Chapter 94 Sugarcane Chrysanthemum Drink.
Not only Yang Shuyi was looking forward to dining at Gu's Private Kitchen, but Xiaoyun was also particularly excited.
During this time, she ate with Sister Xiaoyi and paid a lot of attention to the official account of Gu's Private Kitchen. She even dug up all the previous notes posted by the restaurant's official account. She even saved some of the food photos in the comments section to her phone's photo album, just to look at them and satisfy her cravings when she wanted to.
Now, if you open Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book) and scroll through the homepage, most of the posts are related to Gu's Private Kitchen.
Naturally, Xiaoyun also came across many notes mentioning the magical effects of Gu's private kitchen.
For example, customers with deep acne scars said that their acne scars faded a lot after eating Gu's Private Kitchen. Now, there are legends about Gu's Private Kitchen in many acne groups. Many people travel from afar to Jiang City just to eat there and fade their acne scars. Just by looking at the notes that have been shared one after another, you can tell that this is not just a gimmick from the store's advertising. It's really true.
Some netizens also shared that they used to have difficulty falling asleep and had poor sleep quality, but after eating Gu's Private Kitchen for a period of time, their sleep quality improved, and they often slept through the night and were also very energetic during the day.
Some netizens said that minor physical ailments and aches have disappeared, those who suffered from menstrual cramps have experienced less discomfort during their periods, those who frequently experienced stomach aches have seen a reduction in stomach pain, and their parents no longer suffer from back pain...
Another netizen posted a picture of their now slightly sparse black hair, which is so much better than their previous balding head!
In the comments section of this hair regrowth blog post, about a dozen netizens commented that they had grown hair, were less bald, and were experiencing less severe hair loss.
Xiaoyun also saw some netizens saying that their complexion improved after eating Gu's Private Kitchen, their yellowish complexion wasn't as bad after staying up late, and people around them praised them for looking prettier and thinner.
Many netizens in the comments section said that the food's effects are almost like AI; overweight people will lose weight, those who want to gain weight can gain weight as they wish, and those who want to maintain their figure can mostly maintain it, seemingly depending entirely on the user's wishes. Of course, this is under the condition of a normal diet.
She had only regarded the previous notes as strange tales, but upon seeing this, she was shocked. These changes were exactly what Xiaoyi was talking about.
After Xiaoyi ate at Gu's Private Kitchen for the first time, she weighed herself the next morning and found she had lost a pound. When she was getting her makeup done, the makeup artist praised her for her rosy complexion and great skin condition, making the makeup application much easier and simpler.
After eating at the Gu Family Home-Style Restaurant a few times, I could lose a pound or two every other day, or at least feel healthy. Sister Xiaoyi looked radiant, with fair, translucent, and flawless skin, even better than after cosmetic procedures. She looked amazing even without makeup.
Last week, fans visited the set, and some photos of Sister Xiaoyi circulated online afterward. Many netizens praised Sister Xiaoyi for becoming more and more beautiful, saying that her makeup and styling gave her a pure and pretty look like a high school girl. They said she looked amazing, with lots of collagen in her skin!
Only she knew that this was probably due to the effects of Gu's private kitchen.
Sister Li even called to ask, but Xiaoyun gave a vague answer. After all, it's not good to bring up something that hasn't been confirmed or has no evidence, otherwise Sister Li would think she's lost her mind.
If it were any other restaurant, Xiaoyun would strongly suspect that some kind of drug was added to the dishes to produce such outrageous effects. She would have to take Xiaoyi to the hospital for a check-up to see if it would harm her health before filing a complaint against the restaurant.
However, she still trusted Gu's Private Kitchen quite a bit.
She had naturally seen the test report issued by the Food and Drug Administration posted by Gu's Private Kitchen, and knew that the food tested that day had passed all the tests and was even excellent, and was also very nutritious.
