‘What kind of taste is this?’
Min-joon’s Pesce was surprisingly delicious. But Amila could not pay any attention to whether it was delicious or not because she could not figure out what kind of taste it was on her tongue now.
“What the hell did you put in it? What taste is this?”
“You already know its taste.”
“Are you serious? Do I know it? Yeah, I should because I’ve watched you cooking from A to Z. But I still can’t figure out where this unique taste comes from…”
Looking at Amila, who hadn’t yet discovered the secret of the taste, Min-joon made a puzzled expression. He thought the fire taste wasn’t that strange to Amila, but she seemed very embarrassed. At that moment, he wanted to tell her about it, but he didn’t because it was so fun to see her agonizing over the truth of the mysterious taste on her tongue.
“Min-joon, can you give me some?” asked June.
“Oh, of course.”
He immediately put some of the pasta on her plate.
June said, “Oh, you have brought out the fire taste!”
“Fire taste?” Amila said, with her eyes widening.
Min-joon was surprised to see her showing such a reaction, but at the same time, he understood her feelings. Fire taste, some people who were not good in English used the expression ‘fiery flavor’ when they expressed fire taste, but what it meant was not the hotness of fire, but the hotness of spicy taste.
In a word, June and Amila were now feeling the scent of ‘wok’ from something they had never expected. He didn’t use a wok because what he made was soup pasta, unlike the usual dishes as often seen in Western-style Chinese cuisine.
‘Yeah, he heated oil for quite a while. He also did flambe. But can he really bring out such a strong fire taste with that alone?’ Amila couldn’t believe it.
Of course, it was only possible in theory. However, fire taste was very difficult to bring out by theory. Moreover, how could he bring out such fire taste in an ordinary house with no hot grill? Maybe those who didn’t know cooking might think it was possible, but someone like Amila who knew cooking well could not help but admire him.
Besides, what Min-joon cooked was not simply to bring out the fire taste because half-baked fire taste could not make the ingredients mix well, or make the Pesce so spicy that she might not be able to focus on other tastes.
However, the taste of fire that he brought out wasn’t excessive. The sweetness of onions, the savory scent of green onions, the tomato sauce and noodles, and the fire taste that soaked through seafood stimulated her tongue.
‘It would have been very tough for him to bring out this kind of fire taste in an ordinary house, not in the restaurant kitchen. I can’t believe this…’
While trying his Pesce, Amila broke into a smile momentarily. It wasn’t because she felt it was funny, but because it was unrealistic. As a matter of fact, these were the typical skills of talented genius cooks. She now seemed to understand why June made such a young chef her sous chef. He had something that could make up for the lack of long cooking experience. She was not sure if she could call it his skills or talent. What was certain was that he was a chef with something that others didn’t have.
June and Min-joon did not rush to ask for her evaluation until she emptied the Pesce plate. Amila was already full, but she kept eating soup to feel the fire taste, then she finally put down the spoon and looked at him.
“Well, as a noodle maker, I don’t want to point out any problem with this Pesce pasta. It was quite challenging for him to cook noodles more than Al Dente, but I think he made the right judgment as a chef. In fact, even in an ordinary house, it was hard to make a proper Al Dente anyway.”
Min-joon responded, “Well, I wanted to cook pasta in Al Dente in the past, but nowadays, I tend to think I have to make the dish as delicious as possible because if I cook according to the standard recipe, I don’t think I can bring about any change in the dish I’m going to make.”
“I think June has hired a good sous chef.”
Having said that, she stared at June as if she thought June was so lucky to hire him.
“Amila, you know what? This great sous chef recognizes me. He says I’m a good chef. Now, isn’t it time you reflected on your skills, too?”
“June, I still don’t like the way you live.”
“Just because you don’t like my lifestyle, it doesn’t mean I’m wrong. Try to change your way of thinking based on your own standards.”
“What are you talking about? Do you think you are qualified to say that to me?”
“Gosh, you are in your 40s, but you still like to spend time quarreling with me like this?”
“I’m sorry, but I didn’t live in seclusion like you, and I don’t have time on my hands like you. Stop trying to save your face and listen to me!”
