Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Episode 15. Reserved Guests

“Um, doing something like this so suddenly is a little...”

Yoon Heeseong’s face stiffened.

He kept his tone as restrained as possible, but he could not hide his displeasure. It was only natural. Being asked to demonstrate his work in front of a headquarters employee, with the head chef and owner watching, was practically the same as a public evaluation.

Jung Seoyoon’s expression did not change.

“I’m not suggesting a competition. I’m trying to identify the cause of the quality variation.”

“If it’s quality variation, you’ve already seen the trays.”

Yoon Heeseong glanced at the two pieces of first-fried pork resting on the counter.

“Isn’t that enough?”

He was not entirely wrong.

On the surface, that was true. One piece was hard, while the other was light and crisp. Jung Seoyoon had already seen the difference. There was no need to make two people stand side by side and repeat the process.

However, Jung Seoyoon did not immediately back down.

“It’s difficult to identify the cause from the results alone.”

“Then let’s do it separately some other time. We’re preparing for the evening reservations right now.”

Yoon Heeseong answered a beat too quickly.

There was calculation behind those words. After all, attempting this here and now could only work against him.

If he did well, it would be considered natural. If he did poorly, he would immediately be marked down in front of someone from headquarters.

Besides, the person he was being compared against was Kang Jinho. Until just a few days ago, Jinho had been the youngest kitchen worker whom he could send out on deliveries. Now, he had suddenly been featured in a column and even brought headquarters to their doorstep. And he was supposed to compete against him without a care?

“I’ll focus on preparing for peak hours first.”

He gripped his knife as though about to set it down and tried to turn away.

That was when Kim Jinman spoke in a low voice.

“Yoon Heeseong.”

Yoon Heeseong’s shoulders froze.

“You said you’re usually responsible for the first frying.”

“Yes. But right now...”

“Then there’s no reason for you to back out.”

Kim Jinman’s words were brief. Yoon Heeseong closed his mouth.

Jung Seoyoon watched their reactions for a moment before closing her tablet.

“I’m not saying we have to do it right now. I have no intention of interfering with business.”

At those words, the atmosphere in the kitchen seemed to relax ever so slightly.

But then she continued.

“However, if the same menu item is ordered today, I’ll examine the differences in the cooking process. Specifically, who prepares it and how.”

Yoon Heeseong’s eyebrows twitched. It was not a cancellation, merely a postponement.

He had avoided having to pick up a knife and face Jinho immediately, but if an actual order came in during peak hours, it would be even harder to escape. After all, they could not play games with food meant for customers.

That was when it happened.

The door connecting the kitchen and dining area opened cautiously. It was Hyeongseok, one of the dining area employees.

His expression was not good.

“Boss.”

Jang Minseok turned his head.

“What is it?”

Hyeongseok glanced at Jung Seoyoon before looking back at Jang Minseok.

“We got a call from the guests who made a reservation for today. It’s a bit of an unusual situation.”

“What is?”

“The YouTuber.”

Several employees exchanged glances.

“Oh Junmo?”

Jinho did not recognize the name. But judging by the reactions around him, this was apparently no ordinary customer.

“Yes. The reservation was for eight people, but they say only three are coming.”

“Three?”

“Yes. Mr. Oh Junmo, his manager, and one guest.”

Jang Minseok’s face stiffened.

“On the day of the reservation?”

Hyeongseok hurriedly added.

“They said they’ll still pay for all eight people. But they want to keep the private room as it is.”

“Then what about the food?”

“They asked whether the three of them could eat here and have the remaining portions packed to go.”

That was not an entirely unreasonable request. Relieved, the owner casually asked another question.

“So who’s the guest?”

Hyeongseok lowered his voice.

“Apparently, it’s Han Jaeyul, the captain of the Taesan Guild’s Second Raid Team.”

At that moment, the tip of Jung Seoyoon’s pen paused ever so briefly.

______________

Oh Junmo’s party arrived fifteen minutes before their reservation.

Hyeongseok was waiting in front of the private room when he heard the dining area door open and raised his head.

The first person to enter was a man wearing a light-colored jacket. He had a smartwatch on his wrist and carried a small bag. His expression was unusually cheerful.

He was Oh Junmo, the person who had made the reservation.

A woman who appeared to be his manager entered behind him. As soon as she stepped inside, she checked the layout of the dining area and the location of the private room.

The last man to enter said nothing.