So many people online have reported changes after eating Gu's Private Kitchen for so long. Surely some smart people would have doubts and conducted tests. Since no one has exposed any scandals so far, it means that the meat and vegetables at Gu's Private Kitchen can withstand testing and are safe!
Furthermore, some official organizations are paying attention to online news. Gu's Private Kitchen is doing so well, there must be many competitors. The fact that they haven't seized the opportunity to attack such a big point can only mean that they have nothing to criticize. Gu's Private Kitchen is open and aboveboard and can withstand supervision and attacks from all sides.
Xiaoyun believed it and became even more impressed with Gu's private kitchen.
However, she dared not tell Sister Xiaoyi for the time being, for fear that Sister Xiaoyi would become even more reckless in eating Gu's private dishes because of this.
During the day, Sister Xiaoyi is busy filming. In her spare time, she surfs the internet using her alternate account, browsing Weibo and Xiaohongshu, mostly looking at entertainment content. When she browses content related to Gu's Private Kitchen, she usually clicks into the restaurant's official account to see the various food photos posted by netizens in the comments section of the day's notes, making her mouth water.
Xiaoyun had never heard her mention that Gu's Private Kitchen dishes were good for people's health, so it's highly likely that she didn't know that Gu's Private Kitchen dishes were good for people's health.
At 10:30 that day, Yang Shuyi, dressed in a smoky pink dress, wearing a baseball cap with a combination of matte pink and dark purple, and a black sun-protective mask to flatter her face shape, set off with Xiaoyun to Suli Street.
To avoid making their idol too conspicuous, Xiaoyun also wore the same mask. The two looked like ordinary girls who were being cautious when going out and wearing masks to avoid getting a tan.
Although one of them appears to be tall and slender, judging from the blurry facial features, she must be quite beautiful and has a particularly good temperament, not ordinary at all.
They took a taxi to Surrey Street and walked along the street entrance after getting off.
Xiaoyun smiled and said, "This old street has a really rustic atmosphere. Even the surrounding residential buildings don't look dilapidated, but rather bear the marks of time."
Yang Shuyi nodded: "Yes, I've heard that there are many old streets like this in Jiang City, and some of the time-honored shops there, such as those serving morning tea, sweet soup, and pastries, are absolutely amazing. Their taste is no worse than those famous chain brands nowadays."
She suggested, "Let's spend another day exploring Jiang City. I've already saved two or three time-honored restaurants on Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book), so we can go and try them out and treat ourselves."
Xiaoyun: ...I suspect you've already thought it through and are just waiting to say it!
I don't have any plans lately, and after filming wrapped up, I should relax properly. Going to try the local cuisine is a great option. Xiaoyi loves to eat, but she can control her portion sizes.
Xiaoyun smiled and nodded: "Okay, then I'll tell Sister Li that we'll stay here for another day."
With a smile playing on her lips beneath her mask, Yang Shuyi said, "It's perfect that we can enjoy another round of Gu's Private Kitchen. Once we get back to Beijing, we'll just be longing for it. Scrolling through Xiaohongshu and seeing all those food photos will only make us drool."
It's only natural to go for it again after you've already had it once. Xiaoyun also had a craving, and after nodding in agreement, she added, "Yes, the feeling of seeing something but not being able to eat it is the most unbearable."
The two quickly walked to the middle corner of Suli Street. There was a peach tree at the entrance, and the wooden door opened just as they arrived. The shop assistant greeted the customers who had arrived earlier with a smile.
Without thinking twice, Yang Shuyi and Xiaoyun hurriedly went into the restaurant and found a table against the wall to sit down.
Yang Shuyi sat with her back to the restaurant entrance. This table was at the very back. When she took off her mask to eat, she would only be noticed by the staff who came to the glass window to serve the dishes. Otherwise, customers would not see her face unless they came over here.
Xiaoyun sat opposite Yang Shuyi, facing the restaurant entrance, so she could see people who might come by at any time and prevent Yang Shuyi from being recognized by passersby and bumping into them with excessive enthusiasm.
