Thump, thump, thump!
Tapping lightly on the table, Rindo noted the sound was deep and even — as warm and smooth as fine mahogany.
She leaned closer, taking a light sniff: the wood still carried a faint, comforting fragrance.
Her sharp gaze roamed around the tavern, taking in the massive changes.
Everywhere she looked, there were thoughtful, meticulous touches: the warm lighting, the mixture of ancient and slightly modern elements…
The entire space radiated a timeless elegance.
It made Rindo's eyes widen in admiration.
"Did Chef Zane really close the tavern last night just to pull off all this?" she wondered.
Blinking in disbelief, Rindo finally found her voice.
"Chef Zane, you… shut down yesterday just to renovate?"
"As you can see," Zane replied with a shrug, not taking much credit. "Turned out alright, didn't it?"
At that moment, he placed a steaming bowl before her: an extra-large beef bowl, piled high.
Rindo sniffed the rich aroma and smiled in satisfaction.
"Not bad," she said honestly, "At first, I thought I'd walked into the wrong place!"
Indeed, the upgraded tavern felt entirely new — not just from the rearranged tables, the updated cooking stations, or the subtly modernized wall decor.
It was something deeper: a warmth that narrowed the distance between chef and customer, wrapping each guest in a familiar feeling of home.
…
Rice!
Fresh, tender, and subtly sweet.
Beef!
Melt-in-your-mouth soft, rich without being greasy.
Rindo scooped up a mouthful of the beef bowl, and the sensation hit her all at once.
The sweetness of the rice, mingling with the milky, savory richness of the beef — it was overwhelming.
A profound, satisfying warmth began to bloom inside her.
"Hmm?"
"This beef bowl is… the real deal," she mumbled between bites.
Without any hesitation, she lifted the bowl closer and dug in.
"I get it now," she said, eyes sparkling, "The key is the sauce — it pulls out the full, deep Japanese flavor from just a few slices of beef over rice!"
Her appetite fully awakened, Rindo abandoned any pretense of elegance.
Holding the bowl in one hand, she shoveled in bite after bite, the delicious aroma wafting around her, causing other patrons nearby to gulp hungrily.
To Rindo, this sensation could be summed up in one word:
Thrilling.
…
For self-proclaimed carnivores like her, few things were as satisfying as tender beef.
Whether it was standard fatty cuts or top-grade Wagyu slices —
The creamy richness of the fat, combined with the meat's soft texture, could easily drive someone to bliss.
This beef bowl in front of her was no exception.
The beef slices were thin, cut just right, packed densely atop each mound of rice — every bite was a delight.
When the juicy beef, sweet onions, and sauce-soaked rice mixed together in her mouth, the layers of salty, rich, and sweet flavors balanced perfectly.
And importantly: the rice wasn't just a filler — it anchored the whole dish, soaking up all the flavorful juices.
Before she knew it, the extra-large bowl was empty.
"Burp~"
Rindo leaned back with a happy groan.
"I get sushi being that good… but I never expected even a beef bowl could be this addictive!"
Rubbing her stomach (still only about one-third full), she marveled aloud.
It was true —
Only when someone was truly hungry, and ate Zane's cooking, could they understand the purest joys of life.
Curious, she blinked up at him and asked, "Chef Zane, can you tell me how you made that special sauce?"
Zane smiled lightly.
"Sauce recipes always vary by the chef," he began.
"But my base mix for the Japanese sauce is about 30ml sake, 7ml mirin, 15g sugar, 20ml dark soy sauce, and 250ml water."
Hearing this, Rindo nodded thoughtfully.
"Sounds kind of like teriyaki sauce, doesn't it?"
"No," Zane corrected, shaking his head gently.
"There's an important difference."
"There are two critical ingredients you can't skip — kombu and bonito flakes."
"Kombu?" Rindo raised an eyebrow.
"Right," Zane continued patiently. "Kombu is rich in glutamic acid, which creates a deep umami flavor."
"As a chef, you know — most commercial seasonings rely on monosodium glutamate, which is a form of glutamic acid."
"It's the same idea: the kombu naturally boosts the dish's umami."
"But that's not enough. You also need bonito flakes."
Rindo, clever as ever, immediately caught on.
"Bonito flakes… their umami isn't glutamic acid, right? Isn't it — inosinate?"
"Exactly!" Zane's eyes glinted in approval.
"That's IMP — inosinic acid."
"Glutamic acid and inosinic acid are different amino acids. Alone, inosinate doesn't taste super strong… but when combined with glutamic acid, it amplifies the umami sensation dramatically."
"This reaction is known as 'umami nucleotides.'"
"Using kombu and bonito flakes together creates an effect where 1 + 1 becomes greater than 2."
…
Rindo sat there, stunned.
Slowly rubbing her chin, she felt a wave of admiration.
Most people, herself included, focused mainly on beef quality and rice texture when making beef bowls.
But Zane…
He focused not just on ingredients, but on the very science behind flavor.
He had mastered even the fine details of sauce balance, building the perfect foundation that elevated the entire dish.
The sweet onions, the lightly salty sauce, the mild rice wine aroma…
If one slowed down and tasted carefully, they'd realize —
this flavor profile wasn't so different from certain Guangdong-style dishes from the Tian Dynasty.
Maybe that's why, when she first tasted it, Rindo felt an instant sense of familiarity.
Finally, after downing a glass of cold, crisp sake —
the clean finish, the layered richness —
Rindo closed her eyes, utterly exhilarated.