Waiting for the Delicacy

By Wei Rongchi

Waiting for the Delicacy

By Wei Rongchi

R.J.Guo, a legendary Chinese American pastry chef, made his desserts a household name and the top choice at parties and events for people from many different social classes in just several years. It’s believed that it’s not only the taste that makes Guo’s dessert so popular—but that there is also some unknown secret to his success.

Once at a business gathering, some people asked Guo to share his secret of success. To reply, Guo told a story.

When Guo opened his first pastry shop in Boston, he had a very thriving business. If such a trend continued, he would inevitably develop a chain of stores. One day, when Guo was studying a new type of rice cake dessert, he realized that the rice used for dessert could only be found in China.However, if he left the shop and went to China for the rice, it might affect the business. Finally, he bought a flight back to China and closed the shop for some time.

美國有一位傳奇華裔甜點師郭榮錦，他僅僅花了幾年時間就讓他的甜品聞名美國，成為各階層人士舉辦派對慶典的首選。人們認為郭榮錦的甜品如此大熱，美味是一方面，除此之外，他一定有不為人知的商業秘訣。

一次聚會中，不少商界人士希望郭榮錦能分享一下他的秘訣，郭榮錦于是講起了他的一個故事。

幾年前，郭榮錦在波士頓開了第一家甜品店，生意十分興隆，照這個速度下去，很快就能開連鎖店了。有一天，郭榮錦在研制新的年糕甜品時，發現制作年糕的米只有在中國才能找到。可問題是，如果他這時去中國尋找食材，好不容易攢起來的門店人氣將會直線跌落，生意也會變差。不過，郭榮錦還是毫不猶豫地訂了一張飛往中國的機票，并讓甜品店暫停營業。

It took him two months to get the raw materials he needed. He got the rice for the dessert after traveling 200 km and arriving at a village in Longji. This town was situated on the rice terraces in Guilin, Guangxi Province.During that trip, he heard that there was delicious and authentic honey in Yunnan. So he took a 3-hour flight, 3-hour ride,and then walked for another three hours to buy pure wild honey for his desserts in a remote village in Ximeng County, Pu’er City, Yunnan.

When he got everything he needed and returned to America, he finally made authentic Chinese rice cake desserts, though a number of customers had left. His clientele was restored a year later.

After this, something surprising happened. In the following years,he would return to China and find materials for months at times, but his business was never affected in the same way as the first time. On the contrary, there would be more customers every time he returned to Boston. What happened?

When Guo prepared the dessert, he put all his efforts in it. The carefully selected raw materials and exquisite craftsmanship received recognition from the customers. The customers do not think it’s a bad thing for Guo to leave the shop, but rather they are happy for his adventure. They knew every time when Guo comes back, there will be some new and tasty dessert. For such quality, they’re willing to wait several months for his delicacies. ◆

(From Chaozhou Daily, April 5, 2017.Translation:Li Li)

這次食材的尋找，花了兩個月時間。他繞道兩百公里，來到桂林龍脊梯田一個村落，找到了制作年糕的米。同時他又聽說云南有更美味、地道的蜂蜜，于是，他又坐三小時飛機、三小時汽車，最后步行三小時，到云南普洱市西盟縣的偏遠山村，收購到適合制作該年糕甜品的純野生蜂蜜。

食材找齊回到美國后，他成功地做出了地道的年糕甜品。但此刻甜品店的顧客也流失了不少，直到一年多后才回到最初的客流量。

不過，令人詫異的事情發生了。之后的幾年里，他三番五次地花數月時間去國外尋找食材，但他的甜品店生意卻再沒變差過，反而在郭榮錦每一次回來時還有一段時間小爆發。這是怎么回事呢？

原來，因為郭榮錦把心血灌注到每一份甜品中，食材、做工的精致講究，讓產品得到了顧客的認可。顧客們非但不認為郭榮錦離開幾個月有多不好，反而會因為郭榮錦的離開而高興，因為他們知道，每次郭榮錦回來，一定會制作出口感更佳、前所未有的甜品。所以，人們愿意為了這份精品等待數月。◆

（摘自《潮州日報》2017年4月5日）

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