Chapter 638: As You Stack Up The Legos (1)
Chapter 638: As You Stack Up The Legos (1)
The soft texture of the egg blended perfectly with the firm prosciutto, leaving no flaw in the dish’s texture. The aroma of black truffle, the sweetness of the onion compote, the salty savouriness of the prosciutto, and the richness of the eggs all came together harmoniously. As she chewed on some sprouts with garnish, June wondered if this dish alone was worth the trip to Lotus Bridge.
The other appetizer was lobster soup with lemon ravioli and mint foam. When she tasted the foam along with the broth, the mint flavour dissipated gently with the foam, leaving the pure taste of the soup behind.
While enjoying it, June couldn’t shake a strange feeling—the dish reflected more of Kaya’s cooking style than Minjoon’s. If Minjoon were in her place, he would probably have tried to harmonise the mint and lobster flavours more thoroughly, because he prized balanced tastes above all.
June, however, was different. Even when combining several ingredients, she preferred each distinct flavour to stand out. That was her impression tasting this soup. The refreshing mint foam highlighted the lobster’s flavour even more clearly.
Lotus Bridge had two head chefs—Minjoon and Kaya. Though June knew this, she naturally expected to sense more of Minjoon’s unique style in the dishes. So she was surprised—and a little envious—that Kaya’s influence was more prominent in the restaurant’s cooking.
June wanted to be honest about how she felt. At least for now, she felt small and shabby compared with Minjoon and Kaya. In fact, as much as she longed to be head of Rose Island, she wanted what the chef couple had just opened. Perhaps she wanted it even more.
Her feelings intensified when Kaya’s signature dish Six Meats and Minjoon’s signature dessert Jo Reggiano were served one after the other. These all-time best recipes sat side by side. Beyond their taste and harmony, June found it genuinely impressive to see two outstanding dishes together.
At that moment, she took Dave’s phone number out but hesitated to call him.
What’s the point calling now? Just stop it, June, she muttered to herself.
Their relationship was ambiguous, scarred by the rash passion of their youth. Too much time had passed for them to join forces again.
Obviously, Dave wanted to reunite with June, and she was not opposed. But neither dared to make the first move, fearing rejection or another heartbreak. They perpetually postponed their confessions to preserve their fragile bond.
June lay on her bed, feeling limp and exhausted. She wanted to stay with Minjoon longer and congratulate him, but she couldn’t because the couple’s cooking, kitchen, and restaurant reminded her, piece by piece, of what she had lost.
Looking back, she realised how insensitive she had been to what was happening around her—she had forgotten what treasure she lost. She closed her eyes, knowing that even if she opened them, no one was beside her.
“It’s quite successful.”
The morning after the opening celebration, Kaya, who had just woken up and browsed the restaurant’s SNS messages and comments, smiled triumphantly.
Still sleepy, Minjoon looked at her and asked, “How’s the reaction? Good?”
“I see five comments on my SNS account. Two said our menu was great, two said we still have room for improvement, and one said she was disappointed. That seems fair, right?”
“Well, I’m surprised. I thought you might overreact, since not all comments are positive.”
“I’m a bit used to internet users,” Kaya replied. “Some praise, some criticise—that’s the way of the world. It would be odd if everything got only good reviews. Even Rachel’s main restaurant doesn’t get 100% positive feedback.”
“By the way, there’s a lot of bad feedback about our bread.”
“Well, that’s about the patissier.”
Minjoon sighed when she mentioned it. In fact, he couldn’t argue. They had been searching for the perfect patissier but finding one like Lisa or Jack—or Marco—was not easy.
Ultimately, they hired a level 7 baking patissier. Level 7 was nothing to scoff at—he was competent and dedicated. But his skills weren’t yet high enough. He shouldn’t be content with his current skill if he wanted to reach the standard Lotus Bridge required. He needed to become a baking craftsman recognised by all.
“Shall I force Marco to come here?”
“Not yet. Wait until Lisa fully recovers.”
Kaya shook her head, as if hiring Marco was impossible. He sighed.
He knew the situation too. Even while Lisa was ill, she was overwhelmed. Thanks to Marco, she could manage her bakery somehow.
The current Lotus Bridge patissier was on a short-term contract. He wasn’t competent enough to earn a permanent position, nor did he want one, since decent pay wasn’t guaranteed at the new restaurant.
“I wonder if we opened the restaurant too soon.”
“But we can’t wait forever for a patissier we can’t find.”
“The ad for a patissier is still open, right?”
“Yes. I specified that the patissier could start in two months.”
“That’s good,” Kaya sighed, rolling on the bed. “I hope a good patissier comes to us like magic.”
“There is no such magic,” he said, chuckling.
But magic arrived in just two days.
“Ah, Minjoon, Kaya, nice to meet you. I’m Rosa.”
The patissier applicant who came to Lotus Bridge a couple of days later was a woman with an awkward manner of speaking. Her speech didn’t exactly impress them, but they didn’t hold it against her—many people were like that. When she reached out her hand, Minjoon shook it.
“Nice to meet you, Rosa. Thanks for applying to our restaurant. Do you want to become a patissier?”
“Yes.”
“Can you briefly introduce yourself?”
“Umm... I’ve worked a long time at bakeries and dessert cafes, but this is my first time as a patissier in a restaurant. Is that a problem?”
“No, not really. The difference from dessert cafes is mainly that you have to make desserts and breads matching our dishes, so it won’t be much different.”
“But there’s one thing I should tell you in advance…”
“Pardon?”
“I’m a little unwell.”
“May I ask why?”
Even as he asked, Minjoon had a suspicion. Her speech might be influenced by her condition, but since she would work in the kitchen, it wasn’t a big problem.
However, what she said next surprised him.
“Well, I can’t hear well.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“But you can hear me clearly now…”
Kaya, standing beside Rosa, looked confused, because Rosa was holding a good conversation with them.
Noticing it, Rosa smiled awkwardly and said, “I learned to lip-read by focusing on how others move their lips. Of course, I struggle to understand if talking with several people at once.”
Hearing that, Kaya looked to Minjoon silently, as if seeking his opinion. He was as troubled as she was. Being hard of hearing in the kitchen was as serious as being visually impaired. Of course, since Rosa would be in the patissier section, she wouldn’t be as busy as others in the main kitchen.
But I can’t lose her.
It was not out of pity. Glancing at her system window, Minjoon knew she was a remarkable patissier—one difficult to find elsewhere.
Her baking level was 9.