Chapter 109 Mashed Potato Recipe [First Update]
The popularity of mashed potatoes at the school was quickly noticed by the regular customers. Although Qunying Middle School does not encourage bringing mobile phones, with more day students, the teachers turned a blind eye.
A student took photos and videos in the cafeteria and posted them online with the caption, "Just for this mashed potato noodle dish, I'm so glad I came to this school!"
The accompanying picture shows sticky mashed potato noodles, clearly showing the abundance of ingredients. Especially noticeable is the pair of chopsticks in the video; the slight force applied by the wrist conveys the resistance of stirring, even through the screen. Along with the chopstick movements, the sound of the noodles and mashed potatoes sticking together can be clearly heard in the video.
[Little Feifei: ...After I moved on to a higher grade and the school installed air conditioning, something even worse happened: the school cafeteria's food selection has become increasingly abundant since I left! They even have mashed potato noodles in the cafeteria now?!]
[Fatty: No, is the food at Qunying High School really that good? The food at No. 1 High School is practically pig swill!]
[Shanhua: Mashed potatoes! Noodles! There's nothing in this bowl that I don't like!]
Sweet potato leaves: !! Is there any justice in this world? How can students understand what they're eating?!
[GaoGao is me: Could you please tell me which food stall to go to? I'm also from Qunying High School. I've been eating at that small-portion food stall on the second floor for a whole semester, and I really can't find a food stall that I like.]
[Soldier King: Isn't this our Brother Hao? The village kids are finally eating city food! (voiceover) This stuff looks delicious!]
The student who posted the video checked his phone during break and found that, unlike usual, his video only had a few comments from mutual friends. Today, however, the comments section was bustling with activity, with over a hundred comments. Apart from a few acquaintances jokingly saying he was famous, the rest were either students asking about the food stall or people from outside the school expressing envy.
He replied one by one, first sending emojis to his acquaintances, and then replying to the people at the stall.
[Hehe, it's that hand-pulled noodle shop on the second floor. I bought mashed potatoes and made my own noodles.]
Not long after it was posted, the comments section was filled with "This person's food business acumen is amazing" and "This person's food business acumen is above mine." Some people were not discouraged and kept asking whose mashed potatoes they were.
【Who else could it be? That super popular shop across from our school, the one that's all the rage. They sell mashed potatoes in the mornings and at lunchtime now. It's not expensive, a small one is six yuan, and a large one is ten yuan.】
He always buys with his classmates. A small portion is a bit too much for one person, so when two people buy a large portion, they are just enough to be full.
He should have kept quiet about Wenji, because as soon as he did, people started coming to the comments section, drawn by the smell.
[Lucky me: Wait, Wen Kee has new products? I didn't see any updates on their account!]
[Little Edamame: Ouch! Mashed potatoes! Why in the morning and at noon?! Working people only have time in the evening!]
[Crescent Moon: The moment you mentioned Wen's mashed potatoes, I can guess how delicious they are without even tasting them... I'm itching to get up early tomorrow and fight the students for them...]
The student was dumbfounded. When he saw the comments section, he immediately started throwing a tantrum in the comments.
I don't want to!
[The mashed potatoes at this restaurant are actually terrible, I was just kidding. I threw them away after filming the video, really!]
Sour, bitter, and smelly. It doesn't taste good!
Please!
His comments prompted some mischievous older siblings to tease him even more, and they all threatened to eat it today.
[I must say, the restaurants around schools are generally pretty good and cheap.]
A few minutes later, the student still hadn't replied, and everyone joked that maybe the teacher had confiscated his phone.
Refresh the page, and after three seconds it displays: "[This video has been deleted.]"
I couldn't help but burst out laughing, and some quick-witted people even recorded it and immediately submitted it to the local news account.
For Wen Kee, this is just another surge in popularity. Nowadays, Wen Kee is a must-see in local travel guides. Although there are occasional complaints about long queues and parking difficulties around schools, everyone agrees on the taste.
Now, Wenji has released a new product, but it wasn't posted on their own account; instead, it was posted by a student who completely broke down in their defenses. This brought a knowing smile to many, but also piqued their curiosity about this mashed potato.
Is it really that delicious?
The students replied that a small portion only costs six yuan, which is not expensive at all. Why don't you try it?
This unfortunate student thought that deleting the video would make it seem like nothing had happened, but seeing that his video had been cut and the comments below were full of "hahaha," he was too overwhelmed to speak.
The next morning, the queue outside Wen's Restaurant stretched all the way to the street corner again...
The student glanced at the sign with resentment, wishing he could go back to yesterday and slap himself.
That'll teach you a lesson for being so cheeky!
Post a video!
Let's attract everyone here!
The various student groups at the school were filled with groans and complaints about the person who couldn't control himself and was out of stock.
【No, why do I have so much urge to confide in everyone?! If I attract all the people who are at work, what am I supposed to eat?】
Haha, I guess I'll have to eat my least favorite set meal again for lunch... Don't let me catch you!
The good times were too short-lived; I thought I could eat like this for a month...
The students were disheartened, and even the teachers were alarmed.
After the student council meeting, Wen's mother also recognized the faces of several of the teachers.
When Ms. Wang, the homeroom teacher, occasionally went to the store to buy food, Ms. Wen's mother would always give her a discount. If Ms. Wen insisted on scanning the code, Ms. Wen's mother would also give her a free drink or a larger portion.
After seeing each other many times, they would exchange pleasantries while waiting for their meals.
Wen's mother said that the mashed potatoes were made purely for the students' benefit.
