The NO.1 Food Stall in the Wasteland novel Chapter 181

Chapter 181: Chapter 181: Is This Your First Time Here, Young Lady?

The next day, Shen Lu went out after eating breakfast.

Finding a local supplier to source ingredients was a pressing matter. The sooner she settled it, the sooner she could feel at ease.

It wasn’t a difficult task. Shen Lu asked Ma Laosan for information and got an address.

She took a rickshaw over and met with Boss He, the biggest vegetable supplier in the Lower City District.

"You need them today?" Boss He took a drag from his cigarette and laughed at her words. "This must be your first time here, little girl. I don’t keep stock on hand. Everything has to be pre-ordered."

He wasn’t a retailer who had produce ready to go. His customers placed an order and paid a deposit one day, then came back the next to pay the balance and pick up the goods.

The smoke made Shen Lu uncomfortable. She furrowed her brow. "Could you make an exception? I’m in a real hurry. I can pay extra."

"Extra money won’t help. It’s not that I don’t want to; I just don’t have the stock." Boss He exhaled a large cloud of smoke. "Little girl, you need to understand, food is precious in the Imperial City. There’s a set amount of vegetables harvested each day. No waste is allowed, you get me?"

Shen Lu had no choice but to follow the rules, placing an order and paying a deposit with Boss He. They agreed she would pick up the vegetables at seven the next morning.

Besides, Boss He only dealt in vegetables. If she wanted to buy meat, she’d have to find another supplier.

Shen Lu didn’t stop, heading straight to find the meat supplier, Boss Huang.

Boss Huang had the same rules as Boss He: no stock on hand, orders had to be placed in advance.

Having learned her lesson, Shen Lu didn’t bother wasting her breath and just placed her order and paid.

Lastly was the seafood supplier, Boss Feng. Shen Lu skipped the unnecessary questions and placed her order as quickly as possible.

By the time she returned to the restaurant, it was already nine o’clock.

’Time really flies when you’re busy.’ She had only run to three places, and an hour or two had already vanished.

The restaurant opened at 11:30, which didn’t leave Shen Lu much time to cook.

Fortunately, she had used the kitchenware upgrade voucher on Little Mantis as soon as she got up.

The Second Level Little Mantis now had its duration increased to six hours, allowing it to cook slightly more complex dishes.

For example, with Kung Pao Chicken, it just needed to follow the steps, adding the ingredients to the wok one by one to stir-fry, then pouring in the sauce Shen Lu had prepared.

The flavor was about ninety percent as good as Shen Lu’s own cooking, which was already excellent.

But Shen Lu still had to make the braised pork belly herself. Caramelizing sugar was a skill-intensive task. If you weren’t proficient, you’d either overcook it and make it bitter, or undercook it, leaving it merely sweet with the wrong color.

Shu Meng and Song Zhigao had already done all the prep work for the pork belly, cutting it all into chunks and searing it until golden brown. As soon as Shen Lu got back, she started caramelizing the sugar. Half an hour later, the braised pork belly was stewing in the pot. It would be ready in two hours.

But Shen Lu was still incredibly busy, with plenty of side vegetables for the set meals waiting to be cooked.

For a while, the kitchen was a whirlwind of activity, with everyone focused on their tasks.

Rushing to get everything done, they finally managed to finish all the cooking before eleven.

Shen Lu shook her aching arms, took off her chef’s coat, and went to the front counter. She still had to hand out cards and stamp them today.

[DING~ New mission issued: Please sell 450 servings of the Braised Pork Belly Set and 350 servings of the Kung Pao Chicken Set. Achieve a total revenue of 88,000 yuan and maintain a customer satisfaction rating of three stars or higher. Time limit: eight hours.]

’Great, a new mission.’ Shen Lu glanced at the star decoration on the counter. It was more than halfway lit.

’I hope the satisfaction rating doesn’t drop again today, or I’m really going to lose it.’

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