From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

The recommendation guidelines recommended by Huang Tao are still undergoing final review, and the final review results have not yet been announced.

A group of people from an overseas food association traveled all the way to Shanghai.

After landing in Shanghai, their first step was to contact the city's chefs' association.

The Shanghai Chefs Association clearly did not expect that such a unique team of overseas food critics would make a special trip to Shanghai.

The team leader is Mr. Koffman, a chef who is quite famous overseas and has trained many top chefs.

While receiving the guests, the Shanghai Chefs Association immediately notified the China Chefs Association in Beijing.

They also contacted Feng Zhengming to make some arrangements.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Kaufman had already gone to Feng Zhengming's restaurant alone.

When Feng Zhengming met Mrs. Kaufman, he gave her a very warm and friendly hug.

Then he called home and asked Luo Qing to come to the restaurant to greet him.

Upon learning that Mrs. Kaufman had arrived at the Old House Restaurant, Luo Qing immediately dressed up, took Feng Nuanyou with her, and rushed to the restaurant to meet Mrs. Kaufman.

"Oh, Luo, you're getting more and more beautiful."

Upon hearing Mrs. Kaufman's praise, Luo Qing smiled and stepped forward to hug her.

"You are beautiful too. Did you come here specifically to see us, Madam? Mr. Kaufman didn't come along?"

Mrs. Kaufman smiled and said, "We came together this time, but he had more important business to attend to, so I came to your restaurant first to check on you."

Then Mrs. Kaufman saw Feng Nuanyou.

"Hehe, our beautiful little princess, you've come too."

Feng Nuanyou greeted Mrs. Kaufman in a foreign language.

These are a few phrases that her mother and great-aunt taught her after she started kindergarten.

Mrs. Kaufman was equally delighted to hear the little girl's greeting in a foreign language.

"Hello, what you said is very good."

Feng Nuanyou didn't quite understand, so she looked up at her parents.

Luo Qing smiled and translated for her daughter, "Auntie is right, you're right, please thank her quickly."

Feng Nuanyou immediately smiled and replied "Thank you" in a foreign language.

Mrs. Kaufman was then led by Luo Qing and Feng Nuanyou on a tour of the restaurant.

Although there were many details about the restaurant, Mrs. Kaufman and Mrs. Luo Qing had described them in detail in their correspondence.

However, once inside the restaurant and seeing the described details, Mrs. Kaufman found it very beautiful.

Feng Zhengming also served Mrs. Kaufman a delicious meal.

Since Mrs. Kaufman was the only one who came, and it wasn't mealtime, Feng Zhengming personally cooked for her and served her a very small portion of the food.

During the serving of the dishes, Feng Zhengming personally introduced them to Mrs. Kaufman.

Listening to Feng Zhengming's introduction and looking at the exquisite dishes one after another, Mrs. Kaufman kept praising them.

"That's fantastic, Feng, your cooking skills are getting better and better."

Feng Zhengming: "Thank you for your praise. These ingredients are all from our country. Perhaps some of them are not as good as those from overseas, but I think they will be delicious if we cook them in our own way."

Luo Qing also recommended a bottle of domestic wine to Mrs. Kaufman.

Mrs. Koufman was quite pleased: "Fantastic! I didn't expect you to have such good wine here."

Moreover, Mrs. Kaufman found that the wine Luo Qing chose paired perfectly with the seasoning of Feng Zhengming's dishes.

Mrs. Kaufman thoroughly enjoyed the relatively simple meal.

"He truly deserves to be called your country's culinary champion. His skills are getting better and better. The dishes he makes now taste even better than before, and they really suit my taste."

Luo Qing smiled and said, "It's because you're here that he adjusted the flavor to suit you."

Mrs. Kaufman was surprised again after hearing Luo Qing's explanation.

"You season it to my taste? How... how do you do that?"

Feng Zhengming happened to walk over at that moment and answered with a smile.

“It’s not difficult. I’ve already learned about your and Mr. Kaufman’s tastes when we talked before. When I’m seasoning, I will intentionally use some flavors that you like.”

Mrs. Kaufman: "Very impressive, no wonder they gave you the award."

Hearing the words, "No wonder they wanted to give you the award," both Feng Zhengming and Luo Qing were taken aback.

The couple immediately realized that Mrs. Kaufman had indeed come for another reason.

