The breakfast at the Continental Hotel today sounded exotic just from the names alone—
“Fragrant Dew Condensed Egg,” “Eastern Stuffed Bread,” “Golden Fried Stick,” and “White Soy Milk.”
These dishes were actually classic Eastern breakfast items that Allen had modified to suit the tastes of the people of Lorraine.
Take the “Fragrant Dew Condensed Egg,” for example, which was essentially a marinated egg.
The people of Lorraine ate eggs, but the soy sauce required for marinating was unheard of in this era.
The substitute recipe Allen provided used malt vinegar, salt, caramel, and a special type of dried mushroom to simmer into a thick sauce.
The color and savory flavor were seventy or eighty percent similar to the original.
The “Eastern Stuffed Bread” was actually baozi, which was not difficult to replicate.
However, they hadn’t yet fashioned proper steamers.
The chefs used clay stew pots with water at the bottom to create a makeshift steaming effect.
The “Golden Fried Stick,” or youtiao, had its biggest hurdle in the cost.
Using a large amount of cooking oil to deep-fry street snacks was considered a luxury in this era.
However, as an opening promotion to reward the nobles and new members of the association, it showed a great deal of sincerity.
As for the “White Soy Milk,” it was soy milk. Local soybeans were rare, but broad beans, chickpeas, and peas were everywhere.
By grinding these beans with a stone mill, filtering, and boiling them, one could obtain a similar “bean milk.”
The people of Lorraine had a habit of drinking almond milk, so their acceptance of plant-based milk was quite high.
However, the cost of adding sugar was too high.
The chefs took a bold approach and added salt, chopped herbs, and even a drop of vinegar to the milk, causing it to curdle slightly.
The texture ended up being somewhat similar to the local cheese soup.
Externally, it was promoted as a “Healthy Orient Tonic Soup.”
Of course, Allen himself felt that savory soy milk was nothing short of a heresy!
When Mael sat in the Continental Hotel—which was so bright, clean, and well-decorated that he didn’t even know where to put his hands and feet—and ate this breakfast, he was completely dazed.
He first carefully picked up the dark brown “Fragrant Dew Condensed Egg” and took a bite.
A savory flavor he had never experienced before instantly exploded in his mouth. It was a completely different world from the boiled or fried eggs he had eaten in the past.
Then he picked up the warm, soft “Eastern Stuffed Bread” and tore a small opening. The aroma of the meat filling mingled with the steam.
He swallowed one in just two or three bites, feeling a wonderful warmth in his stomach.
He couldn’t remember the last time he had eaten a proper breakfast. In the past, he could only suppress his hangover headaches with cheap liquor upon waking up.
But now, this warm food and clean environment made him feel like a “human” again.
He subconsciously reached up to wipe his mouth with his greasy sleeve, but halfway through the motion, he looked at the polished tabletop and the neatly dressed waiter beside him, then silently lowered his hand.
He was no longer that muddled drunkard in the corner of a tavern.
After finishing breakfast, Mael even gathered the courage to ask a beautiful waitress for a menu.
The names of the dishes he had never heard of made his head spin.
‘This is bad. I want to come back tomorrow. I want to try the other dishes too…’
He squeezed the few copper coins in his pocket, and a very clear thought emerged—’I can stop drinking for now.’
He had to save money to try every single dish on this menu.
As for work… he would do whatever the Guild arranged, and he would work his life away!
Mael was only the beginning.
The Forgotten Madonna already had a large flow of customers.
With the news of free breakfast and the new opening spreading from mouth to mouth, the Continental Hotel, which inherited its clientele, saw its business explode instantly.
The registration desk for the Mutual Aid Association had a long queue.
Many people might have just come for a free breakfast, but as long as they filled out the form and joined the association, Allen had plenty of ways to turn them into the most loyal supporters.
By the afternoon, the Continental Hotel’s new specialty dishes had become famous, even attracting some nobles visiting incognito.
Viscount Drummond was one of them.
As a famous foodie in the Capital, he possessed a hunter-like sharp intuition for any novel food.
When he heard that a newly opened hotel in the Lower City had the commoners praising it endlessly, his first reaction was to scoff.
‘What can the taste buds of country bumpkins understand about gourmet food?’
But the rumors became more and more outrageous, and curiosity eventually triumphed over noble pride.
He changed into an inconspicuous linen coat, took only one servant, and arrived at the place called the Continental Hotel.
As soon as he entered, the Viscount frowned.
It was too noisy.
The air was filled with a scent he had never smelled before—a mix of spices, meat, and some kind of oil. It was intense but not unpleasant.
The diners talked loudly, showing no table manners whatsoever.
He wanted to turn around and leave immediately, but a waiter passing by with a plate made him stop in his tracks.
On the plate was a piece of meat that was deep red and glossy, looking as if it were encased in beeswax.
The strange meat aroma was exactly what radiated from this dish.
“Give me… one of those as well,” Viscount Drummond said to the waiter who approached him, pointing at the dish.
He also randomly ordered two other dishes that sounded quite strange—”Kung Pao Chicken” and “Fish-Flavored Shredded Pork.”
The dishes were served quickly.
The Viscount picked up a silver fork and poked a piece of “Braised Pork.”
The skin trembled slightly, and it melted in his mouth. A rich, salty-sweet flavor instantly coated his taste buds.
This taste was different from any roasted or stewed meat he had ever eaten.
It was complex and layered, sweet without being cloying, and salty enough to make his mouth water.
He was stunned.
Next, he tasted the “Kung Pao Chicken.”
The chicken was smooth and tender, the peanuts were fragrant and crispy, and that slight numbness and gentle spiciness were like a mischievous little hand, constantly teasing his tongue.
As for the “Fish-Flavored Shredded Pork,” which contained no fish, the sour, sweet, salty, spicy, and savory flavors were all mixed together, yet they blended with incredible harmony.
For a noble who prided himself on having tasted all the delicacies in the world, he found himself at a loss for words for the first time.
Viscount Drummond closed his eyes and set down his utensils.
The surrounding noise seemed to fade away, and in his world, only the lingering aftertaste on his tongue remained.
This “Eastern Cuisine” was by no means a title without substance; it was a completely new Culinary Philosophy that he had never encountered before.
He snapped his eyes open, his gaze burning bright.
‘No, I must let everyone know about this!’
He happened to be attending a Duke’s Salon today, and he was determined to describe this experience in vivid detail.
He, Viscount Drummond, would be the first person to reveal this “new continent” to the noble circles of the Capital.
At the same time, some smugglers and gray-market brokers with different motives were also mixed in the crowd.
They had originally intended to scout out whether the previous “services” were still available now that the Forgotten Madonna had a new owner.
As a result, as soon as the dishes arrived on the table, they forgot all about intelligence and business.
Two bruisers who had been whispering in a secret plot one second were nearly poking each other in the face with forks over the last piece of “Double Cooked Pork Slices” the next.
The old Forgotten Madonna was merely a disguise for the entrance to the Thieves’ Guild, and the meals had been perfunctory.
Allen, however, did the opposite, pushing the culinary aspect to its peak while hiding the underworld business in the deepest depths.
To be hidden in plain sight. Who could have imagined how many figures from all walks of life were mixed into this bustling restaurant?
Matthew, now the General Manager of the Continental Hotel, had personally stepped up to serve as a waiter.
He had just finished shouting “add fifty buns” toward the back kitchen before he had to turn around and serve cold drinks to a table of disguised nobles.
In the past, when he pretended to be a Bartender, he would slack off and watch the drama every day.