1984: Starting from a bankrupt Sichuan restaurant

Chapter 94 Are these all shills hired by the boss?
Zhao Niangniang's shout made many workers who had just come out of the factory gate turn around, and their eyes lit up when they saw the braised pig's head and cold chicken.

"Zhou Erwa's restaurant has started selling braised food!"

"That cold chicken salad looks really good! The chili oil has such a perfect color!"

"Free meat samples? The boss is so generous! Let's try a piece!"

The guests gathered around curiously, knowing that Zhou Erwa's restaurant was expensive, and naturally they couldn't miss the chance to get something for free.

The advantage of being the first storefront at the factory gate was fully demonstrated at this moment.

The shouts also attracted the attention of the vendors at the factory gate, especially the three adjacent braised food stalls. The owners almost simultaneously looked towards Zhou Erwa's restaurant.

"What is this?! He sells braised food too?" Yang Laosan, the owner of Yang's Braised Food, frowned, his bald head even forming a deep frown.

Zhu Feng, the owner of Zhu Ji Braised Food on the right, also looked dissatisfied: "Selling everything and trying to make money from everything, Zhou Yan is too greedy!"

The lunchtime business for braised food was already bad enough, but this is even worse.

They watched as Zhou Yan ruined Wang Laowu's noodle stall, and then Zhou Liangliang came to sell soup pot, but he also went out of business and ran away after a day.

Now that Zhou Yan has started selling braised food, how could he not be worried?

These vendors are the ones who have seen how booming Zhou Yan's restaurant business is these past two days. Everyone is saying that he can sell two or three hundred yuan worth of food a day and earn over a hundred yuan!

These vendors can earn seven or eight yuan a day when business is good, and one or two yuan when business is bad. A couple can run a stall and earn about a hundred yuan a month, which is more than farming and no worse than being a textile factory worker.

But compared to Zhou Yan, he's far inferior.

And whatever he sells becomes a hit; noodles sell well, soup pots sell well, and now he's selling braised food...

Yang Laosan and Zhu Feng dared not even think about it.

Compared to the worried faces of the bosses on either side, Zhao Minghui in the middle was calmly pouring braised peanuts from the basket into an enamel basin. Seeing their flustered appearance, he couldn't help but laugh.

When the two of them teamed up to mess with him, he was really tormented and couldn't sleep for several days. He never imagined that people could be so treacherous.

Now that Zhou Yan has started selling braised food, the two of them think that Zhou Yan is being greedy.

Anyway, since Zhou Yan said he wouldn't be a gigolo, it won't have too much of an impact on him.

A group of textile factory workers would come every ten days or so to buy half a sweet-skinned duck to take home for their elderly parents and children. The meat was fragrant, the bones were tender, and it was coated with malt syrup, which the elderly and children loved to eat.

Thanks to these customers, the couple can earn more than 100 yuan a month, and even more during holidays. This year, they sold 30 sweet-skinned ducks for the Mid-Autumn Festival and earned more than 40 yuan.

A family-inherited craft is not so easy to imitate.

He sells very little braised pig's head meat now; even if he didn't sell any, it wouldn't have much of an impact.

He is honest, but not stupid.

At least I can tell the difference.

Zhang Xiuqin's face showed some worry, but seeing Yang Laosan and Zhu Feng's anxious expressions, she was also somewhat happy.

"Do you think Zhou Yan's braised food will sell well?" Zhang Xiuqin whispered. "I've never heard him mention making braised food before."

“He’s a professional chef, so he shouldn’t do badly…” Zhao Minghui was a little unsure of himself. He hadn’t known Zhou Yan for very long, but they had chatted together quite a few times. He had never heard Zhou Yan mention that he could make braised dishes before.

Based on his understanding of Zhou Yan's personality, if Zhou Yan knew how to make braised food, he would definitely be eager to teach him.

Thinking about it this way, his confidence greatly diminished.

Is Zhou Yan up to his old tricks again?

