The Cheat Emperor of the Culinary World

The male customer glanced at the child beside him and nodded, "Alright, let’s have a grilled saury."

He then added, "Two dishes and another main course should be about right."

Liu Yuqing introduced, "Our restaurant’s specialty main courses include seafood porridge, mackerel dumplings..."

The male customer asked the child, "What would you like to eat?"

The boy looked at the menu’s seafood porridge and pointed with his finger, "This one."

Upon seeing the price, the male customer was visibly taken aback, "What? 128 yuan for just one serving? What is this cooked with to be so expensive! Nowadays, porridge shops outside offer a bowl for five yuan, you can drink as much as you want! You’re asking too much! Who can afford this!"

"Forget it, just get me two bowls of rice instead, by the way, can you serve a bit more?"

Liu Yuqing, feeling helpless, patiently persuaded, "All the seafood in our restaurant is guaranteed to be high-quality and freshly cooked. Although the seafood might look the same, there’s actually a considerable difference in quality. Small shops offer cheaper prices mainly because their ingredients are not the same quality. As for the chef’s culinary skills, I can’t comment rashly, but the main difference in price for a dish definitely lies in the cost of the ingredients."

"Seafood isn’t like other ingredients; fresh seafood has a better taste and is also beneficial for health. This is actually for your health and dining experience, as you know the saying, ’You get what you pay for,’ which holds true anywhere."

"Our restaurant has a century-long history, known for its delicious and affordable dishes. The prices are constantly adjusted according to the market pricing for seafood; I’m not randomly quoting exorbitant prices to you."

Liu Yuqing was speaking the truth.

The price of seafood, even for the same type, varies based on origin and time of purchase.

Thus, restaurants like Qianlima, which uphold the principle of quality assurance, adjust their prices every few days.

Liu Yuqing was quite knowledgeable about this and highly endorsed Qianlima’s business philosophy.

After all, unlike other ingredients, the freshness of seafood not only makes a big difference in taste but also affects the diner’s health.

The male customer hesitated slightly after listening to Liu Yuqing, "Is the seafood really as good as you say?"

Liu Yuqing nodded, "Yes, it’s all about getting what you pay for. For example, when buying vegetables at the market, different stalls sell the same portion at different prices. The cheap ones are usually those left from the day before, while the more expensive ones are freshly picked from the garden in the morning. Both are edible, but there’s a big difference in freshness and taste. And with seafood, the size, quality, and time of purchase all vary. If you want to taste the most delicious seafood, it’s best to choose ingredients from the best breeding environments and with the freshest quality."

After Liu Yuqing finished speaking, she smiled slightly at the male customer, "Of course, I’m just a server sharing this information, hoping you understand a bit more. Ultimately, how you order is up to you."

The male customer still seemed reluctant to spend the money.

"The seafood porridge is 128, so the squid and saury would be over two hundred, right? A meal would cost four hundred yuan, which is almost two days of my wages, really..."

After grumbling, the male customer couldn’t help but ask, "Do you have any promotions right now? Is there any discount..."

Liu Yuqing patiently replied, "Currently, no. But sometimes, there are small souvenir gifts, and as for discounts, it usually applies to large banquet tables."

The male customer sighed deeply, "I actually know that the seafood here tastes good and is authentic. At a small restaurant outside, two people would spend one to two hundred to have a decent meal, and it wouldn’t taste as good as here."

Liu Yuqing maintained her smile and didn’t comment arbitrarily.

The male customer thought for a moment, and finally, with determination, he said, "Then let’s have another serving of seafood porridge and a bowl of rice. Might as well add a serving of mackerel dumplings."

Seafood porridge is too light, and his child is at the age where he eats the most as he’s growing.

Anyway, having spent over four hundred already, a little extra won’t matter. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

His child had rarely achieved such good grades, and he promised a reward. As a father, he couldn’t be too stingy.

Going out for a meal, regardless of the family’s condition, spending a few hundred at a time, anyone careful with money would feel the pinch.

Even if he was reluctant to spend, as a parent, once a promise is made, it should be kept.

...

Typically, people slightly better off would prefer to dine at a renowned old restaurant like Qianlima when eating seafood.

They eat with peace of mind, and the prices are relatively fair and reasonable.

Small restaurants might seem cheap, but the hygiene and freshness of their ingredients are truly worrisome.

Nowadays, people emphasize food safety, and dining out every day is unaffordable for any family.

However, if they occasionally want seafood, the first place they think of is Qianlima.

So Qianlima isn’t afraid of having no customers, but rather their chefs not meeting the standards, the ingredients not being up to par, or the service not keeping up.

As long as these points are well managed, customers will surely fill the place. The worry then would be having too many diners and not enough staff to handle the business.

The kitchen hand delivered the handled saury.

As Fu Yu prepared to grill, he noticed Liu Yuqing hadn’t left.

Sensing his gaze, Liu Yuqing explained openly, "I just finished serving a customer, and there are five people ahead in line, so I’m in no hurry to return. I want to see how the saury is grilled, so I can give a more detailed recommendation to customers in the future."

Fu Yu nodded and gave Liu Yuqing another glance, surprised at her dedication to her work.

Adjusting the charcoal fire, Fu Yu focused on the saury and suddenly had an idea.

He looked up again at Liu Yuqing and asked, "Could you help me record a video?"

Liu Yuqing was taken aback and looked at Fu Yu in surprise, "Record what?"

Fu Yu said, "The process of grilling the saury."

Liu Yuqing nodded, "Sure."

Fu Yu was about to grab his phone when Liu Yuqing swiftly took hers out and set it to video mode.

Fu Yu began grilling.

He didn’t intentionally look at the camera.

Although he was recording a video, Fu Yu intended to review it during his leisure time later.

Just a moment ago, seeing the saury on the grill sparked an idea.

Despite having once had the absolute sense of touch and heat control skills.

And his grilling skills were advanced, yet he couldn’t make perfect barbeque.

After countless operations in the culinary training classroom, he finally reached the point where he could independently grill any ingredient he had in hand.

Standing in front of the grill, all the operations instinctively appeared in his mind.

He had repeatedly pondered this and eventually came up with some hypotheses.