From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

After his initial excitement, Feng Zhengming did not immediately follow the person who had come to inform him to the destination.

"You all go back first. Please tell the members of the International Gastronomy Association that my restaurant needs to stay open tonight, so I can't go over now. I may have to wait until tomorrow."

This left everyone who came to inform him completely bewildered.

The person who came to inform him assumed that Feng Zhengming knew his restaurant had been named one of the top ten restaurants of the year internationally.

He would even temporarily suspend business operations just to immediately meet with the award presenter.

As a result, Feng Zhengming still insisted on opening at night.

He didn't even intend to meet the award presenter beforehand.

The person who came to inform Feng Zhengming was taken aback.

One of them spoke up: "Scholar Feng, why don't you invite them to your restaurant tonight for a taste?"

Feng Zhengming then replied, "I'm sorry, all the seats at my restaurant are booked tonight, so there's no place to entertain them. If they'd like, I can treat them to a meal at one of my other restaurants, all expenses paid."

"Of course, I can reserve a private room for them at my restaurant tomorrow noon and evening."

This left the person who came to inform them completely speechless.

Who would have thought that Feng Zhengming would treat the person who came to present him with the award in this way?

Mrs. Kaufman and Luo Qing sat not far away watching.

Mrs. Kaufman chuckled softly and said a few words to Luo Qing beside her.

“Feng is really good. His performance is the right thing to do. A good chef shouldn’t leave his restaurant because of other things. This is the most important place for him.”

Luo Qing looked at Mrs. Kaufman curiously and asked, "Was Mr. Kaufman like this back then too?"

Mrs. Kaufman: "No, he did put in a lot of effort to get good reviews, but he later said that he wasn't very happy with those honors."

Luo Qing was even more puzzled: "Why?"

Mrs. Kaufman: "He felt that the food wasn't being cooked the way he envisioned."

Luo Qing roughly understood what Mrs. Koffman meant.

In this respect, she felt that Feng Zhengming was indeed very similar to Mr. Kaufman.

They all have their own pride.

I never felt that my taste in food needed to be defined by others.

They insist on making their own dishes, prioritizing what customers find delicious.

Their dishes all share a common goal: to ensure guests eat well and are well-fed.

After Feng Zhengming's explanation, the person from the Shanghai Chefs Association who came to notify him had no choice but to take his leave.

On their way back, the group also felt somewhat confused.

"What exactly does Feng Zhengming mean by this? Why wouldn't he take advantage of such a great opportunity and close his business?"

"Perhaps they don't care whether they win an award or not."

"Yeah, how much does his restaurant make in a night? How much money can you get from an award?"

"Feng Zhengming shouldn't be so mercenary, right?"

"If he weren't so profit-driven, how could he have opened so many branches? Tell me, what's so praiseworthy about those branches?"

Many members of the Shanghai Chefs Association still look down on Feng Zhengming.

On the one hand, it is a source of pride for the locals of Shanghai.

On the other hand, it was also out of jealousy towards Feng Zhengming.

After all, everyone knows that the most profitable restaurants in the country are Feng Zhengming's branches.

Take this old-style restaurant in Shanghai, for example. Although no one knows the exact revenue of this restaurant?
But that doesn't stop people from using their imaginations; they can even imagine that Feng Zhengming could earn enough in a day to support a restaurant.

For some people, seeing others make money is more painful than losing money themselves.

However, even though the people who came to inform Feng Zhengming were dissatisfied, they couldn't say anything to Feng Zhengming.
After all, all of Feng Zhengming's stores have an excellent reputation.

This time, an international food association from overseas came specifically to present the award.

The fact that the Old House Restaurant was named one of the world's top ten restaurants of the year will undoubtedly further enhance Feng Zhengming's reputation.

The members of the Shanghai Chefs Association were well aware that they could not afford to try and extort money from Feng Zhengming.

They have gained unanimous recognition both domestically and internationally.

Not to mention domestic chefs, even famous chefs overseas probably wouldn't dare to show him any disrespect.

After they returned, they reported the situation truthfully.

Some people in the Shanghai Chefs Association felt that Feng Zhengming was putting on airs.

Master Hou smiled and indicated that he could understand Feng Zhengming's choice.

"Zhengming is still the same as always. No matter what, he always puts the operation of his restaurant first. After all, tonight is already fully booked, and he really can't find the time to come over."

