Qi Yan led the vendors to Cold Noodle Girl’s kitchen. Though other vendors weren’t particularly skilled in making grilled cold noodles, they all followed along, wanting to see how Zhang Yahui would “guide” and what exactly a “food consultant” does.
After Qi Yan briefly explained the situation to the head chef, he immediately began making grilled cold noodles. Zhang Yahui and the other vendors gathered around, watching attentively.
The head chef had also participated in the street food competition, so he recognized Zhang Yahui and the vendors. Performing grilled cold noodles in front of them made him somewhat uncomfortable, but since Qi Yan requested it, he honestly followed the usual method.
Zhang Yahui watched extremely carefully. Although both he and the chef had competed in the street food competition, both in the grilled cold noodles category, they’d been too busy with their own cooking to observe others, so Zhang Yahui hadn’t known how Cold Noodle Girl’s grilled cold noodles were made.
Now watching up close, he discovered the biggest difference between this kitchen’s method and his own was “precision.”
A simple example: the chef used a timer to track cooking time and a temperature probe to measure the grilled cold noodles’ temperature, only adding eggs and seasonings when reaching the proper temperature. Zhang Yahui relied entirely on experience when making his cold noodles. However, he had natural talent and had made so many portions that even without these tools, each batch barely varied in quality.
Qi Yan didn’t focus much on the grilled noodles process, instead observing the chef’s and vendors’ expressions.
This chef had been hired at high wages by Meng Chang—a proper hotel chef. Though not at the level of five-star hotel executive chef, he was far from ordinary. After all, with Cold Noodle Girl’s massive marketing budget, skimming off a bit easily afforded expensive chefs. Since Meng Chang constantly promoted Cold Noodle Girl’s excellent taste, hiring an average cook and getting exposed would backfire disastrously.
Yet this high-salaried chef’s grilled cold noodles couldn’t match roadside vendors, and seemingly few consumers bought into them—a puzzling issue that constantly confused Qi Yan.
The grilled cold noodles finished quickly. Following standard procedures, the chef cut them into segments, carefully arranged them on a plate, and set it aside.
“Finished,” the chef told Qi Yan.
Qi Yan nodded, telling the vendors, “Everyone try it and feel free to share any opinions.”
The vendors each took a piece, tasting carefully.
Zhang Yahui commented, “Mm, indeed like the competition judges said, moisture control isn’t ideal—texture feels chewy rather than crispy-soft. As for the vinegar issue… not bad, not as severe as the judges claimed.”
The chef remained silent briefly, then explained, “I deliberately added extra vinegar today.”
Clearly yesterday’s judging was fair; the chef had humbly accepted feedback and slightly increased the vinegar today to improve the cold noodles’ flavor.
The chef asked Zhang Yahui, “Could you make one too, so I can learn?”
Zhang Yahui quickly responded, “Learning is too much—I’ve just made grilled cold noodles so often and figured out some small techniques through experimentation.”
Though modest verbally, Zhang Yahui switched places with the chef, pouring oil and spreading a cold noodle wrapper to begin preparing.
Now it was the chef’s turn to observe. While both made grilled cold noodles, their steps were largely similar, but the chef, timing with a stopwatch while watching Zhang Yahui’s specific techniques, noticed detailed differences. The taste variations in grilled cold noodles might stem from these very details.
Soon Zhang Yahui’s grilled cold noodles were ready, and he invited everyone to taste.
Qi Yan tried both versions and indeed could taste Zhang Yahui’s as more delicious. The tongue doesn’t lie.
Previously, an entrepreneur had made an infamous statement. When criticized for his restaurant brand tasting bad, he angrily retorted: “That’s because your taste buds haven’t opened up yet. You’ve only eaten your mother’s cooking, so you can’t distinguish what’s good or bad.” This statement became a laughingstock.
Naturally, people’s food-tasting abilities vary—otherwise everyone could be a food critic. But claiming “unopened taste buds make good food taste bad” was pure nonsense. Truly delicious food is instantly recognizable to anyone. Conversely, if ordinary people find something unpalatable, it likely is.
