Of course, the fat man wouldn't tell her that "Aunt Meixue" was born in 1952, and that she had already written "My Favorite" this year, which she would re-interpret and release next year. In 1993, it was covered in Cantonese by Vivian Chow, who was known for her "fist skills" and "leg skills".
As for the fact that "Aunt Mei Xue" supports half of the port... and that she rides on someone's back, it's best not to tell Xiao Dang about that.
Then, the Spring Festival Gala finally arrived.
When the first Spring Festival Gala aired in 1983, the fat man's family was still watching a black and white TV; by this year's Spring Festival, they had already switched to a 20-inch color TV, and the whole family was seeing color TV programs for the first time.
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Because it seized the initiative, Qilige's business is booming.
Long queues of customers form every day at lunchtime and in the evening. As for what Sha Zhu said in the TV series, "There's hardly anyone eating during the day, it's all at night," that's both true and false.
That's in relation to small restaurants, like the one Yan Jiecheng opened; just like in the story, he went into business and opened a restaurant.
However, with the brilliance of Fatty's family restaurant setting a high bar, Yan Jiecheng's small restaurant was not competitive enough. Since its opening, business had been lukewarm, and it had only just begun to show some promise.
No, that's not quite right. It refers to large restaurants like the Qilige restaurant owned by Fatty's family.
They invested a total of 350,000 yuan, and with the fat man's skills, they were considered a well-known brand in Beijing.
Now, when Xu Damao discusses business with people, he says, "There's a Huaiyang cuisine restaurant in Bamiancao that my brother owns. The food is incredibly authentic. If you're going to treat someone, we should go there!"
This afternoon, the place was packed again, both upstairs and downstairs.
Qili Pavilion is a small restaurant with two floors. The downstairs is the main hall, which can accommodate sixteen tables at the same time; the upstairs is the private rooms, with a total of 8 rooms, including 4 large and 4 small ones.
Yu Li and her four female waitresses were almost overwhelmed with work, their ears filled with the sounds of people urging them to order.
The kitchen has now been completely transformed.
The old earthen pit stove is gone. The floor is now paved with non-slip tiles, and there's a full set of stainless steel appliances, a range hood, a large refrigerator, and even an electric fan mounted on the wall…
This stove alone is divided into three layers: 12 burners on the outer ring, 6 on the inner ring, and even 2 more on the very innermost layer!
When cooking with this stove, the temperature can reach around 2000 degrees Celsius in just a few seconds!
At first, Lao Wang was not used to it and couldn't help but exclaim to Fatty, "This is too advanced. I don't even dare to blink when cooking with this pot. If I slow down even slightly, it's all over."
"..."
When Liu Lan came in, the kitchen was already overwhelmed with work.
Seeing the fat man sweating profusely down his neck, I couldn't help but come over and wipe his sweat away.
The plump aunt rolled her eyes: "Hey, hey, hey, watch out, Yu Like is right ahead."
The kitchen staff laughed, but Liu Lan didn't care: "The tables have turned over again! Business is just too good. We're really short-staffed. What do you think about that thing I mentioned last time?"
While frying the fish, the fat man said, "You mean Sha Zhu? He's alright, but the problem is he's hard to manage."
Upon hearing the name Sha Zhu, Zhao Lao Er snorted.
Because of the life-saving grace from back then, Sha Zhu took the initiative to reconcile with Xu Damao and Fatty, but he didn't reconcile with him!
They are still enemies to this day. Not to mention that after Sha Zhu became the canteen manager, he still made things difficult for Zhao Lao Er. The fact that Zhao Lao Er didn't kill Sha Zhu is already a sign that he was following the law.
The fat man is right. In this restaurant, Yu Li is the general manager and Aunt Pang is the kitchen supervisor. One is in charge of operations and the other is in charge of the kitchen.
The fat man was just a member of the masses; he wasn't even the lowest-ranking cadre that the people could accept—the "group leader."
If Sha Zhu were to come, given his personality, would he really be willing to submit to someone else? We shouldn't ruin the hard-won unity we've built up so far.
The current team has been working together since 1965, almost 20 years have passed.
They're aging quite a bit. Take Old Wang, for example, he'll be 60 this year.
The others are about the same age. Aunt Pang is 53 this year, Zhao Lao Er is 51, and Fatty is 39 and almost 40.
Liu Lan is two years older than the fat man, and even the youngest, Shen Xuemei, is 37 this year.
But this team is really good; they can be directed like an extension of their own limbs, and each member performs their specific duties.
Fatty and Old Wang each led Tian Kai and Zhao Long, primarily in charge of cooking; Aunt Fatty was in charge of the pasta dishes; Old Zhao was in charge of the hot dishes; Shen Xuemei was in charge of the cold dishes; Liu Lan shuttled between the front and back of the kitchen; he also recruited two young people who had just graduated from culinary school this year as apprentices...
Culinary schools are nothing new. They existed as early as 1954 and were called the Beijing Culinary School.
Fatty was generous with everyone's wages. Aunt Fatty and Liu Lan earned 2,500 a month; Lao Wang and Zhao Lao Er earned 2,000 a month; Shen Xuemei earned 1,800; and even the apprentices received a floating salary of 500 + 200 each month.
That's equivalent to a year's salary at the factory!
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Qili Pavilion's signature dish is the "stir-fried shrimp with chives and eggs" that Fatty used to make at Director Wang's house, which is a must-order at every table. Even first-time customers are introduced to this dish by the waiters.
Fatty's greatest skill is his ability to make delicious food from ordinary ingredients, creating dishes that are both unique and tasteful, perfectly suited to the dietary habits of Beijing residents.
Secondly, there's eel, and Fatty's family's "Sizzling Eel" is absolutely amazing. When the dish is served, the oil in the plate is still sizzling.
The visual effect is just like the "crispy rice crust with sliced pork" in Sichuan cuisine. The boiling broth is poured onto the dark red crispy rice crust, and the flames leap up high!
It can attract everyone's attention instantly.
The essence of making this dish, Braised Eel in Hot Oil, lies in the phrase "rich oil and dark soy sauce".
The secret lies in this thickening sauce. The fat man personally prepared the thickening sauce, which he poured into the pot along with the pepper to coat the eel and fully bring out its unique umami flavor. Just before taking it off the heat, he added minced garlic and hot sesame oil.
It has to be piping hot sesame oil poured over the eel; the sizzling sound brings out the aroma of minced garlic, giving the otherwise ordinary eel an extraordinary flavor.
Xu Damao is also hosting a lunch here today.
Liu Lan ran into him while serving the food: "What brings you here again?"
Xu Damao grinned so hard his mustache almost stood up like a telephone pole: "Oh, it's Liu Lan! I especially love the uniforms at your restaurant. The waitresses all wear red dresses, so charming and elegant; and your kitchen staff wear pristine white uniforms, which makes you feel so bright and spacious."
He first praised Liu Lan profusely before introducing her, saying, "This is Boss Li, an important client of mine. I'll talk to my brother later, and he'll know how to arrange things."
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