Gourmet: From a Stall in Northern Europe

Curiously looking over, it turned out he wasn’t the only one with the same idea; five or six pairs of chopsticks collided simultaneously above the steamer.

"Uh..."

Everyone exchanged an awkward glance, with no one intending to withdraw their chopsticks.

There were only ten buns in the steamer, and with Lin Chen himself, each person only got one, leaving just two in the steamer.

Considering there are ten in the steamer below, each person can only have two buns at most, and no one knows who will end up with the remaining four, whoever grabs them profits.

Originally, everyone just wanted to taste them, and if they were good, they would buy more later, even having Lin Chen make them in advance was fine.

The idea was nice, but the body was honest.

Before they realized it, after a few bites, their little hands reached out by themselves.

Lin Chen shook his head in amusement and stood up.

"Alright, alright, you gluttons, I’ll make you two more baskets if you want to eat more. Let Daniel eat his fill first, he still has to drive on the highway."

Since Lin Chen spoke, everyone went along with it, promptly withdrawing their chopsticks, and Lucas even voluntarily pushed the steamer towards Daniel.

"Go ahead, eat more. If you can’t finish, pack them for the road. If you find them delicious, remember to leave a nice review on our restaurant’s website!"

"I’ll write! I’ll write it right away!"

Feeling flattered, Daniel chuckled sheepishly, quickly pulling out his phone while not forgetting to stuff a hot bun into his mouth.

In all his years of delivery, he had never encountered such a friendly kitchen team.

They didn’t even charge him extra, and let him pack for the road.

Such good people!!

Whether it was from being overly hungry or experiencing such delicious buns for the first time, Daniel surprisingly devoured a total of eight large buns on the spot, with four left to savor slowly on the road.

If it weren’t for a bowl of wonton soup filling him up, he felt like he could have finished all of them right there.

Before leaving, Lucas specifically made him a cup of iced lemon tea, filled with ice jelly he watched being prepared himself.

Daniel was taken aback by the presentation and making process of this lemon tea.

He initially thought it was just ordinary lemon slices added to sugary water, but it turned out the lemons Lucas used looked like nothing he had ever seen before; they were a special variety from Great Xia called perfume lemons, with a different taste than regular lemons.

Instead of being sliced, they were cut into chunks and pounded vigorously with a stick along with ice before being poured into chilled brewed tea.

"Thank you all for the hospitality. I won’t disturb your work any longer. If you ever need any help, just call me!"

With a bag of buns in his left hand and lemon tea in his right, Daniel cheerfully left through the back door, his bright white teeth gleaming under the lights with a joyful smile.

Not long after he started driving, his stomach felt increasingly full, so much so that he couldn’t eat another bite.

"That’s strange, just now I felt like I wasn’t full, how come I’m suddenly stuffed?"

He glanced at the still warm buns on the passenger seat, remembering the wonderful sensation of biting into them, and couldn’t help but swallow his saliva again.

Unable to eat any more without feeling like he’d throw up, he decided to try the special handmade lemon tea from Great Xia to tame the unruly craving with the mildly bitter tea polyphenols.

This kind of lemon tea, made with fresh lemons, when soaked in water for about seven to ten minutes, will slowly release the bitterness from the lemon peel.

To prevent the drink from becoming bitter, most beverages contain thinly sliced lemon pieces, not large chunks that are specially pressed with a hammer.

Could this lemon tea possibly be bitter?

Just imagining the taste calmed his eager desire quite a bit.

Just as he got onto the highway, and out of nowhere, a wave of drowsiness washed over him.

Startled, he quickly took a big gulp of the icy drink to refresh himself.

"Huh?!"

The lemon tea didn’t have the expected bitterness of lemon slices; instead, it had a faint, fresh fragrance.

The sourness was mild, barely there, unlike lemon, more akin to lime’s acidity.

The tea flavor wasn’t strong, subtly emanating tea aroma on the tongue, harmoniously melding with the lemon’s freshness.

"How strange, why does this lemon taste so refreshing? It’s not bitter at all!"

It wasn’t just the flavor; even the color was different, surprisingly light green, like freshly sprouted grass.

Not one to give up easily, just as he was about to drink some more, something suddenly blocked the straw.

Applying a little pressure, there was a ’pop’, and a soft, slippery jelly-like piece suddenly appeared in his mouth.

He was stunned for a moment before realizing that this was still inside, almost forgotten.

This jelly, made from plant seeds, has a very unique texture, completely different from the jelly you can buy on the market. It’s especially smooth and tender, with a slight plant fragrance.

It doesn’t even need to be chewed; just a few swirls of the tongue and it will automatically dissolve.