Yang Shuyi breathed a sigh of relief after sitting down: "Luckily we arrived early enough, otherwise we really wouldn't have been able to get such a good spot. We arrived right at the opening time, but we didn't expect there to be people who arrived even earlier than us."
Xiaoyun nodded: "That's true, but it's normal. Everyone's afraid of arriving late and not getting a seat and having to wait in line. The worst thing is when you arrive a little late and the restaurant has already run out of ingredients and stopped issuing queue numbers. You know, since the delivery subsidy came out, people have been ordering more food online, so the number of tables that the restaurants can serve in-store has decreased."
The table they were sitting at wasn't in a great spot; it was quite far in and not directly facing the air conditioner, so it wasn't very cool. They were worried that eating hot dumplings would make them feel hot, which was why the first two customers hadn't chosen this table, making it convenient for them.
Because she was afraid that customers at nearby tables would hear her outside, she stopped calling her "Sister Xiaoyi" and instead used "you" instead.
Yang Shuyi nodded to indicate that she understood; they were still ordering online and using delivery services to buy the same batch.
The waitress came over to take orders and serve tea. Yang Shuyi saw that she looked normal and probably didn't recognize her, so she breathed a sigh of relief.
Xiaoyun said to the clerk, "We'd like two servings of 'Family Reunion' dry-mixed dumplings, one serving of pan-fried dumplings with a combination of corn and pork filling and chives and pork filling, and a sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink. For tea, we'd like iced lemon water."
On their way there, they discussed what dishes they wanted to order. They originally wanted to order chrysanthemum tea, but when they remembered that there was sugarcane chrysanthemum drink, they changed it to iced lemon water.
The clerk smiled and agreed, first going to the cashier to print out an order and bringing one dish over, then placing another one on the glass window. Next, he went to get two sets of bowls, chopsticks, teacups, and washing utensils. Then he served a pot of iced lemon water, saying, "Please wait a moment, the food will be served shortly," before going to serve the new customers.
After rinsing the dishes, chopsticks, and teacups, Xiaoyun poured iced lemon water into two teacups, handed one to Sister Xiaoyi, and then picked up her own cup to drink the iced lemon water.
The icy-cold lemonade brought double the coolness upon entering the mouth. It wouldn't freeze your teeth but would bring a refreshing coolness to people who had just walked in from outside and were feeling a bit hot. The sweet and sour taste with the refreshing aroma of lemon made it very pleasant to drink.
Seeing that the seven tables in the dining room were already full of customers, most of whom were in groups of three or five, and that there were also several groups of customers waiting in line at the entrance, she couldn't help but sigh: "I didn't expect that our first time eating in a restaurant would be dumplings. I thought we would be able to eat a whole table of dishes."
"The dumplings we just ordered made up a whole table of dumplings. If you look at it another way, we actually got a special menu item from the restaurant," Yang Shuyi said with a smile.
Just as they were still in the hotel at 10 o'clock, the two of them saw the menu posted by the official account of Gu's Private Kitchen. Unlike the usual four dishes and one soup, today's menu was more like a full dumpling feast plus a sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink.
The dumpling fillings are also quite varied, including corn and pork dumplings, chive and pork dumplings, sauerkraut and pork dumplings, shiitake mushroom and pork dumplings, cabbage and pork dumplings, celery and pork dumplings, and seaweed and pork dumplings. You can choose from four cooking methods: steamed, boiled, dry-mixed and boiled, and pan-fried.
After watching it, Xiaoyun asked her, "Sister Xiaoyi, today Gu's Private Kitchen is only selling dumplings. Are we still going to eat there?"
Dumplings are considered a refined carbohydrate by people who are trying to lose weight, or to put it bluntly, a low-quality carbohydrate. They are generally not eaten much. Of course, it's okay to have some occasionally, as long as you don't eat too much.
