It was at that moment when Jo Minjoon was talking out the bill to give it to the woman. The other customers jeered and sent woo’s. The woman looked at them furiously.
“What are youu? People that are eating this kind of things are jeering at me? I feel smothered…..”
“Customer.”
Jo Minjoon said in a low voice. When the woman turned her head, he flinched at that moment. How could he express it? No, there’s no way to express it magnificently. Those were cold eyes. The rage she had accumulated in all her life seemed to be contained in those eyes.
“I’m thankful for you to have ordered trusting in these lacking chefs. And i’m also sorry that I couldn’t satisfy you to what you have expected. But, you can’t express that disappointment with the other customers.”
“……Ha, haha…….Are you teaching me right now?”
“There’s no way I would be. I think that there would be no one that doesn’t know of this. And I think that you would also know it well. Is th……….”
Even before he could finish his words, the woman threw the norimaki as naturally as she would throw paper. Jo Minjoon picked that up and stopped the security that were running to him with his eyes. And then he put it in his mouth.
The people looked at him with their eyes wide. They couldn’t guess what he was trying to do. Jo Minjoon said in a calm voice.
“I don’t feel tuna at all. Because this is tandoori chicken.”
“Tandoori! I hate India! That’s not food. That’s a disgusting stomach present.”
At this point, he didn’t even have the heart to get angry. Jo Minjoon let out a sigh and took out a bill from his counter. And then, opened his mouth.
“It’s the 2 dollars you wanted. Take it.”
The atmosphere was strange. Certainly the woman was shouting bad words, and Jo Minjoon should be giving her back the money with no other options. But it seemed that Jo Minjoon was forcing himself to give it to her. The people that were lined all recorded it with their handphones. Probably, tens of these video’s would get uploaded.
The woman hesitated and grabbed the money. Jo Minjoon bent his head respectfully.
“I’m sorry for the lacking food.”
Someone applauded. That one sound kept piling up and became as big as a snowball. The woman grinned, and went past the people with an anxious look. Jo Minjoon apologized to the man he was taking the order just then.
“I’m sorry. I made you disturbed while I was taking the order.”
“There are a lot of drugged people around here. As a resident, i’m more sorry.”
Jo Minjoon smiled brightly. It wasn’t a job smile. But an ordinary one.
“What will you be ordering?”
–
“You remember that customer four days ago, right? It’s quite the topic in the internet.”
At the youngest PD’s words, Jo Minjoon shrugged his shoulders. He also knew that it would become a topic to a certain point.
“There are a lot of accidents in this wide country, so becoming an issue for a trouble with just one customer, makes me feel amazed.”
“Because you are a star. Minjoon, at least you will be one while you are on Grand Chef. Of course, after that…… It will depend on your capability.”
The youngest PD, Robert Banks, talked like that. Jo Minjoon nodded without saying anything. Robert wasn’t letting him rest at all. It was the first interview as a PD. And it seemed that he was quite flustered because of that. Because he was putting the most passionate face he had seen until now.
‘But i’m tired.’
After the food truck started and during the 5 days, Jo Minjoon always slept like he had fainted. He didn’t recover fully, and because of that his body always felt heavy. He thought that he wouldn’t feel burdened, but it seemed that the anxiety was deep in his heart. Only then did Robert notice that Jo Minjoon’s eyes were sunk and that his skin was coarse. He asked cautiously.
“Is your body in not good conditions?”
“…….I’m a little tired.”
“Cheer up. If you hold on for two more days, you will be able to rest for a while.”
Those were only formal words of consolation. Jo Minjoon smiled bitterly and rubbed his fingers. The sewed finger didn’t usually hurt, but when he was tired like right now, he felt sudden pains like a needle was poking him.
“In your opinion, who do you think will do best? I’m not evaluating your confidence as a team leader, so feel relieved to reply.”
“…..I wonder. Aside from confidence, I think that our team has the most chances to win. I heard that Hugo’s team is a cafe truck, but there’s a limit to how much you can bake inside a truck. So they would have come up with a good strategy but, just by looking at the reaction in the internet you can know to a certain point. Because there are a lot of people complaining that it’s too expensive. They crumbled the expectations that it was going to be cheap. I think that was a bad move.”
