National Tide 1980.

Chapter 522

A week later, Ning Weimin's "Altar Palace" restaurant received special guests consisting of Pilkardon's foreign team, French embassy officials, and their family members as scheduled.

In order to ensure the smoothness of this matter, Ning Weimin and "Zhang Dashao" not only carefully formulated the menu, but also prepared the best ingredients and drinks.

It was decided that Master Chang Jing, Master Pang and Master Ai would sit in the back kitchen together and cook for these French guests.

In addition, the selection of the best among the best was carried out, and special training was carried out for the selected service personnel.

In order not to be distracted by going all out, even the convenience business was temporarily stopped by Ning Weimin.

No matter the snack shop on the first floor, or the "palace snack package" sold to park visitors.

Only after the banquet is over and the French guests leave satisfactorily can the normal supply be resumed.

The Beijing Tourism Bureau, the Health Bureau, and even the national security department are more concerned about safety issues.

These government departments have sent special personnel to supervise the work and repeatedly inspect the internal and external surrounding environment of the restaurant.

The scheduled meal time is at 9:23 noon on September [-].

It also happened to be the autumnal equinox, the weather was clear, blue sky and white clouds.

From 10:30 in the morning, the front, rear, left, and right sides of Tiantan North Road have been placed under martial law by the police force of the sub-bureau, and traffic police are in charge of coordinating traffic.

The Temple of Heaven Park also temporarily closed the north gate for this time, and the entrance of the north gate was used as a temporary parking lot.

This move makes this banquet more important and full of face.

So when the time was approaching, I saw cars with black plates driving under the north gate of the Temple of Heaven.

Many blond, well-dressed French people got out of the car one after another, crossed the blocked road, and filed into the "Tiantan Restaurant".

The Chinese and foreign journalists who have been waiting here in advance and occupied a favorable position early.

Immediately, it was like a competition, like film and video tapes, shooting and recording like crazy.

On both sides of the road, at least thousands of ordinary people in the capital and passers-by gathered to watch the excitement.

They all didn't blink, just stretched their heads to look at them.

To be honest, even these French guests did not expect to face such a big battle today, and they were a little at a loss.

But after all, foreigners like to show off, and they can't help but be excited when they are surprised.

Many people became energetic and frequently waved to people on the side of the road.

As far as this scene is concerned, it is no exaggeration to say that it is as if some international film festival and international fashion show are going to be held here.

That was quite a sensation!
Afterwards, many people in Beijing who saw this scene at the scene regarded it as a topic to show off to others.

I think that I am fortunate to have gained knowledge by encountering such a scene, which is no less honored than seeing a big star with my own eyes.

But to be honest, it was the foreigners from France who really learned a lot this day.

Because they have never eaten in a Chinese restaurant with such originality and aesthetic depth.

As soon as they walked into the gate of the restaurant, they seemed to have encountered a baptism of Chinese civilization, and their eyes were not enough.

A table, a utensil, a mural, and a lighting decoration in the "Altar Palace" are exquisite and luxurious that they have never heard of or seen.

Because it is intuitive, because it is within reach, because of the appropriate lighting and the uniform and harmonious tone.

These things are extraordinarily beautiful, quite vivid and touching people's hearts.

It looks very different from the Forbidden City and those lifeless treasures that are obscured by dust under the dim lights. They are completely different from each other.

Arrived at the real business area on the second floor, because there are more good things to see.

The dumbfounded, dumbfounded, and inexperienced look of these guests was even more serious.

Speaking of it, it is no less than the unbelievable look of Chinese people when they saw the fashion show for the first time.

The Agence France-Presse and Reuters journalists who were allowed to accompany them and take some pictures before the banquet also couldn't bear the mental shock.

They actually unconsciously turned the camera from the guests to the decoration and layout of the restaurant.

Even Pierre Carton couldn't help showing off his surprise to these reporters.

"This is the oriental art I expected! It's beyond imagination! It's so beautiful! Isn't it?"

