Rebirth 07: Starting with Saving a Bankrupt Restaurant

"Unlike that restaurant next to the construction site, which won't even give you a fan when you ask for one, and always has that sullen face, I don't know who they're trying to impress."

After they finished speaking, they all smiled.

"I'm willing to walk several minutes longer to get here to eat."

"Sometimes the boss will come out and offer us a cigarette, and we'll chat together," another person chimed in.

When the restaurant is less busy, Zhou Wen would come to the front of the restaurant. Sometimes Shi Ying was too busy, so he would lend a hand. When he wasn't busy, he would chat with the customers.

Even when busy, they will take the initiative to greet regular customers.

When the cold noodles were served, everyone turned to look at them with curiosity.

"They're arranged quite neatly."

"Hey, what kind of noodles are these? Why do they look so dark?"

The others, who had never seen cold noodles before, were naturally curious.

Some people drink a sip of soup before eating noodles, and Xiaogang is no exception.

After finishing the soup, Xiao Gang exclaimed in surprise, "This soup is ice-cold, and it's sweet and sour—very appetizing!"

"Xiao Gang, how does it taste?"

After thinking for a moment, Xiao Gang smiled憨厚ly and said, "I don't know how to describe this taste, but it's a feeling I've never experienced before, definitely worth a try!"

Then I tried a slice of braised beef. The beef was of moderate thickness, not too thick or difficult to chew.

Xiao Gang thought the cold noodles were worth trying, but he gave the braised beef a very high rating.

"Delicious! Absolutely delicious! Much better than the braised food place next to the construction site."

"Excuse me, miss, could you please serve this braised beef separately?" Xiao Gang asked, waving his hand.

Shi Ying shook her head and said with a forced smile, "I'm sorry, this braised beef cannot be sold separately."

As the youngest among them, Xiao Gang had received a lot of care from these older brothers. The braised beef tasted unexpectedly delicious, so he thought he would order a plate for these older brothers who usually took care of him to try.

Xiao Gang said regretfully, "That's a real shame. If the boss had sold this braised beef separately, the business would have been booming."

"Brother Hua, we should try this next time we come. It's definitely a different experience, and the owner's braised beef is especially delicious," Xiao Gang said, pointing to the cold noodles in front of him.

"Especially when you've just finished work at noon, having a bowl of this is absolutely refreshing and helps you beat the heat."

……

However, apart from Xiao Gang and a very few other diners, not many people ordered cold noodles throughout the entire lunch period.

Despite Shi Ying's vigorous promotion and her proactive introduction to every visitor, the results were mediocre.

There are only a few reasons.

No one had ever heard of cold noodles before, and at twelve yuan a bowl, it was much more expensive than the other food in the store. Everyone had confidence in Zhou Wen's cooking skills, but what if it was not?

Besides, there's enough other food in the store.

"Boss, it seems like not many people are ordering cold noodles."

Shi Ying sounded somewhat disappointed. Having tasted cold noodles herself, she naturally knew how they tasted.

Looking at Shi Ying's dejected expression, Zhou Wen couldn't help but chuckle to himself. He, as the boss, wasn't worried at all, so why was this girl so anxious?

"The cold noodles have only been out for half a day, don't be so discouraged. People need time to adjust to these new dishes. Sales might suddenly pick up in the afternoon. Besides, it's not like nobody's ordering them, it's just that fewer people are ordering them." Zhou Wen's attitude was quite calm.

Shi Ying pouted, then made up her mind to increase the promotion of cold noodles that evening.

In the evening, cold noodles sell much better than during the day, but not by much.

The main reason is that there are "loyal" diners like Li Lichun and Lao Wang who naturally have to give a good review of the restaurant's new cold noodles.

"Uncle Li, Uncle Wang, how's the food?" Zhou Wen naturally cared a lot about the feelings of these regular customers.

"Xiao Zhou, do I even need to say anything about your cooking skills? The taste is definitely not bad, but I'm just not used to this buckwheat noodle dish. It feels a bit off, and the texture is a little strange."

Old Wang nodded, clearly agreeing with Li Lichun's words: "The icy cold soup is very appetizing, and the overall taste is indeed excellent. But like Old Li, I don't really like this kind of noodle dish. Maybe it's because I'm used to eating hot food and can't quite accept this kind of cold noodles."

"But Xiao Zhou, your beef is exceptionally well made!" Li Lichun said, giving a thumbs up. "The braised flavor is particularly strong."

Li Lichun and Lao Wang's reviews represent at least some of the opinions of diners who have tried the cold noodles. Overall, the taste is acceptable, but some people find it difficult to get used to.

On one hand, there's buckwheat noodles, and on the other hand, there's the soup base for cold noodles. Most people still prefer hot soup noodles, which can also warm their stomachs.

However, everyone gave the braised beef a surprisingly positive review, and many people asked if it could be served as a separate dish.

This is a bit of a case of the accompaniment overshadowing the main dish. The original intention was to promote and sell cold noodles, but the braised beef has become the main attraction instead.

With the support of some regular customers and Shi Ying's vigorous promotion, more than twenty bowls of cold noodles were sold.

We might sell over twenty bowls today, but that may not be the case tomorrow.

On the first day of the new product launch, most people ordered a bowl to try it out of curiosity, but the result was not particularly impressive, and it is estimated that there will not be many repeat customers for the cold noodles.

In modern terms, he would be considered a "superior person".

At 10 p.m., Zhouji Restaurant had already closed.

The remaining small portion of braised beef was divided into two parts by Zhou Wen. One part was added to the fried rice, and the other part was served separately.

Shi Ying looked at the food in front of her, her eyes shining, staring intently at the dishes on the table.

Zhou Wen felt that the girl was about to drool out of her mouth at any moment.

But then, as if remembering something, he composed himself and said, "Boss, there's still so much braised beef left..."

Zhou Wen knew Shi Ying was worried, so he waved his hand and smiled, "Don't worry about these things after get off work, let's eat first."

Shi Ying nodded obediently and said no more, then began to enjoy the staff meal in peace.

While eating the meal I had prepared, I started thinking about what could be improved.

Zhou Wen plans to make changes based on the suggestions from today's diners. Since some diners are not used to buckwheat noodles, he will switch to regular noodles.

As for the soup base, it can only be said that it is adjusted according to the diners' preferences so that it is not so cold.

If you replace the cold broth, the very essence of cold noodles, with a hot broth, then what kind of cold noodles are you talking about?

It might be more effective when the weather gets hotter.

If the changes do not yield satisfactory results, the cold noodles will have to be temporarily removed from the menu.

The next morning, Zhou Wen went to the supermarket to start choosing noodles.

Most cold noodles use buckwheat noodles, but there are indeed other types of noodles, such as wheat cold noodles.

There is a significant difference between buckwheat noodles and wheat cold noodles. The former is dark brown and has a chewy texture, while the latter is white and thin, with a smooth, soft, and refreshing texture.

In addition to buying wheat noodles, Zhou Wen also bought some sweet potato flour.

Sweet potato starch has a smooth and chewy texture, which might create a surprisingly good synergy when combined with other ingredients.