Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle-Chapter 834 - 417: The Difference Between a Snack Master and a Master_2

Qin Huai: ...? Is Zhiwei Restaurant physically snatching apprentices?

Qin Huai and Zhao Cheng’an followed behind Master Zhou and continued eating, and towards the end, they started to taste some snacks that were still decent.

Qin Huai figured out that Master Zhou has a sequence when guiding apprentices. He would start with the worst ones because his patience is the best at the beginning, and he wouldn’t explode directly towards the particularly bad ones. Moreover, this process of gradually getting better and better was a good exercise for his mindset. In a way, guiding apprentices was also a form of self-improvement for Master Zhou.

This was all Qin Huai could come up with to rationalize Master Zhou’s behavior.

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For the next few days, this was basically how Qin Huai spent his time.

Every morning at 9 o’clock, he’d have breakfast at Zhiwei Restaurant, watching Master Zhou scold Su Qian while eating, and there was a new way of scolding every day.

Then there was the morning meeting, listening to gossip and watching the master chefs confront each other, and eating lunch in the meantime.

After lunch, Qin Huai would wait for Master Zhou to finish guiding Su Qian, and then he’d start patrolling the back kitchen and eating. Even though Zhao Cheng’an had told Qin Huai that Master Zhou rarely guided ordinary apprentices, and it would be lucky to have it once a month.

But ever since Qin Huai came to Zhiwei Restaurant, Master Zhou would start guiding all the ordinary apprentices every midday, scolding each one in turn, sharpening his language and mindset—again, self-improvement.

Afternoons were usually quite free, and during the apprentices’ guidance, Master Zhou would make some snacks he wanted, like egg tarts and mango crepes.

This period was also Qin Huai’s happiest time. He could watch Master Zhou make snacks and then eat them as soon as they were ready. He basically had an endless supply of egg tarts—Qin Huai would eat first, and the leftover tarts would be taken out to sell afterward.

As for Qin Huai, he could be described as someone who absolutely didn’t make any snacks, just watched and ate. The moment he opened his eyes every day, he would eat from morning till night with barely any breaks in between, occasionally even helping Zhou Yan taste her White Jade Shrimp Rolls. Qin Huai ate so much that he considered taking a leave.

Not for any other reason, just to give his stomach a day off, so it would have less to digest.

This non-stop eating every day was truly overwhelming.

Of course, besides eating snacks, Qin Huai also gossiped a lot. Most of his day was actually spent watching Zhao Cheng’an and the others make snacks.

Zhao Cheng’an and the other two were all very mature pastry chefs. Wang Jiayi was a master in every sense, with skills that spoke for themselves. Zhou Yan was able to independently develop new snacks, and her skills were evident too.

Even Zhao Cheng’an, who was often doubted for being overrated, made snacks that could be described as impeccable. Qin Huai believed his snacks were consistently at a B Level, just a bit short of A Level, even the puff pastries Zhao Cheng’an excelled in hadn’t reached A Level.

But that was already very impressive. Qin Huai thought Zhao Cheng’an was just a bit short of developing a personal style to make A-Level snacks.

Yes, personal style.

In these few days of just watching, Qin Huai did not walk away empty-handed. Wang Jiayi, Zhou Yan, and Zhao Cheng’an basically represented the three stages of a pastry chef to a master. Their characteristics were also very distinct. Wang Jiayi had pretty much established his personal style, Zhou Yan was still exploring, while Zhao Cheng’an had none at all.

Qin Huai couldn’t say that Zhao Cheng’an made bad snacks, nor was there any problem with them. As far as steps and details go, Zhao Cheng’an’s snacks were flawless, perfectly like they were copied straight from a textbook, but the biggest problem was this copying.

Too rigid.

People said Qin Huai had strong imitation skills in making snacks, but Qin Huai felt at least he was imitating the snacks a specific pastry chef made, their style. Zhao Cheng’an seemed more like he was copying textbook answers, yet in pastry-making, there are no standard answers. It wasn’t clear where Zhao Cheng’an got his textbook or found the answers.

No matter what snack he made, it was always the same status, and the snacks he produced, in abstract terms, lacked soul.

And Zhao Cheng’an himself didn’t seem to care about this much. Ironically, he was the most individualistic among the three, yet he made the most characterless snacks. He diligently produced snacks without slacking off like Tan Wei’an; yet they were all the same, showing no signs of progress or space for improvement.

As for Su Qian...

An elite apprentice, but frankly, lacks skills, better not mentioned.

After watching for a few days, Qin Huai and Zhao Cheng’an and the other two became quite familiar with each other, not only could he understand their daily gossip, sometimes he could even chime in a few words; it could be said he’d integrated well into the organization.

Qin Huai felt that his days of just watching wouldn’t last long.

Although Master Zhou never explained why Qin Huai was just watching every day, Qin Huai tactfully didn’t ask, but he vaguely knew the answer in his heart.

Just as Master Zhou said, sometimes if you want to learn something, you don’t necessarily have to do it yourself; you can see it all by just watching.

With three vivid examples in front of him, Qin Huai wasn’t blind.

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Another afternoon of just watching.

Wang Jiayi continued making his distinct personal-style snacks, Zhou Yan was routinely working on her White Jade Shrimp Rolls, while Zhao Cheng’an was whimsically doing whatever snacks, showcasing his snack variety.

Qin Huai stood by, quietly watching, tasting the White Jade Shrimp Rolls and chatting here and there.