Chapter 362: Only Looking Ahead (4)
“Oh, I see. So, you can’t.”
“No, I can’t. Sorry. Since I’m busy, I can’t help it. I want to go out there too. It’s a dream for all cooks. To be honest, I wonder if I can compete with others when I go there.”
“I guess you would have done very well, Bruno. Anyway, I’m sorry you can’t go there. If you were Mr. Bruno, you must have done well. I’m sorry you didn’t work anyway. I’ll see you next time.”
“Sure. Good luck!”
Anderson sighed after hanging up the phone. He knew it was hard to find a good chef partner, but it was much harder in reality. He could understand that, too. Since he didn’t discuss it with somebody in advance, it was natural for the person not to easily accept his offer to take part in the Paris compet.i.tion all of a sudden.
Anderson looked away. After they agreed to go to the Paris compet.i.tion, the two were cooking something as a warmup. To be honest, their pairing was perfect, but Anderson didn’t feel good about it because he was so jealous.
“Min-joon, can you check if the potatoes are boiled well?”
“It’s just perfect. Wait. Let me drain them first.”
Saying so, Min-joon took the boiled potatoes through a sieve and handed them to her.
She added boiled potatoes to the pan she was frying bacon and onions on then added white wine and cooked more.
After placing all the ingredients in a gla.s.s bowl, Kaya cut the Reblochon cheese into large chunks to cover the top. Was it because Reblochon cheese was rich in fat? Unlike its very strong flavor, it was not that hard. She put into the oven the tableware covered with cheese that looked like cream at first glance then put her hands on her waist.
Of course, that wasn’t the only thing the two were making now. The other one was chicken cordon bleu. It was popular enough to be called the national snack of France. Chicken b.r.e.a.s.t.s wrapped in Swiss cheese and sliced ham were being baked in the oven, covered with bread crumbs.
What they were cooking in a different pot was also a very popular dish. It was beef bourguignon, namely beef seasoned with wine, garlic, bay leaves, carrots, parsley, onions, thyme, and mushrooms roasted like boiled pork or steamed ribs.
‘Man, are you advertising that you guys are going to the Paris compet.i.tion?’ Anderson thought to himself.
As if they were already trying to satisfy the taste of the French judges, what the two made were all French food. On the other hand, Anderson’s head was throbbing when he thought about France. He told Janet with an air of conceit that he was as pa.s.sionate as anybody else, but he now felt he might not have an opportunity to show his pa.s.sion as much as he could.
Although he felt bitter about it, he could not find any fault with the French dishes that Kaya and Min-joon made now. In fact, he had seen them cooking lots of times, but their cooking chemistry was the best ever beyond description. He once had a strong desire to find a partner like Kaya. At that time, he never thought that a partner like her could transform Min-joon so much.
They were done cooking now.
While setting up the dishes on the table, Kaya said proudly, “Hey, you should know you’re lucky since you can enjoy Chef Reuters’ dishes here.”
“Are you kidding? I can’t find a partner right now because of you. Don’t you know I’m in trouble now?”
“Why are you blaming me for that? So, you should not have said to Min-joon, ‘I won’t have you as my partner’ from the beginning. You get blamed for saying the wrong thing, dude.”
Anderson didn’t feel it necessary to reply, so he grabbed the chicken cordon bleu instead of replying. And he took a bite of it.
‘Man, this tastes so delicious!’
Chicken breast, cheese, ham, and crumbs. To be honest, it would be strange if this didn’t taste delicious with that combination. Besides, it was made luxurious thanks to Kaya and Min-joon’s cooking skills, so he could not compare it with the same dish in general restaurants.
With the olive puree Min-joon made, the cordon bleu tasted so fresh that Anderson felt what he had enjoyed before was nothing compared with this. As if he was deeply touched by the fantastic taste, Anderson shook his head and muttered.
However, the best part of the dish was the Tartiflette. The Tartiflette made from Reblochon cheese. The flavor of the white wine that subtly oozed under the melted cheese and the taste of the cheese itself was so fantastic.
What was interesting was that these dishes were the original food without any special application. Perhaps Kaya and Min-joon must have wanted to feel the French sentiment the most before they went to France, but the addition of their own cooking style to the dish enhanced its original taste surprisingly well.
‘Honestly, I envy their cooking skills.’
He would not feel envious if any individual made it. But Anderson knew better than anyone else how they cooked as usual. So, he could clearly feel how their cooking now was different from what they used to cook together.
Kaya was a partner that helped Min-joon bring out all his potential and do more than he could. When Anderson wondered if he could find a partner like Kaya, he just felt gloomy all the more. He was about to let out a deep sigh when she opened her mouth.
