It was unfortunate, but there was no way they were going to Rose Island. Martin finally gave in and gave everybody 150 reals. That was still not enough to eat extravagantly, but if they ate like average people, it would be more than enough to enjoy 3 meals a day.

Im impressed, Rachel. Martin didnt even listen to me when I resisted.

The power of age.

More like the power of authority and money.

Cho Min Joon didnt say that out loud. Anderson opened his mouth.

Rachel, can you tell me what youd like to eat? If you dont want to eat street food, Ill try to cook for you myself.

Thank you for the thought, but since were in Brazil, we should experience the flavors and charms of this country.

Speaking of which, we probably cant see a carnival while were here, can we?

The carnival season already ended half a year ago. They usually have it in February.

Martin spoke in a sad voice and shrugged. Cho Min Joon was disappointed but relieved at the same time. With Cho Min Joons personality, such a vibrant and exciting atmosphere was difficult.

Come to think of it, netizens said Im boring because Im like this.

Of course, some said that was his charm, but he still felt hurt.

Min Joon, what about you?

Sorry?

Where do you want to go? Is there a dish you want to try?

Emily asked in a cheerful voice. She mustve been grateful for his efforts to make sure she got a proper meal the night before. She looked especially friendly. Cho Min Joon shook his head.

Like I said last time, I dont know much about Brazilian food.

Hm What did you think about the Feijoa yesterday?

It was delicious. I actually liked it better than the Churrasco. It was a unique experience.

It was better than the Churrasco? I can get a sense of Min Joons taste.

Rachel nodded. Most people typically enjoyed Churrasco more than Feijoa because it was meat. Not many people disliked meat. On top of that, since it was meat made by a professional with decades of experience, the quality and texture were at a whole different level.

Since Rachel wasnt with them, she didnt know just how delicious the Churrasco and Feijoa were, but she could see what Cho Min Joon valued in food.

Chef. How the thoughts and methods of one were expressed. Rather than Churrasco, such qualities could be better seen in more complicated and detailed dishes.

With extensive knowledge about meat, one could even read the philosophy of a chef just by the way they used the knife, but even if Cho Min Joon possessed great tasting talent, that was hard for him to do at his age. That only resulted from experience.

Take my experience, Min Joon.

Rachel intended to be Cho Min Joons pillar if need be. That was how much she wanted him. Cho Min Joon was a gemstone. Of course, she wasnt the gemstone metal worker, but she knew a well-cut gem when she saw one. She was the wife of one.

Rachel spoke, How about coffee?

Everybody exclaimed and nodded. Brazil was famous for its coffee, so it was surprising that no one brought it up yet. Anderson glanced at Rachel and cautiously opened his mouth. He looked like an interviewee who was cautiously speaking at a job interview.

Coffee and brunch Come to think of it, we cant do brunch since we need to have all 3 meals in a day. Then how about a Brazilian breakfast?

What does that look like?

Cho Min Joon only knew English breakfast and American breakfast. Anderson shrugged and answered, Cheese, coldcut, roasted cheese, fruits, cereal, Pao de Queijo, as well as orange or banana cake. Not all of that has to be included, but you can choose. But you get the idea.

Im in.

Emily said. Rachel and Anderson looked at Cho Min Joon. Cho Min Joon raised both hands.

I dont know much, so what can I say? Ill just follow your lead.

Great. Lets go. But Rachel, do you have a restaurant in mind?

There is, but Ive been there maybe 10 years ago I dont know if they still exist. That old mans even older than me.

She was sad that she was at an age where she had to talk about death. Rachel smiled bitterly and then closed her mouth. She showed a straight face. Her face made Cho Min Joon think. He wondered if the wrinkles of elders were sad to look at because that was just how many people they had to send away.

Just the thought of how many people she mustve lost to have all those wrinkles at 60 made his heart sink.

Luckily, the restaurant Rachel was thinking of was only 10 minutes away, but that was considering Rachels pace. If it was Cho Min Joon or Anderson, they wouldve arrived after 5 minutes.

But there was an upside to walking slow. They were able to enjoy the scenery that they passed by. There was nothing special about the buildings. They saw many antique buildings, but they could see plenty of that in Europe or America.

What caught their attention more was the people. Brazil tended to be home to a variety of races, but the sight of darker-skinned people chatting away underneath parasols left the strongest impression.

Min Joon, you said you havent traveled much, right?

Thats right.

You did the right thing coming on this show. Its hard for celebrities since too many TV appearances gets rid of their scarcity, but were chefs, not celebrities. Chefs only lose scarcity when their dishes become unwanted. You know many three-star restaurants dont pass their second evaluation, right?

Many people dont want the star because of the burden.

Anderson jumped into the conversation. Rachel nodded with a soft look on her face

Thats true. Its rare that the reason behind losing the stars is because of lack of flavor. Its three stars. Unless the head chef changes, the basic quality still stands, but they still lose stars anyway. Think about it. What do you think the problem is?

Cho Min Joon fell deep into thought. It was as Rachel said. Unless the head chef changed, the standard of the kitchen didnt change. If they still lost stars, what did that mean? After much thought, he came to an answer, but Anderson opened his mouth first.

Is it because of inertia?

Tell me more.

