Chapter 152: Chapter 152: New Locations, New Tasks
「Happy Ranch.」
Jiang Feng came here to pick up Little Black and take him home. This little guy had a blast at the ranch these past few days. Every day, he would run across the grasslands. He even got into fights with the local dogs, acting quite like the king of dogs. But such happiness was about to end.
"Little Black, come here," Jiang Feng called out.
Hearing his voice, the little guy immediately ran over as if he were flying, his tail wagging furiously.
"Let’s go home," Jiang Feng shouted to him.
Little Black obviously hesitated for a moment. Go home? What about this huge grassland? He started wagging his tail again and came over to curry favor with Jiang Feng.
"If you want to stay here, then I’ll just leave you here," Jiang Feng said, seeing Little Black’s reaction. "The ranch really likes you."
At these words, Little Black immediately ran to Jiang Feng’s side, showing he still wanted to go with him.
"If I get busy later on, I’ll let you come here often," Jiang Feng petted his head.
At that moment, Zhang Dashan came over and asked with a smile, "Executive Chef Jiang, what are your plans next? Setting up a street stall, or becoming a head chef at a restaurant? We’re all looking forward to your cooking. Anything you do is fine."
Hearing this, Jiang Feng thought for a moment and said, "I haven’t decided yet. I’ll see how it goes. First, I’ll focus on getting the Jiangyue Terrace Shandong Cuisine Restaurant running well. Once it’s stable, I can calm down and think about other things."
Zhang Dashan read between the lines of Jiang Feng’s words. "Thinking about other things? Planning to start a franchise? If the food is standardized, it’s really possible to franchise it. But for a Jiangyue Terrace Shandong Cuisine Restaurant franchise, you’d need to train the chefs yourself. Otherwise, the flavors won’t be consistent. That’s a lot of effort."
Zhang Dashan thought Jiang Feng wanted to open a chain of restaurants. But such chains are hard to run. There aren’t that many skilled chefs, and not just anyone can join the franchise.
Jiang Feng had no such plans. He planned to open another Jiangyue Terrace restaurant but with different cuisines, like a Jiangyue Terrace Sichuan Restaurant, Jiangyue Terrace Cantonese Cuisine Restaurant, and so on. And he’d have to open them in different cities, because after all, every type of food only tastes authentic in its place of origin. So, Jiang Feng was thinking of visiting other cities.
China’s food culture is extensive and profound and varies regionally. Each region has its own unique characteristics. In addition, Jiang Feng also wanted to see what the next task from the system would be and if it would align with his own ideas. If that was the case, it would be ideal; at least it would significantly shorten the time it would take Jiang Feng to establish restaurants for the eight major cuisines. If he opened eight restaurants and mastered every cuisine, then he would truly deserve the title of "Contemporary Culinary God."
Jiang Feng responded to Zhang Dashan, "I’m not planning on franchising. Many dishes at the Jiangyue Terrace Shandong Cuisine Restaurant can only be made by a head chef; it’s not suitable for franchising. Just making it a city landmark is enough. When foodies come to our city, if they think of visiting Jiangyue Terrace to taste our dishes, then we’ve achieved our goal. We’ll see about the rest later; I can’t say for sure where I’ll go next."
Zhang Dashan knew Jiang Feng was a man with plans, so he said, "Alright, Jiangyue Terrace is indeed good. I’ll definitely visit often in the future."
Jiang Feng left the ranch with Little Black.
After that, Jiang Feng spent his days visiting the Jiangyue Terrace Shandong Cuisine Restaurant to check on things. The Jiangyue Terrace Shandong Cuisine Restaurant was running very smoothly, with internal affairs managed in an orderly fashion. The benefits Jiang Feng offered were quite good, 20% higher than other restaurants in the same industry, as well as bonuses and employee social security benefits. For them, Jiangyue Terrace was truly a great place to work.
The business was booming every day, and it even showed signs of improving. Thanks to continuous marketing, tourists in the city started considering it one of the must-visit restaurants. This was quite unusual; both locals and visitors loved to come here. It proved that the restaurant’s food was genuinely good.
Jiang Feng took a few days off. He didn’t act as the head chef again. Actually, being in the restaurant for a few days felt good, but it would be tiring to do it daily, especially since he was the boss. However, he took the time to record a few food videos. The restaurant had a young man in charge of video operations. This young man recorded Jiang Feng’s videos and posted them on the official Jiangyue Terrace Shandong Cuisine Restaurant account. This account was now relying on regular customers for support and had a fan base of fifty to sixty thousand followers. It could only grow slowly from there.
Two days later, as expected, the system task arrived.
[New Task: Set up a stall in Chengdu for 7 days at a designated greasy spoon, selling 300 servings of Bobo Chicken each day.]
[Task Reward: A 140-square-meter house in Chengdu’s urban district.]
[Acquired Recipe: Bobo Chicken Seasoning Formula.]