“Have you ever contacted Chloe?”
“About what?”
“She quit broadcasting. If you contact her, she might welcome your offer. And she is also very competent, as you know.”
“Do you want me to suggest to Chloe?”
Feeling awkwardly, Anderson pulled out the phone in his pocket. He had never thought about it because he knew she was so busy with her broadcasting job that he could not contact her for some time. But Kaya suggested he contact her if she could go with him to the Paris compet.i.tion. He hesitantly said, “Do you think Chloe can accept my offer?”
“I think she will.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, I’m positive.”
“Well, she may…”
Kaya shouted, frowning at him, “Stop grumbling and call her, you a.s.sh*le!”
“Got it…”
Anderson pressed Chloe’s number. In fact, even without Kaya pus.h.i.+ng him, he would have called Chloe anyway because he couldn’t find any other person he could turn to. So, it was no exaggeration to say that Chloe was almost his last resort.
He waited anxiously, hearing the beep ringing. Even if she did not pick up the phone, he would not think it strange because she was quite busy. Was it because she stopped her broadcasting job? It didn’t take long for him to hear her voice on the other end.
Her voice was very sleepy as if she was still asleep.
“h.e.l.lo, this is Chloe.”
“I’m Anderson.”
“Hi, Anderson…”
“Were you asleep?”
“Yeah, I have been catching up on sleep that I had lost until now. What’s up?”
“Uh, um. Well…”
Anderson couldn’t bring up the topic readily. It was never easy for him to suggest to her that they go to the Paris compet.i.tion out of the blue after suddenly waking her up, who was in sound sleep. When he thought about what he did to her, he felt it was so absurd.
“Hey, why are you keeping me wondering like this? Do you want to ask me a favor?”
“Well, I’m not sure if I should call it a favor or a suggestion. Did I tell you last time that I was going to the Paris compet.i.tion?”
“Oh, I heard it from Kaya. Why?”
“Well, actually…”
“Man, it’s so frustrating. Hey, Chloe! He called you because he could not find a partner to go there. Help this stupid guy!”
As if she was so frustrated with Anderson who kept hesitating to say what was on his mind, Kaya shouted over the phone.
While Min-joon, who was next to him, was covering both ears with his fingers, Anderson glared at Kaya. Of course, he didn’t feel grateful to Kaya since he was upset.
“Kaya said something, but I couldn’t understand. Can you explain?” Chloe said.
“Can you be my partner at the Paris compet.i.tion?”
“Uh?”
Obviously, she was embarra.s.sed to hear that. Anderson would have felt the same way if she had made such an offer out of the blue.
After all, Anderson sighed as if he was resigned to the situation.
“I’m so ashamed to tell you this, but you are the only one I can turn to right now. Can you be my partner at the upcoming Paris cooking compet.i.tion? Please!”
“…”
Chloe didn’t answer for a long time. Anderson understood Chloe. It was a long compet.i.tion that would take several days or weeks. So, it would be too absurd for him to ask her to make a quick decision right now.
So, he was about to tell her she could have some time to think about his suggestion when she said something.
As if she was completely awake now, she said in a clear voice, “What should I prepare?”
“Oh, you mean you can be my partner?”
“Of course! I’m jobless now. If you call me for something like that, I’ve no reason to decline your offer. I’m rather grateful that you’re calling me.”
“Thanks for telling me that, but…”
“Wait a minute. Let me come to your house right now. Is it okay?”
“Sure, but how about seeing me at Rose Island? I’ve got to go to work now. Since you said so, why don’t you stop by our new restaurant and say hi to Rachel? How about it?”
“Alright. See you later,” Chloe replied in a cheerful voice.
“Okay.” He hung up the phone after replying awkwardly.
He never imagined he would solve the problem of finding a partner, his big headache, so quickly.
“What do you think about Chef Kaya’s wise coaching?” Kaya asked.
“Are you kidding?”
“You have been agonizing because you can’t find your partner, right? Why don’t you express grat.i.tude to me, a.s.sh*le?”
“Why should I thank you? I should thank Chloe.”
“Are you serious? I can beat you guys at the compet.i.tion so devastatingly that you would want to hide anywhere.”
“Yeah, please. I’m not the same chef who lost to you at the Grand Chef compet.i.tion. This time, I won’t allow you to beat me.”
“Well, I think I have been too generous to you these days.”
At first, Kaya responded to him casually, but when he began to challenge her like that, she began to narrow her eyebrows with an angry expression.
Watching them, Min-joon muttered, “It’s like dog chodings.”
‘You guys are so pathetic!’
Anderson and Min-joon, who would have shared their car normally, had to drive their own car perhaps because of quarreling between Anderson and Kaya.