Chapter 152 – Aden Square Best Cuisine Chart
Bernice and the rest all looked towards Andrew. Here was the guy who deals with pork everyday, and whatever else the [Juicy Burger] might contain, everyone was fairly sure that the meat within it was. Among all of them, he would be the most qualified person to talk about pork.
Nearly half of the [Juicy Burger] was gone in that one bite. Andrew chewed his mouthful thoughtfully. First, only the outermost part of the [Juicy Burger] was slightly crisp, the rest of the pancake was so soft that it could not be compared with the pancakes sold in most shops. Nor was it too soft, it still retained a certain amount of chewiness that brought a hint of sweetness longer it stayed in the mouth.
The meat juice that had soaked into the pancake caught his attention most. What had been merely sweet was now infinitely complex and yet, strangely balanced.
“Could this meat juice really be made from simmered pork?”
Andrew was bewildered, he had worked with pork for over 20 years, and could even tell different cuts of meat by scent alone. He had also mastered all kinds of cooking method that had to do with pork, and yet, he had never come across a flavour quite like the clear and brilliant fragrance of this meat juice.
The fragrance of meat was strong, obviously, however, the typical gaminess that came with cooked flesh was completely gone. Just what kind of spices or seasoning brought out such clear and robust scent of meat that fairly exploded on ones tongue, and yet…… and yet, had none of the characteristic gaminess that came with it?
Moreover, what was even more amazing was that the meat and pancake just parted under his teeth the moment he bit into it. The fat remained soft and juicy but the greasiness, it just wasn’t there! Instead, only meaty juiciness was left in his mouth.
“How could pork belly taste like this? It’s incredible!”
Andrew was wide-eyed with amazement. When he had first noticed that Boss Mike had used pork belly meat, he had been concerned whether the burger might have been too greasy, but it looked like his worry was for nought.
One bite and fragrant meat juices overflowed in his mouth flooding every taste bud with deliciousness. A wave of heat flowed over him the moment he swallowed his mouthful, and he felt almost dizzy from it. His body felt like it was on fire, his throat, his belly, his very blood……
“Ah–!”
Andrew could not help but let out a long ululation of satisfaction, it was not his imagination, the very flesh in his body, his fat to be precise, was trembling. While it was not quite as obvious as Harrison and his friends, since he was still muscular enough to wrestle down adult pigs, there was still access fat on his body, and they were visibly trembling.
“How was it?” the rest of the peanut gallery asked Andrew. No matter what, he was still a greatly respected restaurant owner. If a random nobody had reacted so dramatically after that first bite, they would have suspected that person of exaggerating his reaction.
“Delicious.” was the simple and most straightforward answer Andrew could give. His eyes never left the [Juicy Burger] in his hand. He licked his lips, tasting the remains of the meat juice in his mouth and took another bite to experience that overwhelming gush of fragrant meat juice, and that burning sensation once more.
This was no ordinary pork! Andrew was 100% sure of it. However, what of it? In the face of such overwhelming deliciousness, one should just throw oneself into the sensation and drown in it.
One bite after another, the [Juicy Burger] became smaller, and smaller.
“En?” the peanut gallery all stared at Andrew incredulously. This rare sight only manifested when he encountered food he really liked. There was no way they could get him to talk or analyse the food now.
“Is it really that delicious?” Bishop sniffed with disbelief, but he also picked up the [Juicy Burger] and took a bite.
In his opinion, the scallion pancakes he made was one of the top cuisine that represented Aden Square. Though it had never broke into the Top 100 Cuisine of Aden Square in this past two years, much to his regret, he could still sell about 1,000 pieces a day and business was good.
“How could such delicious pancake exist!”
The soft and sweet pancake that sandwiched the pork balanced and enhanced each other’s flavour perfectly. He had thought that the heavy meat and thick pancake would not match at all, but in reality, it was so harmonious and well blended that it was hard to think of them as separate entities.
The thin scallion pancakes of his shop simply could not compare.
The gap between his scallion pancake and this burger was so wide that it could not even be compared in the same category at all. This kind of disparity was thoroughly disheartening.
“Ah—!” though it was quite depressing to have one’s proud work crushed by a rival, once Bishop swallowed his first mouthful of [Juicy Burgers], he still could not stop himself from exclaiming in admiration.
The sudden rush of blood in his body suddenly made him feel quite vigorous, a little youthful even, he had no idea what Boss Mike put into the meat to create such a wonderful effect.
In his youth, he would have never been satisfied with a restaurant that sold scallion pancakes as its signature dish. He had just readjusted an existing recipe for Crispy Biscuits, trying as a joke, to make something edible from that tough as bricks pancake.
Now that he thought about it, these past years all three of his sons had mastered the skill of making scallion pancakes, and each of them could take charge of any part of the restaurant work in a snap.
However, any time they offered up any ideas for changes, his sons would encounter the major obstacle that was Bishop. If they were lucky, they would be yelled at, if they got him at a bad moment, they would get the rod. Therefore, aside from the youngest, his sons had quieted down, focussing all their attention on making scallion pancakes.
“The world is a large place after all, looks like it’s time to allow my third boy to try out some of his ideas.” Bishop stared down at the [Juicy Burger] in his hands with a complicated expression. He could not deny the delicious impact of this food, no wonder that customer said that the price was all worth it, and that his prided scallion pancakes could not compare.
Of course, one major advantage of the scallion pancake was its price. Customers who could afford [Juicy Burger] would not come over to eat scallion pancakes everyday.
As for the price, was 300 copper coins expensive for a single [Juicy Burger]? Bishop thought to himself. If he could create such a delicious [Juicy Burgers] with all its wonderful effects, perhaps he might even charge 400 or perhaps even 600 copper coins each.
“It certainly is very delicious.” Bishop said quietly, and lowered his head to continue eating the [Juicy Burger] in his hands, a smile on his face. It certainly was wonderful to experience such amazing deliciousness.
Everyone who had been waiting with bated breath for Bishop’s opinions were left speechless when he merely sank into a thoughtful silence. The others finally could not wait and bit into their own [Juicy Burgers].
“Aah—!”
Different expression flared on everyone’s faces, surprise, pleasure, shock, however, everyone ended up sighing with pleasure almost in unison. At first, they thought that Andrew and Bishop’s reaction was just too exaggerated, until the moment they tasted the [Juicy Burger] themselves. Now, they knew that it was something beyond anyone’s control.
“How could this [Juicy Burger] be so delicious?! This is the most delicious pancake I’ve ever had! No, there’s also the meat!” Bernice exclaimed admiringly as she stared at the burger in her hand.
“The boss is a genius. If nothing goes wrong, his food will made it into the Aden Square Best Cuisine Chart within half a month. I bet his food will make it into the Top 10 within the year and perhaps, we’ll even have a new winner.” Miles nodded as he eyed Mike excitedly