To be honest, drinking this soft jelly with refreshing iced lemon tea is truly an interesting experience. You never know whether the next sip will bring you pure tea or jelly, and this uncertainty drew him in, making it impossible to stop sipping.

In just over two minutes, the whole glass of lemon tea was finished.

Daniel shook the remaining ice cubes in the glass, feeling a bit regretful.

"How did it finish so quickly? I didn’t drink enough. Will they sell this again tomorrow?"

He couldn’t believe that a simple glass of lemon tea could be made into such a novelty.

After tasting such refreshing and aromatic lemon tea, the free refillable lemon tea sold in fast food restaurants no longer appealed to him. His mind was filled with that special lemon aroma.

He assumed that Great Xia People only made delicious food, but he didn’t expect them to be so good at making drinks too.

Thinking about how their food choices might change daily in the future, Daniel suddenly felt a strong anticipation, eager to finish his work and go to sleep so he could deliver goods and eat there again the next day!

Not only that, but he was also planning to apply for overtime.

Originally, he was supposed to work five days and rest two days, with others covering his shifts during the off days, but he didn’t want to let anyone else discover such delicious food.

What if they also got hooked and tried to compete with him for the gig?

Then he wouldn’t be able to eat it anymore, would he?

No way, absolutely not!

He’d rather spend an extra couple of hours working on his days off than let anyone else cover his shift!

Anyway, there’s overtime pay for overtime, and others would need to thank him since delivering goods on highways was tiring and thankless work that no one else wanted to do.

If he weren’t young and able to endure, he wouldn’t want to do this kind of late-night highway work either.

Now it’s different; whoever competes with him for this job will find him difficult!

Lin Chen, on the other hand, had no idea that a few buns, a glass of lemon tea, and some Sunday crayfish had completely won over the delivery guy’s heart, making him determined to deliver goods every day just to have a meal.

They had already started preparing for their food stall, making buns and wontons in advance, while waiting for Jonathan’s creamy mushroom lasagna to be ready.

Though it’s delicious, it takes a long time to bake—at least forty minutes.

This means they must bake continuously without stopping; as soon as one batch is finished, another must go in, otherwise, it won’t be enough for the customers.

If they were selling something else, they might have to consider the customers’ tastes, but not with lasagna. As long as it’s displayed, there will surely be many people who want to eat it.

Due to the change in operational model, to make it easier for customers to try both options, Lin Chen also asked the hotel to prepare a lot of number tags, so they could call numbers directly and avoid having people wait in line and go hungry.

Meanwhile, the hotel front desk, as usual, displayed posters announcing the restaurant’s operations.

Unlike last week, this time the menu was marked on the poster in advance, allowing a more targeted approach to attract customers.

They also canceled the reservation system, replacing it with free access for hotel guests or anyone who had booked a room within the last twenty-four hours.

Of course, offering free access also has its downsides, as it might lead to an overflow of guests resulting in some arriving too late and missing a meal.

Regarding this, the hotel clearly marked on the poster in large letters that the food quantity per meal is limited, first come first served, until sold out.

Not only is this noted on the front desk poster, but each diner receives a second reminder upon entry, to prevent unnecessary misunderstandings.

After canceling the reservation system, no need for two staff members at the restaurant front desk to check off names one by one. They just have to verify that the person has a room card or a twenty-four-hour stay record to let them in.

Following last weekend’s kite festival, not only the entire town but even nearby cities and across the strait have heard about the new restaurant offering excellent food, with high-level chefs in charge.

Besides Western cuisine, there’s also delicious Eastern cuisine, and even Michelin three-star chefs have come to learn skills, which has spread widely.

However, such matters aren’t a big deal for foreigners, as the two cuisines are different, and learning from each other is normal.

The issue is that it’s a Michelin three-star chef, who wouldn’t just randomly pick a place to learn; they would have studied in advance and know that the chefs of this restaurant are of a high standard before coming to exchange skills.

For a chef to be recognized by chefs of this level, their skill certainly isn’t poor, and the residents grasp this basic concept.

This has led to a surge in interest from potential customers eager to visit the restaurant, with many middle-aged and young visitors lingering outside the restaurant before 6:30.

Unlike last week, starting this week, Lin Chen will be setting up a food stall outside, which means the preparation process is open-air and public; anyone can come to watch.

This is the culinary culture even Michelin chefs want to emulate, piquing the interest of many female tourists who hope to pick up some tips to improve their meals at home.

Seeing many tourists gradually appearing outside, Lin Chen felt uneasy staying indoors, so he immediately called for help to move ingredients onto the food truck outside and began making buns in front of everyone.