Apart from a small incident on Su Lanxin's side, the other guests invited by Feng Yifan have already come to Huaicheng from all over the place.
Because it happened to be the Mid-Autumn Festival, Zhuang Daozhong brought his great-grandson Zhuang Zhebin along this time.
Of course, half a year later, when Zhuang Zhebin came back, he was no longer as ostentatious as before. He had become much more mature and taller.
However, after Zhuang Daozhong arrived in Huaicheng, he could not go directly to Su Ji because he was traveling with some people from the Culinary Association and had to meet with people from the local catering association.
After Zhuang Zhebin followed his great-grandfather to meet some people, he couldn't sit still anymore and suggested to his great-grandfather that he go to the restaurant first.
When Zhuang Daozhong heard the suggestion, he smiled and said, "Okay, these are all your elders, you won't feel comfortable here, so if you want to go, just go over first. By the way, don't forget to tell your uncle Yifan to reserve a table for us."
Zhuang Zhebin responded: "Don't worry, great grandfather. Even if my uncle doesn't leave one for anyone else, he will definitely leave one for you."
Zhuang Daozhong smiled and said, "Okay, go ahead."
Zhuang Zhebin finally left, and he was very excited when he walked out of the room.
He went straight to the hotel and took a taxi to the ancient street.
As soon as they got in the car and said they were going to the ancient street, the driver heard Zhuang Zhebin's foreign accent and immediately said, "Are we going to Su Ji on the ancient street? Su Ji hasn't opened yet, but I heard that in a couple of days, Chef Feng's western restaurant will open."
When Zhuang Zhebin heard the driver say this, he immediately found it very interesting and asked quickly, "So, Su Ji and Chef Feng are very famous?"
The driver immediately said, "Of course. If you ask around in Huaicheng now, who wouldn't know about Su Ji and Chef Feng?"
Zhuang Zhebin then asked: "Master, can you tell me why Su Ji and Chef Feng are so famous?"
The driver immediately said, "Why else? Because Su Ji's dishes are authentic, and Chef Feng's cooking skills are amazing. Haven't you watched those videos online? Chef Feng's cooking skills are simply amazing. Even in our Fujinglou's previous competition, Chef Feng was a mentor."
Zhuang Zhebin said: "I have watched the videos online, but those videos were filmed for certain reasons. In reality, maybe Chef Feng's cooking skills are not that great, right?"
Seeing the driver immediately looking at him through the rearview mirror, Zhuang Zhebin didn't wait for the driver to speak and said, "Besides, how does it really taste? It's hard to say anything without having tried it. Some dishes may look beautiful, but they may not taste good."
The driver suddenly became anxious: "How can you talk like that, young boy?"
Then the driver continued, "Chef Feng is a real chef. Apart from other things, do you know what the ancient street was like before? Many locals didn't go there. But what about now? The ancient street is our most famous night market attraction."
Zhuang Zhebin said: "This may be related to the renovation of the ancient street, right?"
The driver said, "It has nothing to do with that. The renovation was done because the ancient street became more popular. Let me tell you, after Chef Feng reopened Su Ji, business quickly recovered and became very popular."
Zhuang Zhebin asked again: "But I heard that it hasn't been long since Chef Feng came back from abroad. How popular can the ancient street be in such a short time?"
The driver continued, "So this is what Chef Feng is capable of. He really has great cooking skills."
Zhuang Zhebin asked: "Master, have you ever eaten it?"
The driver immediately said, "Of course I have. I'm not bragging. I took my family to the ancient street and ate at Su Ji once."
Zhuang Zhebin was immediately curious: "So you went there before the ancient street was renovated?"
The driver said: "Of course, after the ancient street was renovated, Su Ji has not been open for business."
Zhuang Zhebin continued to ask: "So what do you think of Su Ji's dishes?"
The driver started to savor the food while driving, and then said, "The color, aroma, and taste are all very good. The key is that each dish is very unique and completely different from those restaurants outside."
Zhuang Zhebin asked again: "How about comparing it with Fujing Building?"
The driver laughed: "Hahaha, Fujing Tower? Let me tell you, little brother, everyone in Huaicheng knows that in the past, Fujing Tower and Dexing Tower were just showpieces. Apart from wedding banquets, they were just there to trick outsiders.
However, I heard that Fujinglou was later bought by Chef Feng, and now the chef has been replaced. It is said that the food in Fujinglou tastes very good now.”
