The scent of Dongpo Pork wafted quietly outside the restaurant with the wind...
The custors in line all caught a whiff of it, sniffing continuously.
Fragrant!
Absolutely irresistible!
The aroma was enough to intoxicate anyone.
It’s nearly driving crazy with hunger!
"So fragrant! This scent feels different from before! Could it be from the new dish being launched today at noon?"
"Most likely it is!"
"It should be a at dish. I can sll the aroma of at, but I can’t tell exactly what dish it is."
Many of the townsfolk began discussing the matter.
Lao Liu even set up a betting pool to wager on what the new dish for noon would be.
The bet was simple.
Whoever guessed correctly would be treated to the new dish.
Lao Liu chuckled, "Everyone, go ahead and guess. If you get it right, I’m buying!"
Li: "I guess it’s braised spare ribs."
Granny Li: "Saucy pork trotters."
Mrs. Cheng: "Soy-stead chicken wings."
Jiang: "Braised pork."
"No, no!"
Old Qin shook his head with a smile, lightly waving his folding fan, and leisurely said, "Everyone, you’ve all guessed wrong. It’s Dongpo Pork."
A group of grannies and grandpas: "..."
Lao Liu: "..."
How could I forget about that old fellow...
"Sir, how can you be so sure they guessed wrong?" Many of the students in line behind were curious.
A student, looking puzzled, chid in: "Yeah, yeah! Sir, how can you be so sure that Boss Huang’s new dish for noon is Dongpo Pork?"
Old Qin: "..."
The Kylin Arm he had been resting for a week was eager to move.
With his temper flaring up, he gripped his folding fan tightly and couldn’t resist retorting: "I’m a forr five-star head chef. Do you think I wouldn’t recognize the scent of Dongpo Pork?"
Oh, oh~
How could they have forgotten about his prestigious status...
Realizing Old Qin’s background, the two students naturally believed his words a bit more.
So with beaming faces, they said, "With your skill, sir, you definitely can! We didn’t realize who we were talking to, please don’t take offense!"
Old Qin naturally wouldn’t hold it against the younger generation.
He turned to his good friend, Lao Liu, smiling and lightly waving his fan, "Lao Liu, rember to treat later!"
Lao Liu was a bit dissatisfied, saying: "Old Qin, isn’t that a bit unfair?"
"What’s unfair? I won fair and square using my skills, where’s the unfairness?"
Old Qin leisurely waved his fan, with a composed face, and retorted: "Lao Liu, don’t tell you can’t handle losing?"
"I can’t handle losing? Old Qin, who do you think you’re underestimating?"
Lao Liu was seething, pointing at him, "Don’t worry, if the new dish is Dongpo Pork, I’ll definitely treat you."
"Then it’s settled, you will treat!" Old Qin said gleefully.
Lao Liu: "..."
...
Inside a lecture hall at Lijiang University.
Professor Wei was on the podium, passionately delivering a lecture.
Suddenly.
A buzzing noise ca from the phone in his pocket.
He reached into his pocket for his phone and glanced at the ti.
It was already 10:40 AM.
His lecture speed felt like it was on fast forward, going at lightning speed,
quickly wrapping up the lesson’s contents in no ti.
"Class, that’s all for today. When you go back, make sure you understand what I’ve taught, and I’ll check the howork next lesson. Class dismissed..."
Professor Wei looked at the students in the audience, gave a few simple instructions, and then rushed out of the classroom with his phone and lecture materials.
Indeed.
Having learned that Delicious Restaurant was resuming business today and also launching a new dish, he specifically set an alarm so he wouldn’t miss out on the queue.
In such a hurry now, it’s obvious he’s eager to line up at Delicious Restaurant!
To get a good spot in the queue, he was practically flying as he walked!
But even though he walked fast, he couldn’t keep up with the strong and energetic students dashing towards the campus gate one by one.
Huang Tao’s little restaurant would open just after 11:00 AM.
So there were bound to be many people already in line by then.
"This is bad, this is really bad. My class goes until noon! By the ti I get out, I won’t be able to get any!"
At this point, many students still in class tend to get extrely anxious.
After all, in the past, if you weren’t in line at Delicious Restaurant by 11 AM, it was highly likely you wouldn’t get to eat any of Boss Huang’s dishes.
Not to ntion getting out at 12 PM.
By that ti, for sure, nothing would be left to buy.
It was like this before.
And even more so now.
In the morning, if they hadn’t arrived early, they almost missed getting pan-fried buns!
It was because after the food festival ended, Boss Huang’s reputation skyrocketed in the city, drawing a lot of custors from other streets, which made the already scarce pan-fried buns even more in demand.
It was like that in the morning, even worse at noon.
"Bro, what do you suggest we do?"
"I’m sitting in the sa classroom with you right now, what can I do!"
"Ahhh! This is like trying to starve a twenty-year-old kid!"