The chef didn’t insist his grilled cold noodles were superior, instead humbly admitting defeat and earnestly asking Zhang Yahui about specific techniques. Zhang Yahui answered seriously, though often his methods relied on instinct and couldn’t be clearly explained.
The chef listened carefully, sighing, “I see… it’s my problem. I oversimplified grilled cold noodles, never imagining such a simple snack could have so many details and nuances…”
Qi Yan suddenly understood why professional hotel chefs couldn’t match snack vendors at grilled cold noodles. It was both technique and attitude!
For other dishes, chefs would absolutely outperform Zhang Yahui many times over. Those dishes had recipes, chefs underwent rigorous professional training—they couldn’t lose to someone self-taught. But snacks differed. Snacks lacked clear recipes, and restaurant chefs didn’t specifically study making scallion pancakes or grilled cold noodles. Even hotel chefs started at similar levels as snack vendors.
This chef had clearly looked down on grilled cold noodles, not putting serious effort into studying them, simply thinking his casual attempt would surely taste better than street food results. Yet he hadn’t created any obvious distinction from roadside grilled cold noodles.
Of course, even studying seriously might not guarantee success. With countless cities across the country, each containing endless street stalls, it took this many vendors experimenting to develop these few better grilled cold noodles methods. How long would it take a chef to figure it out alone?
Both technique and attitude issues prevented the chef from mastering grilled cold noodles. Since Cold Noodle Girl’s grilled cold noodles didn’t significantly surpass regular street vendor quality while charging higher prices, customers felt swindled, finding Cold Noodle Girl’s overpriced.
Qi Yan couldn’t help feeling that indeed expertise matters—snack preparation still required specialists. Both being chefs, skilled at regular dishes was one thing, skilled at snacks was another entirely.
Qi Yan suddenly realized—wasn’t this exactly what Mr. Pei wanted to convey? One key reason for Meng Chang’s failure was not understanding this point. He thought casually hiring a chef would easily create great grilled cold noodles. But he never considered whether chefs specialized in grilled cold noodles, or whether they’d willingly learn detailed techniques from vendors.
Meng Chang constantly emphasized focusing on grilled cold noodles’ taste, but only paid lip service without actual action.
Qi Yan felt Mr. Pei was clearly hinting she shouldn’t follow Meng Chang’s path, must be down-to-earth and realistic!
Other vendors shared insights about their snacks too. Qi Yan observed that while these vendors lacked formal culinary training, they shared common traits: discerning palates, strong hands-on ability, and research passion. Otherwise they couldn’t have become self-taught at making ordinary snacks that so many loved.
With attitude and ability, if Cold Noodle Girl invested in culinary training and standardized, refined their cooking methods… it would definitely elevate Cold Noodle Girl’s snack quality! Beyond grilled cold noodles, other snack categories could work too!
Thinking this, Qi Yan immediately decided: “I believe everyone’s capable of the food consultant position. I promise Cold Noodle Girl will provide a bigger platform for all your talents to fully flourish!”
Meanwhile, in Jingzhou.
Li Shi was voice-chatting, sharing everything he knew about Mr. Pei, Yuanmeng Venture Capital, and Cold Noodle Girl with the article’s author.
“That’s all I know.”
“There might be deeper secrets. After all, Mr. Pei’s masterful planning—what we see might be partial. But those remain unknowable.”
“Use these materials however you need.”
A male voice responded from the phone: “Thank you so much, these details are fantastic. Who’d imagine Cold Noodle Girl had such stories behind it!”
“Could I ask who you are and how you obtained this insider information? Don’t worry, I’m purely curious—won’t include it in the article. Of course, no problem if you’d rather not say.”
Li Shi chuckled: “I’m just an ordinary investor with a student’s mindset.”
Seeing Li Shi unwilling to elaborate, the caller didn’t press further, saying: “Rest assured, I’ll write this article excellently!”
Li Shi suddenly remembered something: “Oh, one more thing. Heard Meng Chang’s desperate now, and Mr. Pei plans to give him work—just unsure what position exactly.”
The caller pondered briefly: “This… I understand, that seems crucial too.”
“I’ll start writing immediately, letting Cold Noodle Girl’s true story come to light!”