Chapter 239: Competing for Customers
With Dojima's concluding words, all the students started bustling around. It was impossible for them to prepare finished dishes in advance, and without insulation measures, the dishes would quickly cool down. Moreover, the cooking process itself served as a means to attract customers.
Hachiman and the group of girls were among the judges. Seeing Hachiman and the girls with him, the students felt a mix of envy and nervousness.
Envy stemmed from Hachiman's charismatic presence, surrounded by a dozen beautiful girls, each one undoubtedly stunning.
Nervousness arose because, among all the guest lecturers, Hachiman's themes consistently had the highest elimination rates. They feared he might find some flaw and deem them unfit.
Observing this, Hachiman smiled.
"No need to be nervous. Just treat me like an ordinary customer. I'm here with them to enjoy breakfast," he said, turning to the girls beside him.
"You can freely choose from the available dishes. Go ahead and pick what you like."
With his words, the group of girls dispersed in pairs, and Hachiman casually strolled around. This breakfast session was an excellent opportunity to identify talent because it showcased each student's culinary skills the most.
Wherever he went, students were doing their best to attract customers. After all, the number of guests was limited, and to pass, they had to reach a minimum of 200 servings. Since each person had a limited appetite, the trial was crucial for figuring out how to compete for customers.
Among the first batch of completed dishes, Takumi stood out as particularly impressive.
It's worth noting that the blonde chef, Takumi, possesses an attractive appearance along with exceptional culinary skills, naturally capturing the attention of many customers.
He crafted an Italian-style baked egg salad. While Italian-style baked eggs are a common dish in Italy and might not be deemed a surprising choice, Takumi innovatively cut the baked eggs into small pieces, mixed them with vegetables, and incorporated balsamic vinegar and Parmesan cheese for a harmonious blend.
The refreshing salad evidently catered to the tastes of young people. Paired with Takumi's handsome appearance, it swiftly garnered the interest of numerous young girls.
In addition to diverse methods of customer attraction, many participants also honed in on the theme. Although the requirement centered around "egg" dishes, it didn't explicitly mandate the use of chicken eggs. Consequently, many thoughtful students opted for ingredients other than chicken eggs.
For instance, Megumi chose quail eggs. She concocted a self-serving dish resembling a hot pot by combining quail eggs, fish tofu, various vegetables processed into bite-sized pieces, and mushrooms.
This naturally appealed to the preferences of numerous middle-aged and elderly customers. In the morning, the elderly prefer lighter meals, steering clear of overly greasy dishes.
Among these middle-aged and elderly customers were three individuals recognized as the "Three Supplier Titans," hidden bosses.
Responsible for all egg supplies to Totsuki Resort, the bald-headed elderly man known by the nickname "Chicken Eggs."
A lean elderly man with shoulder-length hair and glasses, he oversaw all dairy product supplies for the resort and was nicknamed the "Natural Cheese Kyusaku."
A sturdy figure, though aged, managed all vegetable supplies and was known as "Bean Kosuke."
Although the three supplied nothing exotic, handling "egg," "dairy," and "vegetable" products undoubtedly represented the most consumed ingredients in daily life. Hence, labeling them the "Three Supplier Titans" was unsurprising.
After relishing the innovative hot pot crafted by Megumi, Tokuzo's bald head seemed to shine even more, and his expression exuded pure enjoyment.
"The comforting taste. Each chew releases a slow flow of broth, filling the entire mouth. Truly soothing," he expressed.
Beside him, Kosuke also praised, "These bite-sized vegetables, similar to quail eggs, are vibrant and colorful. It's hard to stop eating."
As if to confirm his words, Kyusaku beside him had not stopped eating, continuously savoring each bite.
Soon, his portion was finished, and he set down his bowl, looking at Megumi with a serious expression.
Feeling nervous under his stern gaze, Megumi thought she might have done something wrong. Just as Megumi was about to apologize, Kyusaku hurriedly approached her, grabbing her hand and exchanging his serious expression for a warm smile.
"Can I ask you to marry my grandson?"
"Eh... Eh?!"
Hearing this, Megumi was so startled that her twin braids seemed to stand on end, and she became somewhat flustered.
Observing this scene, Hachiman smiled. It wasn't surprising, considering the healing qualities of the girl's cooking.
Retracting his gaze, he continued forward, greeted by various calls from the students. He also encountered a variety of egg dishes.
Take, for instance, Ikumi Mito's tamago kake gohan—a small serving of rice topped with a sunny-side-up egg, a small beef steak, and fresh vegetables. She took a unique approach, not drizzling meat juices but a refreshing oil and vinegar dressing over the rice.
The crisp acidity of white wine vinegar served as the finishing touch, bringing out the rich, creamy texture of the runny egg yolk and the juicy tenderness of the beef steak. It felt as if strength was continuously emerging from this dish.
Coupled with the girl's alluring figure and fiery fashion sense, it naturally attracted the admiration of many young men.
However, the good times didn't last. Despite her efforts to make the flavors lighter, the combination of rice and beef steak easily induced a sense of fullness, making it less suitable for breakfast.
After trying one portion, many people refrained from going for seconds, and some middle-aged and elderly individuals didn't partake at all. This posed a significant disadvantage in meeting the minimum requirement of 200 servings for the assessment.
Seeing this, Ikumi felt anxious and quickly began contemplating a solution.
Continuing forward, Hachiman soon arrived at the workstation assigned to Alice.
As soon as she spotted him, the long-haired girl hurriedly walked over.
"Hachiman-kun!"
Reaching Hachiman's side, Alice embraced his arm.
This made his body involuntarily tense because his arm was now sandwiched between the girl's ample bosom, with a soft yet elastic sensation pressing on both sides of his arm.
The girl also noticed this but, being a Nordic person, she wasn't overly shy. Instead, she chuckled.
"Hachiman-kun must be enjoying this, quite 'H,' isn't it? Well, since you've received the perks, you should do me a favor too," she said, pulling Hachiman toward her workstation.