The students who stayed in the classroom, although present physically, had their minds drifting off to Delicious Restaurant.
It wasn’t just the students whose minds were wandering; the office workers near West City Old Street were also distracted. They kept glancing at the ti, waiting to rush to So Delicious as soon as they got off work.
...
So Delicious Kitchen.
Liu took so photos of braised dishes and others.
At this mont, the Dongpo Pork was thoroughly stead and was just about ready to be served.
Before that, Huang Tao took out the greens that had been boiled and cooled in water, gently squeezed out the water by hand, and placed them at the bottom of the plate.
This was for the sake of better presentation.
Then he turned off the heat for the stear stove.
He lifted the lid, getting ready to take out the Dongpo Pork.
As soon as the lid was off...
A very pleasant aroma wafted out from the pot.
The fragrance was a bit milder and softer than the aroma from the casserole earlier, making one feel naturally comfortable just by slling it.
This might be the characteristic of Zhejiang Cuisine!
Soft yet not mushy, rich yet not overwhelming, akin to the gentle and elegant won of the Jiangnan water towns.
He carefully took out the clay pot from the stear and placed it on the stove, allowing Liu to capture better photos.
After Liu finished taking photos, he picked up the chopsticks, placing the at with the skin side up on the plate.
The at pieces were arranged neatly and looked very pleasing.
Having completed the plating, Huang Tao then ladled so broth from the clay pot over the at.
A dish of Zhejiang-style Dongpo Pork was thus completed.
The tender, beautifully red and glossy cubes, with alternating layers of fat and lean, had slightly translucent skin that looked very tempting.
Moreover, the red glossy at paired with the verdant greens had a certain unspeakable aesthetic appeal.
While Liu was taking close-up photos of the Dongpo Pork, he couldn’t help but swallow audibly.
Clearly.
He was drawn to it and it made him crave.
And it wasn’t just him who craved it!
Xu Hao, Lin Zifeng, and Ding Suqin beside him also couldn’t help but swallow a mouthful of saliva.
Even Lin Manli and i outside the kitchen, looking through the glass, were tempted.
Once Liu finished taking photos.
Huang Tao invited everyone to co and have a taste.
Lin Manli and the others didn’t hold back, picking up a piece of at with chopsticks and biting into it.
The rich oil imdiately flowed out.
It was tender and bouncy upon tasting.
The layers of fat and lean at were interwoven, creating a perfect texture.
Accompanied by the soft and glutinous skin, it elevated the texture to a peak.
The flavor was also absolutely perfect.
It carried a salty taste wrapped in the flavor of soy sauce, mixed with a sweet umami, and the faint aroma of yellow wine along with the rich pork scent.
It made you want to take one bite, then another, and another...
It’s the kind you just can’t stop eating!
"Wow... Delicious, so delicious~"
"Boss Huang, the Dongpo Pork you made is truly delicious, so much so that I almost swallowed my own tongue."
Liu and i couldn’t help but praise.
"It’s really excellent!"
Lin Manli nodded in agreent.
But having just one or two bites only made them crave more!
Initially slling the aroma was fine, but once they tasted how good it was, the craving only intensified.
However, they were too embarrassed to ask for more and just planned to buy so later.
They wished they could have all three als at Delicious Restaurant!
After seeing Huang Tao make the Dongpo Pork with their own eyes, they admired his culinary skills even more.
Next.
i conducted a brief interview with Huang Tao.
Huang Tao answered i’s questions calmly.
Hearing him talk about why he quit his job and why he started So Delicious almost brought tears to their eyes.
The interview with him was a retrospective of Delicious Restaurant’s entrepreneurship journey.
Liu took a few photos of Huang Tao.
The interview was completely over!
"Thank you for your effort, Boss Huang. We’ll end today’s interview here. I’ll bring you a copy once the magazine is published."
Lin Manli smiled and said, "I hope we can cooperate more in the future."
"Alright, thank you for your hard work too. Being interviewed by Food and Beauty magazine is an honor for So Delicious."
Huang Tao smiled slightly and politely said, "It’s getting late, why don’t the three of you stay for a simple al before leaving!"
"No need for a simple al, we still have to go back and organize the photo materials!"
Lin Manli, of course, wouldn’t take the politeness as a blessing, but thinking of her friend’s request and her own craving, she smiled and asked, "Boss Huang, a friend of mine really loves your food and asked to bring so back for her. Could I buy so braised dishes? If it’s inconvenient, that’s fine."
"Of course!"
Huang Tao asked Ding Suqin to prepare so braised dishes. He intended to give them as a gift, but when they insisted on paying, he let them be.
Liu and i initially wanted to stay to buy so, but since the chief editor was leaving, they were embarrassed to stay and decided to co another day.
Luckily, Lin Manli shared so of the braised dishes with the two of them, providing so comfort to their slightly disappointed hearts.
After seeing them off, Huang Tao also needed to start his business hours.
User Comments
0 comments from readers