Chapter 438 - 165: Two Giant Orders

Chapter 438: Chapter 165: Two Giant Orders

Upon hearing this, Shang Mingke brightened up. "Then it’s settled! In seven days, I’ll bring my guest here for a meal. It’ll just be me and him, two people. Three at the most."

"Alright," Su Chen readily agreed.

Shang Mingke wasn’t one for idle chatter. Now that things were settled, he exchanged a few pleasantries with Su Chen, went outside to say a quick word to Lu Yongliang, and then left.

Su Chen had Liu Ahbao take the old gentleman to the 32nd floor to rest, then called everyone into his office for the first meeting since they had resumed work.

"This is the first time Delicious is catering to an international guest, and on top of that, it’s an order from President Shang. So everyone, I need you on your toes. Once I’ve finalized the plan, we’re going to give it our all!"

This kind of thing didn’t require much explanation; the staff at Delicious were long used to such challenges.

Su Chen continued, "Also, starting tomorrow, the second floor will resume normal business hours. Liu Ahbao will remain the head of the kitchen."

Having done it for so long, Ah Bao was very comfortable in the role.

"Zhang Heping will transfer to the third floor and help Shi Qi with his workload."

Everyone else’s duties will remain unchanged.

"Clear a station for me on the third floor; that’s where we’ll handle the Hong Kong Businessman’s order. They’re just snacks, so there’s no need to use the 19th floor. Liu Shengnan, come to my office in a bit. Making these snacks will require quite a bit of new kitchenware. Bai Xiaobo, take some people and set up a kitchen space on the third floor for my use."

After laying out the work plan for the next week, Su Chen returned to the nineteenth floor.

Making three types of snacks a day was hardly a challenge for Su Chen, who possessed the knowledge of "Chinese Famous Snacks."

However, some snacks required seasonings that had to be prepared in advance, so he would have to schedule those for later. Feng Yaoyang’s meal was in the evening, which meant Su Chen had to prepare at least three snacks before tonight.

’What exactly is a "snack"?’

Before making his plan, Su Chen first re-read the description of the reward.

"Snacks possess specific stylistic and flavor characteristics. They serve as an accent during banquets and are a staple for breakfast and late-night suppers."

From this description, he could tell that the snack recipes from the system weren’t referring to things like street-side roasted gluten.

Instead, they were the authentic snacks passed down through millennia of Chinese history.

"A snack is often an important regional specialty, and also a primary object of nostalgia for those far from home."

Su Chen couldn’t agree more with this point.

When someone was away from home for a long time, besides missing their mother’s cooking, the thing they yearned for most was a particular snack from their hometown.

It was often something that couldn’t be found anywhere else.

Perhaps it was hidden away in some nook or cranny of their hometown, and the wanderer, upon meeting anyone, would be dying to recommend it. When they brought friends home, the very first thing they did was take them to share such a worldly delight.

Because snacks are extremely regional, and since his client was a Hong Kong Businessman, he had likely never heard of most mainland Chinese snacks.

’In that case,’ Su Chen decided, ’I’ll start with some lighter flavors.’

’I’ll save things like blood sausage for later.’

’Rice noodle rolls from Yue Province, the closest province to Xiangjiang, are a must.’

This was the opening salvo to demonstrate the quality of Delicious Snacks to the Hong Kong Businessman, and only rice noodle rolls could ensure a resounding victory!

’Next up, a more cosmopolitan dish from Jinling Cuisine: duck blood and vermicelli soup!’

’I wouldn’t call it the most representative snack, but to an outsider, it definitely sounds like a regional specialty!’

For the third dish, Su Chen had been quite interested in the "urine eggs" from Dongyang, Zhejiang Province. But considering the Mechanical Kindergarten hadn’t opened yet, collecting that much "virgin boy urine" would be no easy task, so he ultimately had to give up on the idea.

Still, once the Mechanical Kindergarten opened, he was definitely going to have to try making them.

Su Chen was fucking curious: ’Is that stuff actually tasty, or does it have some kind of special medicinal effect?’

’When the time comes, I’ll have Bai Xiaobo try it first!’

Since he couldn’t find a suitable snack from Zhejiang Province for the time being, Su Chen turned his attention to the neighboring city of Shanghai.

He settled on a dish that had recently gone viral online—pork chops with rice cakes.

However, unlike the version seen on TV, the dish was introduced in "Chinese Famous Snacks" as: Deep-Fried Pork Chops with Rice Cakes.

This snack was said to have originally been the signature dish of the famous "Xiaochangzhou" Pork Chop Noodle Shop in Shanghai. After a joint venture and restructuring, it had now become the Dawn Restaurant.

In Shanghai, where every inch of land is as precious as gold, the authentic flavor of Deep-Fried Pork Chops with Rice Cakes had long been lost in the city’s dazzling extravagance.

The snacks were decided.

Su Chen summoned Liu Shengnan, and they immediately began preparing the various ingredients. At the same time, they also needed to purchase some special kitchen utensils.

They had the entire day before dinnertime.

Practice room. Time to get to it!