“Looking that you are replying so fluently, it seems that you usually think a lot about these things. So what about Chloe’s team? Why do you think you will be able to beat them?”
Jo Minjoon smiled with an exhausted face.
“It’s the same reason. They said they were selling roasted kochi or sandwich. Those are food that are harder to make than kimbap. As your body gets tired, you can’t sell all the day. Well, it’s the same for us…… but looking at the sales, I think that our team will be better off.”
“Then your conclusion is that you have confidence in winning. ………Okay. Minjoon. You can leave now. Looking at your face i’m not able to continue the interview. Rest for a while. Oh, thinking about it, it would be difficult to rest right now.”
It was just as he had said. Because, the 6th episode was soon going to be broadcasted. Even if he was tired, he could only check. But it wasn’t simply Jo Minjoon’s story. No one from the participants missed the live episode.
As he got in the motel room, beyond the cameramen were his team members gathered.
“Did it start?”
“It will soon.”
Anderson replied casually. Jo Minjoon sat in the bed and looked at the screen.
The 6th episode was about the vegan mission. It was the mission that sent him to the disqualifying mission. And at the same time, the episode that announced his absolute sense of taste.
“I think that the reaction of the people would be no joke.”
Joanne said as if she was expecting it more. Jo Minjoon didn’t reply and just looked at the screen. Before he knew it, the broadcast was starting.
The director seemed to have decided putting Jo Minjoon as the focus point, but the face that appeared along the start was Jo Minjoon’s. He, from the screen, was talking with a clear voice.
[ Since small, I used to think that chefs were really cool. But maybe because I was too small, when I got older I couldn’t challenge it as easily. Because the dreams from when you were small felt somewhat light and childish. I tried to convince myself that I wanted to become a chef because I didn’t know reality, and I wasn’t mature enough. But that wasn’t it. That wasn’t a light, nor a childish dream. It was the only path I could walk being myself. ]
Along with those words, scenes of Jo Minjoon cooking passed by. Catfish meatball stew, bream, the foie gras he made with Kaya and the agedashi tofu he made in the three course. Anderson gulped. It wasn’t simply because the dishes in the screen seemed delicious. It was because the BGM(*background music) and that scene made you nervous.
After the announcement of the vegan mission, the camera focused solely on Jo Minjoon cooking. It was to the point that it made you think that it was a bit excessive, but thinking about the soon to come scene, it was understandable. Because even Anderson recognized what had happened that day. Because even he got greatly astonished.
[ In my opinion, I think that Minjoon isn’t making one dish, but a korean table meal. ]
[ Table meal……Will you have enough time? ]
Jo Minjoon concentrating on cooking to the point he didn’t answer the question of the judges seemed to be quite serious. Jo Minjoon was surprised. Because he didn’t even know that the judges had talked to him at that time. Joanne opened her mouth.
“What guts did you have as to not reply to the judges?”
“…….I was so concentrated I didn’t even notice they had come.”
“You were concentrated like that but why is it miyeokguk and bibimbap? Just at first glance, isn’t it a menu that’s difficult to pass?”
Jo Minjoon didn’t reply and looked at the screen. Joanne grumbled. “Now he’s also ignoring me.” Peter that was looking at their conversation said in a low voice.
“Maybe it was for the better.”
“What? What did you say?”
“That it was good that it happened. Because he disqualified at that time he could show his absolute taste. And if it didn’t happen, he wouldn’t have had the chance to do so…..”
“Now that I listen to you, you are right.”
“Sh. Shut up.”
Anderson glared at the both of them with sharp eyes. The evaluation was starting. After Chloe’s evaluation ended, after they evaluated one more person, it was Jo Minjoon’s turn after that.
And of course, everyone knew the results. The judges that tried his dish were discussing between them with a regrettable face. Peter glanced at his handphone and checked the reactions. They were mostly watching it live, so there weren’t many that were posting comments, but even so they were really optimistic. Because they already knew that Jo Minjoon came for the food truck mission. So whatever happened he wouldn’t get disqualified, so they could stop worrying, that was what they seemed to be thinking about.
