For example, the first course corresponds to the soup dish in French cuisine.
It's a small bowl of "jasmine soup" with mussel meat per person, and two salty crabapple cakes that serve as bread.
The difference from French cuisine is that the beauty of this Chinese chicken soup and Chinese pasta is purely natural.
It has both floral fragrance and flower shape, and there is no need to put it on the plate at all.
In this way, the excitement of this Chinese-Western soup dish has become more than just a soup or a snack.
What's more, it lies in the echo of the theme of color, fragrance, taste and shape, and the three-dimensional enjoyment of smell, taste, vision and touch.
The layers of puff pastry bloom like flowers, and the pink color is almost girlish.
The crisp pastry will fall off at the slightest touch, making it unbearable to eat.
The white jasmine flowers soaked in the clear chicken soup show their vitality with their pure soup color and attractive fragrance.
So as soon as this dish was served, it caused a sensation.
You know, the French, who are always proud of French food, think that only French food can be considered exquisite.
My impression of Chinese food is nothing more than fried rice noodles, fried noodles, and stir-fried chop sueys.
Even though many people come to the Republic, the most distressing thing is that it is difficult to buy real high-quality fresh bread here, which has formed a stereotype that the Republic's pastries are rough.
For example, this is like when the capital was changed to Peking, and Lu Xun, who first arrived here, concluded that there was no good tea and food in Peking because of the great commercial depression in the capital.
Suddenly, these French people were unprepared to see the exquisite, elegant, lively and interesting side of Chinese food.
One can imagine how shocking this huge contrast will be!
It must have refreshed the inherent knowledge and the perception of Chinese food has rapidly improved.
Especially when drinking soup, many people's eyes instantly light up.
Obviously, I didn't expect that the soup with such clear well water was not bland at all, and the taste was extremely refreshing and rich.
Naturally praise each other and be in high spirits.
The second dish corresponding to the Western food appetizer is to take advantage of Chinese food and use beets that are not seen in Western food at all.
A soft-fried tenderloin topped with "peach blossom" gravy, served with glass meatballs, shredded banana, rock sugar white fungus, osmanthus glutinous rice and lotus root. It can be said to be a big collection of Chinese beets.
Soft, glutinous, crispy, sour, salty and sweet, with rich flavors and varying degrees of sweetness, it is quite appetizing.
What's more, foreigners have a particularly high tolerance and tolerance for sweets.
There is absolutely no expectation that they will be like the Chinese, who will get tired and sick after eating too much.
This dish naturally made many foreigners smile with joy and nod their heads in affirmation more and more frequently.
Especially female customers can't put down their knives and forks.
I really couldn't bear to give up any sweet temptation, and my emotions were completely controlled by my own taste buds.
As for the third main course, which corresponds to Western food, it can be said that there is no risk at all and it is guaranteed to be a good score.
That is Master Ai’s unique specialty, halal roast duck.
There is no doubt that roast duck is the most popular dish among foreigners and is also a representative of Beijing cuisine.
These days, all over the country, whether "Lao Nai" or "Lao Foreigners", know the saying "If you don't visit the Great Wall, you are not a true man, and it would be a pity if you don't eat roast duck."
What is particularly worth mentioning is the Beijing white duck roasted with fruit wood by Master Ai.
Not only is the color brown, the skin is crispy and the meat is tender, there is no peculiar smell, and the hot cake is soft.
What makes this dish even more outstanding is that the sauce is homemade by Master Ai.
Chef Ai has a unique secret. He uses halal pastries with high oil and sugar to make the noodle sauce.
Therefore, his roasted duck is not only no worse than those from Judequan and Bianyifang, but the sauce is also more mellow.
Then can the French not like to eat it?
It's really crispy every bite, first-class oily, with lingering fruity aroma and full of flavor.
What's more, Chef Ai also followed "Zhang Dashao's" instructions and paired the roast duck with some fresh, tender and crisp vegetables that can be eaten raw with sauce.
In this way, it can not only relieve the greasiness of roast duck, but also fill the gap in disguise, providing French guests with a Western-style salad that is originally lacking in Chinese food. It is simply perfect, and all shortcomings are gone.
Because of this, the French, who usually leave a small mouthful for the sake of dignity, are a bit abnormal.
Many people didn't pay attention and actually ate all the dishes on the plate, which was quite embarrassing.
I have to say that this is the greatest recognition of Master Ai’s craftsmanship.
Of course, since at this moment, the guests were almost full and their appetites were greatly satisfied.
So for the fourth dish, many guests could not help but have a strange and somewhat contradictory change in their hearts.
Unconsciously, a complex psychology mixed with expectation, jealousy, suspicion and worry arose.
Frankly speaking, I hope to see surprises again and eat better food.
I also hope that Chinese cuisine will stop showing miracles and become mediocre.
Why?
It’s because the French nation has a pride that is hard to let go and must be maintained.
In today's world, the West recognizes French cuisine as the best delicacy.
And the only authoritative Michelin certification for gourmet food is also centered around the French.
But today, these French people cannot deny that the Chinese food is so amazing, and some of them naturally have a sense of crisis that is not so confident.
