Rebirth 07: Starting with Saving a Bankrupt Restaurant

"Try it."

"Okay." He then looked at Shi Ling and said, "Then we'll have a cold-served rabbit and a bowl of oil-splashed noodles."

After saying that, he handed the menu to his friend across the table.

"What would you like to eat?"

"I'll have a bowl of fried noodles."

I was planning to try the braised pork knuckle rice at the restaurant today, but it looks like I'll have to wait until next time.

……

"Hello, your hot oil noodles and fried noodles are good. If you're having cold rabbit, please wait a little while, it will be ready soon."

The two didn't plan to wait until the cold-cooked rabbit was served before eating it together; instead, they first enjoyed the noodles.

"How's your oil-splashed noodles?"

A young diner gave a thumbs-up and said, "This is a flavor I've never had before! Where's your fried noodles?"

"The portion is very generous, there are lots of side dishes, and the fried noodles taste delicious." My companion said, his mouth full of fried noodles.

These two young diners were attracted by the restaurant's newly launched crayfish. They passed by and smelled the tempting aroma. Seeing that the restaurant was quite busy, they went in to try it.

When they entered the restaurant, the two found a seat and ordered a plate of crayfish to try.

After trying it, I was captivated by the taste of the crayfish and understood why the restaurant was so popular.

However, the two had a misconception about the restaurant, mistakenly believing that the restaurant's signature dish was crayfish, and that the other dishes were just average.

This is the second time the two of them have come to the restaurant for a meal.

When the cold-cooked rabbit arrived, the two looked at each other in bewilderment.

"This is cold-served rabbit. It has its own unique flavor whether eaten cold or hot. You can choose whichever you prefer," Shi Ling said.

"This looks a bit spicy."

The young diner nodded, then swallowed.

"It looks quite spicy, but it looks so appetizing. And is this rabbit meat? It looks a bit like chicken."

The young diner felt a tickle in his nose from the smell and quickly turned his head to sneeze.

"Hurry up and try it!"

That's what they said, but the young diner didn't touch his chopsticks; he just watched his companion start eating.

Clearly, they were still a bit unsure how to eat this cold-cooked rabbit, wondering what it would taste like.

"How is it?"

The man moved his mouth and nodded, but couldn't say a word for a long time.

The young diners watched their companion remain silent for a long time, only moving their lips, and decided not to observe any further.

He picked up his chopsticks and started eating the cold-served rabbit.

After finishing a piece of rabbit meat, he silently stood up, blew his nose, and said:

"I'll go get a drink. What would you like to drink?"

"Cola."

When the young diner returned to his seat, he found that his companion had already eaten with a runny nose, and the table was piled high with tissues.

Actually, the spiciness of this cold-cooked rabbit isn't that exaggerated, but someone like Shi Ying can easily handle this level of spiciness.

However, for most local diners, this level of spiciness is indeed present.

The cola was finished halfway through the meal.

The young diner stammered, "It's a bit spicy, I need to calm down first."

After saying that, he took a big bite of oil-splashed noodles to relieve the discomfort.

That companion was also starting to feel the strain.

He sniffed hard and said, "I need to catch my breath too."

After taking a sip of the soup that came with the fried noodles, he said, "Didn't the waiter say that this cold-served rabbit can be eaten hot or cold? Why don't we eat the noodles first, and then try the cold-served rabbit?"

"OK."

After the two finished their noodles, the cold-cooked rabbit had completely cooled down.

The restaurant already has air conditioning, and some diners even turn on fans because they are very afraid of the heat.

In fact, most diners only turn on the fan for a few minutes before turning it off.

With air conditioning and fans, even on a sweltering day when it's over 30 degrees Celsius outside, the sweating will stop immediately after sitting in the store for just a few minutes.

If the fan blows directly on you, you'll feel cold immediately. Moreover, if the fan is on like this, the food will cool down instantly, which will greatly diminish its flavor.

So the fans would only blow for a few minutes before being turned off by the customers who had just entered the store.

Even so, the food still cools down quite quickly because the restaurant has air conditioning and the temperature is low.

Both of them were quite surprised when they ate the cooled-down rabbit.

This cold-served rabbit really does taste best when eaten cold. I finished the last plate of cold-served rabbit along with two bowls of noodles.

After leaving the restaurant, my companion also asked:

"Shall we come again tomorrow?"

"tomorrow?"

The young diner was stunned.

"No..."

Before he could finish speaking, the young diner shut his mouth and remained silent.

Actually, my place is quite far from Zhouji Restaurant; it takes about twenty minutes to walk there.

but……

The young diner glanced at the four large characters "Zhou's Restaurant" hanging above.

It seems that I'm not really interested in other restaurants anymore; they're not as appealing to me.

The noodle shop just a hundred meters away from my house, although reasonably priced and delicious, seems quite inferior to Zhou's Restaurant.

Finally, he spoke again, "Let's come back tomorrow. There are still so many dishes on the menu that I want to try."

……

The day passed quickly, and before we knew it, it was evening and the restaurant had closed.

Many diners tried the cold-served rabbit at lunch and dinner.

However, in terms of sales, it did not quite meet Zhou Wen's expectations.

The main reason for this situation is still crayfish; many diners still choose crayfish over cold-served rabbit.

The daily demand for crayfish is increasing by several kilograms, and the crayfish are sold out every day.

The situation has been quite stable in the last few days, remaining at a certain level.

It is estimated that the quantity of crayfish will remain around this number for most of the time, with only slight fluctuations.

Cold-served rabbit, being a cold dish, naturally attracts some diners, but such diners are indeed few and far between.

A serving of crayfish starts at half a pound, which costs nineteen yuan. A serving of cold-cooked rabbit costs thirteen yuan. Two dishes together cost more than thirty yuan.

Because of this issue, Zhou Wen has been nagged by restaurant patrons quite a bit.

The complaint wasn't that the prices didn't match the food, but rather that the restaurant's recent new dishes were all rather expensive.

I was wondering if restaurants could offer some affordable, delicious, and filling foods like roujiamo (Chinese hamburger).

Finding snacks or delicacies that meet the above criteria is actually quite difficult for Zhou Wen; he certainly has no problem with the taste.

I can't think of any food that meets the above conditions in a short time.