As soon as a restaurant gets 3 stars, theyre known as the very best. In other words, their menu is the very best. So its hard for the head chef, owner, or the menu to change. If that keeps them from changing maybe the evaluation would get stricter, too.

Speaking as a food critic, thats very much the case. Theres no charm if the chefs kitchen doesnt evolve. How would you feel if your lover wore the same clothes every single day and didnt even show the effort to try on a different outfit? Right?

Emily jumped in as well. It was a very feminine comparison, but he understood. Rachel flicked her finger.

Thats it right there. What a food-critic-like thing to say. However, the chef has no choice either. They worry that if they try on a different outfit people wont think they look pretty anymore. Thats why this moment is important.

What does that have to do with this?

If you put a lot of effort in one field, youre bound to go in deeper, but if you want to enter various fields, you need extensive experience. The more food cultures they experience, the more itll help them later on because their knowledge becomes vaster. Its much better to come up with recipes in a broader world than a narrow one.

Cho Min Joon answered Rachels question in a mumbling voice, and Martin felt strange seeing that. This was a variety show, but it suddenly sounded like a documentary, but it wasnt a bad picture. Variety shows were supposed to be entertaining, not funny. He thought he could make it fun if he edited it right.

10 minutes passed by in no time thanks to the conversation. They arrived at a one-story building. The walls were made of red bricks, and the door was a white plastic. On top of that, the roof was made of ceramic. The building looked as though a little kid designed it.

It wasnt overflowing with customers, but there werent many empty tables, and most of them were locals rather than tourists. After all, they all seemed to wear clothes that they threw on while at home. Emily nodded in satisfaction.

Its best to go to a local restaurant than a touristy one.

Rachel didnt answer and looked around the kitchen. An employee approached and spoke in broken English,

If you take a seat, Ill take your order soon.

No, actually Is Douglas here?

Rachel answered in the Portuguese language. The employee answered with a brighter face. This time, she also spoke in Portuguese, Douglas? Oh, are you our former boss friend?

Former?

Oh, dont worry. He didnt leave or anything. He retired and is resting. He does come out from time to time But Im not sure if hell be here today.

Whos the boss now?

Douglas daughter. Camellia

Oh I see.

Rachel answered with a strange face and sat in her seat. She was worried he was dead, but maybe she also expected him to be in the kitchen like old times. But then again, she had retired and left her restaurant as well. She smiled and looked at everyone.

You wanted to try a Brazilian breakfast, right? Let me know if youd like something else. Theres a menu I recommend and one you should avoid at all costs.

Didnt you bring us here because its good?

Just because the face is pretty means the body is pretty, too.

Cho Min Joon ordered the Brazilian breakfast nervously. He also ordered the Feijoa. He wanted to experience the touching feelings he felt when he had Emilys yesterday. The cost was reasonable, too. It was only 25 reals.

That Churrasco place yesterday was expensive.

He understood since it was a buffet by the beach. At the same time, he realized that he had to go where the land was cheap in order to serve customers at a good price with good ingredients.

But maybe if the land is cheap, there wont be many customers around

Whatever the case, that wasnt for him to worry about now. The employee brought out plates. The price depended on what was included in the Brazilian breakfast, but Cho Min Joon ordered the most basic one. He wanted to taste the breakfast of a typical Brazilian person, and he also worried that the Feijoa would fill him up.

Cho Min Joon looked at the plate in front of him. There was a Portuguese style bread, the back leg of a pig, a bread consisting of papaya and cheese, as well as a mozzarella cheese corn cake.

The first thing he ate was the Pao de Queijo. The name was unfamiliar, but the flavor felt familiar. The bread tasted like sticky rice breads, and he tasted the cheese from in between. The scent of the cheese was nice. The cooking score was 6. It wasnt that impressive, but

I cant stop eating it.

It wasnt that delicious, but it had a strange charm and addictiveness to it, but he couldnt keep eating that. There were only a few, and he had to taste the other food as well.

He also tasted the rolled bread with mozzarella cheese, but there was nothing special. Cho Min Joon then stared at the Feijoa. He then glanced at the other three.

I hope they dont think Im weird.

Cho Min Joon poured the Feijoa over the bread. But at that moment, the other three all stared at him. Did they think he was being disgraceful? Cho Min Joon smiled awkwardly. Emily spoke in a surprised voice, Min Joon, do you like to pour soup over your bread?

Why do you ask?

Hm Dont you prefer to dip them? The texture you get when you dip the bread in the soup. When the bread is covered in a thinner layer of soup, the flavor is much better.

Im not sure. Not much soup gets on using that method, and its bothersome trying to catch some of the contents. Most importantly, I feel like I can taste the soup better when I pour it. Anderson, what do you think?

You have to dip it. Thats much easier. If you pour the soup on bread, you could get it on your fingers.

Cho Min Joon chewed on his bread with a sad look on his face. Rachel smiled and said, I also like to pour it. I hate it when the breadcrumbs get in the soup.

Oh, at least I have one person on my side.

Cho Min Joon smiled in response to Rachels save. Anderson coughed and said, Come to think of it, I tend to pour it more often than dip it. Its more delicious despite the discomfort. And like you said, I dont like breadcrumbs in my soup

The other three glanced at Anderson. Anderson looked away and thought, We all have different taste.