Chapter 204 - 122: Impact
Old Zhang was still fuming. "They’re just deliberately looking for trouble!"
The manager frowned as well. "Either way, we have to placate the customers first. We can’t let a little thing like this tarnish the restaurant’s reputation."
Old Zhang turned away in a huff, saying no more, but the anger on his face was still plain to see.
The manager, Li Zhipeng, pulled Xiaowang aside to get the specifics. After hearing Xiaowang’s description, he also suspected the customers were intentionally causing problems. However, he couldn’t very well refuse their request to send the dish back.
This was, however, the fourth time in the last two days that he’d heard of Jianghai Restaurant.
After a moment’s thought, he called over another chef, Old Meng, who had been on his break.
The two of them arrived at Jianghai Restaurant, located less than five hundred meters from their own shop.
Li Zhipeng flipped through the menu and ordered a Boiled Fish in Chili Oil, a Kabayaki Catfish, a Stir-Fried Celery, and a Creamy Fish Broth for two.
Since Jianghai Restaurant used a semi-open kitchen, the situation inside was visible through a glass window. Li Zhipeng and Old Meng could tell at a glance that this kitchen was only for heating and plating; the dishes were almost certainly pre-made meals or deliveries from a central kitchen.
It wasn’t long before the dishes they ordered were served.
Looking hesitant, Old Meng picked up a piece of the grilled Egyptian Catfish, which smelled wonderfully sweet. He closed his eyes and popped it into his mouth. A few seconds later, his eyes shot open. "Strange... Is this really Egyptian Catfish? And not eel?"
Li Zhipeng, who was also trying the food, was equally surprised.
It wasn’t the flavor of the dishes that surprised him. After all, food from a central kitchen could only be called serviceable, with no truly stunning high points.
What truly surprised him was the Egyptian Catfish used in the dishes.
"The earthy taste is completely gone."
Old Meng also chimed in with his professional take: "The seasoning is very light. The flavor profile for Boiled Fish in Chili Oil leans toward numbing, spicy, fresh, and savory, but their numbing and spicy flavors are very mild, highlighting the fresh and savory aspects. Plus, it’s only 18 yuan for a serving. I checked out the amount of fish, and I estimate it’s about half a kilogram."
Li Zhipeng pushed the fish around the bowl with his chopsticks. After picking it all out, he saw that Old Meng was right.
"At this price point and with this flavor, it blows grass carp out of the water. No wonder we’ve lost so many customers lately."
"Manager, what do we do now?"
Taking a sip of the fish broth, Li Zhipeng felt a headache coming on.
Just then, the restaurant’s manager began the day’s promotional announcement.
Hearing that they could visit the Hailufeng Company headquarters, Li Zhipeng wanted to go take a look. He grabbed Old Meng and signed them both up. Along the way, he subtly probed for information and learned that Hailufeng Company did, in fact, sell its premium Egyptian Catfish products to other businesses. He breathed a sigh of relief.
With a little guidance from the tour-leading server, he went online and found the product details page on Hailufeng Company’s webstore.
"They have this many varieties?" Old Meng said, also looking at his phone.
The product list enumerated several products related to Egyptian Catfish:
Premium Egyptian Catfish—High-Protein Type (Suitable for fish broth, boiled fish in chili oil, fish with pickled greens, sweet and sour fish, and squirrel fish): 16 yuan per kilogram for whole fresh fish (20-fish minimum order), 24 yuan per kilogram for clean fillets (100-kilogram minimum order).
Premium Egyptian Catfish—Crisp-Flesh Type (Suitable for boiled fish in chili oil, fish with pickled greens, and stir-frying): 30 yuan per kilogram for whole fresh fish (20-fish minimum order), 45 yuan per kilogram for clean fillets (100-kilogram minimum order).
Premium Egyptian Catfish—Sweet & Savory Type (Suitable for fish broth, steamed fish, sweet and sour fish, and squirrel fish): 30 yuan per kilogram for whole fresh fish (20-fish minimum order), 45 yuan per kilogram for clean fillets (100-kilogram minimum order).
These prices seemed comparable to grass carp. When Li Zhipeng purchased grass carp in bulk from the market, it was generally 15 yuan per kilogram. Black Fish went for 32 yuan per kilogram, and crisp-flesh dace was usually between 40 to 60 yuan per kilogram.
Just as he was examining the product details page,
The minibus had already arrived at the Egyptian Catfish farm.
Once inside, Li Zhipeng, Old Meng, and the others were in a specially prepared tasting room, sampling the meat from the three types of Egyptian Catfish.
"It really does have a crisp texture."
"And this Sweet & Savory Egyptian Fish..." At that point, Old Meng had also set aside his prejudice against Egyptian Catfish.
In their tour group, there were several other restaurant owners or chefs. Clearly, they were there for the same reason as Li Zhipeng.
Many of them were already itching to make a move.
After all, Jianghai Restaurant had already provided the perfect proof of concept.
Granted, not everyone would like Egyptian Catfish. Even after special conditioning, the body fat content of the high-protein type had dropped significantly, but it was still a high-fat fish.
But the overall performance of this premium Egyptian Catfish was undeniably excellent.
High meat yield, no fine bones, no earthy taste. Once skinned, even the fishy smell was significantly reduced. And there were even different types to choose from.
Plus, the overall price was on the low side.
If not for its bad reputation, this fish would have been a bestseller long ago.
This price could completely undercut Basa fish, which occupied a similar market position.
After getting back, Li Zhipeng immediately purchased a batch of live Egyptian Fish from Hailufeng Company’s online store, preparing to use them to improve his own restaurant’s fish recipes.
Because the Boiled Fish in Chili Oil he ate at Jianghai Restaurant today led Li Zhipeng to another realization: locals, who tended to prefer lighter flavors, were highly receptive to Jianghai Restaurant’s less spicy version of the dish.
After all, for the vast majority of Lingnan locals, the heat level of an authentic Sichuan-style Boiled Fish in Chili Oil was simply too much to handle.