Chapter 87 Chapter 87 Mint Spare Ribs

After finishing the house viewing, they saw that it was almost ten o'clock. They did not dare to delay any longer and hurriedly said goodbye to Mr. Xu and rushed back to the store.

Preserved pork with preserved vegetables and steamed pork with rice flour are put into the steamer together and wait for the steam to come up. The fresh and still jumping sirloin is cut into thin slices.

“Why is the taro this color?”

Hu Wenli brought the peeled taro to the chopping board and asked curiously.

The taro was white in color with many purple veins. After cutting it open, her first reaction was that the taro was moldy, and she even used a knife to pick out some of it.

"This is the variety..." While Wang Nian was talking about the characteristics of this kind of taro, someone at the restaurant entrance was also thinking about taro dishes.

"Anti-sand taro?"

The restaurant looked normal, but he had no idea where many of the dishes on the blackboard came from. He could tell what the ingredients were, but couldn't guess what they would taste like.

Mr. Zhong turned an inquiring look towards the people he was traveling with.

The man smiled and shook his head: "When you hear the term 'steamed pork with rice flour', you know it means meat steamed with rice flour, but how can you possibly know what the taste will be like when you steam it and what kind of rice flour you use? The same goes for the taro with rice flour."

Mr. Zhong was born and raised in Anhuai. The only things he recognized on the menu were steamed prawns and white-skinned chicken. As for the other dishes... you could probably guess whether they were made from pork or beef.

"It seems that the proprietress is definitely not from Anhuai." said Mr. Zhong.

“You won’t know if it tastes good until you try it.”

The men in my industry were big and strong, and to use the old saying, they were either gangsters or butchers, and their voices were also very rough and deep.

Mr. Zhong stood next to him and looked quite small. He even had to stand on tiptoe to pat the man's shoulder.

When the two entered the restaurant, the man had to lean slightly sideways to enter as only one door was open.

"As long as it's clean and suitable for children to eat, it's fine. Old Gu, you can find fault with it when the time comes."

The man whom Zhong's father calls Lao Gu is a famous chef. He worked as a chef in a state-owned hotel in his early years. After the reform and opening up, he was highly regarded and invited to be the chef of a high-end restaurant. His cooking skills are evident.

Mr. Zhong invited an old friend over today, firstly to see the sanitary conditions of the restaurant, and secondly to reminisce about the past.

"Don't worry!" Lao Gu patted Zhong's father on the shoulder and lowered his voice deliberately: "I will give you a good share."

"Is anyone here?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he shouted towards the kitchen door, and the whole first floor of the restaurant was filled with echoes.

"You can sit upstairs or downstairs." Wang Nian put down his knife and came out of the kitchen with the order board. He immediately saw that Lao Gu was a colleague. "Would you like some drinks?"

Of course, she didn't tell from Lao Gu's appearance that he was also a chef, but from the faint smell of cooking fumes around him.

Only people who stay in the kitchen for many years could be infected so deeply.

"Why go to the second floor? I'm on the first floor." Lao Gu raised his hands and sat down at the table next to him. "Just sit here."

From this position, you only need to turn your head slightly to see the kitchen stove, which is a good place for viewing.

"So what do you guys want to order?"

"Sand taro, mint fried pork ribs, boiled beef, and the ginger and scallion crab that Lao Zhong likes."

Lao Gu casually mentioned a few dishes on the menu that he was more interested in, and then Wang Nian watched as he cooked the two additional vegetarian dishes.

"Are six dishes a bit too much?" Old Zhong worried.

"Not much!" Lao Gu smiled and patted his belly, then waved his hand carelessly: "Another bottle of Lao Baiyang, boss lady, please tell me how much it costs."

As soon as Wang Nian mentioned the price, the two of them naturally started competing with each other for the treat.

"Lao Baiyang has just sold out. Why don't you two try our homemade fruit wine? The alcohol content is not that high." Wang Nian swept through the cabinet and quickly interrupted the two people's fight.

"Madam, please take care of it!" Lao Gu waved his hands.

As for who paid for the meal in the end, Wang Nian didn't see it. He took the menu and went back to the kitchen to prepare the food. Hu Wenli took over the task of pouring wine and collecting money.

Lao Gu leaned casually on a stool by the wall, looking around the small restaurant casually.

"It's quite clean. The proprietress must be a very particular person."

“It’s quite clean, but the price of this dish is not cheap.”

Although it was Lao Gu who treated them, Mr. Zhong still felt that the prices were a bit high when he saw the dishes on the menu costing several yuan each.

He just couldn't understand why a restaurant with such high prices would sell 50-cent student meals...

"Do you know how much a dish of boiled beef costs in our restaurant?" Lao Gu looked at Zhong's father with a smile and crossed his index fingers horizontally: "Ten yuan! The plate is bigger than my face, and there are only a few bites of the dish."

"That's a high-end restaurant. How can a small restaurant compare with it?" Mr. Zhong laughed.

"It's the same principle. If the food is delicious, people will still patronize it even if it's only $5."

“It shouldn’t taste bad.” No one knows his child’s picky taste better than Mr. Zhong, but he has never doubted the taste of the restaurant.

Boom——

The exhaust fan blared for a long time after it started.

Lao Gu looked at Wang Nian's back as he was busy in the kitchen, and nodded silently.

Mint spareribs and boiled beef were served first. Hu Wenli pointed to the wine jars on the five-piece cabinet and said, "We have yam wine and plum wine. Which one do you want to drink?"

"Yangberry wine, sounds fresh." Lao Gu replied.

While Hu Wenli was busy pouring wine, the school's noon bell rang on time.