He wore a black shirt and had neatly trimmed short hair. There was nothing particularly intimidating about his appearance. Strangely, however, the noise in the dining area seemed to drop a notch when he entered.

That was him. Han Jaeyul, captain of the Taesan Guild’s Second Raid Team.

Hyeongseok did not let anything show and bowed his head.

“Please follow me. I’ll show you to your room.”

The three entered the private room.

The room had been set for eight people. Eight water glasses, eight small plates, and eight sets of utensils. The chairs had also been left as they were.

Once the three sat down, the five empty chairs made the room look unnecessarily spacious.

Hyeongseok cautiously spoke as he set down the menus.

“Since the reservation was made for eight people...”

Oh Junmo immediately raised his hand.

“That’s right. Like I mentioned over the phone, we’ll pay for all eight people. Just let us keep this room to ourselves.”

“Understood. Then how would you like us to prepare the food?”

“The three of us will eat here first. You can pack the rest to go, right?”

“Yes. We can arrange that.”

“Excellent.”

Oh Junmo glanced at the empty chairs and laughed.

“If you eat something delicious all by yourself, people hold grudges for a long time. Especially people in this line of work. They’ve got plenty of stamina for holding grudges too.”

The manager let out a small sigh.

“Oppa, don’t make jokes like that here.”

“Why not? It’s true.”

“That’s even more reason not to say it.”

Hyeongseok did not know whether he should laugh, so he merely raised the corners of his mouth awkwardly.

Han Jaeyul was quietly looking down at his water glass. Since he did not speak, Oh Junmo’s joke lingered in the room a little longer before slowly fading away.

Hyeongseok poured the water.

When placing the glass in front of Han Jaeyul, he unconsciously tensed his fingertips. For some reason, he felt nervous.

Han Jaeyul did not pick up the glass. Instead, he glanced at the empty chairs.

The manager spoke quietly.

“But is it really okay for you to come here like this? I heard things are still chaotic over there.”

Oh Junmo answered while turning a page of the menu.

“That’s why only the three of us came.”

“Seriously, those Blue Wave bastards are so damn incompetent...”

“Lower your voice.”

Oh Junmo spoke. His tone was still casual, but it was lower than before.

The manager closed her mouth.

Han Jaeyul picked up his water glass and took a sip.

“This isn’t the place to discuss that.”

“I’m sorry.”

The manager bowed her head.

Oh Junmo smiled again.

“So let’s talk about food. Food. Food is safe.”

“Nothing that comes out of your mouth is safe, Oppa.”

“That’s harsh.”

Hyeongseok set down the water pitcher and was about to withdraw.

That was when Oh Junmo suddenly spoke while looking at the menu.

“But this place never had particularly high ratings, did it?”

Hyeongseok’s feet stopped. It was an awkward thing for a customer to say in front of an employee.

The manager lightly smacked Oh Junmo’s arm.

“How can you say that here?”

“No, I don’t mean it in a bad way.”

Oh Junmo smiled at Hyeongseok.

“I like franchise Chinese restaurants. They’re safe, you know? They might not be incredibly delicious, but they’re not going to be an incredible disaster either. That’s their charm, right?”

“That’s even worse.”

“Is it?”

Oh Junmo took out his phone and turned on the screen.

“But I found this column pretty interesting.”

The article that had been circulating around the kitchen appeared on the screen.

[The Small Plate That Lingered Longer Than the Main Menu]

Oh Junmo tapped the screen.

“Isn’t this a great line? The complimentary dish was more memorable than the regular menu. From the restaurant’s perspective, it’s hard to tell whether that’s praise or criticism, but from a diner’s perspective, it’s irresistible.”

The manager sighed.

“That’s why you reserved this place. When we came here to check it out beforehand, we actually enjoyed the food.”

Oh Junmo stroked his chin, pretending to be serious.

“When an ordinary restaurant suddenly starts serving delicious food, that’s an incident in itself. So I was planning to film something, but unfortunately, the atmosphere doesn’t seem quite right for that.”

He playfully tapped his bag. The manager responded.

“Couldn’t it just mean they changed their head chef?”

“That would be an incident too.”

At that moment, Han Jaeyul closed his menu for the first time.

The sound was not loud, but everyone’s attention in the room naturally turned toward him.

“Can they make the dish from the column now?”

Oh Junmo nodded.

“Yes. I was just about to ask.”

He looked at Hyeongseok.

“We came here after reading that column. Would it be possible to try the sample dish mentioned in it?”

Hyeongseok had already expected the question, but actually hearing it made his throat go slightly dry.