Yang Shuyi only thought for a second or two before making her decision: "Sure, dumplings are a good option. I haven't had dumplings in ages. It's rare that I'm finally done filming and can easily go to a restaurant for a meal, even if it's just dumplings. Besides, Gu's Private Kitchen dumplings are definitely better than the ones sold outside!"
Xiaoyun agreed and set off for the restaurant as planned.
Hearing what Xiaoyi said, she nodded and said, "That's true. Not everyone can get to eat dumplings made by Gu's Private Kitchen."
Seeing that the restaurant was packed with people and there were so many people queuing outside, it was clear that no one had cancelled their plans to come for lunch just because they were having dumplings. This showed that today's dumpling feast was definitely something to look forward to.
They spoke in hushed tones, sipping their lemonade and feeling the coolness. The already mild heat from walking this short distance dissipated.
Soon, the staff came over and brought a pot of sugarcane chrysanthemum drink. It was in the same transparent glass teapot as the iced lemonade, filled with clear yellow-green tea. You could vaguely see the chrysanthemum floating in it, and the sugarcane chunks, hawthorn and water chestnuts at the bottom. I didn’t expect the ingredients to be so plentiful.
Xiaoyun and Yang Shuyi picked up their teacups and drank the rest of the iced lemon water in one gulp, then poured themselves a cup of sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink.
Yang Shuyi looked at the yellow-green drink in the teacup. The color seemed to be more intense than that of simply brewing chrysanthemum tea, and she could already smell the sweet aroma wafting in the air.
She picked up the cup, brought it to her lips, and drank.
The sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink will be served slightly warm. It tastes very sweet, with the refreshing sweetness of sugarcane and the fragrance of chrysanthemum. The sweetness of water chestnuts and the sourness of hawthorn blend together to create a unique flavor.
Overall, it's sweet with a slight sourness, offering a rich and refreshing taste. A sip or two instantly makes you feel much better.
At this moment, hot drinks are more comforting and can dispel restlessness than cold drinks.
Yang Shuyi took several sips in a row. Surprisingly, the sweet taste lingered in her mouth after she finished the sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink. The sweetness of the sugarcane and the fragrance of the chrysanthemum intertwined, leaving a pleasant aftertaste.
She immediately picked up the teapot and filled the teacup to about eight-tenths full before drinking it.
After finishing a cup, Xiaoyun couldn't help but exclaim, "This sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink is quite amazing. Only Gu's Private Kitchen has the creativity to come up with such a beverage. It tastes much better than plain chrysanthemum tea."
Chrysanthemum tea has a light, sweet and fragrant taste, but this sugarcane chrysanthemum drink has a much richer flavor. The sweetness of sugarcane, the sweetness of water chestnuts, and the slight sourness of hawthorn are mixed with the fragrance of chrysanthemum to create a refreshing and delicious tea. After drinking it, you will feel very comfortable and relaxed, and your mouth will have a slightly refreshing taste.
After finishing another cup of sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink, Yang Shuyi nodded and said, "It's really delicious. Although it's a hot drink, it feels more thirst-quenching and cooling than a cold one. Speaking of which, the restaurant's menu is quite interesting. I guess they knew there would be fried dumplings today, and they were worried that customers would get a sore throat from eating them, so they paired them with this cooling sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink. Now we can eat without any worries."
After saying that, she couldn't help but laugh out loud. It was like doing something reckless while preparing an antidote, because having an antidote would allow her to do something even more reckless.
Xiaoyun instantly understood what Xiaoyi meant and laughed, saying, "I had the same thought. With the sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink to cool down, I won't be afraid to eat fried dumplings later."
They each poured themselves another cup of sugarcane and chrysanthemum tea and continued drinking. It was hard not to love this sweet and light tea.
The other customers at the other tables in the shop also ordered, and most of them ordered a pitcher of sugarcane chrysanthemum tea. Some were curious about the tea, while others, like Xiaoyun and Yang Shuyi, thought that since they were going to eat fried dumplings later, this would be a good way to quench their thirst and cool them down.