Zhuang Zhebin asked: "Master, where is the Dexing Building you mentioned?"
The driver waved his hand and said, "Dexinglou is no longer good. Dexinglou hired a chef from Fujinglou to be the head chef. He started by cooking some old dishes, but they were not authentic and their reputation has plummeted.
Later, the chef simply copied the menu of the previous Fujinglou, but he couldn't make the taste designed by Chef Feng. Now I'm afraid he is about to fail."
Zhuang Zhebin found it really interesting to chat with the taxi driver along the way.
He really learned a lot from the driver.
There are questions about what Huaicheng people think of the ancient street, Su Ji and Feng Yifan, as well as the current situation of some powerful restaurants in Huaicheng's catering industry.
According to the driver, business in the new commercial district is currently good because there are many young people there.
However, once Feng Yifan's Western restaurant and Su Ji open one after another, some young people there may be attracted to the ancient street.
The taxi driver sighed: "Brother, if you ask the locals in Huaicheng now, whether they are young or old, they will recommend you to go to the ancient street.
Let me tell you, over the years, we have always missed the atmosphere of the ancient street.
But later, with the development of new urban areas, the ancient street declined for a time and the former atmosphere is gone.
But since Chef Feng showed up and made the old taste at Su Ji, the atmosphere of the ancient street has gradually returned to its previous state.”
Zhuang Zhebin was a little surprised when he heard this: "Is it really that magical?"
The driver said: "Don't disbelieve it, you will feel it when you get there."
At this point, seeing that they were almost there, the driver suddenly said, "Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell you that Chef Feng's restaurant will have a trial opening tomorrow, so his snack shop will not be open today."
Zhuang Zhebin smiled and said, "Yes, I know."
When they arrived at the destination, Zhuang Zhebin paid the fare, said goodbye to the driver and got off the car.
When he stood at the intersection of the ancient street and looked ahead at the ancient street, he immediately understood the atmosphere that the driver was talking about.
After the renovation, the ancient street basically retained its original appearance, with only the floor tiles, walls and shop signs being renovated.
The atmosphere that the driver mentioned is the unique ancient charm of the ancient street.
When walking on the ancient street, you will feel as if you have returned to the ancient market.
Although there are no street stalls, each shop gives people a very ancient feeling, especially the various signs hanging at the door of the shop, which also have that feeling.
But this is not the key point. The key point is that you can buy very quaint things on the ancient street.
For example, if you go in from the east, the shops on both sides sell all kinds of cakes and snacks, which are all relatively simple and unpretentious, and you might not normally see them on the streets.
If you walk to the other side of the street, you will see many shops that are rarely seen in other places.
For example, there are wine shops selling rice wine, shops selling pottery, and shops selling handicrafts.
The key difference between these shops on this street and other tourist attractions is that the things sold here are truly handmade, unlike many domestic tourist attractions nowadays, which basically rely on outsourcing processing or purchasing finished products and selling them at stalls.
This gives it a very real and interesting feel.
Walking on the ancient street is really a pleasure.
Zhuang Zhebin followed the crowd and walked along the ancient street.
Zhuang Zhebin found this trip to the old street very interesting, and he also bought some small toys from his childhood, such as sugar figures and handmade clay dolls.
When Zhuang Zhebin bought it, he also took a lot of photos and posted them on his circle of friends.
When he posted the photo to his Moments, soon many people in his circle of friends asked him where he had been.
Zhuang Zhebin immediately recommended this place to his friends in Beijing.
"Wow, I didn't expect there is such an interesting place?"
"Yeah, there are actually those clay dolls, they are really interesting."
“And the sugar man.”
"It's the kind of sugar figure that is blown and painted with malt sugar. It's really interesting."
"Wow, such an old shop is really rare."
"And the buildings everywhere are all gray tiles and white walls, which are really beautiful."
…
Seeing that it caused quite a stir in the circle of friends, Zhuang Zhebin quickly began to promote it in the circle of friends and called on everyone to come and play when they are free.
"This is Huaicheng in Jiangsu Province. You can come here to play during your holidays. This is a very famous ancient street in Huaicheng. Let me tell you, two great restaurants are about to open on this ancient street.
Hey, I'm going to eat at one of them tomorrow, and then I'll show you what a world-class chef is."
After posting this message on WeChat Moments and arousing everyone's curiosity, Zhuang Zhebin decisively stopped looking at it.
He also found his way to the alley behind the ancient street, and after groping in the alley for a long time, he finally found the back door of Su Ji.
