Siheyuan: Starting as a Chef Apprentice

Why were you so determined to solve these problems at that time?" Wang Jianye pondered for a moment and said slowly: "Because I want to run this restaurant for a long time and let more people taste authentic Chinese food.

Food supply is the key. Only when this problem is solved can the restaurant develop steadily.

Moreover, I don’t want to be constrained by these problems every time. Only when I have control over it in my own hands can I feel at ease. ”

The waiter nodded thoughtfully: "You are right. The stability of our restaurant is the result of your hard work."

Wang Jianye smiled and waved his hand: "This is not my own achievement, it is the result of everyone's joint efforts.

Farm workers, food factory partners, lawyers, and every one of you who works in restaurants are indispensable.”

Just then, a noise was suddenly heard coming from the direction of the kitchen.

Wang Jianye's heart tightened and he quickly got up and rushed over to check.

It turned out that the new chef and the old chef had a disagreement when discussing how to further improve the dishes while retaining their characteristics.

The new chef said excitedly: "Boss, I think now that the supply of ingredients is stable, we can be more innovative and use some new ingredients to attract more young customers."

The old chef frowned and objected: "No, the taste passed down by our ancestors cannot be changed too much. The signature dish must look like a signature dish."

Wang Jianye smiled and patted their shoulders: "Don't argue, don't argue, what you say makes sense.

Innovation is a good thing, but we must not lose our tradition.

We can find a balance and test new dishes on a small scale when developing them to see customer reactions.

The signature dishes must remain authentic, as this is the foundation of our restaurant.”

After hearing this, the two chefs both thought it made sense and nodded.

The small storm was thus calmed down.

With the continuous accumulation of experience and further optimization of the supply network, Wang Jianye began to focus on long-term development.

He considered opening branches in other cities and replicating his successful experience.

“Our food supply network is mature and capable of supporting more branches.

And now people are becoming more and more accepting of Chinese cuisine, so it is a good time to expand.”

Wang Jianye said confidently at a management meeting.

After the meeting, Wang Jianye came to the warehouse alone again.

He looked at the neatly arranged ingredients and sketched out a blueprint for opening more branches in the future: "We have overcome all the difficulties and obstacles in the past. No matter what challenges we encounter in the future, I believe that with this stable supply network and everyone's efforts, Wang's restaurants will surely open all over the United States and spread Chinese cuisine further."

In the process of preparing for the branch, Wang Jianye encountered problems with funding and market research.

But he never felt as anxious and confused as he did when facing the problem of food supply.

He knew that as long as he made breakthroughs step by step like he did with the food problem, he would definitely succeed.

……

On the bustling streets of Los Angeles, Wang's Restaurant has successfully established a foothold in this land with its unique Xuzhou flavor and constantly innovative and improved dishes.

The store is always packed and bustling every day, with laughter and the aroma of delicious food intertwined together, creating a unique street landscape.

However, as the saying goes, "a tall tree attracts the wind." The success of Wang's Restaurant attracted the jealousy and vigilance of local Chinese restaurant chains and local catering groups, and a silent storm quietly hit.

In a luxurious conference room, Mr. Li, the head of a local Chinese restaurant chain, and senior executives of local catering groups sat around a huge conference table. The atmosphere was depressing and tense.

Mr. Li said grimly: "The rise of Wang's Restaurant has had a great impact on us. Our market share has been squeezed. We can't just sit back and watch!" An executive of a local catering group echoed: "That's right. We must find a way to suppress them."

After some intense discussion, they decided to unite to boycott Wang's Restaurant.

A seemingly well-thought-out malicious plan was born.

Soon, at the behest of their competitors, the so-called "food critics" began to take action.

In the Los Angeles Times, one glaring negative review after another was published like a bomb.

"Chinese dishes pose food safety risks, the sources of ingredients are unknown, and the sanitary conditions are worrying..." These sharp and slanderous articles quickly caused an uproar among Los Angeles citizens.

Wang Jianye came to the hotel as usual. As soon as he opened the door, the employees surrounded him in panic.