Mr. Zhong felt that the bell seemed to have rang just a second ago, but the next second he saw a large group of students rushing into the restaurant entrance.

It is no exaggeration to say that there was a flood of noise; in the blink of an eye the restaurant was filled with all kinds of chattering.

"I'm number one."

"I'm obviously the first one. I came in before you."

“Auntie, Auntie.”

"Auntie Hu, what are you having for lunch today?"

Hu Wenli placed two cups of wine on the table, then raised her index finger to her lips and signaled everyone: "Just line up with your lunch boxes, find a seat and wait."

When the children heard this, they immediately nodded like chicks pecking at rice.

A row of lunch boxes of various shapes were placed on the table at the door, and Hu Wenli moved a stainless steel bucket from the kitchen.

"Today's lunch soup is carrot and shrimp soup. There are bowls over there for you to drink the soup."

As soon as he finished speaking, a long line had formed in front of the barrel.

Shi Feiying, who was kept after school by the teacher, finally ran back breathlessly. As soon as she came in, she pouted and accused her classmates of being disloyal.

Most of these twenty or so students are his classmates.

"Why did the teacher ask you to stay here?" a classmate asked curiously.

The reason I say you guys is because Zhong Yan was also kept in the classroom. The little girl couldn't run faster than Shi Feiying, and she just reached the door.

"Ask why the classmates in our class don't go to the cafeteria to eat, and also ask where you eat?" Shi Feiying curled her lips and took off her schoolbag.

Hu Wenli took the schoolbag and put it on the table, surprised: "The teacher also cares about where you eat?"

Mr. Zhong, who had just met his daughter, also asked her a similar question out of curiosity.

However, compared to Zhong Yan's innocence, Shi Feiying's brain worked very quickly and he had already figured out what the head teacher meant.

"Why else? You just want me to call on my classmates to go to the cafeteria to eat."

We looked for Zhong Yan because she was the class monitor, and Shi Feiying was the most charismatic one in the class.

The head teacher heard from somewhere that many classmates in the class were taken by Shi Feiying to a small restaurant outside the school to eat, and the number of people was increasing.

So today I specially left two people to "take care" of the students' lunch situation, hoping that they can let the students eat in the cafeteria where hygiene and health can be guaranteed.

"Then how do you get back to your teacher?" Hu Wenli became even more curious.

"I can't guarantee the other restaurants, but this one is definitely clean." Shi Feiying blinked.

"You didn't tell the teacher that the restaurant was owned by your mother?"

"I'm not that stupid." Shi Feiying put her hands on her hips, confident in her own intelligence: "I said that my classmates all took the initiative to go there, I didn't take the lead."

"How did your mother give birth to such a smart kid like you?" Hu Wenli laughed.

"I promised my classmates that I would bring them grapes this afternoon."

Right after she finished praising, Shi Feiying immediately and generously gave away her own things, not just one or two, but half of the class at a time.

When Zhong Yan heard this, she quickly shifted her attention away from her father and uncle and flew over quickly.

“Do we pick them ourselves?”

"I have to ask my mother first whether it has been sold." Shi Feiying hurriedly added.

Last year, most of the grapes were bought by neighbors, and the rest were distributed among classmates.

"Go ask your mother." Hu Wenli smiled.

It was lunchtime, and in addition to the students, several other groups of diners came in one after another.

When everyone walked into the restaurant, they would invariably glance at the table near the door.

As the crowds were paying vague attention, Lao Gu leisurely raised his glass and took a sip of the wine.

For him, who drinks white wine all year round, the alcohol content of the wine is a bit light, but he can taste the good quality of the wine as soon as he takes a sip, and there is a grain aroma in the aftertaste.

"Try the crab first, the fishy smell will get rid of it later."

Although crab with scallions and ginger may seem like a simple home-cooked dish, the freshness of the crab and the cooking time are crucial if you want it to be tasty.

The scallions should be fragrant but not mushy, otherwise the sweet crab meat will have a bitter taste.

With just the simplest ingredients, it's very easy to tell that the crab isn't fresh.

Lao Gu picked up half of the crab, put it to his nose and sniffed it gently, and first of all, he agreed that the dish was cooked to standard.

You can taste the silky texture as soon as you take a bite, and the onion aroma is rich without stealing the sweetness of the crab meat.

"The lady boss of this restaurant..." After spitting out the crab shell that he had accidentally eaten, Lao Gu Chongzhong's father gave a thumbs up and said, "She is quite capable."

Mr. Zhong thinks it should be more than just a little.

Mint and pork ribs, a dish he couldn't even imagine, but he didn't expect it to be so delicious.

Mint and spareribs.

When you have a sore throat, make tea with dried mint leaves. The special aroma will leave a deep impression on you.

The ribs were crispy on the outside and tender on the inside with a hint of mint, and the fried fresh mint seemed to have been stained with the aroma of oil.

This taste is hard to describe, but it is definitely... delicious.

This is a dish that everyone will enjoy whether they can eat mint or not.

In the blink of an eye, a small pile of bones appeared in front of Dad.

Then he reached for the next dish - boiled beef.

This was the only Sichuan dish he had ever eaten in a hotel, so he didn't have high hopes for it before trying it.

But...he soon regretted his earlier slight.

“I could eat it for a month straight.” This is his highest praise for the dish.

"I'm a little curious." Lao Gu ate his food with great satisfaction, "Who do you think the lady boss learned this cooking from? How could she cook so many different dishes?"

"You can ask the boss's son."

Mr. Zhong looked at the group of children coming out of the kitchen with a smile.

Among them... there is also his own daughter.