At their dinner table, a pot of sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink was served first, and everyone poured themselves a drink and began to comment on it.
"This sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink is quite delicious. It's sweet enough without being cloyingly sweet. It's full of the fragrance of chrysanthemum and the sweetness of sugarcane. The slight sourness is probably from the hawthorn, which perfectly balances the sweetness. Everything is just right and it tastes very refreshing."
"I also think this sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink is delicious. It's no wonder it's a new product from Gu's Private Kitchen. It tastes much better than just chrysanthemum tea!"
"I find this warm sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink quite refreshing and cooling. It makes me feel comfortable and less irritable. Speaking of which, do you remember the perilla drink from last time? I still remember the bright purple-red tea and the sweet fragrance of perilla. I still savor the memory!"
"I remember, the perilla drink. When we got back, my husband even tried buying perilla to make his own perilla drink. It tasted pretty good, but it wasn't quite as good as the professionally made one at Gu's Private Kitchen. I have a feeling that we'll savor the sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink for quite a while after this. We might even buy the ingredients and try making it ourselves. It's so sweet and refreshing."
"I'm well aware of my own limitations when it comes to cooking, so I'd better not mess around with it. When I leave after we finish eating, I'll pack a pot of sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink to take home for my wife to try; she'll definitely love it!"
"..."
The customers at each table in the shop were chatting about how delicious the sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink was, and some were even talking about packing another pot to go after they finished eating.
Some people were worried that if they didn't bring their own water bottles, it might be difficult to pack them up, but they immediately received an affirmative answer from the customers at the next table.
"Don't worry, you can take it to go. A lot of customers took the perilla drink to go the other day. The shop will put it in one of those clear milk tea cups. Last time, I think they put four cups of perilla drink in it, and they only charged one yuan for the takeout, which was a great deal!"
The customer who had just ordered a pot of sugarcane chrysanthemum tea immediately perked up: "Really? That's fantastic! Gu's Private Kitchen is so generous; four milk tea cups for only 1 yuan! I'll take the pot home later. Thank you, brother!"
"You're welcome!"
Other customers who overheard their conversation and learned that the sugarcane and chrysanthemum drink could be packed to go were very interested, thinking that they would pack a pot to take home and enjoy it slowly after they finished eating.
Some people were in a hurry, worried that the sugarcane chrysanthemum drink might be like the meat dishes before, with limited ingredients, and that it would be sold out by the time it was late for dine-in and delivery orders. So they simply waved to the staff and asked them to order a pot of sugarcane chrysanthemum drink to go, and then serve the food forty minutes later.
In the kitchen, Gu Qingqiu was making dumplings at the cutting board next to the stove.
She held a dumpling wrapper in one palm and used a wooden spoon in the other to scoop the filling onto the wrapper. After putting down the spoon, she pinched the filling into pretty pleats with both hands and placed the wrapper on a large iron plate next to her to wrap the next dumpling.
Wang Meiyu was also making dumplings on the side. She had just started learning the same way from the boss, and now she was getting the hang of it and was very fast.
Gu Qingqiu has been craving dumplings lately, and last night when she was deciding on the menu, she suddenly had the idea to have a dumpling feast.
I don't know if customers get tired of eating so much meat and fish every day in this sweltering heat, but I certainly am.
The more she thought about it, the more feasible the idea seemed. It would be nice to occasionally change things up and eat dumplings. Moreover, dumplings come in a variety of fillings, each with its own unique flavor, and there are many ways to enjoy them, such as steamed dumplings, boiled dumplings, dry-fried dumplings, and pan-fried dumplings.
Preparing the ingredients is a bit troublesome, except for the meat filling. There is enough time to make dumplings in the morning, and you can also make and cook them at the same time.
