The Spirit of Gourmet

Chapter 532 Song Pan's Shock

Song Pan and Qin Zhongguo didn't have to wait long before Zhao Qian's dishes were quickly cooked and served.

Because these dishes were intended to be served to customers at the Haibawang Restaurant, Zhao Qian put in almost all of her best effort.

Not only did she choose her best dish, Bubu's Origin Food: Thousand Flavors of Lamb, but she also made a unique choice of ingredients.

She chose the blue-spotted sheep she had seen before at the String Fish Market.

"A Thousand Flavors of Lamb" is a dish with a very special seasoning, which ultimately presents a fusion of multiple flavors. The umami of the blue-spotted lamb meat is intertwined with the seafood flavor, which makes the taste of this dish even better.

"A thousand flavors of lamb, please savor them."

Zhao Qian gently placed the dish on the table, her tone tinged with nervousness.

"Let me try it." Without saying a word, Qin Zhongguo picked up his chopsticks and reached for the mutton dish with its myriad flavors, so fast that Song Pan, who was standing next to him, didn't even have time to react.

His manner was as if he was afraid that Song Pan would say something polite after tasting it, making his relentless criticism of the dish seem even slightly weaker.

Qin Zhongguo picked up a thin slice of mutton and narrowed his eyes slightly.

That knife skill…

It wasn't particularly amazing, but it seemed to have met the standards that Hai Ba Wang's kitchen staff required of their culinary personnel.

It seems there's no way to find fault with it from this angle.

With a slight sense of disappointment, Qin Zhongguo put the mutton into his mouth, chewed it slightly, and then his eyes widened involuntarily.

What's this smell?
The moment it enters your mouth, the freshness of the lamb, mixed with a hint of seafood, melts instantly. But then, like fireworks, it explodes with a variety of flavors, including sour, sweet, spicy, and salty, instantly activating your taste buds.

What amazed Qin Zhongguo even more was that after taking a bite of mutton, when he tried to savor the complex flavor, the taste vanished like fireworks, leaving only a pure and rich freshness in his mouth.

Amazing, wonderful, unique...

When these adjectives flooded Qin Zhongguo's mind, he fell silent.

This dish has reached a level where it can definitely be served at Haibawang Restaurant, and could even be considered a potential signature dish.

If we had to nitpick, we could point out that Zhao Qian's cooking skills are far from perfect, and there's still a lot of room for improvement in this dish.

But Qin Zhongguo is an honest man, and he couldn't go against his conscience and say that such a dish didn't deserve to be presented to Hai Ba Wang's diners.

Qin Zhongguo didn't say anything after eating, which startled Song Pan who was standing next to him.

Knowing Qin Zhongguo well, he knew that this guy would often pause for a while before cursing, preparing his words.

There was a time when Qin Zhongguo was silent for ten seconds before scolding a new kitchen worker who made a mistake until he cried.

More than ten seconds have passed; this guy is about to unleash a powerful attack!
That's a friend of Xiao Cao Dong, we can't let that guy cause trouble!

Thinking of this, Song Pan quickly chuckled and stepped forward, "I'm getting hungry just looking at this, come on, let me have a taste too."

As he spoke, he quickly picked up a mouthful of the flavorful lamb and stuffed it into his mouth.

The moment before the mutton entered her mouth, Song Pan had already made up her mind that no matter what the mutton tasted like, she would use all her skills to praise it to the skies.

But the moment Song Pan started chewing the mutton, she fell silent.

He's quite good at flattering people.

Asking him to appreciate fine food is really asking too much of him.

Song Pan didn't know how to describe the dish he was currently enjoying. But the word "delicious" kept echoing in his mind.

This... doesn't seem to be much worse than their signature dish...

Of the two, Qin Zhongguo, who was the first to taste it, was the first to come to his senses.

“You…” He glanced at Zhao Qian, his expression somewhat complicated, “Your dishes are qualified to be served to the diners of Haibawang Restaurant.”

"That's great!" Zhao Qian couldn't help but smile.

She herself felt that she was in better shape than ever before when cooking this delicious lamb dish.

Traveling with Qin Lang, she would occasionally ask him for advice on cooking. Since Qin Lang never hid when he cooked, Zhao Qian often felt that she had learned something from him.

These small accumulations gradually sprouted and allowed her cooking skills to improve without her even realizing it, despite not having participated in any food recommender assessments since arriving in Mingjingzhou.

"Come, come, try my egg yolk pastries." Cao Dongdong walked over with a large plate of steaming egg yolk pastries.

"They're fresh out of the oven, and they taste best right now." He said, picking one up himself and eagerly eating it while blowing on it.

Although Cao Dongdong has learned a lot of desserts from Qin Lang, and has also developed many new products by applying what he has learned, his specialty is still the egg yolk pastry that Qin Lang first taught him.

That was the first time he found confidence in food, and it was also the only origin dish of his current Food Spirit Tuantuan. For him, this dish had special significance.

Qin Zhongguo didn't say anything, but simply picked up an egg yolk pastry.

Song Pan's heart, which had been at ease because Zhao Qian had passed Qin Zhongguo's evaluation, couldn't help but rise again at this moment.

Being able to serve as the manager of Haibawang's main store, Song Pan's relationship with Cao Wang was naturally extraordinary. In fact, before Haibawang appeared, Song Pan was already Cao Wang's capable subordinate, so she knew a little about her former boss's family situation.

He was quite certain that Cao Wang's son was a complete culinary black hole.

Given Qin Zhongguo's reckless temper, he might just make Cao Dongdong cry, and then things would get really messy!

Just as this thought crossed Song Pan's mind, she heard Qin Zhongguo speak slowly.

"That's also a good option. Our Haibaowang Restaurant does lack some desserts, so giving diners something new to try is a good choice."

“…Huh?” Song Pan looked at Qin Zhongguo in astonishment.

When did you, with your thick eyebrows and big eyes, learn to flatter and fawn?

So, what you just said about not showing any mercy was just to fool me?

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Qin Zhongguo glared at Song Pan, who was winking at him. "Take what you want to eat."

"Yes, Manager Song, would you like to try my cooking?" Cao Dongdong chuckled and handed over the tray.

“…Okay, I’ll try it.” Song Pan smiled awkwardly, picked up an egg yolk pastry, and the rich aroma of the pastry wafted over, making him raise his eyebrows involuntarily.

He couldn't resist taking a bite, and then his pupils dilated in shock.

This...this taste...

Is this still the legendary culinary disaster?!
"Manager Song, it tastes good, right?" Cao Dongdong chuckled and winked at Qin Lang, who was still busy at the table. "He taught me this."

Song Pan couldn't help but turn her gaze to Qin Lang.

If Cao Dongdong can create such delicious food, what kind of result will he deliver himself?

(End of this chapter)