Chapter 82 - 77: Heqi Chinese Restaurant

Chapter 82: Chapter 77: Heqi Chinese Restaurant

For their twentieth wedding anniversary, which was also Mrs. Leitel’s fortieth birthday, Leitel had invited quite a few guests. They would need to prepare food for one hundred and fifty people.

The quantity itself wasn’t a problem; after all, the cafeteria sold more than that every day. The real key was the variety of dishes.

The banquet was to be a buffet, featuring salads, small bites, appetizers, main courses, staples, and desserts. Each category required two or three different dishes. It placed high demands on both the chef’s skill and the availability of ingredients. In the past, only a major restaurant in the First Ring could take on such a job.

For Leitel to entrust her with such an important task without a second thought was a display of almost blind faith.

Moved by his sincerity, Ning He resolved to give it her all and design a truly exceptional banquet menu.

As the weather warmed, sales of malatang began to decline, so Ah Huai and Vance were enough to manage the stall on their own. The day the snow on the streets finally melted completely, Ning He brought Connie over to her new home to discuss the menu.

Ning He’s new house was a half-hour walk from Connie’s. Having already visited twice, Connie was no stranger to the place.

The two sat down on the sofa, and Connie, with a solemn expression, took out a piece of paper and handed it to Ning He.

"These are the common dishes you see at this kind of high-end banquet. I compiled a list, have a look. Whatever we make, it absolutely cannot be worse than this."

When Connie first learned that Ning He had accepted the job, she could hardly believe it. She spent days worrying that they would mess it up, and only calmed down after Ning He repeatedly guaranteed her there would be no problem.

"I was just thinking I needed to ask someone about this. You’re always so reliable," Ning He said with a compliment as she took the list.

The list meticulously detailed over thirty dishes, from small appetizers to desserts. It even noted the main ingredients and general flavor profiles. It was extremely thorough and, for Ning He, a very valuable reference.

"Where did you get such detailed information?" Ning He couldn’t help but ask.

"I used to help out at banquets like this during an internship, so I know a little," Connie said. A flicker of awkwardness crossed her face before she quickly changed the subject. "See which ones we can make and which ones we should swap out."

Even though Connie didn’t doubt Ning He’s abilities, she never imagined she would redesign the entire menu. Just swapping out a few dishes for something a little more novel would have been impressive enough.

Ning He nodded and began to study the list, lost in thought.

The dishes on the list were clearly Western-style, and their quality and preparation methods were several notches above what Ning He had seen at the Level 3 Restaurants in the Third Ring.

The appetizers, aside from the usual fried peas, potato chips, mashed potatoes, corn chips, and cream of mushroom soup, also included buttered bread with roasted mushrooms, puff pastry bacon rolls, and egg and sausage sandwiches.

The salads had assorted vegetables, several kinds of nuts, grilled chicken, and grilled fish. The dressings included the common vinaigrette as well as a seasoned chickpea puree.

The main courses were primarily pan-fried, roasted, or deep-fried: pan-fried meat patties, seared steaks, fish fillets, pan-fried prawns, fried chicken nuggets, roasted chicken, and smoked duck, served with various sauces. There were also several meat and vegetable stews, which, according to Connie’s description, were mostly seasoned with garlic, chili, and tomato. Many also included shrimp and were quite tasty.

Staples included pasta, risotto, dumplings, and bread, while desserts were non-cream sweets like pudding, egg tarts, donuts, and apple pie, along with some fruit.

In this world, it was considered a very lavish spread, but for Ning He, surpassing it wouldn’t be particularly difficult.

She found a pen and quickly scribbled down more than a dozen dish names on the paper. Connie, watching from the side, looked at these names she had never heard before with a mixture of curiosity and bewilderment.

"Don’t worry. I’ll show you what I mean in a bit."

Just as she finished speaking, there was a knock at the door. Youzhen had arrived.