Indeed, it is almost the first time for these French guests to experience the meticulous beauty of Chinese civilization and the splendor of traditional arts and crafts up close.

Their expectations and prior imaginations were completely overturned.

What they are seeing and hearing is completely a real dream for them.

Whether it is exquisite utensils, classical wooden utensils, luxurious furnishings, or retro murals, they all show a strong oriental style.

Let them can't help but immerse themselves in the wonderful retrospective of historical time.

In fact, the banquet did not start on time at exactly eleven o'clock as planned.

Since France is the art center of Europe, these guests today belong to the social elite and have a certain ability to appreciate art.

They couldn't help themselves, walked around and chatted with great interest, until they had almost seen most of the layout of the restaurant, and then they started to sit down.

The banquet had to be postponed for 10 minutes.

But what shocked these guests even more was yet to come.

Because the dishes prepared by "Tan Gong" on this day fully utilized the strengths of Chinese food and provided rare dishes in Western food.

Let these guests experience the profound Chinese cuisine for the first time.

Whether it is the taste buds, nose, or eyes, they are all conquered by unprecedented rich enjoyment.

Even because of the adoption of Chinese food and Western food.

Moreover, the various dishes are formulated with full consideration of the dietary preferences and habits of these French people.

No one felt a cultural gap, and no one felt uncomfortable with dining habits.

They only feel surprise and wonder, and are deeply fascinated by it, and will never forget it for life.

There is no exaggeration in these words, everything is due to the understanding of knowing oneself and the enemy, so as to formulate the most reasonable coping strategy that maximizes strengths and avoids weaknesses.

Due to his work at Pierre Caton, Ning Weimin often deals with foreigners. He is quite familiar with the dining habits of Westerners and knows that there are many differences from Chinese food.

One is that Western food is divided into meals, not shared.

Not only the use of knives and forks, but most people think that it is difficult to master the dining technique of chopsticks.

The second is that the word "box" does not exist in Western dictionaries.

They couldn't understand why they couldn't eat openly, but they had to find a separate room to isolate themselves from other people.

The third is to cook without cutting. Western food meat and vegetables are mostly large pieces, so it doesn't matter to cut them.

Fourth, Western food has a large amount of dishes and few dishes. It is nothing more than a soup, two or three dishes, a snack, coffee, and fruit.

Fifth, in Western food, drink soup first and then eat vegetables, and drink and eat with noodles and rice, and eat while drinking.

Therefore, in order to avoid these French guests' incompatibility with Chinese food, which is completely opposite to their dining habits.

Ning Weimin didn't hesitate much, and decided to provide services completely in accordance with the habits of Westerners.

However, what surprised him greatly was that he thought it would be difficult to communicate with "Zhang Dashao" about this matter.

If the old man is asked to make a menu according to the requirements of western food, it will probably take a lot of time.

In the end, I never expected that this old man knew better than him.

"Zhang Dashao" is really a famous chef.

Not only is he familiar with the eating habits of the French, but he is also very familiar with the taste preferences of the French, their aesthetic pursuit of food, and the advantages and disadvantages of Chinese and Western food.

He thought that he had to popularize science for "Zhang Dashao", but he didn't expect the old man to say something amazing, and instead made a more professional and Zhouxiang supplement for him.

People actually told him that when talking about fancai... which is what we call western food now, bones, fishbone and internal organs are taboo.

The French also don't like to eat fish without scales, and they don't like spicy dishes.

They generally like to eat slightly raw, fresh and tender delicacies.

Fatty, thick, fresh, and tender tastes are preferred, and sour, sweet, and salty flavors are preferred.

Especially like to use cloves, pepper, coriander, garlic, tomato juice, etc. as seasonings.

In terms of cooking methods, they prefer dishes made by cooking methods such as frying, frying, roasting, roasting, and frying.

While fan dishes are mainly pure, Chinese food is mainly harmonious.

