A doctor who travels through two eras

Chapter 78 Eat the most authentic Shandong cuisine

Lin Sanqi is from the south, so it is no exaggeration to say that Huadu is a paradise for food.

The people of Dongguan even eat Hujian people, which shows that their love for food has reached the point of being unrestrained. If there were no restrictions in national laws, they would probably eat even more crazily.

As for the old city, it is considered a food desert in the eyes of southerners.

What delicacies are there in the capital? Douzhi? Jiaoquan? Fried liver? Fried tripe? Noodles with soybean paste?

Maybe someone will say that you, Lin Sanqi, went to a famous food place in Beijing today. Let me correct you. Fengzeyuan does not serve "Beijing cuisine" but authentic "Shandong cuisine". Most of the chefs are from Fushan, Shandong...

Lin Sanqi took Pan Ye, as well as both sides' younger brothers and sisters, and sat at the open-air table on the first floor.

All the rooms above the second floor of Fengze Garden are private rooms, and ordinary people like Lin Sanqi are not qualified to go up there.

There was no such thing as looking down on others. At that time, Fengze Garden had already been nationalized and was serving the people.

The waiter back then is now a formal hotel staff member. He has become the owner and of course welcomes guests from all over.

Lin Sanqi sat in front of the table, looking left and right. He was not looking at how luxurious the hotel's decoration was. This could not be compared with the Flower City Zui Jiang Yue in 2023.

Lin Sanqi was looking at the customer flow, and he was surprised to find that even though it was the difficult period of 1959, there were still many people coming and going in the Fengzeyuan Hotel at noon, and it was very lively.

Those wearing white shirts and polished leather shoes, with rosy faces, walked in from outside. Then there were also some white shirts with rosy faces welcoming them, and then both sides shook hands and went to the box in a lively manner.

Some came with their entire family. The older ones walked with their chins raised to the sky and ignored the welcoming staff.

The young ones, on the other hand, looked nonchalant, with their hands in their pockets and walking in a dignified manner, as if they didn't care about anyone. They treated the restaurant as if it were their own home and it was obvious that they had been there quite often.

Who are these people?

Lin Sanqi was a little curious, thinking that these people must be the same as him, all time travelers, and their pockets must be filled with fake food coupons, right?
Otherwise, how could they treat restaurants like their own homes and eat so much and become so fat when the whole country was starving?

Seeing that Lin Sanqi was absent-minded, Pan Ye quickly asked softly:

"Lin Sanqi, what's wrong with you? Did you see anyone familiar?"

"Oh no, it's just my first time at Fengze Garden and I'm a little curious. Let's order."

Small restaurants require customers to go to the window to order their dishes and pay before eating, such as the Red Star Restaurant at the entrance of the alley.

But Fengzeyuan was more humane and provided a menu. Although it was not as beautifully printed as those in later generations and was only a thin page, it also reflected a rare service.

Lin Sanqi was already a little excited at this time. He had been traveling to this era for half a month and could finally go out to eat.

"Pan Ye, why don't you order first and see what you want to eat?"

Pan Ye took the menu, looked at the prices and his face changed. He lowered his voice and reminded, "It's too expensive. One dish here can feed my family for a week."

"Is it expensive?"

Lin Sanqi took the menu and looked at it. Braised sea cucumber with scallions, 8 yuan. Wow, this price is really expensive.
Just one dish might cost an ordinary person half a month's food money. Even children from intellectual families like Pan Ye were shocked, and the slightly older Pan Cen shrank his neck. But Lin Sanqi didn't care. It was his first time to treat a beautiful woman to a meal, so how could he get away with it cheaply? He had to have the courage of a coal boss.

"Don't be afraid. It's expensive for a reason. Today we want to taste the original flavor of Fengze Garden. We're just afraid that in a few decades, these delicacies will be lost."

A middle-aged male waiter nearby was unhappy when he heard this:

"Comrade, our Fengze Garden was established in 1930. The famous chefs in our restaurant are well-known in Beijing. Mou Changxun, Wang Shizhen, Chen Huanzhang, Li Zhengxin, Feng Chengli, Chen Fengming, Zheng Fuxiang, Chen Jintang, have you heard of these old gentlemen?
Let alone these old gentlemen, even Wang Yijun, Shi Guangnan, Liu Fangchun, Xu Yinzhi, Li Jian, Gao Fengwen and other young gentlemen are chefs who can prepare family banquets for the adults in the sea. Do you think our Fengze Garden can't pass on the tradition?"

Lin Sanqi was a little embarrassed. He was from Huadu and was familiar with Cantonese cuisine among the eight major cuisines. But he would be clueless if you mentioned Shandong cuisine.

He knew the correct answer decades later. Most of the so-called eight buildings and eight parks had disappeared.

Even if they have not disappeared, the declining old brands have lost their former glory. Opening various mobile apps, you will find complaints about these old brands being unreliable.

Fengze Garden is the one that receives the most complaints.

In fact, it’s not that the old brands are unreliable, but that there has been a gap in the skills of these old-brand chefs for more than ten years, and very few latecomers can learn the essence.

But now that we are on someone else's turf, of course you have to show some respect to them, otherwise it would be too low EQ. Aren't you afraid that the chef will spit in your dish?

"Yes, yes, you are right. This is my first time here and I didn't know the situation so I said something nonsense. Just because you mentioned so many chefs' names, I know that the food at Fengze Garden must be good."

When the staff member heard this, his expression immediately became smug.

"Excuse me, could you please recommend some of your restaurant's specialty dishes?"

The male staff member's attitude has become very enthusiastic at this time, as if he wants to let you country bumpkins see what he is like:
"Speaking of our Fengze Garden, the most famous ones are the first-class official bird's nest, shark's fin, scallion-fried sea cucumber, fish belly in casserole, white-braised shark's fin, chicken and choy sum, fish fillet in fermented rice wine, braised fish skirt, and braised mullet eggs. I guarantee that after you try them, you will never be able to eat anything else."

Lin Sanqi thought to himself, you are just bragging, Shandong cuisine is so great, why couldn’t it beat Sichuan cuisine which is famous for its spicy, fresh and fragrant flavor?
Of course he couldn't say that. At that time, Shandong cuisine was still the dominant cuisine in Beijing, and Sichuan cuisine was still the younger brother.

Lin Sanqi made the decision: "Okay, then please serve all 10 dishes."

The staff member almost fell down after hearing this, and kindly advised:

"Comrade, although the 10 dishes I mentioned are classic Shandong cuisine from Fengze Garden, the prices are not affordable for ordinary people. Why don't you order some home-cooked side dishes? For example, fried pork intestines, stir-fried kidneys, chicken slices in lotus sauce, crystal pork elbows, etc."

Lin Sanqi thought for a moment and asked, "Is it delicious?"

“It has to be delicious!”

"If it tastes good, then I'll serve it all."

The staff member fell down again, thinking that the more he persuaded, the more he would order food. Whose prodigal son was this, wasted the family's money? Is there a place to get reimbursed?

Even as an outsider, he felt sorry for Lin Sanqi because of the money.

(End of this chapter)