Rebirth 07: Starting with Saving a Bankrupt Restaurant

It's definitely time to introduce some new dishes; I'll need to take three days off in early September.

As for what dishes to serve...

In July and August, the main dishes are mostly crayfish, cold-cooked rabbit, and frog legs. The only relatively affordable option is cold rice noodle rolls.

I'll release some affordable food items later to balance things out.

The reputation of shrimp and mushroom noodles has always been quite good.

Both Jiang Zhiyu and Zhang Mo really liked the shrimp and mushroom noodles.

This kind of light and delicious food is indeed very popular in the local area.

Although restaurants now offer many hearty dishes, shrimp and mushroom noodles still sell quite well.

So Zhou Wen plans to make the next dish, which is the equally light and delicious scallop and crab mushroom noodles.

These days, the second floor of the restaurant has also played a significant role.

There's absolutely no need to worry about seating.

Many diners who come to the restaurant alone, or with friends or couples, like to go up to the second floor to eat.

The second floor was much quieter than the first floor.

As for personnel issues, there are currently no other problems.

The restaurant's delivery service starts accepting orders at 4:30 pm and continues until 8 pm, but it actually ends about half an hour later.

That means that Shan Wei would rest at the restaurant at 8:30 and then go to help out.

So there are enough staff, and this time of day happens to be the busiest time for the restaurant.

After resting, I rode my electric scooter to the market.

Zhou Wen, of course, would never buy live scallops in their shells and then shuck them himself.

Furthermore, the skirt needs to be cleaned and the internal organs removed, and the fishy smell itself is also strong. If you use it to make clear soup noodles, it will make the soup cloudy and fishy.

The sizes are uneven, and there is no standard for a bowl of noodles.

To save on taste and energy consumption, Zhou Wen doesn't plan to buy frozen scallops. Seafood stalls also sell freshly shucked scallops, but the price might be a bit higher.

It costs about 20 or 30 yuan per jin (500g).

The best option for restaurants is actually frozen scallops, as fresh scallops can be quite wasteful if they can't be sold in time.

However, Zhou Wen ultimately chose freshly shucked scallops to make the soup noodles more delicious.

Then it's time to select enoki mushrooms. Compared to button mushrooms, enoki mushrooms are much cheaper, costing only three to five yuan per pound.

After buying the ingredients, we returned to the restaurant and charged the battery.

Because of the move these past few days, Zhou Wen told Shi Ling and Shi Wen to take a good rest.

At eight o'clock, the two arrived at the restaurant.

Zhou Wen had also told the two of them in advance that they didn't need to buy breakfast.

After the guests arrived, Zhou Wen prepared to make scallop and crab mushroom soup.

First, wash and drain the scallops, remove the roots from the enoki mushrooms and break them apart, and wash the greens and set them aside.

Add a little oil to the pan, sauté the sliced ​​crab mushrooms until fragrant, then add the enoki mushrooms and sauté over low heat until the mushrooms release their juices. Sauté until the edges are slightly browned and the flavor is locked in.

Pour in enough boiling water and simmer over medium heat for a few minutes to infuse the soup with the umami flavor of the mushrooms.

Add the noodles and cook until they are about 80% done, then add the scallops.

Scallops cook quickly, so one minute is enough.

Finally, blanch the vegetables, add a suitable amount of salt and a little white pepper, and sprinkle with chopped green onions.

Zhou Wen added almost no other sweetness, in order to maintain at least a minimum level of umami flavor.

Zhou Wen then brought the prepared noodles to the front hall for Shi Ying and the other person to taste.

"Boss, this noodle dish looks just like shrimp and mushroom noodles," Shi Ying remarked.

Zhou Wen nodded and said, "The scallop and crab mushroom noodles, like the shrimp and mushroom noodles, are both on the lighter and more flavorful side."

Although both bowls of noodles are described as light and sweet, they actually taste quite different.

The shrimp and mushroom noodles have a richer umami flavor because the broth is made by simmering shrimp heads, so the shrimp flavor is very strong and the layers of flavor are more complete.

As for the scallop and crab mushroom noodles, they are sweeter and better for the stomach.

The two of them quickly began to taste it.

After the two finished eating, they gave their feedback.

Shi Ying, however, preferred the shrimp and mushroom noodles, as they had a richer seafood flavor and more complex seasoning.

As for Shi Ling, she naturally prefers whatever is light and good for her stomach.

Having a bowl of noodles first thing in the morning is just perfect for warming your stomach, and the taste is really good.

Zhou Wen had a bowl of noodles with a cold skin noodle dish.

After Ren Xuan and Shan Wei arrived at the restaurant, Zhou Wen served them noodles to try.

Girls might prefer light and easy-to-eat foods, and Shan Wei wasn't particularly interested in this bowl of noodles; it looked quite bland.

After eating it, I felt that it was not as good as the food I had before.

"What's wrong? Doesn't it taste good?"

Dan Wei shook his head. Every dish his boss made, while not necessarily the most delicious, was never bad.

And I really like every single dish I've made so far.

Most importantly, many of the dishes were ones I had never tried before, and after eating them, I often marveled at my boss's culinary skills.

Perhaps it's because he's gotten used to eating rich and fatty foods over the past two months, and the noodles don't taste very good, so Shan Wei doesn't really like them.

The price of shrimp and mushroom noodles is ten yuan per serving. Because shrimp and mushrooms are relatively expensive ingredients, the final price is ten yuan.

However, the ingredients for scallops and crab mushrooms are relatively inexpensive, and the final bowl of noodles costs seven yuan.

As always, if new products are released, they will be listed on a sign at the entrance, along with their prices.

However, it seems that diners are not very receptive to the scallop and crab mushroom dish.

"Boss, you haven't introduced any new dishes for almost two weeks. Why is this just a bowl of noodles?"

Zhou Wen didn't know what to say to the diners' confusion.

In the end, he simply said, "It's nice to change things up once in a while."

Zhou Wen can understand everyone's thoughts. First there was crayfish and spicy rabbit, and now there's bullfrog.

The restaurant hadn't served any dishes for two weeks, and everyone assumed that the restaurant might be planning something big.

But despite the complaints, you still have to try the new dishes the restaurant has.

Actually, after seeing the name of the new dish, everyone knows that the noodles will probably taste similar to the shrimp and mushroom noodles.

The taste of the shrimp and mushroom noodles goes without saying.

For local diners, it is an excellent delicacy.

Even diners from Sichuan and Chongqing rave about this shrimp and mushroom noodle soup.

So even though people say it, they still order a serving to try.

Wu Bin came to this area from Jiangxi Province to work, and he is also a coworker at a nearby factory.

When I arrived at the restaurant today, I saw the notice at the entrance.

Upon seeing the food and prices, I was overjoyed.

The food prices were quite high before, but this time the prices have returned to what they were before.

So when you enter the restaurant, you go up to the second floor.