‘But the real bomb is not that part.’
Although he didn’t really have an absolute taste, he felt quite fun while thinking at the reactions of the people when the soon to appear ability of Jo Minjoon is shown.
But it wasn’t merely Peter that was like that. Joanne, and Anderson had their hearts beat wildly at the expectation. Ivanna was absentmindedly seated like usual, but normally, even if it wasn’t your story you couldn’t help but feel flustered.
They were like this, then how would the concerned person feel? Anderson looked at Jo Minjoon while thinking like that. But Jo Minjoon’s face was comparatively calm. No, rather than saying calm he had an exhausted expression. He would have felt quite exhausted for the past days, but to be acting like that in front of the best climax of his life. It was at that moment when Anderson’s eyes were faintly filled with worry.
[ I’m sorry. You are a disqualifying candidate. ]
At Joseph’s voice, Anderson turned his head. The evaluation continued. And soon, the 8 disqualifiers gathered to do the mission.
The mission you had to guess the contents of the fried tofu pocket. It was a mission that getting 5 right would be fine. And actually, they ended after getting around 5 right. It was at the moment when the 7th participant, Dany, got 11 ingredients right that where they yelled cheers.
And then, it was Jo Minjoon’s turn.
The words he had said in the past were shown again in the screen. And the judges and the other participants were talking good about him. And it was at that moment. Jo Minjoon didn’t even hesitate and named the ingredients one by one.
And the result was as they had known. Twenty ingredients, and twenty correct. And the shocked faces of the judges was shown on the screen. And probably, all of the viewers would be having the same face. Anderson turned on his handphone. Maybe, Immediately in the Y portal’s main, Jo Minjoon and his absolute sense of taste were rising to the top of the searcher.
What kind of face would Jo Minjoon be having? Thinking like that, Anderson looked back at Jo Minjoon. And he just smirked after that.
He was asleep.
–
It was a place that couldn’t be absent in the business circle when you were looking for a big hand. It was Rose Island. Even at first glance, this restaurant like name was really a restaurant. Only, it had a reason as to why it was called ‘big hand’ compared to the other restaurants. Rose Island had 37 restaurants around the world, and if you combined the Michelin stars of those restaurants, it would amount to 27.
And the owner of Rose Island, Rachel Rose, was rumored to be really strange. There was rumour that at times she was benign, at times cranky, and at times calm. There were all kinds of rumours, the protagonist of those rumors was an old woman that was shedding tears while seated on an armchair.
Sixties. Her body was too old to be shedding tears. Although she had never thought of herself to be old, but she knew well that she wasn’t in the age to act like a girl. But at this moment, she was feeling flustered like a little girl. Her eyes were looking at the TV screen in front of her. Inside the screen, Jo Minjoon was staring at the camera after naming all twenty of the ingredients.
“……..Isaac, Isaac!”
“Yes, headchef.”
“Stop calling me head chef. When was it that I left the kitchen?”
“Even so, for me you are an eternal head chef.”
Rachel looked at her secretary that was aging with her, with an unsatisfied face, Isaac looked at her with a suspicious face. She had been with her for more than 40 years, but it was the first time she had expressed herself like this after her husband died. So he was rather glad. Because that old girl seemed to have found energy in a long while, Isaac smiled brightly.
“Did you have something you wanted to tell me………?”
“Grand Chef. You will have to contact with the PD of that program. No, that’s not it. I will personally have to do it.”
“Is there a reason that you got suddenly interested in it?”
“We can talk about those things later. Isaac. The most important thing is that I have to meet that youth. The fastest possible.”
“Yes, I will look into it immediately.”
Isaac replied respectfully and left the room. Rachel looked at the screen with her mouth shut. And then, kept repeating the name of the participant she was looking right now.
“Min……Joon.”
< Customer and more customers (3) > End
Translator’s note: Regular chapter! No one so nice to be my new proof reader?????
Thanks for reading and for your support!
Translator : Subak