"The shop is busy right now, so we can't really manage. But Xiao Fan said she'll still make a little, because her classmates have all complained that they haven't been able to eat at our restaurant lately."
The method for making mashed potatoes is simple, convenient, and quick.
These days, the evenings are the busiest time for guests, and in the afternoons, two or three more people come to eat medicinal cuisine. Wen Fan doesn't want to add too much burden to his family.
Mashed potatoes only require the potatoes to be cooked beforehand; the only laborious part is mashing them, but modern tools are very convenient, and you can easily get a large bucket of mashed potatoes in just a few seconds. Adding some butter and milk to the mashed potatoes will make them even smoother and creamier.
As for the braising liquid, Wen Fan taught his father how to make it. It was a very simple process; the seasoning powder was prepared in advance, and it only took ten minutes to make.
Therefore, Wen Fan also set an extremely low price.
After hearing what Wen's mother said, Teacher Wang was somewhat surprised and pressed for details, asking if Wen Fan had done all of this.
Wen's mother nodded, casually implying that her daughter was actually the one who took care of most of the family business.
Teacher Wang was shocked after hearing this. Even though she had already changed her opinion of Wen Fan, she was still surprised at this moment.
Now, the mashed potatoes are being snapped up by people who come because of the trendy online store name.
Teacher Wang fell into deep thought. Perhaps there was a good way to solve this problem?
While Teacher Wang was hesitating, the teacher in charge of school admissions suddenly spoke in the teachers' group.
He immediately started talking about last night's trending videos.
I think this is a great opportunity to promote our school and make future student recruitment easier.
Our school cafeteria is already better than the one at No. 1 High School, so we can definitely focus on that.
I heard that the owner of Wenji's restaurant has a daughter who attends our school... It would be even better if Wenji could cooperate with us in promoting it.
Teacher Wang frowned.
I don't think this is appropriate.
It's a student's business, not the school's. Why should they cooperate with us?
Oh, so it became popular because of mashed potatoes? Does that mean they should tell people not to buy it and only sell it to students?
I've never seen such interference before.
While the admissions officer was still trying to express their opinion, the principal had already spoken in the group chat.
[We certainly can't ask the parents, but we could ask for their opinion. This mashed potato dish doesn't seem too thick; could we ask if they'd be willing to set up a stall at the school?]
Teacher Wang's eyes lit up. "Yes, there are so many stalls at the school, it's no trouble at all to spare one!"
The principal handed the matter over to Teacher Wang.
[After all, they are parents of students in your class. Go and ask them. If it works, I'll have the head of logistics communicate with them.]
Teacher Wang went straight to Wenji after work.
Before he could even voice his thoughts, Wen's mother dropped a bombshell.
"You...you said you were going to publish the recipe for mashed potatoes?!"
Mrs. Wen said helplessly, "I originally just wanted to make some snacks for the students, but now there are too many people. Some have been queuing for ages, and some have even had to get extra numbers..."
It has even spawned scalpers!
Wen's mother didn't notice at first, but Yu Fangfang secretly told Yao Qingqin, who then told her it was for her.
It is said that some people come to queue up specifically to reserve space for others. Sometimes, when there are too many people, Wen's mother can't issue numbers, so scalpers take the numbers and resell them for fifty yuan.
Fifty dollars!
Yu Fangfang said that she recognized several people who were constantly queuing up behind her, selling their spots when they were almost at the front, and then queuing up again from the back after they were sold out.
Even Wen's mother couldn't believe that someone would pay an extra fifty yuan for a serving of mashed potatoes!
If this continues, the original purpose of selling mashed potatoes will be lost.
If it were really about making money, wouldn't beef offal hot pot be profitable? Wouldn't medicinal cuisine be profitable? Every other dish in the restaurant has a higher average order value than mashed potatoes!
There's practically no profit to be made from students.
Wen's mother hesitated whether to turn it off or not, or to change the product.
Wen Fan's words dispelled her idea.
"Even if you change the product, it will still be like this."
In modern times, thanks to the internet, people's tendency to follow trends is truly exaggerated.
Wen Fan thought for a moment and told his mother that he was going to reveal his mashed potato recipe.
Teacher Wang felt sorry for the Wen family; this must be an incredibly precious formula.
"No need, the school said they can waive the commission service fee and give you a good window location..."
Wen's mother shook her head. Yes, the school can sell them, but are they still sold outside?
Selling them would be too expensive due to the large number of people.
If we don't sell it, I'm afraid some people will criticize us in the online comments.
It would be better to listen to your daughter and make it public.
Fearing that her parents would feel sorry for her, Wen Fan patted her chest and assured them that her mind was full of recipes, and that even if she posted one a day, she could post one for ten years without repeating the same one.
Wen's mother didn't care too much about the money and thought her daughter was right.
It seems like everyone is under a lot of pressure these days, including students and office workers. The young girls who often come to the store seem to be drained of energy when ordering, and they only have time to say a few words after they finish eating.
"I'm only surviving because of your family."
The guests' enthusiasm should not be disappointed, and it's understandable that the students wanted to eat something nice.
Then go ahead and post it. Those who like hands-on activities can make it at home. Even if they don't like hands-on activities, I believe that after posting it, some street vendors will learn from it and open their own mobile stalls.
If everyone shares the cost, the store won't be so busy.
Teacher Wang was quite moved. Her impression of Wen Fan changed so quickly that she even doubted whether she was a fickle person.
"Wen Fan is very outstanding."
Wen's mother was so happy with this comment that she kept talking about it to Wen's father before going to bed.
Wenji's instructional videos were also released that evening.
It appeared on the trending list early the next morning.
#Winter is still better with mashed potatoes#
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