On the other hand, when the members of the International Gastronomy Association learned of the news, they did not feel offended by Feng Zhengming.

On the contrary, they would feel that Feng Zhengming adhered to his principles, and even though he was about to become one of the world's top ten restaurants of the year, he still insisted on doing a good job tonight.

This is the attitude a good chef should have.

Instead, they praised Feng Zhengming's attitude.

They all felt that Feng Zhengming deserved to be the head chef of one of the top ten restaurants.

Mr. Kaufman also greatly admired Feng Zhengming's humble yet assertive attitude.

So Mr. Kaufman called his wife to make contact.

Mrs. Kaufman received a phone call informing her husband about the situation at the restaurant.

After learning about the situation at the restaurant, Mr. Kaufman sighed.

"Feng is still a perfectionist. He always comes up with many new ideas in his dishes. He has a deep understanding of Chinese cuisine, which is why he can create dishes that blend the flavors of different regions."

The lady then asked, "Are you coming over tonight?"

Mr. Kaufman: "I'm not going there; I want to stay with them."

Mrs. Kaufman said that she would stay at Feng Zhengming's place that night and stay at the hotel that Feng Zhengming had arranged for her.

Mr. Kaufman had no objection to this, feeling it was his wife's prerogative.

During dinner, Luo Qing accompanied Mrs. Kaufman to stay in the restaurant for a while.

Let Mrs. Kaufman also help from an outsider's perspective to see if there are any areas for improvement in their restaurant.

That evening, Feng Zhengming's restaurant was operating with extra care.

With some guidance from Luo Qing and Mrs. Kaufman, the service staff quickly corrected some minor problems.

It's fair to say that the restaurant operated quite smoothly throughout the evening.

Mrs. Kaufman also thought it was great.

"Luo, your restaurant has such a great atmosphere. In a metropolis like Shanghai, it's a blessing to have such a quiet place where you can enjoy delicious food. It's a real blessing for the people here."

Luo Qing: "This was our original intention in opening this restaurant. We wanted to find a quiet place in the bustling city."

"We want to provide a place where everyone can escape the hustle and bustle and simply enjoy delicious food, allowing both those who live in this city and those who come to it to better appreciate its culinary delights."

Mrs. Kaufman was pleased with these words and became even more satisfied with the restaurant. For the evening opening, Feng Zhengming introduced several new signature dishes, hoping customers could offer their feedback.

The main purpose was to listen to the reviews from Shanghai's gourmets and to see what customers had to say.

According to the gourmets, one of the dishes that Feng Zhengming found was more about form than substance, seemingly just a pointless piling on of ingredients, and not very tasty.

The other two dishes were just average.

Only one dish received unanimous approval from the gourmets.

As for customer feedback, it differs slightly from that of the gourmets.

Customers may not have tried certain ingredients before, so they might find the dish, which gourmets consider to be loaded with ingredients, quite appealing.

The two dishes, which the gourmets considered to be fairly standard, also garnered goodwill.

The dish that the gourmets unanimously approve of is naturally considered very good by customers.

Feng Zhengming combined customer feedback with the evaluations of Shanghai's gourmets.

He deduced that the average customer often has relatively low expectations for food.

Some dishes might not be considered particularly impressive by gourmets.

Most customers are still able to accept and approve of it.

The only thing that made Feng Zhengming happy was that a dish that the gourmets approved of also received unanimous praise from most of the customers that night.

After the restaurant closed, Feng Zhengming made the dish again, the one that Shanghai gourmets had criticized for being overly loaded with ingredients.

He then had his wife, Mrs. Kaufman, and everyone in the kitchen sample the food.

Fu Jun and Cai Tao in the kitchen thought the dish tasted good.

However, they also suggested that perhaps we could use fewer but better materials.

Fu Jun: "Uncle, did you reference Buddha Jumps Over the Wall for this dish? It seems like there are a lot of ingredients in it."

Cai Tao looked at Fu Jun, clearly not expecting Fu Jun to be so direct.

Cai Tao then added, "Perhaps it's still about the flavor; it didn't achieve a harmonious balance."

Mrs. Kaufman gave a similar assessment.

"The flavors don't blend together."

Luo Qing: "It seems like we used a bit too much material."

Feng Zhengming nodded: "It seems that we do need to delete some of the materials. We can make it simpler so that we can use more suitable materials."

