Free Web NovelChapter 560: Chapter 472: New Proposal—Semi-Prepared Goods Retail
Waitstaff don’t need to handle complicated procedures; just helping out when the kitchen is overwhelmed, or when there’s nothing to do in the front, is enough.
The main tasks are things like peeling vegetables, which anyone can do.
According to Zhao Shun’s requirement, sesame paste can indeed be blended with a machine, but there’s a subtle difference between machine-made and handcrafted flavors.
It’s like making dumpling or bun skins; machine-made ones are never as tasty as handmade.
"Lin, are these fish enough? If not, I’ll have more prepared for you!"
John, who was wandering back and forth in front of the chefs’ table, was beaming from ear to ear, watching as they gutted and sliced the troublesome creatures that had previously been a headache for him, into translucent thin slices. He couldn’t help but drool.
He had tasted the black fish several times before, and it was indeed quite good, but only when made by Lin Chen.
He couldn’t replicate that delicious flavor himself.
"Then go ahead and call someone to start preparing. Just help with as many as you can, provided it doesn’t affect your regular operations."
Lin Chen nodded, apparently also feeling that the amount of black fish was somewhat insufficient.
These creatures are big, so a box can’t hold that many. Even if the pickup truck’s trunk is full, it’s only a bit over a hundred fish.
For safety in transit, the boxes can’t be stacked too high.
One black fish should yield enough slices to serve two to four diners, although you can’t rule out the big eaters who might buy more.
To be safe, it’s better to prepare more stock.
Apart from supplying the diners, Lin Chen also planned to treat the hotel staff to a long-overdue meal.
Previously, due to a lack of manpower, he had to hand over the catering job to Jonathan.
During this period, he’s received countless emails requesting the resumption of meal services, and now that the manpower is ample, he must meet the staff’s needs.
"Don’t worry! It won’t affect anything."
John confidently took out his phone and started dialing.
"Not everything needs to be handled manually by the butcher; most tasks can be outsourced to machines."
"Moreover, after stockpiling the whole morning, there should be plenty of supply at the stall now, and every afternoon we see those guys slacking off, so it’s a great opportunity to keep them busy!"
Not only can they get rid of the clutter and pests accumulating at the farm, but they can also earn some extra income and give the idle employees something to do. John wished Lin Chen would ask for more black fish.
He had contacted several nearby farm owners, asking them to gather all the troublesome creatures like bullfrogs and black fish from their farms, and he’d send people over to collect them.
In short, everything was ready, only waiting for Lin Chen to say yes!
After hanging up, John came over with a big grin.
"Lin, if the black fish dishes get good feedback tomorrow, should we consider making a retail version?"
"As long as the soup packs and raw ingredients are prepped and packaged, there should be customers willing to buy them home."
Lin Chen looked at him in surprise, never expecting the idea of pre-made meals to come from a pure foreigner like John.
"Where did you get this idea?"
"Hehe, from the supermarket! I went to Paris the other day, took some time to roam around an Asian supermarket, checked out Great Xia, Japan, and Korean markets, and found quite a bit of these semi-finished packed foods."
"It’s indeed a great idea; it feels similar to the roast chicken sandwich pasta we sell at the supermarket. Just heat it up and eat."
"And seeing you provide Rovena with garlic sauce, this idea just popped into my head."
"First release the finished product for guests to try, and if it’s popular, launch the semi-finished version. This way, we can reduce some workload, increase extra revenue, and boost guest satisfaction; how perfect!"
"That’s right."
Lin Chen pinched his chin with his thumb and forefinger, contemplated for a moment, and quickly made a decision.
"However, selling it daily isn’t practical. Let alone having enough black fish supplies, just the process of preparing fish slices is cumbersome, and it can only be sold occasionally."
"But your words have reminded me that besides pickled fish, many other dishes could be semi-finished and sold as packaged meals, which could become a major income source for our restaurant moving forward."
"We can even place some at your farm to sell and attract customers."
"Exactly, I was thinking the same!"
John was so excited he almost jumped, his smile brighter than the sun, his face wrinkling to a comical degree.
"Rovena already has her garlic sauce, so the farm can also launch a few popular items, right?"
"Yes," Lin Chen nodded, "but I still need to think about what to make specifically. Our current staff hasn’t been fully settled, so for now, we can only plan like this."
"Future actions have to be based on the number of staff and the restaurant’s plans. The restaurant’s normal operation remains the priority, and other derivative projects can only be tackled when there’s spare time."
