God-Given Business Genius - Chapter 217

Kim Jun-seo awkwardly sat down across from me, fidgeting.

Even his demeanor reminded me of a child trying to avoid scolding, which made me inwardly sigh.

Suppressing these thoughts, I opened my mouth.

"Owner, why did you choose rice balls for your menu?"

"Pardon?"

"There are many other options. I'm curious about your reason for choosing rice balls."

"...Well, I thought people would seek out simple food items."

His carefully considered answer was entirely off the mark.

"While it's true that they're simple food, rice balls are closer to street food. This location is quite remote for market customers, so it might be better to target the market vendors..."

In a market with a relatively high average age, sweet-tasting rice balls were unlikely to be a preferred menu item.

"It seems you've misanalyzed the market from the start."

"......"

"It might be popular among younger people. But it doesn't seem like a good lunch option for market vendors who need to eat here every day."

Some might consider it insufficient for a full meal.

Above all, market vendors are price-sensitive customers. Unless it's a menu item difficult to make at home like soup rice, they're likely to consider buying rice balls a waste of money.

Especially since there's nothing particularly distinctive about the menu.

"Is there any other reason?"

"Ah, yes."

Kim Jun-seo rolled his eyes before cautiously speaking.

"It also has a good turnover rate."

Rice balls?

"Who told you that?"

"No one told me. It's just my thought..."

From the beginning, nothing he's said has been accurate.

"When an order for rice balls comes in, you make each one individually, right?"

"Yes."

"Then it must be quite labor-intensive?"

"Y-yes."

"So why do you think rice balls have a good turnover rate?"

"......"

Unable to provide a clear explanation, Kim Jun-seo kept his mouth shut. He probably hadn't given it much concrete thought.

"With a menu item like tteokbokki, you just need to serve what's already prepared. That's what a good turnover rate means."

As I calmly explained, Kim Jun-seo quickly added an excuse, seemingly upset about something.

"I thought if we prepared rice balls in advance, the turnover rate would be okay..."

"Prepare rice balls in advance? Really?"

"Yes."

I was momentarily speechless.

I didn't know where to begin explaining. I swallowed another sigh that was about to escape.

"Owner, if you run your business like this, it's going to be a real disaster."

Kim Jun-seo closed his mouth tightly and looked at me. I could almost feel his unspoken dissatisfaction.

He seemed to dislike my sudden appearance and meddling.

"First of all, rice balls are likely to spoil quickly in the summer heat, so you shouldn't prepare them in advance. Even kimbap goes bad quickly at room temperature, right? It's similar."

While they could be refrigerated and then served, not many people prefer cold rice balls.

There's no way to prevent rice balls from spoiling other than making them quickly and consuming them rapidly.

"Also, rice easily changes in taste and texture over time. Especially with rice balls where rice is the main ingredient. If left out, the rice will either harden or become mushy."

As I continued speaking, shadows fell across Kim Jun-seo's face.

He was openly giving me looks. His eyes seemed to say, 'Isn't this enough already?'

Who does he think he is?

There's a limit to how lightly one should take others. Ignoring his look, I continued.

"Moreover, you saw the cheese dakgalbi rice ball just now. It fell apart after being left out for a short while."

With the current method, it was certain that pre-made rice balls wouldn't all be sold.

So, everything Kim Jun-seo said was completely wrong from start to finish.

It seemed he didn't even properly understand the characteristics of rice balls as a menu item.

"It's not usually like that."

"What did you say?"

When I asked again, Kim Jun-seo answered in a slightly stronger tone.

"I said it doesn't usually fall apart like that."

What nonsense.

"Did you just make a mistake today?"

"Yes."

Kim Jun-seo answered forcefully. If he's going to insist this was just a mistake, I really have nothing more to say.

If he had used a standardized recipe from the start, this wouldn't have happened. I could roughly guess how inconsistent the taste of the rice balls had been until now.

'It's the most common mistake novice owners make.'

Inconsistent taste.

That itself is a huge point deduction. Who would want to visit a restaurant where the food taste is hit or miss?

"Owner, even if that's true, how can you serve food with mistakes to customers?"

"Aren't mistakes inevitable for humans?"

Kim Jun-seo retorted without backing down. If he's going to be like this, I have no choice but to respond in kind.

"Then make it again."

"......"

"Right now. You know it's not a mistake from the second time, right? Make the cheese dakgalbi rice ball again. Let's see if it doesn't fall apart when left at room temperature."

At my words, Kim Jun-seo seemed to contemplate for a moment before nodding.

As I watched Kim Jun-seo's back as he turned towards the kitchen, I slowly caught my breath.

