Chapter 242: Becoming Famous (3)

Of course, the standards of cooking in the Great Wu Dynasty went without speaking. Since the food made in a noble house was already that poor, how could the normal commoners’ fare any better?

Normally, pork meat had a certain odour to it. The usage of seasonings in this era wasn’t very advanced either. Pork flavoured with salt and cooked in water... just the thought of it wasn’t very appetising.

The aroma of this carefully braised jar of pork was an immense shock to the crowd.

The commoners who had been surrounding the stage and flooding them with curses suddenly had the urge to run up to grab one of the crude porcelain dishes on the stage.

There was a waiter stationed behind each of the three large jars with a small copper ladle in their hands, shouting and telling the crowd to line up. They dipped the ladles into the jars giving off fragrant steam and scooped food into the dish of the first person in line.

The copper ladles were just too small. A single scoop would bring up only two or three small cubes of meat. Another waiter would then sprinkle some finely diced spring onions on top of the meat that had been turned brown by the sauce. For some reason, although it was just some meat sitting in a crude grey porcelain dish, it seemed rather artistic with the green of the spring onions, further increasing their appetite.

The old gourmet who had first recognised Guilin Restaurant’s brand had finally managed to get a small dish of the braised pork in pot after an arduous wait. He held it up in his hands carefully as he walked away. The small meat cubes in the dish were still steaming hot and trembled with his every step, practically seducing him to eat it all up.

The old gourmet squeezed out of the crowd with the dish cradled protectively in his embrace before stopping and taking a long sniff at the aroma of the pork in pot. He sighed as if drunk on the smell. Following that, he took out a pair of silver chopsticks wrapped up in a cloth from his sleeves. Using the chopsticks, he carefully picked up a piece and placed it in his mouth.

That delicious taste enveloped his entire mouth. After chewing it precisely two times, that thick flavour filled his tastebuds. The meat cubes were fresh and tasty, fatty but not greasy.

The old gourmet was instantly captivated by the taste of this braised pork in pot. He lost all the patience to carefully judge the remaining two pieces and quickly stuffed the remaining pork into his mouth.

He chewed on that big mouthful of food and gulped it down.

When he looked down at the empty porcelain dish in his hands, the old gourmet’s mind instantly turned blank.

Those three pieces of pork in pot weren’t enough by far. He hadn’t even been able to savour its flavour before it was all gone. That amount was really way too little. He smacked his lips and suddenly recalled what Manager Qin had said earlier on the stage.

Other than this free sample of braised pork, they could draw a lot to win a chance to eat a free feast in Guilin Restaurant!

The old gourmet immediately plowed through the crowd to charge back towards the stage with a strength he hadn’t even known he had.

Even though it seemed like there was a lot of meat in the three jars, it wasn’t enough to feed all the people in this crowd. Furthermore, even though the jars looked big on the outside, its volume was only half of what it looked like it could contain.

All the meat in the jars had been given away in an instant.

When his ladle touched the bottom of the jar, the waiter realised that there was only some sauce left. He looked up and spoke apologetically to the young man at the front of the line, “Young man, I’m sorry, we’ve finished giving out all the free samples for our opening today. If you would like to try out Guilin Restaurant’s cooking, then come to the alley in the west market early in the morning!”

The young man stared at the waiter in disbelief, his eyes wide open. He refused to believe the waiter and even snatched the jar over to look at the emptiness within for himself. It was only then he pounded his leg in frustration and blamed himself for not queueing up earlier.

The other people waiting in the queue had similar reactions after hearing the waiter’s announcement. However, like the old gourmet, they recalled Manager Qin’s words and fought to be the first to draw a lot from Manager Qin.

In an instant, it had become more lively than ever. After eating Guilin Restaurant’s braised pork, all the voices of opposition had melted away into nothing.

Even though Guilin Restaurant had just newly opened and was even situated in the desolate old west market, many of them even immediately turned into Guilin Restaurant’s loyal fans.

These three jars of braised pork in pot were like strong drugs. If you hadn’t tasted them, you would be fine. However, after tasting it once, you would only want even more. Those few pieces of meat had drawn everyone’s curiosity and appetites out of hiding.

Right now, even if Guilin Restaurant was located in the neighbouring city of Zhangzhou instead of the out-of-the-way old west market, there would still be people who would travel hundreds of miles without fatigue just to have a taste of this heavenly food again.

Manager Qin’s smile was kind and he faced all the people who came up to draw lots with good humour. However, De’an Restaurant’s Mr Wang, who was not too far away, felt that there was clearly a wily little fox standing behind the friendly facade of this young manager.

Furthermore, it wasn’t just this Manager Qin who was a wily little fox. That master that he had spoken of must be an even more cunning and even bigger fox!

Mr Wang’s horizons had broadened from today’s spectacle. He had never seen a restaurant opening like this. He believed that it wouldn’t even take a month- no, maybe not even a day- before this newly opened Guilin Restaurant’s name would be known all over the capital!

He didn’t want to admit defeat! The master behind this Guilin Restaurant was quite the schemer! However, he couldn’t do anything but accept this hard truth. Guilin Restaurant’s food was just way too tasty.

Mr Wang had already experienced much of the world with his years. He also had a noble sponsor backing his restaurant. On New Year’s Day and other special days, he could use that connection to have a meal or two in a noble estate. The dishes served in that noble house were already considered heavenly delicacies to most people. However, compared to this completely ordinary-looking pork in pot, those ‘delicacies’ instantly became some unpalatable rough fare.

Mr Wang sighed. However, his mind wandered back to those measly pieces of braised pork he had just eaten. He really wanted to have a few more bites!

He looked down at the wooden tablet in his hands; the lot that he had just drawn. There was even a sense of anticipation within him, hoping that he would be one of the lucky ones.