Siheyuan: Starting as a Chef Apprentice

After months of intensive preparation, the Brooklyn branch finally opened. Before daybreak, the streets were still deserted, but the restaurant entrance was already busy.

Several staff members were standing on a ladder, carefully hanging up the flags of China, France and the United States. They held the ladder tightly with one hand and unfolded the flags with the other, carefully adjusting the position to ensure that the flags were flat and stretched. On the ground, colleagues blew up colorful balloons one by one, tied them with ropes, and tied them to the railings on both sides of the store door and the nearby lampposts.

Wang Jianye arrived at the scene early, wearing a neat dark suit and a bright yet dignified tie. He looked up from time to time to check whether the flags were hung, and squatted down from time to time to check whether the balloons were tied firmly, his eyes revealing nervousness and expectation. He reminded the staff from time to time: "Tie the balloons tighter, so that they will not be blown away by the wind. Hang the flags straight so that everyone can see them from a distance."

As time went by, the sky turned pale, and more and more people walked on the street. Passers-by were attracted by the lively scene in front of the store and cast curious eyes. An old man delivering newspapers slowed down and asked, "What kind of store is opening? It's so lively?" Wang Jianye hurried forward and replied with a smile, "Uncle, this is the Brooklyn branch of Wang's All-in-One Restaurant. It opened today and specializes in Chinese, French and American fusion cuisine. Come in and try it when you have time." The old man nodded, "Oh, fusion cuisine, it sounds quite fresh."

Near noon, people from all walks of life and local residents came to congratulate. Wang Jianye stood at the door of the store with a warm smile on his face and took the initiative to shake hands with every guest. "Welcome to the Brooklyn branch of Wang's All-in-One Restaurant. I hope this will bring you a unique dining experience."

He said to a lady in an exquisite suit. The lady responded: "Boss Wang, congratulations on your opening! I have heard that your store is very unique. I must experience it today."

Wang Jianye smiled and said, "Please give me more valuable suggestions. I hope they will suit your taste."

At this time, a young man in fashionable clothes took a camera and took a lot of photos of the decorations at the store entrance. He said to himself as he took the photos: "This decoration is so unique. It will definitely attract a lot of likes if I post it on WeChat Moments."

When Wang Jianye heard this, he walked up and said, "Young man, you are welcome to take photos and share them. The decoration and dishes in our store are more unique, so come in and take a look." The young man smiled and nodded, then walked into the store.

Inside the store, the waiters were dressed in uniform and stood in two neat rows. The colors of the uniforms were mainly three colors, and the design incorporated elements from China, France, and the United States, which was simple yet elegant. When they saw customers entering the store, the waiters immediately took action, guiding them to sit down and handing them menus.

A young couple walked into the restaurant. The girl, wearing a light blue dress, said with excitement in her eyes, "The decoration of this restaurant is very unique, and it feels like it integrates many cultural elements."

The boy was wearing a casual white shirt and dark blue jeans. He was looking at the menu. When he heard what the girl said, he nodded and responded, "Yeah, you see, the dishes on this menu are also very novel. This 'art-inspired pasta' sounds interesting. Let's order one and try it."

The girl leaned closer to the menu, looked at it and said, "Okay, let's order the 'Brooklyn Fusion Stew', it's also good."

In the restaurant, customers were coming and going, talking one after another. A middle-aged man wearing glasses was carefully examining a painting on the wall that combined Chinese, French and American art styles. He said to his friend beside him: "Look at this painting, it combines the artistic elements of the Three Kingdoms just right. I didn't expect to see such a creative work in a restaurant."

My friend responded: "Yes, this restaurant is full of innovation from its decoration to its dishes."

On the other side, a group of local residents sat together and discussed the menu. An old lady said, "These dishes look new, and I don't know how they taste." The old man next to her smiled and said, "Since you are here, you will know after trying them. There may be surprises."

With the opening of the Brooklyn branch, Wang's full-line restaurant has further expanded its influence in New York. But Wang Jianye knows that the New York catering market is highly competitive, just like sailing against the current, if you don't move forward, you will fall behind. Other restaurants are also constantly innovating, so if you want to stay competitive, you must always pay attention to market trends and customer feedback.

