Chapter 121 The Blueprint of the Medicinal Restaurant Shamelessly Asks You
Mr. Zhou had just been ignored by everyone, and now he was unhappy to find out that the place where Shen Jiang formally invited them to have their first meal was such a small, unremarkable restaurant in a corner.
"Shen Jiang girl, what do you mean by this? We came all the way here, and you're just taking us to eat this?"
He wasn't concerned with the food; there was a long line outside the restaurant, so the food must be quite good. But the environment was truly insincere.
There's no reason to invite someone to dinner in the cafeteria for the first time.
Lu Chongfeng stepped in to help, "This is where I was originally going to take you. If it weren't for Shen Jiang, we wouldn't have been able to reserve a table. Old Zhou, don't judge a place by its appearance. Go in and take a look."
Elder Lu called the others over. Elder Zhao, who had just received approval from Shen Jiang's grandmother, also spoke up for Shen Jiang: "The guest should follow the host's wishes. Let's go in and give it a try."
Mr. Zhou instantly grew even more furious. Their cacophony of criticism only made him seem petty. He simply walked back into the store, still complaining, "You two should be good people. Don't be stubborn when you regret it later."
Seeing his childish temper, Shen Jiang immediately deduced Elder Zhou's constitution. Normally, someone who was quick to express their feelings and spoke their mind wouldn't suffer from liver stagnation. However, his heart fire was strong, making him a good candidate for the medicinal meal she had prepared for Grandma today.
After everyone sat down, Shen Jiang greeted Lin Yunqing: "Just follow the menu I agreed with you this afternoon." Lin Yunqing nodded, got up and went to the kitchen to announce the dishes, and by the way, he brought out a thermos from the kitchen and handed it to Shen Jiang.
Shen Jiang poured hot tea for everyone in turn.
Mr. Zhou frowned as he looked at the reddish-brown liquid in the cup: "Just pour me a cup of hot water."
Mr. Zhao asked, "What is this? It's sour and sweet. Is it sour plum soup?"
Mr. Yang retorted, "No, it tastes different to me, like beans."
Mr. Zhou originally didn't plan to drink it, but seeing that several people were discussing it enthusiastically, he pretended to be indifferent and took a sip. After savoring it carefully, he was stunned.
"Is this three-bean, black plum, and white sugar soup?"
Lu Chongfeng held the cup and said with a smile, "Old Zhou's tongue is sharper than any of you. He can tell what it is in just one bite."
Old Zhou glanced at him, his expression brightening considerably. He thought to himself that this was probably the drink recipe the old man had provided to the restaurant. But honestly, with the weather so hot, drinking something like this to nourish the body would be quite good.
Looking at the other tables of diners devouring the delicacies with satisfied smiles on their faces, Mr. Zhou felt a little excited. He had assumed that a place with so many young people lining up would be dominated by fried food, but he didn't expect that the food on the table was mostly green vegetables.
His son had taken him to a similar restaurant before, where you had to wait in line. Honestly, the atmosphere there was much nicer than here. But the food inside was truly deplorable. Old Yang watched his grandson gulp down a milky-white soup, only to return home complaining of thirst. Seeing his son and daughter-in-law enjoying their meal in the restaurant, only to find the taste was overwhelming when they got home, he firmly opposed them ever eating at such a place again.
How can something high in oil, sugar, and salt not be delicious? But if you eat too much, all the waste will accumulate in your body, and your spleen and stomach will become weak.
Mr. Zhou was expecting these old friends' reactions after the dishes were served, but he also felt that something seemed to be different.
Soon, the cold dishes were brought up first. Red dates and pumpkin, and cucumber salad were all ordinary appetizers. However, the taste made Zhou Lao and others feel uneasy.
"What kind of date is this? Why is the date fragrance so strong?"
Before anyone even started eating, they could smell a dominant and unique sweet aroma, which came from the four or five red dates in the red date pumpkin.
Mr. Zhou took a bite of the red dates. Perhaps because of the cooking method, the cooked red dates did not have any sour taste at all. Instead, they had the sweetness that belonged to red dates. Moreover, the chef’s control of the sweetness was just right, and it was not overly sweet at all.