Because of the renovation of the ancient street, the alleys at the back were repainted, and in fact the back doors of every shop are now similar.
Therefore, Zhuang Zhebin relied on his previous memory to find the back door of Su Ji.
After knocking on Su Ji's back door, Zhuang Zhebin was a little surprised that no one came to open the door for him? There was even no movement inside the door, as if no one was there.
Zhuang Zhebin was a little confused. Did he go to the wrong place
When he didn't know what to do, the door next door opened. Ning Cheng poked his head out and saw Zhuang Zhebin peeking at the back door of Su's house. He immediately scolded him rudely.
"Hey, who are you? What are you doing at someone's door?"
Zhuang Zhebin turned around and saw Ning Cheng. After thinking for a moment, he walked towards Ning Cheng again.
Then he looked past Ning Cheng and took a look inside.
But Ning Cheng stopped him and didn't let him see.
Zhuang Zhebin couldn't see clearly, so he had to politely say to Ning Cheng: "Excuse me, is this Su Ji next door? Why does it seem like there's no one there?"
Ning Cheng looked at Zhuang Zhebin and asked, "Who are you?"
Zhuang Zhebin said: "I am a friend of Su Ji next door."
Ning Cheng was even more puzzled: "Friend? What's your name?"
Zhuang Zhebin replied: "My name is Zhuang Zhebin. I am really a friend of Su Ji next door. My great grandfather is Su Ji's uncle."
Ning Cheng thought for a moment and muttered, "Su Ji's uncle? I didn't hear Master mention any uncle?"
Zhuang Zhebin looked at Ning Cheng and asked, "Who are you? Are you Feng Yifan's apprentice?"
Ning Cheng nodded: "Yes, kid, how can you call me Master by my name?"
Zhuang Zhebin quickly said, "Oh, yes, I'm sorry. I should call him uncle, but I can also call him master uncle. My great-grandfather is Su Ji's master uncle, so I should also call Chef Feng uncle."
Ning Cheng finally remembered: "Oh, your last name is Zhuang? You must be Grandpa Zhuang, right?"
Zhuang Zhebin nodded: "Yes, my great grandfather is Zhuang Daozhong."
Ning Cheng said: "Then come in."
Ning Cheng opened the door and let Zhuang Zhebin in.
After Zhuang Zhebin entered the room and saw the various arrangements inside, he exclaimed, "Wow, so Master Uncle's Western restaurant is here?"
Hearing the sound, Shi Jiahui stretched his head from the front to look over here.
"Oh, who did I think it was? Turns out it's Zhuang Zhebin."
When Zhuang Zhebin saw Shi Jiahui, he quickly called out, "Hello, Master."
Shi Jiahui smiled and said, "Okay, come in. Where is your great-grandfather?"
Zhuang Zhebin washed his hands and put on his apron and hat while saying, "My great-grandfather must be very busy when he comes here, and he came with people from the Culinary Association, so they were discussing something, so I came here first."
Zhuang Zhebin put on an apron, a hat, and washed his hands before officially entering the kitchen of the western restaurant.
Seeing the open kitchen, Zhuang Zhebin was also a little surprised: "Wow, this place is really beautiful."
Looking around, Zhuang Zhebin said, "I told my dad before that we should make the restaurant's kitchen open, so that we can attract more customers."
As soon as he finished speaking, Feng Yifan said directly: "The kind of big restaurant you have is not suitable. This kind of restaurant is only suitable for small restaurants. If it is a large-scale restaurant, this form will not work. Don't come up with random ideas."
Hearing the voice, Zhuang Zhebin then saw Feng Yifan.
"Hahaha, Uncle, can I call you Uncle Master now?"
Feng Yifan nodded: "Of course, you should call me uncle, after all, in terms of seniority, your father is my senior brother."
Zhuang Zhebin asked again: "Then, can I take you as my master?"
Feng Yifan put down the work in his hands and looked at Zhuang Zhebin with some surprise.
"Why do you want to take me as your master again?"
Zhuang Zhebin quickly said, "I have always wanted to do this. I told you last time I came here that I really want to learn cooking from you. I want to stay in Su Ji, in your restaurant."
Feng Yifan shook his head and said, "Not for now, you should finish your studies well."
Zhuang Zhebin was inevitably a little disappointed, and could only weakly respond: "Oh, I see."
But soon, the things in the kitchen attracted Zhuang Zhebin, especially the things that everyone was busy with, which he found very interesting.