SFS Chapter 365: Tasting the Real Song Sao Fish Soup
Chapter 365: Tasting the Real Song Sao Fish Soup
"Hello, I am the owner of this restaurant. Are you two in a hurry to eat?" the middle-aged man said politely.
"No rush." Zhao Xiaojing and Su Yuchen looked at each other.
"It's like this. You two ordered all Jiangsu and Zhejiang dishes. You must be fans of Jiangsu and Zhejiang cuisine, right? Not many people eat Jiangsu and Zhejiang cuisine here, so we have to make some dishes on the spot. Especially for Song Sao's fish soup, the fish has to be bought on the spot, but the vegetable market is next door, not far away.
It may take a while, is that ok for you two? We do have some Suzhou-style dim sum, you can order them first, but I see you two are taking your dim sum away.”
"You can wait. We're not in a hurry." Zhao Xiaojing smiled happily.
As soon as he finished speaking, the waiter standing next to the boss with a serious face hurried to the front desk and said something quickly. Then the auntie sitting at the front desk immediately stood up and ran out without even taking off her apron.
"Boss, do you mainly look at physical strength when hiring waiters here? They have to run for every table like this, and their legs will become muscled." Su Yuchen smiled as he looked at the old lady's back as she ran.
"Yes, boss, isn't your signature dish Suzhou and Zhejiang cuisine? From what you said, Suzhou and Zhejiang cuisine is not the main dish of your store?" Zhao Xiaojing asked.
"It was originally the main dish, but some dishes don't quite suit the taste here, and it would be a waste to prepare too much. For example, this Song Sao Fish Soup, if the fish is prepared in advance and not sold, it would just be a waste. Mandarin fish is not easy to raise, it will die after one day. The taste of a dead fish is completely different from that of a live fish. We were discussing a few days ago whether to take this dish off the shelves." The boss shook his head.
"But I see there are quite a lot of Jiangsu and Zhejiang restaurants here, especially Hangzhou cuisine." Zhao Xiaojing asked puzzledly.
"Yeah, if Jiangsu and Zhejiang cuisine doesn't suit the taste here, why is the Hangzhou cuisine restaurant we just visited so popular?" Su Yuchen also asked.
The boss glanced at the take-out bag on the table and asked, "You mean the Zhang family?"
"Yes, we just went to that store and there were quite a few people lining up."
"That one opened earlier, and the food there was really great in the early years. The store was big, and the chefs were skilled. But it has been declining in recent years, and half of the good chefs have left. The other half and a few apprentices are left to support the store. But after all, the sign is still there, and it has become famous, so many people still go there. As for other restaurants, either they are irrelevant and buy some messy pre-made things, or they are like us now, unwilling to reduce the quality but compromise and start serving home-cooked dishes."
Zhao Xiaojing nodded regretfully. In fact, it was similar to the current situation of the catering industry in Jiangcheng. Either there were internet-famous restaurants that became popular for a while, or there were old restaurants that were particularly delicious. The small restaurants in the middle were neither good nor bad. Some of them died, some of them compromised, and some of them were still struggling in the middle.
"We have changed the menu of our restaurant four times. In the beginning, there were no home-cooked dishes. They were all Jiangsu and Zhejiang cuisine. After a while, customers complained that we had nothing to eat. I said, "So there are so many dishes, but what's not to eat?" They said there was nothing they could eat. They were either too sweet or too bland. There was nothing we could do." The boss spread his hands, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
"So that's how it is. No wonder only one-third of the menu is signature Jiangsu and Zhejiang cuisine." Zhao Xiaojing understood.
"I'll give you a portion of candied osmanthus lotus root to fill your stomach first." As she spoke, the lady at the front desk went into the kitchen carrying a black bag that was still jumping. The waiter from before also came over with a tray, and the boss helped bring the candied osmanthus lotus root on the tray to the table of Zhao Xiaojing and the others.
"Please enjoy your meal. I'm sorry the dishes are slow to arrive. I won't bother you any more." The boss bowed.
"thank you boss."
"I wish the boss good fortune."
The two men saw the boss off and immediately pulled out their chopsticks.
Four flesh-red, thickly cut lotus roots are stacked on a plain white plate. The seven holes of the lotus root slices are filled with glutinous rice. The surface is covered with golden osmanthus and a layer of thick, charming and crystal clear sweet juice. When the chopsticks are picked up, the long lotus root threads are also pulled up together.
Just one look at it makes people drool.
"So sticky! So sweet." Su Yuchen exclaimed.
"The lotus root is also sweet inside, and it seems to contain honey." Zhao Xiaojing studied it while eating.
The first bite of the sugar lotus root will give you a soft, glutinous, floury taste. It not only has the sweetness of glutinous rice and the thick juice on the surface, but also the fragrance of the lotus root itself. In addition, the moistness of honey and the fragrance of osmanthus also linger on the tip of your tongue. Although it is sweet, it is very plain and simple.
"I saw this candied lotus root on the menu the first time I ordered it. I thought it was just average after looking at the photo, so I didn't order it. It seems to be priced at 1/2 per serving. It tastes not expensive. If it's served on a different plate, the price would go up immediately." Su Yuchen said.
"It's really not expensive. If you change to a high-footed plate, put less osmanthus, and only pour sugar juice on the lotus root slices, the price will increase by at least 2 yuan." Zhao Xiaojing immediately raised her hand to agree.
"Make the lotus root slices smaller and put them in the private restaurant where Aunt Wen invited us last time. You can add another $2."
“What a business mind!”
"Each each other!"
Two people are happy at the same time.
"Then add another portion of the candied lotus root that could have been priced 4 yuan higher?"
"Add it, and then go back and cheat them out of 4."
While chatting and laughing, the two of them finished the four slices of candied lotus root, called the waiter to add another portion of candied lotus root to take away, and then continued to chat leisurely.
I thought the boss would come over to explain and I would have to wait a long time, but not long after I finished eating the sweet osmanthus lotus root, the vegetarian roast goose came up, and not long after I finished eating the vegetarian roast goose, Song Sao's fish soup was on the table.
This time, Zhao Xiaojing did not forget the convention and opened the appraisal module while serving the soup.
[Songsao Fish Soup: Between Level 1 and Level 2, one of the most delicious dishes, slightly overcooked, and the quality of the ham is not high.]
!!!
Between level one and level two?
Since the upgrade of the quality appraisal module, which can identify finished dishes, most of the restaurant dishes identified by Zhao Xiaojing are at level three, and there are also quite a few at level four. A restaurant that reaches level two is already a good restaurant.
Even if I practiced hard after getting the system recipes, the dishes I made were only between level one and level two, and most of them were level two. But even level two was achieved after practicing in the virtual space for thousands of hours, carefully carving and polishing.
Even Nie Xiuqi, who has been a chef for several years, usually makes dishes at level two, and the highest level is also level two.
But this small restaurant, which had already given up hope, could actually make Song Sao Fish Soup that was between level one and level two?
Zhao Xiaojing picked up the spoon in disbelief and took a bite immediately.
Thick, fresh, tender and smooth, this fish soup almost immediately makes one feel the difference between the real fish soup and the one made by Nie Xiuqi and Zhao Xiaojing.
"This time I got to eat the real Song Sao fish soup." Zhao Xiaojing murmured.