Mrs. Kaufman realized she had let something slip, so she simply told Feng Zhengming and Luo Qing about it.

"Haha, I came alone this time, not with him. They came together to present an award to Feng's restaurant, an award for the world's top ten restaurants this year."

Hearing this surprised both Feng Zhengming and Luo Qing.

Feng Zhengming had guessed that the judges from the overseas food association who came to taste his food would definitely give him an award when they got back.

He just didn't expect that his restaurant would be directly named one of the top ten restaurants of the year.

Mrs. Kaufman smiled when she saw the surprise on Feng Zhengming's face.

"Isn't it incredible? You don't know why they would give you one of the top ten of the year?"

Feng Zhengming nodded subconsciously; he was indeed very surprised.

Mrs. Kaufman offered her explanation based on what she knew inside information.

It turns out that Mr. Kaufman was behind this.

It was Mr. Koffman who initially recommended Feng Zhengming's restaurant to the Food Association.

Then, after some discussion by the International Gastronomy Association...

Behind this was the announcement by the International Olympic Committee that Beijing had won the right to host the 08 Olympic Games.

Upon learning the news, the International Gastronomy Association, which had initially been somewhat hesitant, felt that it was indeed worthwhile to learn about the cuisine of a country capable of hosting the Olympics.

Therefore, after discussion, the International Gastronomy Association decided to send judges to evaluate Feng Zhengming's restaurant.

Although, in theory, the judging process of the food critics' association should be conducted in secret.

But nothing stays hidden forever.
Firstly, as an insider of the Gourmet Association, Mr. Kaufman was able to recommend Feng Zhengming's restaurant, so he naturally knew that the other party was going to review Feng Zhengming's restaurant.

There's also that old man in Shanghai, who also knows some information through his past connections.

Three groups of judges arrived that day, but Feng Zhengming still handled them with ease.

At the same time, the dishes served that day truly impressed the judges.

Those judges in the past weren't unfamiliar with Chinese food.

They have actually tried Chinese food both overseas and in Hong Kong.

However, every dish at Feng Zhengming's restaurant was something they had almost never seen before.

It truly surprised them and amazed them. Later, the International Gastronomy Association even sent another group to review the restaurant.

The result upon returning was almost exactly the same.

Everyone agrees that Feng Zhengming's old villa restaurant is impeccable in terms of environment, interior furnishings, tableware, and service, and most importantly, every dish tastes amazing.

Even different dishes can present different amazing flavors.

Ultimately, it went through a selection process by the International Gastronomic Association.

The Old House Restaurant has been successfully named one of the top ten restaurants of the year.

Feng Zhengming didn't care about this so-called top ten restaurant of the year.

He doesn't think his skills need to be judged or defined by others.

However, he also knew that at this moment of successful Olympic bid, perhaps more people needed the international honor that his restaurant had earned.

This may also be an opportunity for Chinese cuisine to truly go global.

We need to bring authentic Chinese cuisine overseas, not those incongruous Chinese dishes prepared in a Western style.

Feng Zhengming and his wife discussed some specific details with Mrs. Kaufman.

"To be honest, from the very beginning of the opening of my restaurant, I never thought it would be rated as one of the top ten restaurants by the International Gastronomy Association, nor did I ever think about catering to your selection."

My restaurant aims to be a window for you to come and see and enjoy more of our Chinese cuisine.

Chinese cuisine has many unique cooking techniques and a wide variety of flavor combinations.

No matter what the ingredients are, we have our own understanding and our own way of cooking them.

Mrs. Kaufman nodded: "I know that. My husband and I know about your unique features, but you also need to let more people know about them, so that more people can see and taste them."

Feng Zhengming: "Yes, that's exactly what we need, so I'm very grateful to Mr. Kaufman and for your help."

Mrs. Kaufman: "You're welcome, Feng. We're friends, and I like your food too."

Luo Qing asked curiously, "So, the International Gourmet Association has already arrived?"

Mrs. Kaufman: "I think they should have arrived by now and should be in contact with your people back home."

Feng Zhengming: "They may have contacted the Shanghai Chefs Association, but the Shanghai Chefs Association wouldn't dare to make decisions on their own. They'll probably send someone from Beijing."

Luo Qing: "Why does it feel like things have gotten a little complicated? It's just an award for our restaurant, isn't it?"

