1984: Starting from a bankrupt Sichuan restaurant

Chapter 91 Don't worry, I won't be a gigolo! (Second update!)
Zhou Yan immediately put on a smile and nodded, "Okay! Uncle, which cold dishes would you like to order?"

"Just these few dishes for today. You can provide everything, including the ingredients and labor, and deliver them to me before lunch the day after tomorrow so they can be served."

"Delivery guaranteed!"

In just a short while, several people gathered around Zhou Yan to order braised dishes and cold chicken salad, all of them hosting small banquets of three to five tables at home.

They usually don't hire a local chef; they just find the best cook among their relatives to cook, and then add some braised and cold dishes. The cost isn't too high.

Zhou Yan took out a small notebook and wrote down the time and place.

It's not that they give away every single one.

"Brother, how about you buy these two plates of pig ears in town that day and bring them to the store to be packed up? It takes more than half an hour to go to Nancun and back." Zhou Yan smiled and politely declined a delivery order.

If there's no delivery fee, then having a minimum order amount is reasonable, right?
They were all related by blood, so they were all easy to talk to.

Zhou Yan will deliver to any order exceeding five tables within the Suji Town area; this is considered a large order.

In business, you have to be flexible and adaptable.

As the crowd dispersed, Zhou Yan returned to Xiao Lei and Zheng Qiang's side.

The two of them were holding a piece of paper and grinning foolishly.

"How many orders have you placed?" Zhou Yan asked with a smile.

"Six singles." Zheng Qiang gestured with his hand, looking at Zhou Yan with admiration: "Junior brother, you're amazing!"

"It's the three of us who are really good. We earned this reputation through our own strength." Zhou Yan waved his hand with a smile.

"Three orders this month, two orders next month, and one more order the month after that." Zheng Qiang handed the paper to Zhou Yan and said with a smile, "Two companies have ordered you to deliver cold dishes this month. Just do it according to today's standard. Write down the date and number of tables first, and I will communicate with you two days in advance to discuss the exact number of tables."

"That's great! This is a big order!" Zhou Yan happily took the paper and copied it down in her notebook.

There's one at number 8 and another at number 16, both from Suji Town. One has 20 tables and the other has 38 tables; they're both big businesses!
Look, this is a win-win situation of mutual help.

Xiao Lei added, "You can make cold dishes for the other four families too, and I'll give you a share of the profits."

“If the host doesn’t make any requests, I won’t go. Master, your braising skills are unparalleled in the canteen. By the time of the third session, your braising liquid will be ready, and you can earn the money yourselves.” Zhou Yan shook his head with a smile: “I still have to take care of the restaurant, so the timing isn’t right.”

"Okay." Xiao Lei nodded and didn't say anything more.

Zhou Yan arranged a card table for them to sit down, and then rode his bicycle back to the restaurant.

Zhou Yan didn't interfere with how his master and Zheng Qiang divided the money. His master was a seasoned veteran with decades of experience and was also Zheng Qiang's uncle-master; he would definitely be able to divide the money fairly.

The table costs three yuan, which they split between the two of them, so their income is quite considerable.

Once the two of them get along well, it's no problem for one of them to prepare cold dishes. If you also give him a share of the profits, a few dozen yuan split among three people, how much can he earn in a month?

Zhou Yan's restaurant currently makes over 100 yuan in profit every day, and if he can successfully produce braised dishes, there is still room for profit to increase.

Focusing on running the restaurant is what he should be doing right now; he can't possibly pocket every penny of money in the market.

If his master and Zheng Qiang were ever planning to open a restaurant for private banquets, he would be very interested in investing in it.

In a few years, when people's living conditions improve and they start to pay more attention to extravagance, restaurants should make a lot of money.

Back in the restaurant kitchen, Zhou Yan used a strainer to scoop out all the meat scraps from the brine, then wrapped the strainer in gauze and strained it again to make sure no meat scraps were left. Then he added water, color, and salt, and brought the brine to a boil again.

Old braising liquid needs to be aged; this process must be repeated after each batch of meat is braised, otherwise the braising liquid will turn sour the next day.

The feedback from the guests today has been excellent, and Zhou Yan has gained a very deep understanding of the value of this pot of old braising liquid.