When June hung tough, Amila flinched for a moment.
Then June looked at Min-joon and said, “Min-joon, can you excuse us for a moment? I need to talk with her, but you might hear some nasty things. So, excuse us.”
“Oh, sure.”
He hesitated for a moment, then pointed at the fan that had some leftovers.
“Can I take some of the leftovers?”
The two women looked at him, speechless.
Scratching his head, he said, bursting into laughter, “Because I haven’t eaten anything since morning.”
***
“June, you have hired a unique guy,” said Amila in a sullen voice. She seemed surprised, angry, sad, or even frustrated.
June responded casually, “Yeah, he is.”
“How’s your business doing?”
“As always, it’s the best in New York.”
“Get you!”
Amila broke into a smile while scorning at her. June smiled at her without any pretense.
Amila asked, “Isn’t it hard for you?”
June responded, “Your question is wrong. Amila, how many in the world who feels that life is not hard for them? Of course, life is hard for me as much as others, or it might be a bit harder for me, but I’m a bit happier. So, if you want to worry about me, just ask about my plan, what I’m dreaming about, and what kind of difficulties I have.”
“Don’t pretend to be smart like that! So, what is your plan, and what is your obstacle?”
“I’m going to run a restaurant that’s so perfect that no one can take issue with it. So, I’m going to keep Michelin’s stars and make more people love my restaurant.”
“What’s next? You want to take over Rose Island?”
“Well, that’s my intermediate goal,” she said calmly as if she would not be content with simply taking over Rose Island. Although her voice was full of greed, Amila felt it sounded as pure as a girl’s.
“As the head of Rose Island, I’m going to set up its branches in all the countries around the world. And I’m going to make them know Rose Island and get to know me. That’s my dream when I first entered the restaurant called Rose Island and had a crush on Rachel Rose and Daniel Rose. Back then, you supported me, right?”
“Yeah, I did. But the way you led your life was no fun to me. Can’t you just focus on cooking? Sometimes I found it hard to tell whether you’re a politician or a cook. You tried to strike a deal with numerous people by currying favor with them with a smile. I was sick and tired of you politicking like that. It was really hard for me to watch you engaged in cheap marketing like that.”
“I already told you about it a little while ago, Amila,” June said in a subdued voice as if she wanted to reproach or persuade her.
“Everyone is leading a hard life, but they don’t quit because of that. You stopped cheering for me. You couldn’t stand seeing my romantic future going anywhere. You must have thought that a cook’s life should be clean and pure. You might have thought what you should smell from me was only that of wheat flour, not the smell of a fake smile soaked in alcohol.”
“…”
“But I need that. I don’t care what you think. You can keep your romantic ambition when your dream is small. The bigger your dream, the more you have to sacrifice. You have to sweat all the more. You were just scared because you were worried you might ruin your romantic future because of my dream, It’s not something like you’re right, and I’m wrong.”
Amila didn’t reply and just remained silent.
Watching her, June continued, “Do you know what he said to me earlier?”
“What did he say?”
“He told me I was cool. Not only my lifestyle but also my efforts…”
Having said that, June made a faint smile.
Of course, Min-joon was a chef with romantic ambitions. But he understood that June’s action was necessary. He looked into the reason why she led such a life and cheered for her. Although she had a long way to go as a perfect chef, he recognized her after checking the dish she made.
“Do you think that guy doesn’t have any romantic ambitions? Didn’t I have romantic ambitions? Although I smiled at so many people, do you think I’ve never agonized over my future? Do you think I’ve never had a hard life?”
“Of course, you have.”
“Yes, you’re right. But there was always one answer to my problem. That was I could not afford to complain. I wasn’t financially stable. I didn’t have anything. Such people should struggle more everyday. Otherwise, they will end up living and dying as someone going downward in their lives. So, Amila…”
She looked at Amila. Her eyes wrinkled with exhaustion from years of hard work were full of more intense aspirations than a young girl.
“So, stop throwing a tantrum at me, Amila. You and I are too old to go through puberty. So, don’t complain anymore and help me.”
