My Lady Chef
Chapter 41: Noontime Meal at the Palace

Ely's POV:

Holy mother of pudding.

I was so excited to see how a professional royal kitchen works but there were just some sloppy plating and food handling that I can spot in just a few seconds I have watched the Royal Head Chef work. To a person without any culinary training, it looks fine but to me.....

It was a disaster.

The head chef mostly yells at them to hurry up and dump whatever dish they have for that course on the plate, garnish it sloppily, and allow the female servers to take it. He did not delegate nor does he provide instructions clearly to his sous chef, line cooks, and the garnishing team.

As a result, every appetizer had either way too little garnish or nothing at all. The soup was not properly drained of the scum as I can see small amounts clinging to the mouths of the bowls. The main courses were supposed to look beautiful but they were just laid out like how one lays food on a buffet plate.

Uninspiring. Ugh....

As a former head chef of 2 French bistros, my master would have demoted Chef Pepin to the potato peeler boy if he saw this mess.

No wonder luncheon takes 2 hours to do. The inefficiency of the back of the kitchen was abhorrent and it made me think that Neo was a wasted talent in this kitchen. "Mi-milady? Are you ill?" Neo asked me.

"I was just observing how Chef Pepin runs a service. How disappointing... " I sighed softly before I smiled at the young cook. "Let's finish up here. Shall we?"

He blushed a bit as he nodded.

I took out the tray of four perfectly shaped mini cheesecakes from the cooling area and sprinkled a bit of water mana to keep it creamy.

Neo's eyes were glued to my every move as I plated the small desserts with finesse, used a star-shaped piping bag to pipe in simple swirls around the cake edges, and carefully ladling the thick puree into the top, and then placing a strawberry rose surrounded by little berries.

Perfection.

"This is... This...is..." the young cook's eyes were shining as I gave him the forceps.

"Now let me guide you into doing the top decorations. Let us begin." I smiled at how he eagerly listen to my instructions and tried to replicate my work.

Belmont's POV:

I watched as dishes rolled in as noontime meal began.

My eyes went to Ezran who was checking the surroundings now and then.

Odd. It seems like his wife has not told him of her arrival but....she did appear before me after getting lost and ended up in the royal kitchen building.

Her beauty was not the only thing that intrigued me but the way she stood up for that young male cook. The way her honesty and righteousness shone from the depths of her real eyes were mesmerizing. She was passionate and confident about making not one but two different cheesecakes for today's noontime meal.

Such spirit combined with her looks was a very tempting combination. But that bravado can only keep a man's interest for a short time...unless she does have the skills to back it up.

"No news from your wife?" I decided to tease my friend who merely sipped his soup twice before he asked for it to be taken away.

I tasted my soup and it seems fine...except for a few globs of small scum that was not noticeable to the eyes.

"She should have been here hours ago. " was all Ez said as his red eyes glared at the next dish.

Salmon Steak with Lemon Butter Sauce with herb Potatoes.

Filet Mignon with Red Wine Sauce.

These two entrees were some of the best food I have had but as usual, Ezran ate one bite before having the servants take it away as he mumbled incoherently.

"What was that?" I teased him again and he just scowled at me.

"Nothing." He then sipped more wine as he looked at the delegates joining us for the noontime meal.

Both were foreign representatives from the Exotic Lands. One was from a small country called Ryo whose traditional sweets, ornate combs, and kimono silks were becoming popular among the ladies while the other was from a group of islands called Silang; they are pretty famous for their exotic fruits and unique seafood.

They each wore unique clothing for males. The Ryo delegate favors dark kimonos with an overcoat and it was tied together with a wide belt called an obi along with these unique wooden sandals.

The other delegate was more tanned and muscled but he was wearing an embroidered colorful jacket that reaches until his midriff and loose pants with an equally colorful sash wrapped around his waist. His headdress was a more muted color and held his hair back from his eyes.

Both had interpreters with them as they conversed with the king himself.

While this continent is at war with several of its neighbors; my father has been steadily wooing delegates from the Exotic Lands to expand our trade routes and enrich new items that can attract more capital for our kingdom.

But so far, from the looks of the delegate's expression. They are still withholding the agreement from my father.

After the har player entertained us for quite a while, Soon it was time for the desserts to be brought to the table.

Somehow I found myself becoming nervous. My father has a weakness and that was cakes; his favorite was the Aubergine cheesecake and usually, if he was not fed his favorite during the noon meal, you can be sure that he will be in a bad mood for the rest of the week.

But then I saw the young male cook instruct the female servers to bring us each the cakes.

"What is this...?" My father stared at two cakes on display.☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