1984: Starting from a bankrupt Sichuan restaurant

Chapter 22 Heavenly Lord!

The guests were eagerly awaiting Lin Zhiqiang's insightful commentary.

Zhou Yan stood at the kitchen door, also looking forward to Lin Zhiqiang's comments.

"The soup is fresh and delicious, the beef is tender, the tripe is crisp, the beef intestines are soft, and the beef tendon is tender and chewy. The perfect control of the heat allows each ingredient to reach its best state for eating. It's so satisfying to eat!" Lin Zhiqiang exclaimed. "The dipping sauce is also superb. It adds a spicy flavor to the meat and is the finishing touch."

"Moreover, I think this soup really has the effect of dispelling cold. After drinking half a bowl, I felt warm all over and the chill subsided by more than half."

"Six cents a bowl, I think it's a great deal!"

Lin Zhiqiang's comments impressed the onlookers.

That's incredibly high praise!
If anyone in Suji Town says they don't know about the soup pot from Zhou Village where you slaughter cattle, they're definitely lying.

The soup is bland, and the beef offal, if not prepared properly, has a gamey smell, which many people find unpalatable.

Moreover, the beef stew at Zhou Erwa Restaurant costs 60 cents a bowl, which makes it even more prohibitive for most people.

However, Deputy Factory Director Lin's comments overturned everyone's perception of Qiaojiao Beef, and increased their desire to try it.

Tripe is delicious in hot pot, but it's a hassle to prepare at home, and you can easily overcook it if you're not careful.

Moreover, this bowl contains beef intestines, beef tendon, and beef, weighing more than three ounces. Considering all that, it doesn't seem too expensive.

“However, I think there’s an even better way to eat it. Boss lady, could you get me a small dish with some salt in it?” Lin Zhiqiang called out, taking out the bottle of Donghu vinegar from his briefcase.

"Old Lin, what's going on..." Zhao Dong looked at Lin Zhiqiang, who had already unscrewed the vinegar bottle, and his expression became a little strange.

"Old Zhao, let me teach you a new way to eat it." Lin Zhiqiang took the small dish Zhao Tieying handed him, poured some vinegar into it, then picked up a piece of beef, dipped it in the vinegar, and put it in his mouth. He nodded repeatedly, "Mmm! That's the taste! So authentic!"

"Tsk!"

"what!"

"Heavens above!"

A series of gasps of surprise, tinged with disdain, erupted from the restaurant.

If he weren't the deputy factory director, he would have definitely gone up and thrown vinegar at him!

Who eats clear broth hot pot with vinegar?

"I'd like a plate of braised beef with chili sauce," Zhao Dong said to Zhao Tieying.

“Okay,” Zhao Tieying replied with a smile.

"Aunt Zhao, I'd like a serving of braised beef with pork belly and a bowl of rice."

"Aunt Zhao, I also want a bowl of braised beef with chili peppers, and double the amount of chili powder! I love spicy food! I eat spicy food every day."

"Me too! I feel uncomfortable if I don't eat spicy food for a day!"

Spurred on by Lin Zhiqiang, several customers immediately ordered "Qiaojiao Beef" just to give the chili dipping sauce its due recognition.

Zhou Yan smiled and turned into the kitchen. Lin Zhiqiang was truly his benefactor. He was the one who helped open up the reputation of the noodles, and unexpectedly, it was also him who helped make the braised beef.

He's practically the 'best food taster'!
"Okay, I'll make it for you right away," Zhao Tieying replied with a beaming smile.

Before long, bowls of braised beef were served to the guests.

"Wow! This beef is so tender! And this chili powder smells so good!"

"Only fresh tripe has this crisp texture! It's amazing!"

"The beef tendon is so tender and melts in your mouth with just one bite, it's so delicious!"

"The soup is so delicious! It's so delicious it'll make your eyebrows fall off! This is unlike any other soup hot pot!"

The guests praised the dish one after another, showing great satisfaction with the braised beef.

What surprised most people, besides the soup, was the dipping sauce, which was fragrant and spicy, and was definitely the finishing touch to the braised beef.

Dipping or not dipping, they are like two different dishes.

A dish of chili powder transforms the bland beef into a delicious side dish, making rice taste even better when paired with a flavorful broth.

Zhao Dong ate a couple of bites and then ordered a bowl of rice, which was quite appetizing.

His favorite food is beef intestines.

The beef intestines were prepared perfectly, with no odor at all. Coated with chili powder, they were rich but not greasy, truly delicious!
He has a strong palate and loves pork intestines, especially the tender texture with a bit of fat and the sensation of the oil bursting between his teeth. Of course, it has to taste good too.

"Old Zhao, want to try it?" Lin Zhiqiang pushed the dish of vinegar a little closer to him.