"Boss, look at these articles in the Los Angeles Times. They say nothing good about our restaurant!" An employee anxiously handed the newspaper to Wang Jianye.

Wang Jianye took the newspaper and quickly glanced through its contents. His brows furrowed tighter and tighter, and a surge of anger and unwillingness surged in his heart: "This is simply a distortion of right and wrong. We have always strictly controlled food safety. How can we be slandered like this!" But before he could recover from his shock and anger, something worse happened.

The Health Bureau suddenly received an anonymous report that there were serious hygiene problems in the kitchen of Wang's Restaurant.

In an instant, the Health Bureau's surprise inspection was like a sharp knife, ruthlessly piercing the heart of the hotel.

The inspectors wore serious masks and conducted meticulous inspections in every corner of the restaurant's kitchen, like cold judges.

There was a tense atmosphere in the kitchen. The employees were at a loss and dared not even make a sound.

Wang Jianye tried to stay calm, but he was extremely anxious. He kept praying in his heart: "Please don't make any mistakes. We have always paid attention to hygiene..." After the inspection, the health bureau official said to Wang Jianye solemnly: "Mr. Wang, although no serious hygiene problems have been found so far, in order to further verify the content of the report, we need to suspend the restaurant for three days for rectification."

Wang Jianye's eyes widened, and he asked in disbelief: "Close for three days? This will have a huge impact on our hotel, can you make some concessions?" The official shook his head helplessly: "This is the rule, there is nothing we can do.

I hope you can actively cooperate and resolve the issue as soon as possible.”

Wang Jianye looked at the backs of the health bureau officials as they left, and his heart felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.

Returning to the lobby, he watched the once bustling restaurant suddenly become deserted. He felt extremely frustrated and helpless: "Is the business that has just started to improve going to be ruined just like that?" And these three days of closure were like a terrible nightmare.

Customers who had been queuing to taste the food left one after another. Wang Jianye watched helplessly as the customer flow dropped by 60%, feeling heartbroken.

For several days, Wang Jianye had lost his appetite and could not sleep at night. The frustration and anger in his heart made him restless: "I absolutely cannot let them frame me like this. I must find a way to fight back!"

After learning from the painful experience, Wang Jianye decided to immediately launch a crisis public relations plan to make the truth known to the world.

He first invited health officials to come to the hotel again, hoping to live broadcast the entire kitchen cleaning process to prove to the public that the hotel's hygiene conditions can stand the test.

In the live broadcast room, the picture clearly shows every corner of the kitchen.

Wang Jianye stood in front of the camera, smiling but firm: "Dear audience friends, today we have invited officials from the Health Bureau to show you the real situation in our hotel's kitchen. We have always attached great importance to food safety and hygiene, and have never slacked off."

Health officials carefully inspected each area and explained: "Look, the food storage here is standardized, the kitchen utensils are clean, and the disinfection records are very complete.

Wang's Restaurant does a good job in hygiene management."

At the same time, Wang Jianye arranged for his employees to make public all food procurement and quarantine certificates, and the documents were neatly displayed at the hotel's front desk for customers to review at any time.

A passing customer asked curiously: "Boss, are these certificates true? Why are you suddenly publishing them?" Wang Jianye patiently explained: "Of course they are true.

Recently, someone maliciously slandered our restaurant, saying that we have food safety risks.

We are announcing this to let everyone know that our ingredients have been strictly quarantined and everyone can eat with confidence.”

After hearing this, the customer nodded and said, "So that's how it is. It seems someone is deliberately slandering you."

However, Wang Jianye knew very well that it was not enough to simply prove that there was no problem with hygiene, and those malicious slanderers must be punished accordingly.

He spared no expense and hired a strong team of American lawyers.

Mr. Smith, the head of the legal team, is a senior lawyer with rich experience and sharp eyes.

When they first met, Wang Jianye said anxiously, "Mr. Smith, you must help me. Someone has maliciously slandered our restaurant, causing our business to plummet."

Mr. Smith nodded steadily: "Mr. Wang, please don't worry, tell me the details of what happened."

Wang Jianye told Mr. Smith the whole story, from the joint boycott by competitors to the malicious negative reviews by the "food critic" and the anonymous report.

