"Brother Li, you're joking! Letting children out? Don't you want to eat anymore? Be careful your son doesn't knock the food over. Then you'll be eating nothing but the northwest wind, not hotpot."
"Even if it really is for releasing children, Brother Li, do you dare to do it? Be careful your wife will give you a good scolding, hahaha, everyone knows you're afraid of your wife."
“You guys just tease me. Am I afraid of my wife? I respect her. Besides, I was just joking. I wouldn’t really let her go. I can’t just enjoy the good life while my son stands in the middle of the table as punishment.”
"....."
Yan Xia almost laughed so hard she couldn't stand up straight; these people are truly talented.
What a vivid imagination!
"Gentlemen, please be patient. We'll order one table at a time. Although we have waiters, they're on their first day and don't know how to order. You four will follow my lead and learn how to order, understand?"
Yan Xia picked up the menu and walked to the first table, with Qian Rong, Qian Hua, Qian Fu, and Qian Gui beside her.
They watched cautiously.
I'm a little nervous.
"Sir/Madam, our hot pot is spicy. You've probably had the pot before, it's similar. However, our hot pot broth isn't just water. Can you handle spice? We suggest you order the mildly spicy broth. Don't eat too much the first time."
Yan Xia handed them the menu, and each of them held two wooden boards and looked at them.
She also had two identical wooden planks in her hand.
Holding her homemade charcoal pencil in her right hand, she could draw marks on the wooden board, which were easy to erase with a light wipe of a damp cloth.
It also makes it less likely to miss the dishes ordered by customers.
After all, hot pot has more ingredients, unlike the few dishes served in restaurants.
She was afraid her servants wouldn't remember.
If we miss a dish, it will upset the guests.
It's not worth the risk.
As for the maid Yan Xia, she wouldn't let them come to the front of the shop.
Some guests are not well-mannered, and after drinking some alcohol, they will definitely try to touch you inappropriately. The maids are also human beings, and Yan Xia did not want them to be humiliated, so she stayed in the back to prepare food and wash dishes.
The first table of guests ordered a slightly spicy hot pot base, a beef platter, a braised meat platter, a pork tenderloin, a plate of lamb, a plate of winter melon slices, a plate of potato slices, a plate of cabbage, and a pot of sake.
It totaled five and a half taels of silver.
Because beef is too expensive, it accounts for the majority of the cost.
"Sir, your total is five and a half taels of silver. Would you like to add some more? That way, you can get six taels and get two taels off, which is more cost-effective. I think there are six of you, so you should be able to finish it."
"Alright, Manager Yan, you can decide what to do. Let's make a dish that costs half a tael of silver."
These people were easy to talk to; they were regular customers of her pastry shop.
They looked very familiar; Yan Xia had even greeted them a few times.
She wouldn't have suggested adding more dishes if it were someone else, since she felt she was losing out by charging half a tael less silver and getting an extra dish for free.
"Alright, then I'll add a plate of lamb spine for you, which is exactly half an ounce. So, subtracting two ounces, you'll only need to pay four ounces later. As part of our opening promotion, your table will also receive a pot of sake and two cups of plum juice or iced soy milk. Would you like iced soy milk or plum juice?"
The soy milk was delivered in the morning. I added sugar while it was still hot, stirred it well, and left it to cool down for an hour.
It's estimated to be even colder now.
"It's awful cold. Let's skip the iced soy milk and have two glasses of plum juice instead. It just so happens that Brother Zhao and Brother Zhou can't drink much alcohol, so let's give them the plum juice."
"Okay, I understand. Please continue your conversation. The dishes will be served shortly."
Yan Xia asked the four people to take back the menus, and then handed the number 1 menu, which she had marked with a checkmark, to Qian Rong.
"Go to the backyard to prepare. Remember to be careful when putting on the charcoal and the bottom of the pot."
"Yes, Master."
Qian Rong picked up the menu and hurried to the backyard.
Yan Xia stood by the counter, watching the work of the other three servants.
Everything was done very well. They took orders from each table separately. By the time the remaining 6 tables had finished ordering, Qian Rong had already set up the charcoal plate and iron pot for table number one. The hot pot base and beef spine broth in the pot were perfectly combined with the water under the heat.
There were also chopped scallions, ginger, garlic, and bay leaves floating on top.
The fragrance spread immediately.
This attracted frequent glances from guests at other tables.
Yan Xia put up a pretty curtain at the main entrance to block the cold wind from coming in.
But that couldn't stop the fragrance from spreading.
It was lunchtime.
Soon the second floor was also full.
The four waiters were working up a great deal of time.
They were bringing out charcoal and serving dishes.
Several tables of customers felt the food was too spicy and ordered a few more cups of iced soy milk to cool down.
No more customers complained about being cold.
After a few bites, I was sweating all over.
hot.
It's so spicy.
Everyone was hissing and panting.
The strong flavors stimulated them to want to eat more the spicier it was.
Almost every table ordered extra dishes and drinks, but hardly anyone drank any sake.
Perhaps it's because my mouth was already spicy, and drinking alcohol made it even spicier?
Yan Xia smiled but didn't say anything.
The restaurant was packed with customers, so much so that some people couldn't even get a seat. Yan Xia had a sudden inspiration and thought of the modern queuing system. She cut a piece of paper, wrote a number on it, and handed it to the customers in line.
After a table finishes eating and is cleaned up, they start calling out numbers.
The iced soy milk was sold out long ago, and many of the chopped and prepared vegetables were also gone by the afternoon. Yan Xia had no choice but to ask Jin Lu to go to the village outside the city to buy some immediately, since there were no vegetables for sale in the afternoon. Fortunately, they had prepared enough meat.
From morning until nightfall.
The restaurant has never closed.
Lunch was delivered by Osmanthus and Winter Plum.
They hastily ate a few bites of food and then got back to work.
It was already dark when all the customers finished eating and left, and no new customers came. Yan Xia hung up the "Closed" sign at the door and sat down at the counter on the first floor to rest. She looked at the servants and maids, who were exhausted like dead dogs, and her youngest son and daughter-in-law were in no better shape.
"Alright, you've all worked hard today. Go to bed early after you finish cleaning. If you can get through these three days, there will be half the number of people, and it won't be so tiring. Jinlu and Lamei, come back to the pastry shop with me. Qian Rong, make sure to close the front and back doors of the restaurant, understand?"
"Yes, Master."
After giving her instructions, Yan Xia took all the silver and ledgers from the counter.
They had already eaten, and it was time for them to go to sleep; Shuangqiao Town didn't have a nightlife.
Back in the backyard of the pastry shop.
The children are still awake.
I guess they're waiting for them to come back.
"Alright, everyone go back to your rooms and get some sleep."
Yan Xia sent her children away and returned to her room.
She had intended to lie in bed and rest for a while, but unexpectedly, Xiao Ji brought in a basin of water to wash her feet, saying she wanted to help her wash them.
Before Yan Xia could react, Xiao Ji squatted down and helped her take off her shoes and socks. As soon as her feet were soaked in the water, Yan Xia sighed comfortably. The warm, slightly hot foot bath water made all her fatigue from the day disappear. She glanced at the basin and saw that there seemed to be some dried mugwort in it.
Xiao Ji, who seemed to have learned some kung fu from somewhere, was washing and kneading Yan Xia at the same time.
It's so stretchy.
Yan Xia sat on the edge of the bed, counting the silver in the account book.
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