Chapter 47

There were two reasons why he didn’t serve the crab bisque with the crab already drenched in bisque soup. The first reason was because if it became overcooked, it would lose its soft texture. That was why it was better to pour the soup over it as late as possible.

And the second reason was simple. Service. All fancy restaurants were expensive, and what they were paying for wasn’t the food alone. Even the Michelin 2-star restaurants had the head chefs come out to explain their dishes.

Cho Min Joon wasn’t the only one who poured the bisque soup for the customers. Kaya also helped serve, and this made the customers happy. After all, Kaya was one of the most popular contestants on Grand Chef. Especially, after she got linked in a scandal with Cho Min Joon.

Some of the customers even asked Cho Min Joon and Kaya to stand next to each other, and the producers didn’t stop them. They weren’t being rude, and there was no reason to stop the customers from making good TV.

Of course, Cho Min Joon and Kaya were tired of this. Kaya sighed as she looked around the tables. While she poured the bisque soup, the customers showed her way too much interest.

It wasn’t a difficult thing to smile at them. There were times when she had to force a smile at the market, but it was undeniable that smiling by force was a tiring thing to do.

And at that moment, Kaya was more tired than ever.

The last table for lunch. Cho Min Joon and Kaya stood near it with nervous faces. They couldn’t help it. At that table was a familiar face. Emily and Joseph. However, the only one Kaya could see was Emily. Emily was to evaluate the Blue team, which was Kaya’s team for lunch, and Joseph was in charge of Jacob’s team. They had to worry about Joseph only at dinner time, and Allan was in the kitchen evaluating the contestants inside the kitchen.

“Can you explain what this is?”

In response, Kaya glance over at Cho Min Joon. Cho Min Joon spoke in a calm voice, “We’re going to pour a bisque soup over the raw crab. The soft crab meat will soon have the scent of the soup, and inside it is the sweet and savory flavors of crab meat. I suggest you focus on that aspect when you taste it. Please try the soup first.”

Emily did as Cho Min Joon suggested and took a bite of the soup followed by the crab meat. She smiled. It wasn’t surprisingly delicious, but it wasn’t disappointing either.

“Not bad. I’ll evaluate it after the mission. Please go back to work.”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

That was what he answered, but there wasn’t much left to do. He couldn’t clear the plates since most of the customers hadn’t finished yet, so Cho Min Joon whispered to Kaya, “Go to the kitchen. It’s Chloe’s turn soon.”

“Oh, okay.”

Chloe headed to the kitchen and approached Chloe. Chloe was done grilling her bass. Kaya asked, “Are you done?”

“Wait. I just have to plate them.”

Chloe carefully placed the bass on top of the veloute sauce. The side that touched the sauce was the side without the peel. She didn’t want to make the crispiness go away with the sauce. She then added a pinch of thyme and finished off the plating. Kaya, who was watching the process, said, “Can I help you?”

“Sure.”

Kaya continued, “Min Joon got a good response. It’s your turn this time.”

“Hm… That makes me feel pressured.”

“Well, you should.”

Kaya responded with a smile. That was her way of expressing her sentiments. Chloe wasn’t so narrow-minded that she couldn’t understand Kaya for not being good at expressing her emotions in her early 20s.

20 plates of the plated bass were carried out on the cart. While Kaya and Chloe took the cart out to the restaurant, Cho Min Joon entered the kitchen. He came with empty plates instead. There wasn’t a single drop of bisque soup left in any of the bowls. Chloe smiled.

“You did it.”

Cho Min Joon smirked. There was nothing that made a chef happier than an empty plate.

Chloe felt her heart pound as she complimented Cho Min Joon. Her dish turned out well. It was perfect in her standards, but if any of the customers said it wasn’t good, she didn’t think she had the confidence to get over it.

“I’m sure it’s good.”

Kaya opened her mouth. Chloe was shocked that Kaya pretty much read her mind. Kaya avoided Chloe’s gaze as she continued, “You’re a good cook. Your bass last time was good, and you’re not so amateur that you’ll make a mistake. I bet you 1 dollar that not a single person will leave any leftovers.”

“… Just 1 dollar?”

“Shut up.”

Kaya scoffed and turned her head. Chloe smiled as she responded.

“Thanks.”

But there was no reply. Maybe she wasn’t used to being thanked, or maybe she was mad about Chloe looking down on her 1 dollar. She was curious, but she had to put it off until later. The cart was already inside the restaurant.

“Wow, Chloe! It’s your turn this time, huh? All of your dishes looked delicious.”

“Thank you. I hope I don’t disappoint you.”

“Can we take a picture later?”

“Sure. But please start with my cooking first. This dish is probably more photogenic than I am.”

Chloe replied with a smile, and it wasn’t just to the customers. Every time she put down a plate on the table, Chloe met eyes with every customer and smiled.