He naturally didn't know that the chef didn't add any sugar. He tried this dish several times and finally found that he only needed to steam red dates and pumpkin. The sweetness of the red dates made the dish just the right sweetness. If too many red dates were added, the dish would be too sweet.
Using red dates of this quality in cooking would be a bit of a luxury. Old Zhou turned his head and saw several plainly packaged bags of red dates on the shelf behind the proprietress. It was obvious they were intended for diners. Old Zhou thought to himself that red dates are good for blood, and since his wife loves sweets, he might as well buy two bags to take home.
Shen Jiang watched them devour several red dates with just a few chopsticks, and couldn't help but sigh at how good they were at eating. She'd brought these red dates back from another world, and since she still had several tons in stock, they were currently stashed away in the storage space. Recently, she'd had the restaurant's chef, He Dayong, develop several red date-themed dishes. Besides red date pumpkin, there were also white fungus and red date soup, red date cake, and heart-warming sweets, a dessert with red dates and glutinous rice flour filling.
The red dates from the other world were sweet and delicious, with a strong date fragrance, but without the sour and astringent taste of red dates, which made them unpalatable no matter where they were placed. The small restaurant was immediately popular with men, women, and children.
Seeing that the atmosphere was just right, Shen Jiang wanted to ask these big guys about Kunyuan Chinese Medicine Factory. Their connections were much stronger than Xiao Zhang's, and they probably knew a lot more inside information.
"Mr. Lu, when I was attending the seminar today, I heard someone mention that a Chinese medicine factory wanted to become a supplier to Su Kang Pharmaceutical Company, but was rejected because of the high price of the medicine. Do you know anything about this?"
Lu Chongfeng paused chewing and looked up at Shen Jiang. "Who told you that?"
Shen Jiang shrugged. "A lot of people are saying that. I heard that the Chinese medicine factory has closed down and is now looking for someone to take over."
Elder Yang Ming whispered, "Miss Shen Jiang is talking about Kunyuan, right? Well, actually, this story isn't quite what's being said. You should know that three people can make a tiger. In reality, Kunyuan's boss was set up."
"What? He was set up?"
Shen Jiang's curiosity was aroused, and he immediately listened attentively.
Elder Lu said in a deep voice, "Old Yang, there are so many people here, so let's tell her when we have a chance."
Old Yang looked around and found that several young people at the next table were looking at him, and he suddenly felt ashamed.
"The boss of Kunyuan is my patient. I think you will have a chance to meet him soon. When the time comes, you can ask him yourself." Old Yang only said this and then stopped talking.
Shen Jiang was helpless. The feeling of eating only half of the melon was really uncomfortable. If only she had a Japhris flower at this time, it would be great.
Shen Anlian patted her granddaughter's hand and said, "Go and see if the food is ready."
As the dishes were served, there were stir-fried amaranth, oil-drenched lettuce, steamed egg with yam and minced meat, fried asparagus with mushrooms... and chicken heart soup.
Everyone looked at these unattractive vegetables with indifferent expressions on their faces.
Mr. Zhao: "Shen Jiang is very considerate. He knows that we are older and like to eat light food. The dishes he ordered are all very good."
He took a piece of lettuce with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth. The crisp green lettuce tasted refreshing and tasty, and his eyes widened immediately. The others had a similar reaction. No wonder there were so many people lining up outside this small shop. It turned out that everyone was waiting for such a delicacy.
Mr. Zhou didn't say anything at this time. The chicken heart soup in front of him really attracted his attention.
"Longan meat, astragalus root, polygala root... this is a medicinal meal."
Shen Jiang nodded. "Grandma was just discharged from the hospital. This is a nourishing medicinal meal I specially prepared for her. Summer is associated with fire, which easily depletes vital energy, corresponding to the heart in the human body. This nourishing heart soup was inspired by Zhu Danxi from the Yuan Dynasty. I made some additions and subtractions to turn it into a dietary therapy recipe. I'd like to offer this to you all, so please enjoy it with me."