“That dish was a sample provided at the time, so it would be difficult to serve it in the same form.”

“Just as I thought.”

“Yes. It isn’t an official menu item.”

Oh Junmo did not immediately give up.

“But you can at least check with the kitchen, right? We really came here hoping to try that dish.”

Hyeongseok hesitated for a moment.

That was when Han Jaeyul spoke briefly.

“Please just check for us.”

His words did not sound like pressure. Yet for some reason, they were difficult to refuse.

Hyeongseok bowed his head.

“I’ll pass your request along to the kitchen.”

As soon as he left the room, he let out a short breath. For some reason, he felt tense.

Hyeongseok shook his head once and entered the kitchen.

“Boss.”

Jang Minseok raised his head.

“What did they say?”

“They’re asking whether we can serve the sample dish we handed out last time.”

Everyone in the kitchen turned toward Jinho at once.

Jinho stopped moving. Yoon Heeseong laughed first.

“Wow. Look at our famous columnist star.”

Kim Jinman looked at Jinho.

“That sample from back then. Can you make it now?”

Jinho could not answer immediately.

Could he make it? Of course he could. Something similar, at least.

He still remembered the smell and taste from that day. The hardened surface of the over-fried pork, the thin layer of grease remaining inside, and the spices and acidity that needed to restrain those qualities rather than conceal them.

But to make the exact same dish, he would need the exact same failure.

The first frying would have to go too far, the outside would have to harden, and the moisture inside would have to escape. In other words, it was a flavor that could only be reproduced by deliberately making a mistake.

‘Can you really call that a menu item?’

“I can make something similar.”

Jinho spoke.

“But I don’t think we should serve it.”

Kim Jinman narrowed his eyes.

“Why do you think that?”

“That dish wasn’t an official menu item. It still isn’t. If we serve it differently depending on the customer, it could create problems with fairness. Some customers would be able to order it, while others wouldn’t even have the option.”

Jang Minseok closed his mouth. At that moment, Jung Seoyoon spoke.

“That’s correct.”

Everyone in the kitchen turned toward her.

“It would be best not to serve the sample mentioned in the column.”

Jung Seoyoon continued while looking down at her tablet.

“These are guests who may be filming. It appears they brought a camera with them, and if the footage gets uploaded to their channel, problems will inevitably arise.”

Jang Minseok asked quietly.

“Then should we simply refuse?”

“We have to refuse requests for items that aren’t on the menu.”

Jung Seoyoon answered firmly.

“However, we can accommodate them within the existing menu.”

Kim Jinman looked at Jinho.

“Go explain it to them.”

“Me?”

“You’re the one who made that sample. It would be better than having a dining area employee explain how it was prepared.”

Jinho hesitated for a moment. Dealing with customers in the dining area was not his job. But this matter had started in the kitchen. It was not something he could avoid.

Jinho wiped his hands.

“...Yes.”

He headed toward the private room with Hyeongseok.

When they opened the door, Oh Junmo raised his head first.

“Are you from the kitchen? The person who made the sample mentioned in the column?”

“Yes. My name is Kang Jinho.”

Oh Junmo crossed his arms.

“We came here because we wanted to try that dish. We even made a reservation. So it’s a bit disappointing to hear that you don’t have it.”

Jinho bowed his head.

“I apologize for the inconvenience. However, the dish mentioned in the article was a tasting sample provided at the time. It isn’t an official menu item, so we cannot serve the same dish.”

Oh Junmo raised his eyebrows.

“It’s a little funny that a restaurant can’t make a dish it’s already made once.”

Jinho did not immediately argue. If he said the wrong thing, it could turn into a confrontation.

He had not come here to fight.

“That dish was a sample made by salvaging leftover ingredients at the time. We don’t currently have those ingredients, so we can’t make it.”

Oh Junmo’s expression changed slightly.

“Leftover ingredients?”

“Yes.”

Jinho steadied his breathing before continuing.

Oh Junmo looked at Jinho. Some of the playfulness had faded from his face.

“So it’s completely impossible?”

“It would be difficult to make the exact same dish.”

“Is there nothing similar?”

At that moment, Han Jaeyul, who was seated farther inside, spoke for the first time.

“Would it be fine if we chose something from the menu?”

Jinho looked at him.

“Pardon?”

“We’re not asking you to serve something that isn’t on the menu. We can choose whichever item on the menu comes closest to what you just described.”