"You can eat it yourself. I like it dipped in the dry dipping sauce." Zhao Dong quickly pushed the vinegar back and straightened the dry dipping sauce: "Beef with chili powder is the only way to enjoy it."

"I think dipping it in vinegar is fine," Lin Zhiqiang insisted on his opinion.

Well, everyone has their own preferences, and no one can convince anyone else.

Zhao Dong's rice arrived. He took a bite, chewed a few times, swallowed, and nodded repeatedly: "This rice is really well-cooked!"

It's fluffy and delicious, with each grain of rice distinct and not sticky at all. The moisture content is just right, much better than what you get in the cafeteria.

He loves rice more than noodles. When he was a child, his family was poor and he rarely had the chance to eat rice. Every year on New Year's Day, what he looked forward to most was his mother steaming rice in a wooden bucket.

His mother steamed rice in a large pot for everyone at the village canteen. Her rice-steaming skills were the best in the village. The rice she steamed was like this: each grain was distinct and not sticky at all, but the aroma of the rice was perfectly preserved, with a faint woody fragrance.

Later, he started working in a textile factory and became a workshop director. His life got better day by day, and he was able to eat rice every day.

But his mother's mind hasn't been working very well in the last two years. She's always forgetting things, and sometimes she doesn't even recognize him.

Even her specialty, steaming rice, has been burnt twice, and once she almost set the kitchen on fire. They are afraid to let her into the kitchen.

Unexpectedly, the rice Zhou Yan steamed today brought back that childhood feeling for him.

The moisture content and cooking time were perfectly controlled.

It was exactly the same as the perfect Donkey's Rice he remembered.

"Old Zhao, what are you thinking about? You haven't made a sound." Lin Zhiqiang asked with a smile.

"Eating this steamed rice reminds me of my mother. She used to steam large pots of rice for the village communal meals, enough for over a hundred people. Everyone who ate it praised it." Zhao Dong said with a smile, "Xiao Zhou's rice is quite good, comparable to my mother's."

"You should be grateful your mother is still alive. I bet my mother has nowhere to go now." Lin Zhiqiang said with a hint of envy and regret, then pursed his lips and said, "What's so great about this food? It's not even anything special. Even if it's delicious, can it be as good as Xiao Zhou's ramen?"

"Old Lin, you don't understand." Zhao Dong shook his head with a smile.

Just then, Zhao Hong brought up their two bowls of noodles.

"You just hired a new waiter?" Lin Zhiqiang said with a smile. "That means the restaurant's operations have improved and it's expanded."

"My daughter and I were too busy, so we asked my niece-in-law to come and help out at the shop," Zhao Tieying replied with a smile.

"That's good," Lin Zhiqiang said with a smile, first drinking the beef soup in the ceramic bowl.

After finishing this big bowl of soup and a few ounces of beef offal, my whole body felt warm and cozy. I broke out in a sweat, felt much more energetic, and stopped sneezing.

"This beef soup is really good; it makes me feel much better," Lin Zhiqiang exclaimed.

"Then I'll ladle you another bowl of soup." Zhao Tieying picked up the earthenware bowl and added another bowl of soup for him.

"I can't accept this, I still have a bowl of noodles to eat." Lin Zhiqiang waved his hands repeatedly.

"There's nothing to be embarrassed about. When you eat 'Qiaojiao Beef' at our restaurant, the soup is free to refill, no extra charge." Zhao Tieying put down the ceramic bowl and said with a smile, "We're all the same."

"That's good." Lin Zhiqiang nodded.

"Great!" The guests who ordered the braised beef all smiled.

This soup is so delicious, I could easily drink another bowl. It's much better than plain water.

Lin Zhiqiang and Zhao Dong built up the reputation of Qiaojiao Beef, and the restaurant became very popular, with many customers enjoying the delicious food.

Later customers could casually ask and receive strong recommendations from their colleagues, and many customers also ordered it.

Taking advantage of the opportunity to serve noodles to the guests, Zhou Yan made a point of coming out to greet Lin Zhiqiang and Zhao Dong.

"Xiao Zhou, your braised beef is really good. Not only does it taste great, but it even cured my cold after eating it." Lin Zhiqiang gave Zhou Yan a thumbs up, looking at him with admiration.

"I've tried several hot pot restaurants in Zhoucun, but none of them are as good as Xiao Zhou's. It seems the real secret is with you," Zhao Dong said with a smile. "And your rice is really well-cooked, much better than the cafeteria's."

"You two are too kind," Zhou Yan said with a modest smile.

"When are the stir-fries and braised dishes coming out? Putting everything else aside, the braised pork ribs, beef with dried bamboo shoots, and minced beef are all three of these toppings that can be served as dishes on their own, and they'll definitely be great with rice," Zhao Dong asked with concern.

(End of this chapter)