Just as Feng Zhengming and the others were chatting, Mr. Kaufman came to the restaurant alone.

The staff informed us that their restaurant had closed for the day.

Mr. Kaufman smiled and identified himself, then asked a staff member to go in and inform Feng Zhengming.

Feng Zhengming and his wife soon came out to greet them, along with Mrs. Koffman.

"Hello Mr. Kaufman, welcome to my restaurant."

Mr. Kaufman: "Haha, this isn't my first time here, but I feel really good here, like I'm at home."

Feng Zhengming: "This may also be the theme of my restaurant, the taste of home."

Mr. Kaufman: "It's great. Now, many restaurants in our area are pursuing so-called artistry, and many dishes are no longer authentically home-cooked."

I'm not saying that's bad, but I feel that doing art for art's sake has deviated from the essence of cooking.

The essence of cooking is to allow people to taste delicious food and enjoy the feeling of fullness it brings.

Feng Zhengming strongly agreed with Mr. Kaufman's words.

"That's right. I've always believed that cooking is about making people eat well and be full. Every guest who eats well and is full will feel a sense of satisfaction, just like when they were a child eating their mother's cooking at home."

Mrs. Kaufman and Luo Qing smiled at each other, both wives were very happy for the two chefs in front of them.

Their ideas collided in such harmony.

Feng Zhengming invited Mr. Kaufman into the restaurant, gave him a tour, and then led him into his own kitchen.

There happened to be some leftovers from the dishes he had prepared earlier, and he invited Mr. Kaufman to try them.

After eating, Mr. Kaufman's evaluation was similar to that of other gourmets in Shanghai.

“Feng, your restaurant doesn’t need this kind of dish. You should make more home-style dishes. That’s the key to getting into this year’s top ten restaurants.”

Feng Zhengming: "Actually, my dishes don't taste like home cooking, and many people probably can't make them at home either."

Mr. Kaufman smiled and said, "It's not about being able to make it at home, but about making it taste like home, and then combining it with the atmosphere of your restaurant for even better results."

Feng Zhengming understood what Mr. Kaufman meant.

In reality, for a restaurant to truly gain widespread recognition...

It doesn't matter how good the ingredients are, nor how luxurious the restaurant's decor and furnishings are.

The key is whether your dishes match the overall atmosphere of your restaurant.

When the taste of your dishes corresponds to the feeling that the restaurant wants to give to people.

Then this is a perfect restaurant.

People come back again and again, and some Shanghai gourmets even treat the restaurant as their regular dining spot.

It will also attract customers who want to taste dishes that match the restaurant's atmosphere.

Just like Feng Zhengming's restaurant, the customers who are attracted to it and bring their families time and time again are precisely because they like the homey atmosphere of his restaurant, coupled with the taste of home.

Feng Zhengming: "Thank you for your guidance. I will remember it. This dish will not be on the menu for the time being."

Mr. Kaufman: "Feng, your skills are truly superb. You have moved beyond simply showing off your techniques and have begun to use flavor in conjunction with your skills to create even better results. You are truly a champion chef."

Feng Zhengming: "Haha, I've noticed that you and your wife seem to have come here specifically to praise me."

The Kaufmans exchanged a glance, then laughed together, indicating that they were right.

Feng Zhengming: "Thank you all. Over the past few years, thanks to your wife's recommendations, our restaurant has been able to have a good enough wine collection to meet the needs of different guests."

Mrs. Kaufman: "You're welcome. I hope you continue to do well."

Mr. Kaufman: "Yes, Feng, we are friends, and there's no need for formalities between friends."

Afterwards, Feng Zhengming and his wife sat down and chatted with the Kaufmans for a while.

Let the other people in the restaurant clean up.

During the conversation, Kaufman gave Feng Zhengming a detailed explanation of the judging process for the annual top ten restaurants.

Through the introduction by the Kaufmans.

Only then did Feng Zhengming and Luo Qing finally understand.

The key reason they were named one of the top ten restaurants this time is actually related to Beijing's successful bid for the Olympics.

It can be said that it was the successful bid for the Olympics that made many people overseas realize the strength of Feng Zhengming and his motherland.

This time, they will seriously consider Feng Zhengming's old villa restaurant.

Even so, Feng Zhengming was only narrowly selected as one of the top ten restaurants by a single vote. (End of Chapter)