As long as he takes good care of this pot of old brine, he can live comfortably on this brine alone.

[Ding! Side quest triggered: The Legacy of Zhang's Braised Food.]

[Suji Zhangji Braised Food, founded by Zhang Shufen in 1930, has become a delicious memory for the older generation in Suji over the decades.]

[The player has successfully become Zhang Shufen's apprentice, triggering the inheritance quest: Sell 500 servings of braised food, awakening the delicious memories of older generations of Suzhou diners and making Zhang's braised food famous in Suzhou once again. Quest reward: Unknown. Accept: Yes/No]

Zhou Yan, who was tending the fire, raised an eyebrow. The long-awaited system task had arrived!
500 copies—this is a moderately demanding task; it's achievable, but it will take some time.

He plans to start selling braised food tomorrow, beginning with braised pig's head and cold chicken salad. He will start by controlling the quantity of braised beef shank, gradually increasing the supply in the same way as before, and trying to avoid waste.

The brine was simmering over medium-low heat. Zhou Yan took out paper and pen, calculated the cost, and began to set the price.

The price of boneless pig's head meat is 60 cents per pound. After braising, it will shrink by 20-30%. Each braising also consumes a lot of braising liquid, which is an additional cost.

Braised pig ears and braised pig snouts are less common, and more people prefer to eat them with alcohol, so the price should be set higher, at 3 yuan per jin (500g).

Braised pig's head meat is 2.5 yuan per jin. Cold chicken salad is 2.5 yuan per jin.

Braised beef is more expensive and is priced at 4 yuan per jin (500g).

The gross profit margin for braised beef is only about 30%, and Zhou Yan believes it won't sell very well.

The price is indeed a bit expensive. For the same type of snack to accompany drinks, braised pork head and cold chicken salad are clearly more cost-effective.

None of the three braised food stalls at the factory gate were selling braised beef.

This price is two or three cents more per pound than the braised food stalls near the entrance. Based on a pig's head, after deducting all costs, the gross profit can reach about 55%.

There's a reason why it's expensive. The caramel coloring and spices used in the braising liquid are all top-quality products, and Zhou Yan is confident that his braised food will taste even better than theirs. Today, when the old lady was giving him pointers on braised food, they talked about pricing. Back when she sold braised food, her prices were always 30% higher than other braised food shops in Suji Town.

Even so, her braised food is still in high demand, and it sells out every day at noon.

This pricing strategy allows for greater profit from the same 100 jin (50 kg) of meat, and also leaves room for competitors to make a living, thus avoiding envy and resentment.

Zhou Yan's pricing is already relatively conservative.

Then Zhou Yan set the prices for dine-in service at the restaurant.

A serving of pig ears and pig snout contains three ounces of meat, thinly sliced ​​and arranged on a plate, and costs 1 yuan; a serving of pig head meat and cold chicken salad contains four ounces of meat and costs 1 yuan, which is basically the same price as buying them in bulk.

A serving of braised beef weighs four ounces and costs 1.6 yuan.

If braised beef doesn't sell well, Zhou Yan might turn it into a pre-order dish, only making it if ordered one day in advance, otherwise it'll be sold out by default.

After the price was determined, Zhou Yan took out the wooden board that had been cut earlier from the cabinet and started writing the menu, and directly marked the portion size of each dish so that customers could intuitively know the portion size.

Running a restaurant is not that simple; there are many trivial matters involved.

After adding braised food to the menu, the kitchen will become even busier.

Pig's head meat, pig's ears, and pig's snout should be freshly cut, and cold chicken should be freshly mixed to ensure a better taste.

Zhou Yan considered whether to recruit a skilled butcher to cut braised meat at the entrance, so that the kitchen could keep up during peak dining hours.

Alternatively, they could focus on serving the one hour after the textile factory closes in the evening, pre-cutting pig ears, pig head meat, and cold chicken, letting Aunt Zhao only be responsible for weighing and packaging, while Zhou Yan would be responsible for cutting and mixing on the spot in the kitchen for dine-in customers, without increasing manpower for the time being.

Five signs were hung on the wall, and the menu was significantly expanded.

