The reason "Elbow" has so many fans is twofold: his unique live-streaming style and his excellent reputation.
When he reviews a restaurant, he's always honest. If the food is good, he says it's good; if it's bad, he says it's bad. He never misleads his audience with false praise.
He once reviewed a hot pot restaurant, and his reaction then wasn't nearly as enthusiastic as it is now. Yet, that restaurant became incredibly popular solely because of his review, with daily queues so long it was impossible to get a table.
Elbow took a deep breath. "I'm telling you, this aroma is phenomenal. It's better than any place I've visited before. My goodness, it smells so good; I can only imagine how delicious it must taste!"
"Ah, look at this," he continued, pointing his camera. "The white-cut chicken, the preserved vegetable pork belly... the color... the fragrance. It's a shame you can only look and can't taste, but I, however, can!"
Elbow's camera focused on the serving hatch as dishes were presented one by one. Even though they were arranged in large steamer baskets, it didn't detract from their appeal. Instead, it created an impression that this was precisely how they should be served.
Elbow paid no mind to his viewers in the livestream chat calling him greedy. Right now, all he wanted was to make them see, and not be able to taste!
At precisely 1 PM, the restaurant officially opened for dining.
The "ding-a-ling" sound announced that it was mealtime.
In reality, there was no need for Shen Yao or anyone else to ring a bell. Almost everyone who had checked into the establishment was already seated in the dining area, eagerly awaiting their meal.
Shen Yao's restaurant provided standard-issue meal sets, each consisting of a tray and several small bowls. A single tray could hold up to six small bowls.
The food was served by waitstaff. Customers would take their trays and small bowls and inform the staff of their desired dishes.
Elbow, holding his tray with six small bowls, joined the queue. He was served promptly.
He ordered the white-cut chicken, lotus root stuffed with pork, preserved vegetable pork belly, and blanched shrimp. Following the server's enthusiastic recommendation, he also requested stir-fried Jiangsu greens with pork and a double-boiled duck soup with matsutake mushrooms.
Elbow then went to get a bowl of rice. He had a hearty appetite, which was essential for his work as a food reviewer. However, he wanted to try every dish, and fortunately, there were no portion limits here.
Elbow set up his phone, greeted his livestream audience, and immediately began eating.
Throughout the meal, he didn't look up at the livestream at all, focusing solely on devouring his food.
Every dish was incredibly delicious. The white-cut chicken, in particular, was exceptionally flavorful and not at all dry. There was no trace of blood or scum, making it, in his opinion, the best chicken he had ever eaten, bar none!
What surprised him the most, however, was the small portion of Jiangsu greens. It completely changed his perspective.
He considered himself a carnivore and rarely enjoyed eating vegetables. He would only eat them occasionally, concerned about his nutritional intake.
But these Jiangsu greens were different. They were crisp and sweet with every bite, refreshing like a glass of iced water on a scorching day, stimulating his appetite further.
Elbow quickly finished all his food and then, with his small bowls in hand, headed back to get more. This time, he was determined to get more greens!
However, when he reached the serving window, the two large platters that had been piled high with greens now had only a few scattered leaves remaining!
Seeing him approach, he quickly gestured for the server to put the remaining greens into his bowl.
The server, noticing his eagerness, remarked, "See? We told you. Our vegetables are truly king."
Elbow wholeheartedly agreed, giving a thumbs-up. "Absolutely. These are the best greens I've ever tasted. And the other dishes are delicious too!"
The server smiled and served him the dishes he requested. "Of course. All the ingredients, except for the seafood and pork, are grown and raised by our boss himself. Here, have some more of this pickled fish. This fish was also caught from the pond out back."
"Great!"
Elbow didn't refuse. At this point, he was ready to believe everything the server said!
Having sampled every dish and finished three large bowls of rice, Elbow was so full he could barely stand.
Only then did he have the chance to check his livestream. To his astonishment, the number of concurrent viewers had surpassed 200,000.
Everyone was watching him eat, which he found utterly surreal!
"Oh my goodness, I've licked my screen dry several times! I'm so hungry!"
"Waaah, why am I watching this livestream when I'm on a diet? I've already ordered takeout and I'm eating it now. My diet plan has failed again!"
"Watching Elbow eat like this, I couldn't even begin to accuse him of faking it, because it's simply impossible to lie against my conscience!"
"Watching the streamer's eating habits, I can already imagine how delicious this food must be!"
"No, I absolutely have to secure a spot! No one can stop me!!!"
"Streamer, please, next time you eat, don't go live. Seeing it but not being able to taste it is torture!"
...
After ending the livestream, Elbow sat at his table, digesting his meal. Many others were in the same state.
He had noticed earlier that all the food had been completely cleared, not a single bit left!
As a result, almost everyone was stuffed and slumped in their seats, unable to move.
Suddenly, the sound of firecrackers erupted. From a distance outside, several men in suits and ties, along with numerous middle-aged men who clearly held positions of authority, entered.
Following behind them were Shen's father and Shen Huaisang.
Shen's father and Shen Huaisang hurried to welcome the guests into the restaurant. The dining area had been meticulously cleaned, with only those still seated, digesting their meals, remaining.
The arrivals were the county's high-ranking officials. Among them were two men in suits and ties who were leaders from the city, here for an inspection.
As Shen Huaimin was in charge of the kitchen, and Shen Yao and Shen's mother, being women, were not to host, only Shen's father and Shen Huaisang were there to receive the esteemed guests.
Shen's father arranged seats for the leaders and then instructed a server to inform the kitchen to prepare more dishes to entertain the guests.
"There's no need to go to the trouble of making special dishes. We'll eat whatever the other guests are eating," said one of the younger men.
Shen's father smiled sheepishly. "We really can't be so casual. All the food we prepared for today has already been finished, with nothing left."
However, no one believed Shen's father's words, assuming he was just being polite and that it was unlikely that all the prepared dishes for an opening day would be consumed so quickly.
It wasn't until they heard others around them corroborate Shen's father's statement that they began to believe.
Given that it was the opening day, and they would also be serving a meal in the afternoon, they had prepared a substantial amount of ingredients, so there was no need for special preparations.
Shen Huaisang, along with the chefs in the kitchen, prepared the dishes swiftly, and soon, the meal was served.
It was only after the food was placed on the table that the leaders finally understood why there was not a single dish left. The taste, the aroma – if they hadn't been too full, they would have wanted to eat more!