Food Wars: My adoptive mother is Nakiri Managi Chapter 030

“Flavor Enhancing Paste?”

“Isn’t that a food additive?”

Behind her, Hisako, hearing this, furrowed her delicate brows, and an uncontrollable surge of anger instantly ignited in her eyes.

After all, such an act was a complete blasphemy against cuisine, a pure trampling of the art of cooking, and even a defilement of Erina’s God’s Tongue!

“To think…”

“You dared to add such a thing inside.”

“Aren’t you afraid that this nearly 300-year-old traditional ryōtei will be completely ruined in your hands?”

“Bastard!”

“How can a scumbag like you be worthy of the honor of a three-star chef?”

Speaking excitedly, Hisako could no longer suppress the indignation in her heart, suddenly raising her leg and kicking, knocking the terrified, weak-legged Furuya Kentaro to the ground!

…

Still out of breath.

Furuya struggled to get up from the ground.

His movements were clumsy and urgent, like a pathetic stray dog.

Finally, he staggered to his feet in front of Erina, head bowed, his eyes filled with pleading and despair.

Immediately after.

His hands trembled slightly.

Slowly, almost reverently, he began to kneel and kowtow.

Each touch of the ground was accompanied by a dull thud, a collision of his deepest self-respect and despair!

“Miss Erina, I was wrong… Please forgive me… I really didn’t mean to…”

Furuya’s voice choked, with a hint of a sob.

He tried to beg for Erina’s forgiveness in this way, even if it was just a tiny bit of pity.

After all, as Erina, who possessed the talent of the God’s Tongue, her status and influence in the field of food appraisal were completely on par with, or even surpassed, those WGO executives!

…

Standing silently for 270 springs and autumns.

Like a brilliant pearl in the river of time, it has endured wind and rain without changing its color.

This Torimisa ryōtei is not just a temple in the culinary world of Neon Country, but also a testament to family heritage and artisan spirit.

The painstaking efforts and wisdom of more than a dozen generations, like a flowing stream, have converged into today’s profound and brilliant sea of cuisine.

Until a few years ago.

It finally gained recognition from the WGO gourmet organization, earning the honor of a three-star restaurant!

And as Furuya Kentaro, the inheritor of this honor and responsibility, he deeply understood how heavy the burden on his shoulders was.

However, Erina’s expression remained cold, as if all of this had nothing to do with her.

She just stood there quietly, her gaze deep, without the slightest waver.

…

“Your ryōtei.”

“It’s already hit a development bottleneck, hasn’t it?”

“After all, for a single chicken mizutaki dish, first, the raw ingredients need to be bought by a procurement officer at the market.”

“Then the vegetables are washed by a vegetable washer, and after washing, they are screened by a vegetable picker, who removes old, dead, and absolutely inedible parts. Afterwards, a cutting and preparation specialist cuts and prepares them.”

“Then the chicken is butchered and cut, and seasonings are added. Only after everything is ready is it given to the chef for cooking.”

“After cooking.”

“It’s then handed over to the dish inspector for plating and styling.”

“They also take on the task of the final quality check of the dishes, and finally, the server delivers them to the private rooms for serving.”

“A single dish requires so many procedures to reach the table; it might seem incredible to an outsider.”

“But if any important step is missing.”

“It will affect the final presentation of the dish!”

“And in recent years, various costs in the catering industry have been slowly rising, making it increasingly difficult to make money.”

“So, you thought…”

Erina’s two cold gazes remained tightly fixed on Furuya.

Finally, she could only suppress her anger and said coldly.

…

From procuring ingredients, to processing, to cooking.

This is the traditional operating model for restaurants, but with the development of the times, few restaurants still do this!

Now, it’s basically processed pre-made meals.

Especially after the rise of takeout, a sector also emerged, and many investors made a lot of money, called:

Catering supply chain!

In fact, the so-called catering supply chain has always existed.

The nearby vegetable and meat markets are examples.

But after takeout took off, restaurants tied to internet platforms all faced the same pressure: traffic!

And there’s an important weight in the traffic algorithm: time!

Whoever can serve dishes quickly will get the algorithm’s traffic preference.

But wanting to serve dishes quickly requires extremely high demands on restaurant management; even in some top restaurants, it’s common for waiters to leave you waiting for twenty minutes.

Preparing a fish takes at least five minutes.

So.

Under this trend.

Everyone began to switch to pre-made meals, semi-finished products.

Of course, it’s one thing for these internet-famous takeout places to fool people with a bunch of pre-made meals.

The biggest problem currently is that many star-rated restaurants, even those recognized by WGO, are also passively “adapting” and secretly cutting various costs.

…

“Miss.”

“Please… please forgive my recklessness this time!”

Chef Furuya’s voice was slightly low: “I deeply know that my actions have betrayed my original intention as a chef and have defiled this three-star restaurant that carries countless memories and dreams!”

He paused, his eyes actually reddening slightly, and continued: “But please allow me to explain, this was not out of selfishness or laziness.”

“Facing increasingly fierce market competition, seeing the dwindling number of customers, I…”

“I was afraid that this ryōtei would decline.”

“That is my life’s work, and the of my soul.”

“Therefore, in order to retain customers and for the ryōtei to continue to survive, I was momentarily confused…”

At this point.

Chef Furuya bowed his head deeply, awaiting the impending harsh judgment: “I am willing to bear all consequences, whether punishment or reprimand, I have no complaints.”

“But I humbly ask you for a chance, to let me make you a chicken mizutaki again with my true culinary skills and with the most sincere heart.”

“This time, I believe…”

Words!

Before he could finish.

Erina suddenly interrupted: “You don’t have a chance.”

“If the WGO executives fail to conduct a fair review, then let me correct it completely!”

With that, she no longer bothered with Chef Furuya, got up, and left the ryōtei.