It's best that the outstanding performance of Chinese food ends here, otherwise it won't be very good.
So at this time, people who are close to each other can't help but express their emotions and whisper...
But then again, some people don't think so.
Roast duck has been served as the main course, and it should be the final trump card.
The following dishes are mediocre, which is actually a very high probability.
Is there anything more outstanding in Beijing’s cuisine than roast duck?
Besides, according to the order of French cuisine, the next dish should be cheese.
The Republic doesn't even have good bread, so how can it possibly get good cheese?
After all, Chinese cuisine still has shortcomings. The lack of dairy products alone gives their diet a natural disadvantage, and it is still difficult to compare with the rich ingredients of French cuisine.
Therefore, this kind of proposition made the unstable mentality of the French guests a little more stable.
But it is a pity that "Zhang Dashao" did not play according to common sense, and actually did what the French thought was impossible so easily.
In fact, the fourth dish that the old man ordered was boiled suckling pig cooked by Master Pang himself.
Not only is it a more substantial Manchu dish than roast duck, but it also has the most authentic palace flavor, both in terms of appearance and taste, which can be called grand and natural.
And the side dish used - "expanded milk tofu" is exactly a dairy dish that combines Mongolian milk tofu with Central Plains gluten.
Of course the French don't know that the advantages of our country's nomadic and agricultural peoples have been perfectly combined through this menu as early as the Kangxi Dynasty.
Let’s talk about the dish of boiled suckling pig first. It is by no means just boiled in plain water. The preparation process is quite delicate and complicated.
Master Pang first had to clean up the baby piglets that were one month old and boil them in vinegar and water.
After taking the pot out of the pot, soak it in cold water, and then wipe it with fine grass.
After it is wiped white, put the suckling pig into a cloth bag and cook it in the batter water.
Then open the bag, cut the suckling pork into slices, and soak it in the garlic, ginger and vinegar sauce for two hours before eating it.
The soaked meat slices are white and almost transparent, with clear and distinct strands of lean meat.
It looks like it is made of flawless white jade.
It tastes like meat, yet crisp and tasty, fragrant but not greasy.
In comparison, the puffed milk tofu as a side dish is much easier to make, and the taste depends almost entirely on the natural texture of the ingredients.
The specific method of making this dish is to make a sauce with milk, chicken fat and flour.
The high-quality gluten is stuffed with Fengsheng's milk tofu, and steamed until soft.
Then heat the milk and pour it on the gluten, and it's ready.
In this way, one is cold and one is hot, one is salty and one is sweet, one is delicious and crispy, and the other is thick and soft, the two dishes complement each other.
Like the yin and yang poles of Tai Chi, this is a complementary pairing that complements each other.
Needless to say, as soon as this dish was served on the table, the rich aroma of milk caused the guests to express surprise.
These French people must not taste it. Once they taste it, they will be moved and make a fuss.
Because the three wonders of taste that are most incomprehensible to them will soon kidnap their tongues.
What are the three wonders of taste?
First, the smell of French pork is too strong.
Apart from using a lot of spices in Western food, there is no better way to get rid of the fishy smell of pork.
The French never thought that pork could have such a refreshing and clean taste!
Second, there are no pasta dishes in France.
Although gluten in this dish is a very common ingredient in Chinese food, this wonderful taste is completely unfamiliar to them!
Third, Fengshengong's milk tofu is a long-standing milk food in the capital, and the cooking method of wrapping liquid fillings is not what Western food is good at.
One can imagine the taste buds of French people are shocked by the unique texture of this kind of noodles.
So this dish completely made the French collectively uneasy.
This is not only due to cooking technology, but also includes psychological demand factors.
Soon, after experiencing the emotions of shock, doubt, confusion, admiration, and envy in sequence.
Many people have requested to meet the chef who prepared this dish.
Of course Ning Weimin cannot favor one thing over another.
When he thought about it, he might as well invite the three great heroes to come out together.
Then he took the initiative to introduce the guests one by one.
Although the French did not expect that three people would come out at once.
But today's dishes are indeed good, no matter which dish, these people are satisfied.
So everyone, led by Pierre Carton and the French ambassador and his wife, happily took the three chefs for a photo.
After taking photos, many people also gave gifts to the chef.
The ambassador's wife presented the badge of the French Embassy.
Pierre Carton himself presented three new one-hundred-franc notes signed with the master's name.
From now on, the rest is smooth sailing.
Whether it is almond tofu, red and white glass powder and other after-dinner desserts,
Or a fruit platter like watermelon cup.
These French guests also praised it from the bottom of their hearts, adding to their joy.
Even after the banquet was over, some of these delicious guests couldn't help but inquire and want to buy the restaurant's display items.
Of course, except for bionic porcelain and utensils, other items cannot be sold.
Those were real antiques that Ning Weimin had collected with great difficulty, whether they were palace lanterns, furniture, or porcelain.
So he flatly refused without hesitation.
But even so, more than a dozen businesses were still made.
The French, who are full of artistic talents, are very interested in cutlery and bionic porcelain.
Even Pierre Carton himself ordered a large grape grower bonsai.