Universe Infinite Canteen

Tang Rijie remembered his purpose for coming here, and although he felt somewhat reluctant, he had to stop and move on in a timely manner.

"This dish is not quite the same as the usual braised ox tail, as it includes some herbs.

"I just saw there were goji berries, Angelica dahurica, Gastrodia elata, and I think there was also Codonopsis, probably a modified medicinal recipe, the taste is actually not bad, and there are merits in form, but I feel that this dish still lacks a bit of soul."

After he finished critiquing the Four Treasures Beef Tail Soup, the barrage of comments started flooding the screen again.

"Teacher Tang has finally started to exert himself!"

"But it feels like he didn't really exert any effort, what kind of evaluation is 'lacking soul'? That's too abstract."

"You don't understand, Teacher Tang is a professional, he must have tasted something to say that."

"Then he should tell us what he tasted instead of playing charades here."

"Playing tricks, boring, I'm unfollowing."

Tang Rijie didn't see these comments in the live stream, but that didn't stop him from sweating bullets at that moment.

Because he had just spent a full 5 minutes thinking about what else he could criticize about this dish, and he couldn't come up with anything. He didn't want to harp on the point of it being too expensive, so after a lot of effort, he finally produced a criticism of lacking soul.

Actually, Tang Rijie's main problem was that he was too professional, being so professional that he couldn't talk nonsense with his eyes open like Magic Seal, arbitrarily distorting reality, turning tasty into untasty.

So, in the end, he could only resort to using the lack of soul to fudge through.

However, this wasn't completely useless, after all, he had proven himself to be a professional food blogger, and with a serious expression on his face, there was some persuasiveness when he said those words.

But the bad news was that it was only slightly persuasive.

The photographer and editor, who had been working with Tang Rijie for a long time, also started to feel that Tang Rijie's state was a bit off.

The photographer said, "Teacher Tang, shall we take a break before continuing? You can have some of the beef tail soup to calm your nerves, I saw you enjoyed drinking it."

But just after he finished speaking, He Xiaoqian brought over the third dish.

And this dish once again sparked heated discussion in the live stream.

"Hey, isn't this the ham and potato pancake that was harshly criticized by the Magic Seal? 168 per plate, 6 slices a plate, he even said it was too greasy, not good, and took it home to feed the dog."

"Let's see how Teacher Tang critiques it, Teacher Tang has to step it up, he seems to lack spirit in this visit."

Tang Rijie smacked his cheeks hard, "No, continue, it won't look good if it cools down."

"Then... I'll continue filming." The photographer still felt uneasy and gave another reminder, "Teacher Tang, relax a bit, it doesn't matter if you say something wrong, we still have to edit when we get back."

"Mhm." Tang Rijie picked up his chopsticks again and began taste-testing the ham and potato pancake.

At this moment, the number of viewers in the live stream had already surpassed 5000, all waiting for Tang Rijie to critique the ham and potato pancake.

The moment it touched his mouth, a hint of pain flashed across Tang Rijie's eyes.

And this scene did not escape the eyes of the audience in the live stream.

Here it comes! This is the moment, surely Teacher Tang's soul of criticism has been completely ignited, and now we're going to see some utterly ruthless criticism, right?

But the much-anticipated outpouring of critique didn't happen; instead, Tang Rijie fell silent again.

Perfect!

This was yet another dish so perfect it could be called a work of art; not a single fault could be found.

The chef who could take a simple potato pancake to this level had clearly far surpassed his former self—no, he had surpassed all his peers.

With such talent, why didn't he go work as a head chef or consultant for those multinational hotel chains? Instead, he chose to stay in this inconspicuous little restaurant, and he wasn't even the owner. What exactly was he after?
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Tang Rijie couldn't understand it.

With the first bite of the ham and potato pancake, he wanted to shout out loud that 168 was simply too cheap! This quality, this flavor could easily get another zero tacked on to the end of the price at those top-tier hotels.

Right now, being able to eat it for 168 was no different from picking up 1500 bucks for nothing. Tang Rijie even felt a twinge of heartache, sensing that these culinary delights weren't receiving the respect they deserved.

They should be exhibited in the Imperial Palace and the Louvre, worshipped instead of the Golden Cup and the Mona Lisa, or kept fresh in the pyramids with alien technology to become eternal.

Their worst fate should still involve being served on Jingdezhen's Jingtai Blue or Wedgwood white plates, eaten by people who truly understand their value.

What caused him more pain was the fact that he still had to critique this masterpiece next.

However, the problem was Tang Rijie felt he had absolutely no right to judge it, let alone criticize it.

So Tang Rijie was stuck again, but fortunately, this time the pause didn't last long. Before the photographer could urge him on, he had already begun to speak again.

"Crispy skin, flaky inside; look at these thin slices of ham, thinner than paper. Observe these lines, just as beautiful as marble. The texture is reminiscent of Iberian black pig: silky and sweet, with a lingering aftertaste and a hint of acorn's fragrance. It pairs perfectly with the potato pancake below. It's just lacking a soul."

"Ah?" Tang Rijie shifted gears so quickly that even the photographer opposite him was left confused.

After a while, he asked, "So, is it delicious or not?"

"Delicious, but lacking soul," Tang Rijie insisted through gritted teeth, sweat beading on his forehead.

"Then it's not delicious."

"No, it's delicious, but it lacks soul."

Tang Rijie didn't give the photographer or the editor a chance to keep asking questions and immediately turned to He Xiaoqian.

"What about the last dish? Hurry up and bring it over, we've got other things to do later."

At this point, Tang Rijie couldn't wait to leave the restaurant a moment longer; he only wanted to end this torturous meal as soon as possible.

After all, no matter what was served next, no matter how delicious, he was going to say it lacked soul.

As for what constitutes having a soul, Tang Rijie didn't know himself.

He Xiaoqian said, "I'm sorry, sir, there are four tables ahead of you who have ordered this dish. You'll have to wait a little while, and as soon as the chef has prepared it, I'll serve it right up..."

Five minutes later, Ma Youyou pushed a serving cart out of the kitchen.

He Xiaoqian went over to serve the dishes, only to find that Tang Rijie's table was missing theirs. "Where's the dish? Did we make too few?" He Xiaoqian asked.

Ma Youyou instead told He Xiaoqian,

"You don't need to worry about Teacher Tang's table. The boss said he would personally serve Teacher Tang and welcome him to dine at our restaurant."

Upon hearing this, He Xiaoqian realized, "Teacher Tang is a celebrity with millions of fans; the boss should indeed take this opportunity to build a good relationship with him, and he could help promote our restaurant in the future."

She clearly didn't understand someone yet. In contrast, Ma Youyou knew all too well how petty Ma Lu could be. She looked at Tang Rijie, still wiping his sweat at the side, with a touch of sympathy.

The storm was about to break.