"Sister Ning, this is the ingredient information I found. It’s all here. But these suppliers are only willing to give us a ten percent discount at most. It’s not much of a price break."

After coming in, Youzhen sat on the sofa, took a notebook out of her backpack, and handed it to Ning He.

"It’s fine. Thanks for your hard work."

Ning He took the notebook and read it carefully. Compared to the Fourth Ring, the food stores in the First Ring not only had a richer selection of meats—pork, beef, fish, shrimp, chicken, and duck were all available—but also carried some dried goods and specialties from other cities. The only issue was the steep price.

But Leitel had given them an ample budget, so it wasn’t out of the question.

Although they would have to buy ingredients at retail prices, which would make the cost per dish much higher, Ning He’s private garden would be ready for harvest in a few days. That would bring costs down, so she didn’t have to worry too much.

Ning He cross-referenced the ingredients in the notebook with her menu, making a few more slight modifications. Just as she was about to test the waters by cooking a dish or two, Connie received a call from the administrator they called Auntie.

"...Really? She found a suitable storefront?" Connie shot up from the sofa.

"Okay, I’m heading over right now!"

Connie hung up the phone and said excitedly, "Auntie said she found a suitable shop for us! It’s not far from here, I’m going to go check it out!"

Ning He set the notebook down.

"Let’s go together. This can wait."

"Okay, let’s go!"

The three of them left the house, hailed a small car, and hurried over.

After Ning He’s credit value had collapsed, the three of them still held on to a sliver of hope. It was only after their partnership applications to more than a dozen food suppliers were all rejected, and the landlord of a sublet they had their eye on politely turned them down with various excuses, that they finally accepted reality. Their only choice was to ask Auntie to help them pick from the officially owned properties, and they had been forced to lower their standards again and again.

According to their original plan, the new shop would initially focus on selling jianbing and malatang. For residents of the Fourth Ring, the prices were not low, so it wouldn’t be an everyday choice. Instead, residents of the Inner Ring were their main target customers. Therefore, the shop needed to be as close to the Third Ring as possible, with convenient transportation, plenty of bus routes connecting to the Inner Ring, and a decent surrounding environment.

The three of them finally arrived at the address Auntie had given them. It was a two-story storefront near a bus terminal, tucked away behind a small marketplace.

The enthusiastic Auntie led them inside for a look. The building was empty, but thankfully, it had running water and electricity, a solid, square layout, and was reasonably clean and tidy. It wouldn’t need a large-scale renovation.

The alley the shop was in was dusty and sparsely populated, and all the other storefronts were vacant, giving it a depressed look. However, this particular shop was on the corner, so it wasn’t hard to find. Its size and rent both met their requirements, so Ning He was satisfied.

Since they were going to open a restaurant, there was no need to drag things out. Ning He paid the deposit right away. Connie called Uncle Bari to handle the lease agreement and the initial renovation work.

After setting aside money to order kitchen equipment, Ning He’s account balance dropped to just over ten thousand. Fortunately, the cafeteria and the malatang stall were still bringing in money, so there was no need to be too anxious.

Ning He stood outside the shop, looking up at what would soon be her very own first restaurant, feeling a mix of happiness and sorrow.

’I worked so hard to become a food blogger with a million followers just so I could stop slaving away like a beast of burden. How did I end up with even more work than before?’

"Have you thought of a name for the shop?" Connie asked.

Ning He took a deep breath and nodded. "I have. Let’s call it Heqi Chinese Restaurant!"

"Heqi Chinese Restaurant? That’s a great name. Let’s work hard and get the whole city lining up to eat here!"

’Won’t that just work me to death?!’

"Mhm, with Sister Ning in charge, it’ll definitely happen!" Youzhen said, full of confidence.

’Alright, seeing as everyone has so much faith in me, I’d better just roll up my sleeves and get to work!’

Ning He spread her arms, wrapping one around each of her friends.

"In that case, I can only say sorry to my peers in Beiluo City. I’m going full throttle, and all bets are off!"