After listening to this, Mr. Smith pondered for a moment and said, “Mr. Wang, judging from the current situation, their actions have constituted malicious defamation.

We have enough evidence to prosecute them and seek justice for you.”

A glimmer of hope ignited in Wang Jianye's eyes: "Really? That's great! We must make them pay the price."

Mr. Smith patted Wang Jianye on the shoulder and said, “Don’t worry, I will do my best.

Next we need to collect more evidence and further improve the prosecution materials.”

While the legal team was busy collecting evidence, Wang Jianye did not stop his actions.

He thought of the local Chinese Chamber of Commerce, hoping to use the chamber's power to jointly deal with this crisis.

Wang Jianye came to the Chinese Chamber of Commerce office and met with the Chamber of Commerce President Mr. Chen.

Mr. Chen saw Wang Jianye's tired but determined face and asked with concern: "Xiao Wang, I heard about what happened this time. How are you doing now?" Wang Jianye smiled bitterly and said: "President Chen, it's very difficult.

But I didn’t want to give up, so I came to seek help from the Chamber of Commerce.”

Mr. Chen nodded: "I understand your feelings.

This matter not only concerns your restaurant, but also the reputation of our Chinese catering industry.

The Chamber of Commerce will definitely support you.”

Wang Jianye said gratefully: "Thank you so much, President Chen! I plan to join other Chinese restaurant businesses to organize a 'Chinese Restaurant Quality Alliance' to formulate unified hygiene standards and make them public. What do you think?" Mr. Chen's eyes lit up: "This is a good idea! It can not only help you reshape your brand image, but also enhance the reputation of the entire Chinese restaurant industry in the local area.

I will do my best to help you contact other merchants."

Before long, with the help of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, many Chinese food businesses gathered together.

At the discussion meeting, everyone expressed their opinions one after another.

A Chinese restaurant owner worriedly said: "Will this really work? Will it backfire?" Wang Jianye said firmly: "I think this is an opportunity.

We actively demonstrate standards and quality, allowing customers to see our sincerity.

This is also for the good of the entire industry. If we continue to be smeared like this, no one will have a good life.”

Another boss echoed, “Yes, I agree with Boss Wang.

We should unite and face this crisis together.”

After some discussion and consultation, the "Chinese Food Quality Alliance" was formally established, and strict unified hygiene standards were formulated.

Wang Jianye actively organized the public disclosure of this standard and promoted it through various channels.

For a time, the "Chinese Food Quality Alliance" became a hot topic among Los Angeles citizens, and many people began to change their impression of the Chinese food industry.

In order to further reshape the brand image of Wang's Restaurant, Wang Jianye launched the "Transparent Kitchen" plan.

The hotel spent a lot of money to install a huge glass curtain wall between the kitchen and the dining area.

While dining, customers can clearly see the chefs’ every move in the kitchen. Every step from ingredient selection and cleaning to cooking is presented to customers without reservation.

"Wow, this looks so reassuring! Being able to see the cooking process makes the food taste even better."

A customer excitedly said to his companion.

Wang Jianye explained with a smile: "We just want everyone to eat with peace of mind.

We are confident in our cooking skills and hygiene standards, so we are not afraid to show them to everyone.”

At the same time, Wang Jianye came up with another brilliant idea - to cooperate with surrounding schools to launch a "Chinese Food Culture Class".

He personally led a team of chefs into the school to show the charm of Chinese food culture to the students.

In class, the chef vividly introduced the history and preparation methods of various Chinese delicacies. The students listened with great interest and exclaimed from time to time.

"Teacher, Chinese food looks so interesting. Are there really so many ways to cook it?" a student asked curiously.

The chef smiled and replied: "Of course! Chinese food culture has a long history, and there are many cooking methods, such as frying, stir-frying, boiling, deep-frying, stewing, etc."

At the end of the event, Wang Jianye also gave students free tasting boxes filled with carefully prepared Chinese food.

The children couldn't wait to open the lunch boxes and taste the delicious food, with happy smiles on their faces. (End of this chapter)