing when he had almost finished. Initially, there should not be too many categories to reduce inventory as much as possible.
After the business stabilizes, you can add new items every ten days. When the number of dishes is almost the same, you can delete the worst-selling items and add other types.
As Lin Zhi was checking for leaks and filling in the gaps, she heard the chirping of chickens outside the door. She looked up and saw Lin Sen coming in with a bamboo basket. Inside, two yellow-feathered chickens were fluttering around.
"Why are you back so soon?" Lin Zhi looked at the time and was surprised. Madam Yu had clearly said that it would take at least the morning to complete the formalities.
"Oh, forget it!" Song Jiaoniang plopped down next to Lin Zhi. "We just walked to the market and ran into Madam Yu who asked about something! So we quickly bought some chicks and came back."
After the day of making fried noodles with soybean paste, Madam Yu often came to talk to Song Jiaoniang, and later she took Song Jiaoniang to meet Madam Hua from the steamed bun shop.
As for the people in other food shops, they were just nodding acquaintances to Song Jiaoniang - after all, they were in the same industry, and Song Jiaoniang understood this. If they were enthusiastic right from the start, she would be afraid.
Linzhi remembered Madam Yu and Madam Hua. The former was a smooth and sophisticated person. The two times she met her, she followed Song Jiaoniang's words and joked with her affectionately, knowing how to act in moderation very well.
The latter, Lady Hua, was kind when she saw her, but she kept asking her indirectly where she learned the method of making meat sauce, and also asked her what her family did before, whether she had any relatives in Bianjing, and why she moved to Bianjing... Her inquisitive spirit was so strong that it seemed as if she could dig out the Linzhi family's ancestors for eight generations, which was really annoying.
The two of them were like twins, always inseparable, so Lin Zhi would rather be known as quiet and introverted than appear in front of them.
Hearing Song Jiaoniang mention the two of them, Lin Zhi subconsciously frowned: "What's the matter?"
"What do you think the name of our shop is? They say it's what we have to write down when we register with the Commercial Tax Bureau."
Lin Zhi fell silent as she finished speaking. The three of them had been so focused on decorating the shop and researching the dishes they would serve after opening that they had forgotten the most important thing: the name of the shop!
Song Jiaoniang looked at her daughter's reaction and felt even more helpless: "We are all such fools... I wouldn't have thought of it if they hadn't mentioned it. Besides! We haven't even decided on the door plaque or signboard yet!"
Lin Zhi was silent for a while, then changed the subject and asked, "Do Mom and Dad have any ideas?"
"Come on, let's sit down and have a good chat." Lin Sen put the two chickens in the chicken coop in the backyard first, then returned to the front room and sat down with his wife and daughter. "It's not too late for us to start thinking about it now."
Song Jiaoniang thought for a moment and spoke first, "How about Lin's Restaurant? It's straightforward and simple!"
"There are too many shops called Lin's in the market. I don't think it's appropriate." Lin Sen smiled at his wife. "How about Lin Song Restaurant? This is our family's shop."
Song Jiaoniang's cheeks turned slightly red and she glared at him.
During the time Lin Zhi had been with her parents, she had become numb to their sudden flirting. She calmly ignored their actions and was about to say "all right" when she saw Song Jiaoniang clasp her hands together and look at her with sparkling eyes: "That's right!"
Lin Zhi suddenly felt something was wrong.
Sure enough, the next second, she heard Song Jiaoniang's excited voice: "Linzhiji, how about calling it Linzhiji?"
Linzhi: “…I think” not very good.
Song Jiaoniang held her face in her hands and smiled, "Sister Zhi is the apple of our family's eye. At the same time, everyone else will know that our greatest treasure is Sister Zhi!"
Upon hearing this, Lin Sen immediately agreed: "Yes, yes, that's a good name! What my wife said makes sense. This way, people will know how powerful my daughter is as soon as they hear it."
Lin Sen didn't say anything, but in his heart he was annoyed by Hua Niangzi's behavior. He thought that their family used their daughter's name as a signboard, and who wouldn't know how powerful their daughter was!?
Lin Zhi struggled to refute: "...Lin Song Restaurant is good, or Lin Song Ji will be fine."
"No, no." The more Lin Sen and his wife thought about it, the more they felt that naming her after their daughter was the best idea. They shook their heads in tacit agreement, "Lin Zhi Ji is still the best!"
Lin Zhi struggled a bit, but it was no use. Seeing the warmth in her parents' eyes, she had no choice but to give up and surrender: "Okay, okay."
Seeing this, Lin Sen and Song Jiaoniang happily went out again. They first went to handle the formalities, and then rushed to the shop to urgently order the door plaque. As for the signboard, Song Jiaoniang bought the materials and made it herself.
Three days later, the door plaque was delivered to the shop.