After all, he had previously felt that his talents were going to waste, as his dishes were so delicious, yet the guests wouldn't even try them.

To support his brother, Zhao Minghui went to the restaurant twice and ordered food. After they finished eating, he and Xiuqin both fell silent.

There's a reason why some restaurants are deserted; don't be stubborn and insist on sitting down to taste the saltiness.

"Don't worry, Zhou Yan doesn't know how to make braised food at all, otherwise he would have made it long ago, and wouldn't be waiting until today." Yang Laosan loudly comforted Zhu Feng, and also comforted himself.

Zhu Feng nodded in agreement: "That's right. Making braised food isn't that easy. Just this one pot of braising liquid is something he can't figure out in a short time."

The two exchanged a glance and smiled enigmatically.

Even if Zhou Yan does a decent job, they still have ways to deal with it.

Zhao Minghui's braised food stall opened earlier than theirs, but he was still squeezed out by them and could only sell sweet-skinned duck.

It's a pity they haven't found a place to learn how to make sweet-skinned duck. Otherwise, if they could learn how to make sweet-skinned duck, they could completely squeeze out Zhao Minghui and monopolize the braised food business at the entrance of the textile factory.

They were very envious of the business that could sell dozens of sweet-skinned ducks a day during holidays.

At the restaurant, workers gathered around, skewering pork head meat and cold chicken with bamboo sticks for tasting.

Seeing that it was inconvenient for everyone to grab the food while crowding around, Aunt Zhao took the initiative to grab a handful of skewers, skewered pieces of pork head meat and chunks of cold chicken, and handed them directly to the workers who couldn't squeeze in from the back.

"Thank you, auntie!" the female workers said sweetly.

"You're welcome. Try it; it's our Zhou family's ancestral braised food recipe," Zhao Tieying said with a smile.

"Mmm! This braised pig's head smells so good! It's tender and soft, fatty but not greasy, and the more you chew, the more fragrant it becomes!"

"That's right! The aroma is rich and the taste is superb. This braised pig's head is amazing! It's perfect with drinks!"

Braised pig's head meat was the first to receive positive reviews, especially from those who enjoy drinking; they considered it a treasure.

The sign next to it showed the prices: pig's head meat and cold chicken salad were 2.5 yuan per jin, and pig's ears and pig's snouts were 3 yuan per jin. These prices were 3 mao more per jin than the three braised food stalls at the entrance.

Eating at the restaurant is charged by portion, and the price is the same as when it's sold by weight. The weight is clearly written down, which is much better than many other restaurants. After finishing his meal, Zhao Dong turned to Song Yang and Zhu Zhe beside him and said, "Old Song, Old Zhu, hurry up and get half a jin (250ml). Come to my house for drinks tonight. You provide the meat, and I'll provide the liquor. I'll open a bottle of 60-proof Yanghe liquor for you to try."

The two men's eyes lit up upon hearing this.

Song Yang said, "Really? Let's have drinks tonight and do it after get off work. It's not convenient to bring it in now."

"You know nothing! Their business has been booming lately. If they don't serve lunch, you won't get any after get off work!" Zhao Dong rolled his eyes at him.

"Sure!" Zhu Zhe said to Aunt Zhao without hesitation, "Boss lady, give me half a pound of pig's head meat and a pig's ear to go!"

Zhao Dong nodded repeatedly: "Old Zhu, you still know your stuff. These pig ears look pretty good too."

“Since you’re opening a bottle of Yanghe liquor, I can’t be stingy.” Zhu Zhe grinned and turned to Song Yang, saying, “Old Song, let’s split the bill.”

“Okay, why not?” Song Yang nodded in agreement, and the three of them went straight into the shop and found an empty table to sit down.

"Sure! I'll cut it for you right away!" Aunt Zhao replied with a smile. She hadn't expected the business to come so quickly. She quickly asked Zhao Hong to tell Zhou Yan to cut the pig's ear and pig's head meat.

