Chapter 947: The New Shop Opens For Business (6)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Gu Qingyao gave orders for many things to be carried out of the shop. These included a huge portion of fish with pickles and a few portions of fish with pickles and noodles.
Northerners loved noodles, so of course the restaurant served noodles.
This kind of fish with pickles and noodles was somewhat like a snack that became popular in later times – rice or noodles with toppings.
The noodles were covered with a layer of pickles, then a layer of tender, white pickled fish.
It was spicy, fresh, and even had a layer of chili oil. It looked extremely tasty and appetizing.
The servers brought out small bowls and scooped out samples for the crowd to try. The restaurant manager personally came out to promote the dishes.
“This is the restaurant’s specialty, fish with pickles. Everyone, please try some. Samples are free. Come in if you like it. For our first day of business, all the rice is free. You can eat as much as you like and each table will be given a bottle of baijiu.
“Customers who order the noodles will be given a free glass of fruit juice.”
Chinese people love to have alcohol with their meals. This habit was a few thousand years old and would not change, even in later times.
But fruit juice was rare in these times.
Fruits were especially rare in the north. Transportation was very troublesome at the time and was not as well developed as it would be in later years. So it was extremely difficult to obtain fruits in this season.
Many people brightened up when they heard that there would be free alcohol and fruit juice.
Some women and children thought that it was quite worthwhile if they ordered a bowl of noodles and got a free glass of fruit juice.
The alcohol lovers rubbed their hands together and prepared to enter the restaurant to enjoy a round of drinks.
But the most important was the fish with pickles.
Since it was free, everyone would obviously give it a try. It already looked delicious, but to their surprise, it was even tastier than expected.
It was spicy and went well with rice. When the crowd tried it, their eyes lit up.
“My God, is this really fish! Why isn’t it fishy at all?”
“That’s right! Fish can taste so good!”
“Is this really fish? Why isn’t there a single bone?”
Everyone was shocked by that statement.
That’s right!
Everyone thought of fish as full of bones. Even if they ate fish, they did not dare to give any to the children in case of bones.
“There really aren’t any bones!”
“I can’t find any bones either!”
“Why doesn’t this fish have any bones?”
The restaurant manager laughed and said, “Don’t worry, everyone. This is definitely fish. We especially found a chef who specializes in slicing fish so that there are no bones and it’s convenient for everyone to eat it.”
Everyone was delighted that fish could taste so good and have no bones. Those who were charmed by the taste began to move into the shop to have more.
“Let’s go! Let’s try it.”
“Me too, me too!”
…
More and more people came into the restaurant where the wait staff was standing by. But the sampling outside continued and many people started promoting it to other passersby.
Gu Qingyao’s restaurant was so large. Even excluding the private rooms on the third floor, the other floors could accommodate a few hundred people. Of course, they must have strong publicity.
As more and more customers entered, the restaurant grew busy.
The smallest portion of fish with pickles cost two yuan and was just right for two or three people. The medium portion cost three yuan and the largest portion cost five yuan.
The fish with pickles and noodles cost fifty cents a bowl. It was a very large bowl, and the portion was generous. It was enough for a grown man. Many women shared a portion with their child.
For those who brought children and ordered a bowl of noodles, the children would receive a small glass of fruit juice.. They could choose from orange juice, mandarin orange juice and apple juice.