On the opening day, Song Jiaoniang was busy wiping the tables and chairs and mopping the floor, while Lin Sen went to the market to get two strings of firecrackers that he had ordered in advance and was busy decorating the restaurant. Lin Zhi was also preparing the meals for the first day of business in the kitchen.
"Sister Zhi, everything is ready."
"Okay." Linzhi came out and took a look around. She saw that the shop was spotless. The door plaque was covered with red cloth, the door frame was tied with red silk, and even the firecrackers were tied with red silk ribbons and placed in a basin.
When it was time for the surrounding government offices to end their duties at noon, Lin Zhi nodded to Lin Sen.
Lin Sen took a deep breath and quickly lit the firecrackers in the basin. The firecrackers were real bamboo, and when they were thrown into the basin and lit, the crackling sound was deafening.
As soon as the officials and runners from the Dali Temple went out, they heard the noise and thought they were being attacked!
Not to mention the surrounding government offices, even the patrolling soldiers nearby rushed over upon hearing the noise, and then saw Lin Sen calmly lifting the red cloth and announcing the opening of the shop. They all had strange expressions and were stunned.
The people in the shop next door couldn't help but peek in: "...Isn't that Liurong Restaurant?"
Someone laughed and said, "Liu Rong Restaurant is outdated. They're now called Lin Zhi Ji! Our main business is... what is rice with toppings?"
Several people looked up at the words on the sign, puzzled. The officials and servants drawn by the sound also showed curiosity, and now it was Lin Sen and Song Jiaoniang's turn to take action.
Lin Sen, who used to work as a manager in a silk shop, approached with a smile. Seeing the plainly dressed man, he said, "We're opening today, and all dishes are 20% off! Each rice bowl starts at only nine cents, and refills are free!"
If she turned around and saw someone wearing fine fabrics and rich clothes, she would change her words and say, "This rice with toppings has many flavors, it's the first of its kind in Bianjing. Would you like to try it, my dear?"
It can be said that he said one thing to one person and another to another. However, Lin Sen's operation was very effective, and soon three or five minor officials came to the shop.
Song Jiaoniang was stunned. She didn't think she had the ability to do that, so she simply stepped back and handed over the task of attracting customers to Lin Sen. She was responsible for guiding the diners and arranging their seats. She pointed at the various paintings hanging on the wall and said with a smile, "Gentlemen, take a look. What would you like to eat?"
The portraits on the wall were the work of Song Jiaoniang. She had been a needlework expert for years, and her painting skills were quite impressive. Her drawings were so alluring that the officials who came across them were surprised. "Oh, there are actually drawings of dishes on the wall!"
“Painting dishes on the wall? How novel!”
"Look at that painting skill... Hmm? This diced eggplant and braised pork rice is only nine cents? And it comes with soup and a side dish?"
"Nine coins?" The clerk who heard the discussion took a deep breath and looked up repeatedly.
For a moment, exclamations rang out one after another.
The diners, who originally had no impression of the rice bowl, had a general impression after looking at the portrait, and immediately started whispering and discussing it.
"Minced pork and tofu rice is only nine cents!"
"What a great price... and it comes with a free soup and side dish!?"
"So it means putting food on rice?"
"That's the community meal, right?" someone said, touching his chin and laughing.
"There aren't that many ingredients." Another person smiled and shook his head, pointing to the portrait on the wall. "Look, this scrambled egg and chicken rice bowl only has eggs and chicken."
The so-called community rice is the festive food used by princes, nobles, officials and wealthy families to entertain guests and perform sacrifices during the Autumn Festival in August. Pork, mutton, duck cakes, stomach and lungs are cut into chess piece sizes, seasoned with sauce, and covered on rice. Finally, it is steamed and eaten.
"Eggs and chicken, seasoned and steamed..." The man looked at the portrait, hesitant: "I'll order one to try!"
There were also a few arrogant and richly dressed petty officials. They took a look at the menu and found that the diced eggplant with braised pork and minced meat tofu were made with pork. They immediately showed disgust on their faces and turned the pages repeatedly until they finally found the ones with mutton.
"It's just stir-fried lamb with scallions and rice... Hey? What is this stewed lamb with rice? Why isn't it called rice with toppings?"
"Stir-fried lamb with scallions and rice, I want this."
"Sixty-eight wen? That's a bit pricey." Someone frowned. "Not to mention the ones at Zhouqiao Night Market, even at Xie Da Mutton Restaurant, it's about the same price."
"Doesn't it say here that we're giving away 20% off today? That only works out to 54 cents," the person taking the order said with a smile. "If it doesn't taste good, that's fine."
That makes sense.
The other man thought about it and ordered one too: "I want mutton stewed with rice."
Immediately afterwards, the sound of people ordering food could be heard in the shop.
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