Feng Zhengming: "This is, after all, the first time a domestic restaurant has received the title of one of the top ten in the world."

Mrs. Kaufman: "Don't worry, they will come and put up the sign for you."

Luo Qing realized that Mrs. Kaufman had misunderstood and thought that she was eager to win the award.

"No, I just find the process a bit cumbersome."

Feng Zhengming: "After all, it is an award for the top ten restaurants of the year in the world. It is indeed more complicated and requires more people to recognize it."

At the Shanghai Chefs Association, Chef Hou from Beijing and some members of the China Chefs Association also arrived.

After exchanging views with Kaufman and the other members of the International Gastronomy Association,

The fact that they were there to present an award to Feng Zhengming's old-style restaurant truly surprised everyone present.

Chef Hou couldn't help but ask, "Is this an award for Feng Zhengming's old-style restaurant? What kind of award is it?"

Mr. Koffman replied, "One of the top ten restaurants of the year internationally."

This answer once again left Master Hou and everyone else somewhat bewildered.

It can be said that everyone present, including Chef Hou, had once thought about helping Chinese restaurants win international awards.

However, everyone knows that it is indeed very difficult for domestic restaurants to win awards.

This stems from differences in people's food culture, as well as different standards for restaurant evaluation.

Of course, there is another important point: the international community has never understood China's culture, and some even think that China's culture is relatively backward.

Therefore, the judges of many international awards will naturally exclude domestic candidates.

Master Hou and his colleagues have had many exchanges overseas.

During the exchange, they all felt that people overseas have absolutely no understanding of Chinese cuisine.

Therefore, when Chef Hou and his colleagues are exchanging ideas overseas, they are always working hard to introduce Chinese cuisine to others.

However, for many years, no international organization has come to China to review domestic restaurants.

After the news of the successful bid for the Olympics spread, Master Hou and his team felt that this might be an opportunity.

The fact that we were able to successfully bid for the Olympics demonstrates the improvement of our national strength.

Then overseas institutions will likely look at us differently.

Master Hou and his colleagues were surprised to learn that the International Gastronomy Association had already visited.

Not only did they come, but they also conducted an evaluation of Feng Zhengming's old-style restaurant.

Even now, they want to award this year's top ten restaurants to Feng Zhengming.

If they hadn't seen the person with their own eyes and heard their own words, Master Hou and the others probably wouldn't have believed that it was all true.

Chef Hou is, after all, a master chef of the national mentor level, and has even represented China as a judge in cooking competitions overseas.

He remained relatively calm and quickly composed himself.

"Thank you so much. I never expected that our domestic restaurants could gain your recognition. I think this should be the first step for Chinese cuisine to truly go global and let more people understand the charm of Chinese food."

The representative of the International Gastronomy Association smiled and said, "You're right, we did indeed experience the charm of Chinese cuisine at that restaurant."

Just like when you won the right to host the 08 Olympics, it was quite incredible to us.

That restaurant is considered one of the best, even by international standards.

This year, our judges traveled to many countries and sampled restaurants from many different countries, but the restaurant here left a very deep impression on us.

After hearing what the other party said, Master Hou and everyone present laughed.

They were genuinely happy for Feng Zhengming and for Chinese cuisine to gain more recognition.

Chef Hou then reminded the people from the Shanghai Chefs Association: "We should contact Feng Zhengming as soon as possible and ask him to come over. He should come forward to accept this award."

The members of the Shanghai Chefs Association immediately nodded, and then they immediately arranged for someone to contact Feng Zhengming.

Master Hou, along with the Shanghai authorities, arranged for the award presenters to stay in their accommodations.

Feng Zhengming, his wife, and daughter were still chatting with Mrs. Kaufman at the restaurant.

Before long, members of the Shanghai Chefs Association arrived.

"Scholar Feng, congratulations! Your restaurant has been named one of the top ten restaurants of the year internationally. The people who will present the award to your restaurant have already arrived in Shanghai."

"We're here to inform you that you may need to make some preparations to collect your prize."

Feng Zhengming deliberately feigned excitement: "Really? My restaurant won one of the top ten restaurants of the year internationally?"

Those who came to inform him, seeing his excited expression, all smiled and nodded earnestly, offering their congratulations once again. (End of Chapter)