Chapter 25: A Raise for Everyone if We Succeed

Chen Jianhai got straight to the point: "Our goal is to introduce a signature dish, one so distinctive that not only do our guests love it, but it also attracts non-resident customers by reputation, thereby boosting our accommodation through our dining services."

"As for the specific dish, I believe it should be based on the hotel's current financial situation and the customers' spending levels."

"It doesn't have to be very expensive, but it must be exquisite."

"The signature dish we launch must not only be praised by us but, more importantly, be well-received by our customers! We need at least 1,000 returning customers for it to be considered a success."

The kitchen staff was bewildered.

Asking a newly established team with only one head chef to develop a signature dish for the hotel seemed absurd.

Developing a signature dish requires careful consideration of the supply environment for ingredients and places great importance on the chef's culinary skills.

The same recipe,

different people can produce different tastes.

Even though Michelin recipes are all over the internet, there are always more fail videos than success videos.

Because even a single grain of salt can make a huge difference in the final dish!

And the most frustrating part is that the developed dish needs to attract at least 1,000 returning customers!

Is the boss crazy, or are they crazy?!

Not to mention that Nanjing is a tourist city with a constant flow of people.

It's hard enough for Langai Hotel to have 1,000 returning customers,

let alone attract 1,000 people with just one dish,

how is that possible!!!

If you don't want to give us a raise, just say so, no need to come up with such a tricky plan!

Moreover, Chen Jianhai only provided a general direction, leaving the rest for them to figure out.

This was like scattering a handful of millet in the ocean and asking them to pick it up.

Indeed, after hearing Chen Jianhai's words, the entire kitchen fell into a deathly silence.

Chen Jianhai pondered:

"Is there a problem?"

Just as Xu Bo was about to speak, Chen Jianhai cut him off:

"Alright. That's the general idea for now, you and the kitchen team can brainstorm the specific dish."

"If we succeed, everyone's salary will double."

Instantly, the words everyone was about to say were swallowed back.

Well,

if you promise a raise upon success, then we'll work wholeheartedly for you!

Chen Jianhai looked around,

"Okay, you can now arrange and design the specific dish."

"If you need to go out for research and lack funds, you can come to me."

"Does anyone else have anything to say?"

The room was silent.

Everyone's face was marked with the words "eager to try."

"Meeting adjourned."

After the meeting, Chen Jianhai felt a sense of excitement he couldn't quite describe.

Is this what it feels like to hold a staff meeting as a boss?

To lay out the future work ideas and goals, and then have the employees strive to achieve them.

This feeling of not fighting alone anymore is really great!

However, although he said the dish development was up to the kitchen staff,

he couldn't completely wash his hands of it.

The choice of dishes, the enjoyment of flavors, the quality, and even the final pricing all needed his strict oversight.

After all, the success of the signature dish development,

directly related to the system task.

To get the hotel to have a two-story rotating crystal music restaurant, he even promised a salary increase.

He was really going all out!

...

The staff gradually left the employee rest room.

More than thirty people returned to the kitchen.

The morning time was actually very tight, they needed to prepare the ingredients for the next morning tonight.

"Johnny, the boss's idea of a signature dish is just that, an idea with no direction, how do we proceed?"

The prep cook threw the greens into the sink to wash, asking worriedly.

Everyone was racking their brains thinking about dishes,

Xu Bo kneaded the dough in his hands, also somewhat silent.

Although the task was given to the entire kitchen, the real burden fell on him alone.

Throughout the night, countless ideas had popped into his mind.

Various signature dishes he had tasted before surged in his mind like a tide, allowing him to choose freely.

For example, they could introduce a medicinal fish soup for breakfast, dissolving the collagen from the fish skin into the soup, making it unforgettable after one sip.

Or try making crystal lobster balls, using fresh lobsters as the main ingredient, translucent and pearl-like, attracting customers with the ingredients themselves.

Or go the opposite route and make sand ginger chicken the main dish, standing out among a variety of seafood dishes.

Over the years, Xu Bo had eaten at countless restaurants and stayed at numerous hotels thanks to his father's influence!

His vision and knowledge were definitely there.

Although he couldn't reach the level of a professional senior chef, he was still a top chef in an ordinary restaurant.

As long as he was willing to try, developing a new dish wasn't difficult.

The only challenge for him was Chen Jianhai's requirement.

"It doesn't have to be very expensive, but it must be exquisite!"

This was very difficult.

Xu Bo frowned.

To create something unique from ordinary ingredients and attract customers,

this requirement was the hardest for a chef.

For example, the same egg fried rice.

Some chefs can become men even Michelin can't get with a plate of egg fried rice.

While some restaurants' egg fried rice is just a carbohydrate to fill the stomach.

The joys and sorrows of egg fried rice are different.

Where should he start...

Xu Bo fell into deep thought.

...

10:00 PM.

There were fewer and fewer people in the kitchen.

Xu Bo managed the kitchen staff very humanely.

As long as they finished their work without delaying the meals for guests and staff, they could go back to the dormitory to rest.

So, every employee would quickly finish their work and then manage their own time.

Strangely enough,

since they started working at the hotel, everyone felt their professional skills were constantly improving. Tasks that originally took an hour could now be completed in 45-50 minutes.

The knife worker's potato shreds were getting finer and finer.

Xu Bo's stretched noodles were not only getting thinner but also more elastic and tasted great.

Moreover, the greater the work intensity, the faster their abilities improved.

Once, after perfectly slicing a potato, the knife worker even performed a one-handed knife trick.

It left Xu Bo and others wide-eyed.

After slicing the last potato, the knife worker sharpened his beloved knife,

seeing Xu Bo sitting alone behind the noodle counter, absentmindedly kneading the dough.

He seemed to be deep in thought.

"Johnny, aren't you going to rest? We have to get up early to work tomorrow morning," the knife worker said.

"I have an idea," Xu Bo began.

The knife worker quickly pulled a chair over and sat next to Xu Bo.

Xu Bo shared his thoughts and concerns with the knife worker.

"I think a signature dish doesn't necessarily have to be a 'hard dish' with high-quality ingredients; some distinctive snacks can also make a name."

"Moreover, as the noodle section of the hotel's Chinese restaurant, the signature dish should be integrated with our strengths."

The knife worker nodded, "Yes, I think so too."

"Developing a dish requires customer feedback and publicity."

"Breakfast is the time when the hotel has the most diners, and it's the best natural venue for us to introduce new dishes."

"So, I want to put some thought into the breakfast menu," Xu Bo said.

The knife worker nodded in agreement.