In a conference room of the hotel, a branch manager meeting was in progress. The conference room was not large, with a rectangular conference table in the middle, and the Manhattan branch manager, Queens branch manager and other relevant management personnel sitting around. The Manhattan branch manager spoke first, leaning forward slightly, with his hands on the table, looking at Wang Jianye and saying, "Recently, some customers have given us feedback that they hope we can add some dishes suitable for fitness people. Now that fitness is popular, people's requirements for healthy diet are getting higher and higher."

The Queens branch manager went on to say, “Some customers think our desserts can be more diverse. Today’s customers have higher expectations for the taste and appearance of desserts, and we have to keep up with the trend.”

The market research manager sitting nearby also added: "According to the market information I have collected, some emerging restaurants have launched interactive dining experiences, which are very popular among young people. We can also consider it."

After listening to this, Wang Jianye nodded slowly to show his approval and said, "The feedback you have collected is very important. We will ask the chef team to develop new dishes as soon as possible to meet the needs of customers. As for the interactive dining experience, we can also conduct in-depth research to see how to implement it in combination with our brand characteristics."

After the meeting, the chef team quickly took action and invested in the research and development of new dishes. In the kitchen, the chefs gathered in front of the operating table and enthusiastically discussed the development ideas of new dishes.

The team of chefs responsible for developing the "Fitness Energy Bowl" were studying various ingredients. One chef picked up some brown rice and said, "For this 'Fitness Energy Bowl', we'll use brown rice as the base. Brown rice is rich in dietary fiber and is suitable for people who exercise." Another chef nodded in agreement and continued, "Pair it with chicken breast. Chicken breast is high in protein and low in fat, and is a favorite of people who exercise."

At this time, a young chef suggested: "The combination of vegetables is also very important. We have to ensure a balanced nutrition. I think we can use common vegetables such as lettuce, cucumber, and tomato, and add some corn kernels to enhance the taste." Everyone nodded in agreement.

After deciding on the ingredients, the chefs began to experiment with making them, carefully weighing the ingredients, studying how to arrange the vegetables, and adjusting the taste of the low-calorie sauce.

A chef dripped the prepared sauce onto a spoon and handed it to his colleague next to him for tasting: "Try this sauce and see how it tastes. I think the sour taste can be a little lighter."

My colleague tasted it and nodded, saying, "Well, the sour taste is a bit strong, let's adjust it a little bit." After many attempts and adjustments, the prototype of the "Fitness Energy Bowl" gradually took shape. In the dessert R&D area, chefs are studying the production of "Three Kingdoms Style Mousse". An experienced chef said, "This Chinese-style red bean mousse has a delicate taste and moderate sweetness. As the base, it can give people a familiar and friendly feeling."

Another chef went on to say, “Adding French chocolate mousse in the middle, the rich chocolate flavor can enhance the level of the entire mousse.”

Finally, everyone decided to add American blueberry mousse on top, which not only added a sweet and sour taste, but also made the color of the entire mousse richer.

The chefs carefully make each layer of mousse, controlling the thickness and solidification time of each layer. When making chocolate mousse, a chef carefully stirs the mixture of chocolate and cream and says to the assistant next to him: "Pay attention to the speed and strength of stirring, and do not let the chocolate clump, otherwise it will affect the taste."

The assistant nodded seriously, his eyes fixed on the stirring process. After repeated experiments, the "Three Kingdoms Mousse" was finally completed, with a rich taste and beautiful shape.

At the same time, the hotel continues to strengthen its cooperation with local businesses and communities. Cooperating with surrounding art galleries to hold art exhibitions and catering pairing activities has become an important measure for the hotel to enhance its brand influence.

During a collaborative event, the gallery was packed with people. The gallery displayed the works of a Chinese-French-American artist, whose paintings combined the artistic styles of the three countries, with colorful and unique brushstrokes. The hotel designed a special set menu based on the style and theme of the works.