'I really have aged.'

Before my regression, I had a much fiercer temper when I was younger. Because of that, I often clashed with franchisees.

Later, whether it was because I had fewer opportunities to be on the field directly, or because I had gotten older, I rarely raised my voice.

I almost shouted loudly for the first time in a while. I struggled to maintain my composure.

Not long after, Kim Jun-seo came out with a new rice ball.

Thud.

"Here."

Kim Jun-seo spoke in a tone that barely concealed his irritation as he placed the new cheese dakgalbi rice ball in front of me.

"I'll observe it for 10 minutes. Let's see if it falls apart or not."

"Go ahead."

His tone was somehow confident. Was it really just a mistake today?

That can't be. That messy skill couldn't have changed in such a short time. But how can he be so confident?

As these questions crossed my mind, I quickly found the answer.

"...Wait a moment."

Could it be?

I put on my gloves again and picked up the rice ball.

And the moment I slightly pressed and split the rice ball, I could guess why Kim Jun-seo had been so confident.

"Owner, did you make this with the same recipe as before?"

As I looked at him sharply, Kim Jun-seo flinched.

"The texture of the rice is different."

When I pressed it firmly with my hand, unlike before, I could clearly see that the rice was sticky like rice cake.

This isn't something that can be achieved just by kneading diligently. It was clear that something had been mixed into the rice.

"Did you add starch? Like glutinous rice flour or cornstarch?"

"......"

Taking a bite immediately made it even clearer.

"You added glutinous rice flour, didn't you? Am I right?"

Kim Jun-seo averted his eyes. He looked like he had been caught red-handed.

"Don't lie. You know there are cameras installed in the kitchen over there, right? If we replay the recording, it will show immediately."

The broadcast will probably show footage of Kim Jun-seo mixing in glutinous rice flour as supplementary material.

While clearly pointing out how something had changed compared to the previous cooking process.

Without thinking about that, he tried to lie right here to protect his pride.

"I'll ask again. Is this rice ball made with the same recipe as the first one?"

"...No, it's not."

"You mixed in glutinous rice flour, right?"

Kim Jun-seo answered with his eyes tightly shut.

"Yes."

As I thought.

"Owner, you said earlier that it doesn't usually fall apart. Then why didn't you use the same recipe and instead mixed glutinous rice flour into the rice?"

"...I usually mix in a little glutinous rice flour."

Another lie.

"If you had used glutinous rice flour before, you wouldn't make rice balls like this. Owner, have you tasted this?"

I continued, pointing at the cheese dakgalbi rice ball.

"If you use too much glutinous rice flour, the texture changes to be like rice cake. This is exactly like that. If used moderately, it would make the rice sticky and easy to shape, but this is excessive and has completely changed the texture of the rice."

"......"

"Try tasting it."

At my words, Kim Jun-seo hesitated for a moment before cautiously taking a bite of the rice ball.

As soon as he bit into it, he slightly furrowed his brow, probably feeling the rice grains sticking to his teeth.

"How is it? Is this the taste of the rice balls you usually make?"

"...No."

"Are you going to say this is a mistake too? That you accidentally added too much glutinous rice flour?"

"......"

"You know that if a mistake happens twice, it's no longer just a mistake, right?"

At that point, it becomes a matter of skill.

Kim Jun-seo looked aggrieved but didn't open his mouth to argue. That was at least a wise decision. If he had spoken more, he would have been criticized even more harshly.

"Owner, everything you've been saying doesn't add up at all."

Saying rice balls have a good turnover rate.

When I pointed that out, he said they could be prepared in advance, and when I pointed out that the rice ball fell apart quickly, he said it was made incorrectly.

"No matter what I say, you only make excuses. This way, I can't offer any solutions. How can I? You're saying there's nothing wrong and it's all just a mistake for today."

Kim Jun-seo, having nothing to say, hung his head low.

"You need to acknowledge your mistakes to move forward."

"...Yes."

But his face doesn't look like he means 'yes' at all. The displeasure on Kim Jun-seo's expression was clearly visible.

He doesn't seem to recognize his own faults, and his face shows that he's just unhappy about being lectured.

It didn't seem like anything would change even if I kept him here longer, so it might be better to wrap this up and move on to the next store.

"I think you need to seriously consider whether you really need to make rice balls, and why. For food trucks, the external appearance is actually very important. Or, if you think about various rice ball recipes, you might come up with some ideas. Things like cheese dakgalbi have an element of showmanship too..."

That's when it happened.

Kim Jun-seo couldn't hold back anymore and spoke up.

"Do I have to come up with the recipes myself?"