"Understood, understood! Then I’ll head back to supervise their work, and I’ll drop by later to bring the fish!"
Watching John’s car quickly disappear into the distance, Lin Chen suddenly thought of Magna.
They hadn’t made any seafood dishes lately; hopefully, Magna wasn’t getting restless?
But he hasn’t come over for free meals, which means he’s possibly not in a hurry.
Whatever, let it be.
Seafood dishes emphasize freshness, so they probably aren’t suitable to be made into semi-finished products for sale, unless they’re pickled raw or something.
Thinking about seafood, for some reason, the video of the king crab tofu I shot a while ago suddenly popped into my mind.
Lately, I’ve been busy updating dishes and recruiting, completely put the task aside.
But I must say, after not doing tasks, work becomes more free and relaxed, without so many restrictions.
Some tasks like the disappeared state banquet cuisine series still have significant promotional value, but he doesn’t want to follow the task directions anymore, doing whatever comes to mind fits his preference better.
Looking at the busy people around, Lin Chen temporarily suppresses his chaotic thoughts, planning to sort them out slowly after getting off work tonight.
For now, let’s go slice the fish.
Just returned to his spot and picked up the knife, instantly felt dozens of gazes converging from all directions.
Lin Chen paused for a moment, then quickly changed his mind.
"No, almost forgot about this. I’d better just help with scales and guts, save me from working too hard and stealing Zhao Shun’s thunder."
He genuinely fears the hassle. What if everyone gets interested in him like Nicole did before, occasionally coming over to ask this or that? Could he live like that?
It’s not self-love, mainly because Great Xia culture is completely unfamiliar to these foreigners, easily stirring curiosity.
Especially for women, the line between curiosity and affection is extremely blurred, easily crossed by accident.
He just wants to quietly be a chef, promoting Great Xia’s culinary culture to the guests.
Making friends is fine, but that’s enough.
Not planning to immigrate anyway, will return to his country sooner or later, might occasionally work abroad on a work visa, really unnecessary.
The reality is better than expected, but inevitably still compared by others.
From the glances of the waiters, it’s easy to tell almost everyone has similar thoughts.
A chef is a chef, truly more impressive than others!
This is unavoidable. Can’t stop working just to avoid this, right?
"Oh, this is so frustrating!"
After handling seven or eight fish in a row, Lin Chen sighed with slight annoyance.
He suddenly realized his sentimental and backward-thinking behavior wasn’t really his style, then decisively started slicing the fish.
"Why care so much, none of my business. If you want to woo the girls, use your own skills to chase them. I’m just gonna do my job, whatever!"
As if venting the accumulated grievances inside, his knife moved extremely fast, like it was equipped with high-precision positioning, effortlessly slicing the entire fish into thin slices in several swift motions.
Moving so fast, it was almost hard to visually track his actions, only seeing fish slices flying around in chaos, rapidly piling into a small mountain.
"Watching the chef slice fish is satisfying, this is so entertaining, like a stunt performance."
"How does he slice so fast while still slicing well, doesn’t he worry about cutting his hand?"
"Look at these slices, thin as crystal, and still perfectly shaped. Those newbie chefs are slow, and definitely can’t slice this thin, really weird."
"I feel if it were me slicing, one fish might take over an hour. In chef’s hands, cut and done in ten seconds, ridiculous."
Also learning how to slice, Zhao Shun overheard the discussions again and glanced over with envy.
He was in good spirits, not discouraged by this, instead looked forward eagerly.
"When I make pastries and desserts, will girls surround me like they do the boss?"
"I really hope so..."
As everyone was immersed in slicing, the sky unknowingly darkened.
Lin Chen had already gone early into the restaurant to serve dinner guests, leaving Zhao Shun, Old Chen, and a dozen other chefs still working outside.
With so many people working simultaneously, over three hundred huge black fish were all sliced into thin slices.
The leftover fish heads, bones, scraps were all collected and taken to the back kitchen to make soup.
The sunset gradually sank, casting golden-red glows over the rugged sea surface.
While everyone busied with cleaning up the aftermath, a refrigerated truck turned on its headlights, approaching from afar, turning at the crossroad heading straight for the restaurant.
Seeing this truck, Lin’s eyes lit up, immediately ran inside the restaurant.
Soon, Dais followed her out, clapping her hands at the waiters.
"Girls and boys, get ready, your work has arrived!"