Upon seeing the system’s task, Jiang Feng’s expression lit up with joy.
Chengdu? Chengdu is indeed a great place. Dubbed the "Gourmet Capital of the World," its cuisine is diverse, and there are many authentic Sichuan restaurants. The so-called "greasy spoon" is a local term referring to a small but delicious eatery. Despite the unappealing name, these greasy spoons are very popular with Chengdu locals, and they are a must-visit for travelers to Chengdu. Some greasy spoons sell rice noodle rolls, some sell spicy rabbit, others sell pork brain, and there are those that sell Bobo Chicken.
Jiang Feng was pondering which cuisine to start with. The system provided a direction: Sichuan cuisine!
Chengdu, that place is quite famous. But it’s not famous for its food, Jiang Feng thought to himself. He quite liked the free-spirited vibe of Chengdu. However, as a resolutely straight guy, he knew it was best to be cautious in all things. A boy should always protect himself when out and about.
Greasy spoons and food stalls are similar, and Bobo Chicken sells pretty well. Let’s go to Chengdu and try making Sichuan cuisine. I do like eating spicy food. Jiang Feng made up his mind.
So, he left instructions for the operation of the restaurant with Liew Mei and Zhang Hu, then sent Little Black to stay at the ranch and took a flight straight to Chengdu. The restaurant was operating smoothly and didn’t require his attention.
This trip to Chengdu, I’ll take it one step at a time. The competition in Sichuan cuisine is fierce, and there are many delicious Sichuan restaurants. If Jiang Feng really wanted to establish a Jiangyue Terrace Sichuan Restaurant, he would need to find several top-tier Sichuan chefs. That’s the only way to gain a foothold in Chengdu. Plus, he would need to master the techniques of Sichuan cuisine himself. I’ll start by selling Bobo Chicken from a stall.
Bobo Chicken is similar to food eaten on skewers. "Bobo" refers to earthenware pots, and the broth is generally made from chicken stock, hence the name Bobo Chicken. It can be understood as just eating skewers. The Bobo Chicken business is easy to do but not very profitable; there’s no helping it, the whole nation tends to think Bobo Chicken is one yuan per skewer. In reality, there’s a variety of meats and vegetables at different prices.
After arriving in Chengdu, Jiang Feng immediately went to find the designated greasy spoon as directed by the system. The so-called greasy spoon was just a small eatery, complete with all the necessary kitchenware. The greasy spoon was located on a street full of various delicacies, attracting many customers seeking good food. This also made it convenient for Jiang Feng to set up his stall and do business.
The most crucial part of Bobo Chicken is the seasoning. As long as the seasoning is made well, anything you dip will taste delicious. After boiling and soaking the skewers in the seasoning, they come out bursting with the fragrant aroma of the marinade. It’s an incredibly comforting feeling.
The owner of this greasy spoon had to travel far away for some matters and had temporarily closed for business. This allowed Jiang Feng to rent the place for a week. With all the shop’s paperwork in order and nothing extra to prepare, he could start selling right away.
With the grand opening set for tomorrow, Jiang Feng went out to purchase ingredients. Skewers are available everywhere, so there’s no need to string them by hand; just buy and use them directly. Jiang Feng also specifically picked out fresh skewers at the market. Mainly, Jiang Feng wasn’t out to make a profit; if it were a small business, he would have strung the skewers himself in the shop. Truth be told, busying myself with making delicious food felt quite relaxing.
After preparing the skewers, the next step was to concoct the secret spicy red oil seasoning. Jiang Feng prepared fresh chicken, various spices, chili peppers, green onions, ginger, garlic, and more, starting the slow cooking process step by step. This step is critical in making Bobo Chicken. Anyone can boil skewers, but how the seasoning formula is made tests the skill of a chef. Everything proceeded in an orderly fashion.
Jiang Feng’s seasoning included a richly simmered savory broth. It featured a combination of lantern chilies, Jing Tiao chilies, and bullet head chilies for spiciness. Aged doubanjiang provided color, and various spices added to the taste. Additionally, sesame oil removed any gamey flavors, and cooking wine enhanced the overall taste. On the surface, the Bobo Chicken broth seems ordinary, but its preparation process is quite complex. The prepared seasoning was a pot of dense red broth. Visible to the eye were the red chili pieces and white sesame seeds.
Dipping the skewers in and pulling them out, the seasoning clung to them immediately, with the red oil flowing over their surface and the white sesame seeds remaining on top. One bite brought a burst of spice and fragrance. It was hard not to love.
Having prepared the broth, Jiang Feng tasted it himself. It was very good. Worthy of being a system’s product!
Later on, all that needed to be done was to boil the skewers in water with a bit of salt, and then soak them in the broth to start selling. Bobo Chicken is essentially cold skewers, more convenient than eating hot skewers or hotpot; it is a type of street food.
This week, I’ll sell Bobo Chicken and experience the food culture in Chengdu.