Lu Chongfeng was also trying this dish for the first time. After finishing it, he immediately gave Shen Jiang a thumbs-up. This dish was indeed good for nourishing the heart. The longan meat in particular made the soup taste sweet and fresh without stealing the show, giving it a very unique flavor.
Mr. Zhou was puzzled. "You prepared this? Can this small shop even make custom dishes?"
Lu Chongfeng laughed. "Didn't you see the sign hanging on the door? This is a restaurant co-owned by Shen Jiang and others. Of course she has the final say."
"Mingxin Canteen, Mingxin Hall, oops, I just realized these two names are the same."
Mr. Zhou was a little surprised. He thought this small restaurant was similar to those internet-famous restaurants he had seen, but he didn't expect it to be Shen Jiang's restaurant.
Shen Anlian smiled and said, "The young people have an idea. They say they want to develop this place into a herbal medicine restaurant when they make money in the future. But the store is small now and is still in its infancy, so we can only focus on the ingredients themselves. I didn't expect it to be so popular." As she spoke, she glanced at the long queue of people outside the store.
Grandma spoke modestly, and Shen Jiang noticed that she couldn't suppress the smile in the corners of her eyes and eyebrows, and she felt a sense of relief.
Who would have thought that after hearing her words, the old seniors paused with their chopsticks picking up the food, and immediately became interested: "So, tell me, how do you plan to open a herbal medicine restaurant when you have money?"
Shen Jiang had a lot of ideas in his head, and since he was imagining things, he naturally spoke freely. "Since it's a medicinal meal, it must be tailored to different body constitutions. In addition to some basic delicacies like the ones we have now, the medicinal restaurant must also provide corresponding recipes for different guests' body constitutions, such as those that strengthen the spleen, nourish the stomach, eliminate dampness, nourish yin, and replenish qi, etc. Just like when we prescribe medicine for thousands of people, we also have to choose a menu that suits our constitution."
Mr. Zhou frowned and interrupted her: "Then you still need to assign a Chinese medicine doctor to this restaurant? Is there a charge for this service?"
"I've thought about this. First, patients visiting Mingxin Hall will definitely know their current physical condition. Secondly, Mingxin Hall's doctors can come by during mealtimes to help patrons take their pulses and determine their constitutions. After all, medicine and medicine share the same origin, so as long as it helps the patient, it doesn't matter where you seek treatment."
Mr. Zhao also became interested: "That's a good idea. Do you plan to formulate the menu according to the solar terms or the seasons?"
As expected of an old veteran, she thinks of details, but she had already considered this aspect.
"The current plan is to follow the seasons, but the seasonal cycle is short and implementation is difficult. Different body types require different tonic methods in spring, summer, autumn and winter. If we can do this well, it won't be too late to consider more."
"Combining it with reality, that's good." Everyone looked at Shen Jiang with admiration.
Then, several senior colleagues, like teachers setting exam questions, took turns to ask Shen Jiang a new round of menu questions. If Shen Jiang did not have enough basic skills, he would not be able to answer their questions.
Shen Jiang scratched the back of her neck. She felt like she was pitching a project to investors. These seniors were asking detailed questions. Fortunately, she already had a comprehensive plan in mind, otherwise she would have been nearly stumped. She even had the illusion that these seniors were trying to undermine her confidence. After all, this pioneering Chinese medicine restaurant seemed promising, but in reality, it might be fraught with difficulties.
But Lin Yunqing knew how to run a restaurant and was willing to listen to her advice. She, on the other hand, was a professional with knowledge of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Chinese medicinal herbs, and could oversee the restaurant's ingredients and herbs. Shen Jiang felt that this herbal restaurant had everything in place, except for funding. She seemed to have a bit of bad luck with money; making money was simply out of her reach.
Just as I was thinking this, I heard Elder Zhou slam the table and stand up, excitedly saying, "Shen Jiang girl, your store will definitely succeed. How about this, I, Old Zhou, shamelessly ask you, can I buy some shares?"
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