Chapter 557 - Sharp-tongued Food Critic

News of the imminent showdown between the owners of Mamy Restaurant and Ricky’s Rotisserie spread like wildfire. In one corner was the new restaurant making a meteoric rise up the Aden Square food competition rankings board, while in the other corner was a well-established rotisserie that had been in the Aden Square for several generations. This was shaping up to be an enthralling contest.

Of course, the most important factor was that this was going to be an outdoor contest. This meant that all of the spectators could witness the entire cooking process. A cooking contest of this nature had never taken place in the Aden Square before, and everyone was very intrigued. Those who were free all flocked to Mamy Restaurant, and soon, a massive crowd had gathered.

Some of them were regular customers of Mamy Restaurant, while some were drawn to the scene by the reputation of Ricky’s Rotisserie, but most of them were simply there for a good show.

“We’ve got sunflower seeds, peanuts, ice water, and limited-edition stools for sale! You’ll regret missing out on these!”

Xixi and Lulu were traversing through the crowd while advertising their wares, making regular sales as they did so.

The contest was due to begin in half an hour, but many people had arrived well in advance to claim a good spot. If they were lucky, perhaps they would be picked as one of the five judges. As such, many of them were getting quite bored, and bought some sunflower seeds, peanuts, and ice water to snack on while passing the time.

Not long after, employees from Ricky’s Rotisserie arrived with two horse-drawn carriages. Under Ricky’s instructions, they began to unload the heavy kitchenware from the rotisserie as well as a large mountain goat.

All of the customers looked on with curiosity. Many of them had had roast meat on many occasions, but they had never seen a live performance of how roast meat was made. As such, they were very much looking forward to the contest.

“Huh? Isn’t that Mamy Restaurant? Why are there so many people gathered outside?” Robert looked on from a distance with a curious expression. He hesitated momentarily before making his way toward the restaurant.

A lavish horse-drawn carriage stopped in front of Ducas Restaurant, and Scheer emerged in a red dress. She was just about to get down from the carriage when she caught sight of a large crowd of people in the distance. She raised an eyebrow, and asked curiously, “What’s going on over there? Why are there so many people?”

“Young Mistress Scheer, the owners of Mamy Restaurant and Ricky’s Rotisserie are going to have a cooking contest there. Those are all spectators. Although, in a contest of roast meat, our Ducas Restaurant is still number one in the Aden Square and in Chaos City!” The restaurant owner emerged with a confident smile on his face.

“Mamy Restaurant? That’s the new restaurant that has been quite popular, right?” A hint of surprise appeared on Scheer’s face.

“That’s right, but they’re only barely making it into the top 30 on the Aden Square food competition rankings. Our Ducas Restaurant is still the number one.” The restaurant owner nodded with a smile, but there was a tense look in his eyes. Scheer and the Buffett Family were major customers of Ducas Restaurant, spending tens of thousands of gold coins there annually. If they were to dine at another restaurant instead, it would result in a massive loss for Ducas Restaurant.

This restaurant has only been open for just over a month, yet all five of their dishes made the top 100, and one of them even made the top 30. That’s very interesting. Scheer contemplated momentarily before sitting back down in the carriage as she said, “Let’s go have a look as well. I’m rather curious to see just how this restaurant owner cooks to be able to earn so many loyal customers in just over a month. In that aspect, even I cannot compare with him.”

“I’ll be sure to keep your booth reserved in case you decide to return, Young Mistress Scheer,” the restaurant owner said respectfully. He looked on with a complex expression as the lavish horse-drawn carriage departed from his restaurant. His Ducas Restaurant had reigned supreme in the Aden Square for so many years. Who would have thought he would feel threatened by such a small new restaurant one day?

Right at that moment, a slightly sharp voice sounded from nearby. “You look a little down in the dumps, Alva. Has your Ducas Restaurant released any new dishes lately? I haven’t been here for a long time.”

Alva’s brows immediately furrowed as a hint of contempt appeared on his face. However, that expression had already been replaced with an amicable smile as he turned to face the middle-aged man beside him, and said, “Greetings, Mr. Febid. Sorry to disappoint you, but my restaurant has not released any new dishes lately.”

Febid was a tall and thin middle-aged man in a long charcoal coat with a black hat on his head. He was holding a brown cane with a tobacco pipe in the pocket of his coat. He had a hooked nose with a mustache that was curled at the tips, and was appraising Alva with a pair of extremely intrusive brown eyes. A mocking smile appeared on his face as he said, “A restaurant with no creativity will be eliminated sooner or later. If you can’t even release a new dish every month, then you might as well fire the head chef. Using the same dish to dominate the number one ranking on the Aden Square food competition rankings board is an insult both to the rankings board and to the customers.”

“Yes, you’re right. Our head chef is currently doing his best to create new dishes. His efforts should bear fruit shortly.” Alva nodded, but cold sweat was already beginning to bead on his forehead.

A new occupation had appeared in Chaos City and on the entire Norland Continent in the past few decades. That was the occupation of food critic.

They made their living from writing reviews about restaurants all over the land, drawing large foodie fanbases and earning high income. Febid was one of those food critics, and was quite renowned even in the entire Norland Continent food circle.

Febid’s popularity didn’t arise from the fact that he had managed to discover many obscure forms of delicious cuisine, nor from how delicious he made the dishes sound in his reviews. Instead, his popularity arose from his sharp tongue. Almost all of the restaurants he had reviewed had fallen victim to that sharp tongue of his. Even Ducas Restaurant’s most renowned whole roast pig received a review of “far too greasy, promotes inhumane slaughter of piglets!”.

All restaurants reviewed by Febid were negatively impacted to a certain extent. As such, Febid had become the food critic most detested by all restaurant owners. If it weren’t for the fact that he lived in Chaos City, he would most likely have been knocked out and stuffed into a rucksack before being thrown in a river.

Alva was scrambling for a way to get rid of this omen of ill fortune, and his eyes lit up as he glanced in Mamy Restaurant’s direction as he said, “Mr. Febid, our Ducas Restaurant is most likely going to disappoint you today, but I can suggest a good restaurant for you to dine at tonight. You’ve heard about Mamy Restaurant over there, right? They’re the most popular new restaurant in the Aden Square. After only over a month in the business, all five of their dishes made it into the top 100. The owner of this restaurant is having an outdoor cooking contest with the owner of Ricky’s Rotisserie. Both restaurants have bet the ownership rights of their respective restaurants. Are you sure you’re not going to have a look?”