The gallery staff guided customers to visit the exhibition at the door, while the restaurant staff introduced the dishes that go with the works. A customer stood in front of a painting and looked at it carefully. The restaurant staff walked up and said, "Hello, this work is colorful and full of vitality. The dish we serve with it is 'art-inspired risotto'.
It combines a variety of ingredients, just like the painting combines different artistic elements, with a rich taste. You can feel the echo of the painting while tasting the dish. "After hearing this, the customer showed an interested expression and said, "It sounds interesting, I have to try it."

The gallery manager watched the event from the side with a satisfied look on his face. He walked over to Wang Jianye and said, "The cooperation with Wang's full-line restaurants has enriched our art exhibition experience. Customers can not only appreciate the artworks, but also taste the corresponding food.

This kind of cooperation is very novel and has attracted more people to pay attention to our gallery." Wang Jianye smiled and responded: "We are also very happy to cooperate with the gallery. We hope that there will be more such cooperation opportunities in the future to bring more exciting activities to the community together."

At the event, customers walked between paintings and dining tables, appreciating art works while tasting delicious food. They exchanged their feelings about the works and dishes from time to time, and the atmosphere was warm and harmonious. The hotel staff was busy and orderly, providing customers with thoughtful services to ensure the smooth progress of the event.

A customer said to the hotel staff: "Your activity is really well organized. It feels very lively to eat while looking at paintings." The staff smiled and responded: "Thank you for your recognition. We will continue to work hard to bring you a better experience."

With the development of these activities, the popularity of Wang's entire restaurant chain in Brooklyn and even in New York has continued to increase, attracting more and more customers.

……

The Brooklyn branch is running smoothly, with customers coming to the store from morning till night. The waiters are busy, carrying trays and shuttling between tables, cleaning the tables, serving dishes, and responding to customers' needs. Everything is going on in an orderly manner.

As time went by, Wang's entire hotel chain became more and more well-known in New York, and its brand image became more and more popular. Sitting in his office, Wang Jianye looked at the latest market research report and customer feedback, and began to conceive a blueprint for the hotel's further development.

In a metropolis like New York, which is full of opportunities and challenges, Wang Jianye keenly noticed that the demand for team building and business banquets was showing a significant growth trend. After careful consideration, he decided to launch customized corporate services as an important measure to deepen the brand and expand the business scope.

The hotel quickly formed a special corporate service team. The team members were dressed in neat and decent professional attire, and everyone was in high spirits. Before departure, the team leader emphasized the precautions again in the office: "When you go out to visit companies, you must understand the other party's needs in detail, introduce our services clearly and accurately, and show our professional side." The members nodded, sorted out the information, and went to different companies.

Xiao Li came to a technology company. He walked into the office of the company's head, greeted him politely, and sat down opposite him. Xiao Li spread out the prepared materials on the table, with a confident smile on his face, and began to introduce: "We can customize unique dishes and dining environment according to your company's corporate culture and event theme.

For example, if the event is themed around technology, we can design dishes with novel shapes and incorporate some technological elements into the decorations.”

The head of the company was flipping through the documents. Upon hearing this, he stopped what he was doing, put the documents aside, leaned forward slightly, and said with interest in his eyes, "That sounds great. We just have an important business banquet and hope to highlight the innovation and internationalization of our company. How can you do it specifically?"

Xiao Li immediately perked up and said in detail: "In terms of dishes, we plan to launch 'Interstellar Fusion Steak'. The steak will be presented in a galaxy pattern and paired with a special luminous sauce, symbolizing technological exploration and innovation. In terms of the dining environment, we will use projection technology to project images of the starry sky on the wall to create a technological interstellar atmosphere, making your customers feel as if they are in the vast universe."

After listening to this, the company manager thought for a moment and said, "It sounds very creative, but the details need to be communicated and confirmed to ensure that it can achieve the effect we want."

Xiao Li nodded quickly: "No problem, you can bring forward any ideas you have, and we will do our best to meet them." (End of this chapter)