So Gu Qingqiu wrote down various meat-filled dumplings in a notebook, along with four cooking methods: steaming, boiling, pan-frying, and dry-frying.
I got up at six o'clock this morning and immediately called Mr. Zhu to order 60 jin of pork hind leg meat with a ratio of 3:7 fat to 7:1 lean, saying it was for making dumplings. I asked him to help me grind the pork into small pieces suitable for making dumplings and then deliver it over.
Mr. Zhu smiled and agreed, "Okay, okay, Mr. Gu, don't worry. I know exactly how well the pork should be ground for the best dumplings. I'll definitely pick the best hind leg meat, grind it into minced meat, and send it over to you."
Gu Qingqiu smiled and thanked her, "Okay, could you send it over earlier? If you put the prepared dumpling filling in the refrigerator, you can take it out and make a lot of dumplings."
Mr. Zhu said he understood and would immediately process 60 jin of minced meat for her and deliver it to the restaurant as soon as it was ready, probably before 7 o'clock.
Gu Qingqiu smiled and agreed. She quickly changed her clothes and went to wash up. Afterwards, she made a simple breakfast and contacted Wang Meiyu to ask her to come to the store early so she could get overtime pay later.
After having breakfast and washing the dishes, Gu Qingqiu went downstairs. The 60 jin of minced meat she had ordered from Boss Zhu was delivered. After signing for it and paying, Gu Qingqiu carried the pork into the kitchen and put it away, dividing it into several basins.
When Wang Meiyu arrived at the store at 7:30, Gu Qingqiu and she took a shopping cart to the market to buy groceries. The ingredients they bought today were simple yet varied.
The dumpling wrappers are the most important. Gu Qingqiu found a dumpling shop with good skills and bought 30 jin of dumpling wrappers. At the same time, she also ordered 30 jin of dumpling wrappers to be made and delivered to Gu's Private Kitchen on Suli Street before 3 p.m.
There was nothing the shopkeepers could do; they were all taken aback by the sheer volume of their purchases. Of the 32 jin (16 kg) of dumpling wrappers they had prepared that morning, only 2 jin (1 kg) had been sold earlier.
Actually, there were two other dumpling wrapper shops in the market, but Gu Qingqiu had just looked around and decided that the dumpling wrappers from the shop she was buying from were the freshest and prettier. Moreover, she had heard Grandma Lin mention this shop before, saying that the dumpling wrappers were very good and that the wrapped dumplings were crystal clear after cooking.
The shop owner was delighted to have received such a large order today, and repeatedly assured that he would definitely deliver the remaining 30 jin of dumpling wrappers to the restaurant before 3 p.m.
Wang Meiyu quickly grabbed the existing bags of dumpling wrappers, weighing a total of thirty pounds, and hung them on both ends of the shopping cart handles. She didn't put them in the cart's side rails because she was afraid that if she put them there when she bought other ingredients, they would be crushed.
After Gu Qingqiu scanned the code to pay for 30 jin of dumpling wrappers and half of the pre-order amount, she and Wang Meiyu went to do their shopping.
They bought Chinese cabbage, corn, carrots, chives, celery, shiitake mushrooms, seaweed, sauerkraut, and some seasonings.
Four grocery shopping carts were brought back to the restaurant fully loaded. Gu Qingqiu and Wang Meiyu went into the kitchen without stopping to clean up, start preparing ingredients and mixing fillings.
First, cover the prepared filling with plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator to freeze. Freeze it for as long as possible, so that the dumplings you make later will be more juicy.
Once all the fillings are prepared, you can take out the first batch of fillings and start making dumplings.
Of course, before opening for business, we must make some dumplings with each filling and keep them in reserve so that we can serve the food promptly after customers order.
Gu Qingqiu and Wang Meiyu were so busy that their hands flew across the table, making dumplings that were all perfectly round and beautiful. They could even cook and make dumplings at the same time after a customer placed an order, without wasting a single moment.
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