Most braised food is sold in takeout, which not only enriches the menu but also expands the customer base and directly increases revenue.

Once the brine boiled, Zhou Yan turned off the heat, covered the pot with the lid, locked it, and went out.

The textile factory is closed today, but there are still a few vendors setting up stalls outside.

The workers living in the dormitory would also come over for a meal on their days off, so there were always a few customers.

"Mr. Zhou, you're coming over on Sunday too?" someone greeted him.

Zhou Yan slammed on the brakes and turned around to see the owner of the sweet-skinned duck shop smiling at him. The owner had a round face, a slightly plump figure, and was around thirty years old. He was wearing a gray smock and had a thick head of naturally curly hair that looked like a wig. If you weren't paying attention, you might mistake him for a kind-looking auntie.

Zhao Minghui is from Muzhen Town, Jiajiang County, and his family has a tradition of making duck.

I ate at Xiao Zhou's restaurant a few times when it first opened, and we got to know each other over time and got along quite well.

Behind the stall was a recliner where a short-haired, slightly plump woman was taking a nap with a little girl in her arms, covered by a blouse. She was his wife and youngest daughter.

"Yeah, I came to pick up some things. Old Zhao is still out selling things today?" Zhou Yan said with a smile.

"Yes, I only made two today. I'll go home after I sell the other half." Zhao Minghui nodded and pointed to the plate in front of him: "There are two braised duck heads left, want one?"

Zhou Yan glanced in the direction he was pointing.

Two ordinary braised duck heads

Half a decent sweet-skinned duck

"I'm not eating anymore. I had a feast at the market today, and my stomach is still full." Zhou Yan shook his head with a smile. Old Zhao is a professional at cooking duck, but his duck head skills are still a bit lacking.

"Have some salted peanuts. I made them myself this morning as a snack, but the customers couldn't buy them." Zhao Minghui walked over, stuffed a handful of salted peanuts into Zhou Yan's hand, and said with a smile, "Your business has been doing really well lately. I'm so happy for you. Now you can finally make it big, right?"

"Business is alright, now we don't have to close down." Zhou Yan stepped down the kickstand, peeled a peanut and popped it into his mouth. The braised flavor was rich, the saltiness was just right, and it was quite fragrant.

A decent braised peanut

“Braised peanuts taste better than your braised duck heads. Why don’t you try selling peanuts instead of duck heads?” Zhou Yan suggested earnestly.

"Really?" Zhao Minghui's eyes lit up, and he nodded, saying, "That's what I was thinking too! I've adjusted this peanut flavor dozens of times, and this is the final recipe. I want to sell it, but my wife says nobody wants it."

“They’re great with drinks, how could no one want them?” Zhou Yan said with a smile. “For the next week, whenever a customer comes to buy braised food or sweet-skinned duck, give them a few to try. If someone stops to look, give them a few too. Let’s build up our reputation first, so people know that you sell braised peanuts here, and that they taste good.”

"Even if you sell peanuts for a week, you'll only sell ten pounds at most, which won't cost you much. The following week, you can start selling braised peanuts directly. Put them in a prominent position on your stall, write down the prices, and make sure they sell out."

Zhao Minghui's eyes lit up as he listened, and he couldn't help but clap his hands and exclaim, "That's a great idea! How come I didn't think of that? Zhou Yan, you're so clever!"

"Why don't you give it a try? I think these peanuts will sell better than your duck heads. Peanuts are cheap, and they'll increase in weight after being braised. Sell them for 40 cents a pound, and you'll make half the profit. Isn't that great?" Zhou Yan ate another peanut, then put the rest in his pocket for Zhou Momo to take back.

"Alright! I'll start serving peanuts to the guests tomorrow." Zhao Minghui nodded, beaming, and casually asked, "I saw you came back this morning too, were you carrying anything?"

"Oh, my brother is getting married, so I braised some pig's head and beef for him." Zhou Yan put away his leg rest and prepared to leave.

"Braised food?" Zhao Minghui was taken aback, looking at him with some surprise: "You're going to start selling braised food too?"

Zhou Yan smiled and reassured him, "Don't worry, I won't be a gigolo."

Zhao Minghui: ...

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(End of this chapter)