Most people would have normally thought of a person’s smile as fake, but Chloe’s smile was different. It was so pure that it made anyone feel happy. It almost made one feel guilty for thinking it was fake in the first place.

She had an innocent charm that Cho Min Joon and Kaya lacked. Chloe made everyone comfortable and at ease with just her smile. It could be seen in their eyes. Just before, they were tense and alert due to the cameras, but they were now enjoying their meals without any worry, and there was another reason for it.

To be more exact, Cho Min Joon was that other reason.

[Chloe’s friendly attitude makes the customers feel at ease.]

[The Bass with Veloute Sauce is absolutely delicious.]

He didn’t even have to look at the status window to know that. When a chef like that cooked and served with such sincerity, it was inevitable for the customers to enjoy it. Cho Min Joon mumbled in a low voice, “Did she learn that somewhere?”

“Learn what?”

Cho Min Joon flinched and turned around in response to the sudden question. Anderson was looking around at the customers with his arms crossed. Cho Min Joon calmed down and answered, “I’m talking about Chloe. She’s so good to the customers. The way she serves them with a sincere smile I feel like the customers feel happy just from that.”

“Of course.”

“But I have a hard time doing that. I can’t flash a smile that cheers people up.”

Anderson scoffed in response. He spoke in a cold voice, “If there are people like Chloe, there needs to be people like us, too. Imagine if all chefs smiled like that. The strict ones actually look more attractive to a lot of people.”

“That’s true… What are you doing here anyway? Aren’t you in charge of main?”

“I have some time left. I just did the initial prep and came out here. Don’t ask me anymore. I know you’re a spy.”

“As if.”

Anderson didn’t answer back. At that moment, Kaya approached with empty plates in her cart. To be more exact, he was headed to the back kitchen. When he glanced at her, Kaya glared at Anderson.

“Get out of my way. You’re blocking the door.”

That was when Anderson realized he was blocking the door. Anderson’s ears flushed as he stepped aside. Kaya passed by Anderson and Cho Min Joon said, “Follow me if you have nothing to do.”

“Why? Is there something to do?”

“If there isn’t, I’ll come up with something. Come here. Stop fooling around.”

“Hey… Who are you to talk to me like that?”

“Shut up. I’m the head chef.”

Kaya passed Anderson without even looking at him. Cho Min Joon dropped his jaw in shock and then followed Kaya. He then asked. “I heard Anderson is the subordinate on the Red Team. Is that what I am on the Blue Team?”

“Why? Don’t you like it?”

“Who would like that?”

“Then I’ll make you the head subordinate.”

“What if I don’t like that either?”

“… You little.”

For a moment, Cho Min Joon thought those words were pointed at him, but Kaya’s eyes were fixed on something else. Cho Min Joon slowly traced her gaze. His face stiffened.

[Tandoori Chicken Breast]

Freshness: 87%

Origin: (Too many ingredients for an accurate calculation)

Quality: High (Average)

Cooking Score: 3/10

He believed in him. Although he made a mistake, he was capable of making a 6-point dish. He didn’t think he would make the same mistake twice.

But he was wrong. Cho Min Joon stared at the Tandoori Chicken in front of him with a blank stare. Chicken breast roasted with Masala. That was a Tandoori Chicken Breast, but what was in front of him wasn’t something that looked the part.

“… Why is this burnt like this?”

Kaya asked with a cold voice. Peter mumbled with a pale look on his face.

“I-I put it in the oven… But I guess it only heated from the bottom. It looked raw on the top, so I kept it in there, but the bottom…”

“Are you stupid? Or are you a spy? How could you not check something like that? I thought you were confident, yet you let your chicken breast burn? We can’t even call this a chicken breast. Peter, answer me. Are you really stupid? If you are, I’ll try to hold back. Stop looking stupid and answer me, you idiot!”

Kaya continued to curse at him, but not a single person in the kitchen tried to talk her out of it. This was a team mission. All of their fates were at stake, but to make a mistake like that? They couldn’t simply call this bad luck.

Peter twitched his eye and then sighed. He was angered by what Kaya said, but if he lashed out, he was going to be in bigger trouble. Peter tried to calm down and said, “I’ll just get rid of the burnt part, so give me some time…”

“What? Are you crazy? Did the oven burn your brain, too? How can we give this to customers? Are you trying to kill someone? Use your brain. I thought Indians were smart. Aren’t they? Are you the only stupid one? Maybe that’s not even it. How horrible of a person do you have to be to feed people burnt food? I thought I was the worst person on this show, but you beat me. I’m impressed.”

Peter didn’t say anything. He was cutting out the burnt parts as if he didn’t hear anything. Kaya stared at him for a moment before she reached out her hand, and that hand grabbed Peter’s hand. Peter glared at Kaya’s hand with a dark gaze. Kaya said, “Listen to me. This is trash. Also…”

Kaya brushed off her hands. She then threw the chicken breast in the trash. Kaya continued, “No chef puts trash on their plate.”