"This cold chicken salad is also very well made! The skin is crispy, the meat is tender and chewy, and the more you chew, the more fragrant it becomes. The flavor has all been infused into the meat, and it tastes so good!"

"This chili oil is so fragrant! The chicken is spicy, savory, and slightly sweet and sour, but it doesn't burn your lips at all. It's just incredibly delicious!"

The cold chicken salad also received unanimous praise from the guests. After eating one piece, there were still sesame seeds in the mouth, which burst open between the teeth when chewed, leaving a lingering fragrance on the lips and teeth.

"I told you it was delicious, I wasn't lying to you~" Zhou Momo said with a smug look on her face, taking a bite of the last piece of cold chicken on the bamboo skewer, and shaking her little head in a childish voice, "My husband made it, it's super delicious!"

“Yes, the young boss is absolutely right,” the guests replied with smiles.

The little guy is so cute! With red oil still on his lips, he's chewing on a chicken nugget, eating with such relish.

"Boss, could you please order us a cold chicken salad to eat in the restaurant, and also a twice-cooked pork?" As soon as a customer sat down, they immediately placed the order.

"Give us one too, and add some double-pepper minced beef." A customer immediately followed suit.

“Okay, please sit down. I’ll order for you.” Aunt Zhao immediately took out the menu and started ordering.

Aunt Zhao doesn't know many characters, but she has her own way of ordering food. For example, she writes the character "回" for twice-cooked pork and the character "双" for double-pepper minced beef. She chooses the simplest representative character for each dish, and Zhou Yan can understand it at a glance.

Braised food doesn't go well with rice, so not many people order it at lunchtime. Apart from regular customers like Zhao Dong who are worried about not being able to get it in the evening, other customers who like it will wait until after get off work in the evening to buy it and take it home to eat.

But cold chicken salad is different; it's not only delicious, but it also goes well with rice.

Spicy, salty, and savory with a hint of sweet and sour, it's a delicious and flavorful dish that many people love and order for lunch.

And there was more than one such guest.

"One serving of cold chicken salad!"

"Another serving of cold chicken salad, please. I want it extra spicy."

……

Orders were delivered to the kitchen one after another. Even Zhou Yan hadn't expected the tasting program to be so successful, with effective conversions starting as early as noon.

Indeed, when you have enough confidence in the taste of your food, tasting is the best way to win.

Braised dishes and cold dishes are the most suitable categories for tasting. A single bamboo skewer is enough to encourage customers to try them with confidence, and the cost is relatively controllable.

The trial cost of just over three yuan resulted in more than ten direct orders and a surge in positive word-of-mouth. This is incredibly cost-effective.

However, this was during the peak dining period, and Zhou Yan had to chop chicken and make cold chicken salad, as well as slice pig ears and cut pig head meat. There was also a stack of stir-fry orders piled up over there.

The cleaver in my hand was smoking as I swung it, but I was still a bit too busy.

The desire for a reliable partner reached its peak at this moment.

As long as someone can take over the job of cutting the braised dishes, he can free up his hands to mix the cold chicken.

If the cold dish chef stands at the restaurant entrance, weighing and cutting the ingredients in front of everyone, that would be a living advertisement, and they could probably sell a lot more each day.

Good foundation stones are hard to come by, and these things can't be rushed, so we have to put this idea aside for now.

Fortunately, Comrade Zhou returned early today after slaughtering the cow, and helped serve the dishes and pack the leftovers, keeping the overall efficiency within the guests' tolerance level.

……

Zhou Yan was busy in the kitchen, while Yang Laosan and Zhu Feng outside were a little dumbfounded.

A group of workers were gathered outside Zhou Erwa's restaurant, tasting the food and praising it with increasingly exaggerated words.

"The braised food is absolutely delicious!"

"The crispy skin made my soul fly away!"

"If I weren't afraid of getting fired, I would have bought two ounces of liquor to go with it!"

The two looked at each other, their expressions a mixture of shock and bewilderment.

"These are all shills hired by Zhou Yan, right? How is that possible!"

……

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(End of this chapter)