Due to the characteristics of animal husbandry countries, western countries usually focus on meat.

Raw materials are not mixed, resulting in a simple cooking taste.

However, Chinese food is particularly good at seasoning, even changing flavors.

He is good at combining various ingredients and condiments to produce various chemical changes to enrich the taste.

To give a specific example, there are almost no sweets in the nature of dishes in Western countries except pastries and candies.

There are many kinds of beets in Chinese food, and there are everything that one expects to find.

There are cold cuts, snacks, big dishes, and soups.

There are even dishes with vinegar as the medium, both sweet and sour, salty and sweet.

In addition, the characteristics of agricultural civilization also endowed Chinese cuisine with a special noodle dish.

Such as gluten, pan-fried vermicelli, vermicelli, vermicelli, tofu, shredded tofu, dried tofu, frozen tofu, beancurd skin, yam, sweet potato, etc.

Its raw materials are noodles, which are different from mizuna.

And these rich dishes are not available in Europe or America.

There are a few things in Italy, and it is said that it was originally passed down from China.

So if you want to make this meal stand out, it's better to start with these two aspects, and then use Westerners' favorite barbecue as the main course.

When these Frenchmen can be satisfied, they will not be disappointed.

As soon as you export it, you will know if there is one!

Just based on these remarks, Ning Weimin felt that it was the same as the first time he asked the master's court dishes for the first time.

Even though he was thinking hard, he couldn't figure out how "Zhang Dashao" became an expert in Western food.

The more curious I am about the past of the old man, the more I feel that the life experience of this famous chef is extremely mysterious.

But to be honest, this did not affect him to make an accurate judgment with full of joy.

That's it!

Sure enough, "Zhang Dashao" designed the most suitable menu for him.

And arranged the manpower and all the details of the dishes that should be paid attention to.

Although the old man didn't do it himself, he still easily won the favor of the guests and earned face for the restaurant.

First of all, the Chinese table pressing dishes have been retained, but certain changes have been made.

There are no dried fruits, candied fruit and fresh fruits, only table pastries, sauced meat, cold meats and side dishes are kept.

Moreover, four of the same kind are placed in a twelve-inch large plate, and each plate has a common fork and spoon.

In this way, as soon as the guests take a seat, they can see that there are four platters in the middle of the round table.

A plate of Yulu cream, pea yellow, rose cake, and noodles.

A plate of roasted mutton, sauced elbow, pine nut tripe, and Jinhua ham.

Mix jellyfish skin, hundred flower fish jelly, celery with bean curd sticks, cucumber with jelly.

A plate of eight-treasure vegetables, pickled melon, fermented bean curd, and kimchi.

These things correspond to appetizers in French cuisine.

The difference is that it can be taken at any time according to individual needs, like eating a buffet, throughout the entire banquet.

Secondly, the order of serving the main meals follows Western rules.

The form of sampling has been reduced, but the actual content is a little bit less.

PS: In response to individual book friends' doubts about French cuisine.

The pinnacle of traditional French multi-cuisine is the era of the French monarchy, which is as common in history as China.

French cuisine became popular in Europe because of Napoleon's iron heel.It is also like the soldiers of the Eight Banners in the Qing Dynasty that made barbecue and Manchu cuisine popular all over the country.

The so-called thirteen traditional dishes, this dining habit, only existed before the French Revolution.

Just like China's official position, it has been submerged in the dust of history.

Because the traditional French service requires repeated removal of tables and is extremely complicated, it takes three to four hours to complete the banquet, and the French food ingredients are often repeated.

In order to adapt to modern times and modern life, it was first reduced to five courses, and then reduced to three courses.

During the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, the French dishes introduced to China were already simplified dishes.

Neither Zhang Dashao's life experience nor Ning Weimin's contact in real life support the theory of thirteen dishes of traditional French cuisine.

The only exception in reality may be the grand wedding of the French.

(End of this chapter)