Jinho could not answer for a moment. Han Jaeyul set down his water glass.

“You’re the one who made that sample, correct?”

“That’s right.”

“Then you must also be the person who best understands what kind of dish it was.”

Oh Junmo raised the corner of his mouth.

“That’s true. We wouldn’t be forcing you to make something that isn’t on the menu. We’d just be asking for a recommendation from the person who made it. That should be fine, right?”

Jinho looked down at the menu. There was no dish identical to the sample from the column.

But there was a menu item with a similar approach.

Among the fried pork dishes, there was one that contained oil without leaving a heavy aftertaste, preserved the texture of the meat without making it tough, and allowed the spices to emerge more strongly in the finish than in the initial flavor.

“The Fragrant Spiced Fried Pork Loin would be the closest.”

Oh Junmo lowered his gaze to the menu.

“This one?”

“Yes. It’s different from the dish in the article. However, it’s also fried pork, with spices and acidity used to balance the finish.”

“Then let’s have that.”

Han Jaeyul spoke.

Oh Junmo turned toward him.

“Really?”

“Will continuing to demand something that isn’t on the menu make it appear?”

Han Jaeyul was looking at Jinho.

“But I have one condition.”

“Please tell me.”

Jinho’s fingertips stiffened slightly.

“I’d like you to make it yourself.”

“I’m a kitchen assistant. I need the head chef’s permission to handle the wok.”

Oh Junmo laughed.

“Wow. You really know where to draw the line. Well, I suppose this is your workplace... All right, go and check.”

Jinho bowed his head.

“I’ll confirm with the kitchen.”

When he left the room and returned to the kitchen, Kim Jinman asked.

“What did they say?”

“I explained that we couldn’t serve the sample from the column.”

“And?”

“They wanted a recommendation from the existing menu, so I suggested the Fragrant Spiced Fried Pork Loin.”

“But?”

“They asked if I could make it myself, if possible.”

Yoon Heeseong immediately laughed.

It was a short, sharp laugh.

“Why not ask to have him made head chef while you’re at it?”

Jinho did not answer.

Jung Seoyoon quietly turned on her tablet.

“Who is usually responsible for the Fragrant Spiced Fried Pork Loin?”

A brief silence followed.

Kim Jinman answered.

“Yoon Heeseong.”

Jung Seoyoon’s gaze turned toward Yoon Heeseong.

“Is that so?”

Yoon Heeseong’s face stiffened as he sensed what was coming.

“...Yes.”

“Then this is a good opportunity.”

Jung Seoyoon spoke indifferently.

“The customer has ordered the menu item closest to the dish featured in the column, and we have the person normally responsible for that item. At the same time, we also have the cook who made the sample from the column.”

Yoon Heeseong’s expression changed.

“Wait a moment.”

“Yes?”

“Are you telling me to make the same dish as Kang Jinho right now?”

“Well, can we really call this a competition? We’re simply checking for quality variation.”

Jung Seoyoon repeated almost exactly what she had said earlier. That made her words even more irritating. Yoon Heeseong clenched his jaw.

“But those customers said they wanted the food Kang Jinho made.”

“What the customers ordered was Fragrant Spiced Fried Pork Loin.”

Jung Seoyoon answered immediately.

“It’s an official item on the menu. Is there anything strange about having the person responsible for it prepare it?”

Yoon Heeseong was left speechless.

If he said he would make it now, he would be compared to Kang Jinho. If he said he would not make it, he would be avoiding his own menu item in front of the customers.

He disliked both options. But there was no way out.

Yoon Heeseong slowly inhaled.

“Understood.”

Kim Jinman spoke next.

“We’ll make two plates. One by Yoon Heeseong, one by Kang Jinho. The recipe will be identical. Explain to the customers that they’ll receive two plates of the same dish. One will be prepared by the regular cook, and the other by the person they specifically requested. We won’t tell them which is which.”

“Will the customers agree to that?”

Yoon Heeseong asked.

“Then should we let a kitchen assistant who only recently joined prepare a dish on his own? Go ask them.”

The last words were directed at Hyeongseok. Hyeongseok returned to the private room. A short while later, he came back.

“They said that’s fine.”

He added with a slightly awkward expression.

“In fact, they said it sounds interesting.”

Yoon Heeseong bit the inside of his lip. His last avenue of escape had disappeared.

He had only one option left.

To prove that Kang Jinho’s appearance in the column had been nothing more than a coincidence.

He tightened his apron strings again.

“Fine.”